Of Zim mega deals, loans and the return of Tyson

Interesting developments have been taking place lately in the land "open for business". It seems that ED's mantra that Zim is 'open for business' has relatively attracted all sorts of attention and investors. Early this week, ED's twitter account stated that Zimbabwe had signed a $5.2bn deal with Nkosikhona Holdings of South Africa. The deal was described as enabling Zim to produce over 8m litres of liquid fuels per day from coal. It turned out Nkosikhona holdings had no online presence except the mere news that it signed a deal with the Zimbabwe government. With a website under construction and having been formed only 5 years ago, probably the company hit the jackpot with Zimbabwe becoming its first ever project. On the other hand, the ED administration seemed to have been doing well on the international front. It seemed the British government was shifting its policy towards Zimbabwe, as a US$100 million loan was offered to Zimbabwe. The commercial loan was the first of its kind in more than 20 years since the collapse of relations between the two countries colapsed. The CDC group said:

"The five-year facility will see CDC and Standard Chartered share the default risk on up to US$100 million of new loans originated by Standard Chartered Bank Zimbabwe in the southern African state.The investment will be used for capital expenditure and for helping businesses meet their day-to-day financing needs. The likely recipients will include firms in the food processing, manufacturing and agriculture sectors."

The loan showed a dramatic shift in Britain's policy as it expressed confidence in the new dispensation and state of affairs in Zimbabwe. Yet, the opposition did not seem to share the same sentiment, with Tendai Biti describing it as an "attempt to put lipstick on a crocodile"and urging Britain not to avail funds to the Zimbabwean government before the elections.
Biti's opinion showed that the opposition was against any aid to Zimbabwe or loans to recuperate the economy. Biti's assertion stemmed from the fact that they believe only the opposition can bring much needed foreign direct investment in the country. It is profound to note that the loan is towards Zim's ailing private sector so that it recuperates, it is being disbursed through a Standard Chartered therefore cannot be manipulated by the ruling elite. I find it appalling that politicians such as Biti in the name of pursuing their own political ambitions want to hold Zimbabweans ransom.

Commonwealth Readmission

Zimbabwe also recently wrote for readmission into the Commonwealth. I believe this is a welcome move, for a country that has been isolated in recent times. Recently, The Gambia was readmitted into the Commonwealth, and to mark that feat the CSC was offering Master's and PHD scholarships for Gambian nationals. Zimbabwe too is set to regain such valuables if readmitted and this would definitely come in handy for our youths.

MDC Alliance

So the MDC Alliance's has seemingly being marred by controversy lately, from chaotic primaries just like Zanu Pf to Jesse Majome choosing to run as an independent and most recently the court case to name the legal leader of the MDC-T. Nelson Chamisa has continued on the campaign trail drawing large crowds despite the setback from the Hardtalk interview. The crowd that mocked Thokozani Khupe outside the Supreme Court calling her "hure" surely should be called out by the party. Of late it seems that anyone who calls out the MDC Alliance or dares to criticize it, is labelled an EDiot or Zanu PF sympathiser. If the criticism stems from a woman they are called out by all sorts of profanities. It seems the level of tolerance in the rank and file of the opposition is at its lowest. The denigration of women by MDC Alliance fanatics needs to be stopped and Chamisa as a leader of note should call out the supporters who hailed at Khupe.

Return of Tyson 

Self-exiled former Zanu PF Commissar, Saviour Kasukuwere arriving in Harare from South Africa yesterday. Pic Credit: Zimbabwe News

Another development was the return of Saviour Kasukuwere to Zimbabwe from self imposed exile since the infamous coup. The timing of his return seems rather suspicious, most of us thought he would be arrested on arrival, but he walked out of the airport into a luxury vehicle. In an interview with the Herald he stated that he was done with politics. Well I guess that is just plain good riddance that no one will lose any sleep over, the report also said he was questioned by the cops. The most irritating thing about his arrival is that he was not arrested. If my memory still serves me right immediately after the November "coup not coup" the army said it was after "criminals" that had surrounded the then president. Surely Kasukuwere was one of those labelled "criminals" yet today he is back in that Harare mansion as a free man. Maybe, I am jumping the gun and eventually the law will take its course on this man nicknamed "Tyson". Be that as it may we hope he would be held account of any criminal activity he might have undertaken during his reign.

Anyway I cant wait to see if Robert Mugabe will appear in front of parliament's portfolio committee on Mines and Mineral resources to explain his role on the mining at the Marange diamond fields. It will surely be interesting, keeping my fingers crossed that the old man turns up. Signing out Generation X18.