Charm Offensive:Govt to buy more vehicles for security sector

Harare- GOVERNMENT has ‘appeased’ the security sector and promised to accelerate the acquisition of operational vehicles for members in the middle management rank.

This development was announced by Finance minister Mthuli Ncube at a press conference held in the capital Monday.

“Government has accelerated the acquisition of operational vehicles for middle management in the security sector” he said.

Adding:

“Government values the critical role played by the security services in the economy.

“Substantial progress has been made in ensuring competitive remuneration and general improvement of the conditions of service for members in the security sector.
“Government has introduced military salary concept and its equivalent, across the security cluster, covering various categories of benefits.”

The security sector has always been the major beneficiary in government’s reviews of civil service members’ working conditions.

The Second Republic owes it’s existence to a military intervention that toppled the late former president Robert Mugabe in 2017 hence the sector is always well rewarded, analysts have said.

“It is natural to know where your bread is buttered.

“You cannot afford to have restive members of the security sector.

“Remember the Second Republic was born out of a military intervention and therefore the security sector remains a key pillar,” said a political analyst who preffered anonymity.

Ncube also announced the upward review of civil servants salaries. The salaries were increased by 100 % effective July 1.

Serving members of the Civil Service have a housing loan scheme and access to the duty free importation of a single motor vehicle for personal use.

He also made emphasis on the upward review for health workers salaries following last week’s strike by nurses and doctors which paralysed the health delivery system.

“With particular regard to the Health Services Sector, government has reviewed upwards,” said Ncube.

The bespectacled minister also retained the United States dollar as legal tender to stem runaway inflation and restore confidence in the economy.

“As part of the measures to stabilise the economy, the multicurrency system will be legislated into law and USD will be a legal tender in Zimbabwe for the duration of the NDS1 period,” he said.

He also scrapped levy on diesel and reduced it on petrol to stabilise prices.

Since his ascention to power, President Emmerson Mnangagwa   has made frantic efforts introducing a raft of measures to tackle the worsening economic crisis with inflation topping 191%.

The government blames market indiscipline for causing rising inflation.

To give credence to this claim, the official rate is ZWL355 per US dollar but on the black market it hovers around between ZWL500 and ZWL 570.

Some senior officials at the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe are accused of causing the chaos and fuelling the forex black market.

Rogue Zimbabwe Stock Exchange listed companies are also accused of forming cartels to cause financial chaos and actually have the power to determine the ‘black market’ rate through speculative trading.