Zimbabwe’s Ruling Party Grills Economy Heads, Independent Says
Zimbabwe’s Ruling Party Grills Economy Heads, Independent Says
The ruling Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front party summoned Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube and Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Governor John Mangudya to explain the country’s economic meltdown, the Zimbabwe Independent reported.
Members of Zanu-PF’s most-senior decision-making body are concerned that the economy’s collapse -- marked by inflation of 766% and a currency collapse -- threaten the party’s popularity and could cost it the 2023 elections, the Harare-based newspaper reported.
The two officials told the party’s leaders at a closed-door session of the politburo that there is little they can do unless the government comes up with an economic-recovery strategy, the newspaper said. Patrick Chinamasa, Zanu-PF’s secretary for finance and acting spokesman for the party, said he wasn’t immediately able to comment on the Zimbabwe Independent story when contacted on Friday.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa has blamed the economy’s woes on the private sector. He told the same meeting of the politburo that the country’s currency, reintroduced last year, was under attack, Zimbabwe Independent said. The Zimbabwe dollar is trading at 90 per U.S dollar on the black market, according to marketwatch.co.zw, nearly four times above the official peg of 25.
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