HARARE, Jan 27, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – An ecstatic Zimbabwean passenger Shylot
Sibanda screams with joy as he boards a bus from downtown Harare to the
township of Budiriro. The fare has been slashed to a third of what he paid
last week.
It’s the result of government action — after nationwide demonstrations
over fuel hikes earlier this month — in a country suffering from spiralling
inflation and regular shortages of necessities.
Under pressure following international criticism of its brutal put-down of
the protests, the government has scrambled to revive its public transport
company Zupco after years of mismanagement and corruption.
“We are happy with what the government has done and we hope it continues,”
Sibanda, 40, yelled through an open window as the bus pulled out of the busy
terminus.
“Now we can afford to buy some food and pay rent and we are very happy,”
he added, beaming.
Hard-pressed Zimbabweans took to the streets in several cities and towns
after President Emmerson Mnangagwa announced on January 12 that fuel prices
were being more than doubled.
Rioting and looting followed before soldiers and police brutally put down
the protests at the cost of at least 12 lives, according to NGOs.
Hundreds of people were injured, including dozens from bullet wounds, and
allegations of abuse and rape have been levelled at security forces.
Now, the Zupco revival means passengers can pay just $1 on a bus rather
than the $3 being charged recently by mini-buses run by private operators
known as kombis.
In recent years Zupco has run only a small number of buses, mainly on
long-distance routes, having been displaced in urban areas by kombis.
But since January 21, the government has hastily augmented Zupco’s much-
depleted fleet.
An AFP team took a ride on one such bus to Budiriro. An armed soldier and
an armed policeman sat in the front rows. Another stood in the aisle.
“We just boarded the bus and paying $3 has come to an end,” said one
pleased passenger, Nomatter Nyakurwa.
Zimbabweans have in recent months seen prices spiral — up to fourfold in
some instances.
Inflation is officially at 42 percent, the highest in a decade, but in
reality it is far higher.
“Prices have increased two, three times and these are the prices we see
daily in the shops,” said independent economist Persistence Gwanyanya.
– Highest inflation in a decade –
The cost of living has been rising at a rate unseen in the landlocked
country since the meltdown in 2008 when hyperinflation forced the government
to trash its own currency.
The government said the reintroduction of the state-run commuter services
was to bring order to an industry dominated by kombis for decades.
Kombi operators complain, however, that the government has priced them out
of the market, in a move seen by some critics as populist and unsustainable.
“Our immediate concern was to make sure we control the chaos that we were
now having,” said Transport Minister Joel-Biggie Matiza, referring to the
recent sharp increase in kombi fares.
But “it’s not for short term, this is real, it’s going to continue, we
will make sure that it’s sustainable and at the same time viable”, he told
AFP.
The kombi operators — notorious for reckless driving and disregard for
rules of the road — complain they are being unfairly put out of business.
“The government only subsidised fuel for the buses. They should do the
same for our small commuter taxis… so that our fares remain at $1,” said
kombi driver David Muchada as he touted for passengers.
Another kombi driver who refused to give his name for fear of being
targeted by the military in the ongoing security crackdown, said he had not
carried any passenger for eight hours.
“How are we expected to look after our families? There are no other jobs
in this country,” he said.
– ‘Elephant in the room’ –
At the terminus, police and soldiers supervised the movement of buses and
passengers.
Elsewhere on the streets, security forces continue to patrol amid reports
of ongoing violence, with more than 1,100 people arrested.
The government meanwhile faces an uphill task to lift the economy out of
the doldrums. Less than 10 percent of the employable population have formal
jobs — and most of those are in government.
Government workers have also threatened to down tools if their demands for
better salaries are not met. The deadline for government to comply expired
Friday.
Economists warn that if government bows to the civil servants’ demands,
the economy could suffer even more serious inflationary pressures.
“The elephant in the room at the moment is the exchange rate,” said
Gwanyanya, blaming the government for excessive expenditure.
If the exchange rate is not managed properly, “we are going to see this
economy getting deeper and deeper into challenges and instability”, he said.
Ousted President Robert Mugabe in 2016 introduced a quasi currency called
bond notes, which is officially pegged at the same rate as the dollar — but
in real terms is worth around a third of the dollar.