The Zimbabwe government over the weekend announced a relaxation of its price control policy by allowing hotels, restaurants and bars to raise their rates by up to 50% after having imposed severe price reductions in an effort to control inflation.
Nelson Chamisa is spokesman for the Morgan Tsvangirai faction of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC). He told VOA the new policy is a little too late for the suffering people of Zimbabwe.
“What we seem to see is a continuation of policy flip-flopping on the part of the regime which is clearly indicative of how desperate and how bankrupt this regime has become," he said.
"They introduced a price freeze and suddenly discovered that it doesn’t work because in real speaking the whole country is dry. The water is not there. Restaurants, you’ll find that people are not eating. We are on the verge of a very catastrophic situation here. And so after realizing, I think the regime is trying to remedy their own mistake. But it’s too late because you can’t have a mistake to correct another mistake."
The government controlled Herald newspaper said the new prices would be valid until September 30.
Chamisa said the government does not deserve any credit because it is responsible for the economic meltdown in Zimbabwe.
“They are the authors of this crisis. It is a crisis of governing. So what they are trying to do is to do some patch working approach, which is not going to work. This economy does not want piece meal measures; this economy does not want half-hearted measures; this economy requires a holistic approach, particularly the issue of governance. And until and unless we have solved the political equation, it’s going to be an exercise in futility,” Chamisa said.
Fast food takeouts, bars, and nightclubs are reportedly included in the list of the new prices. Chamisa said ordinary Zimbabweans would continue to suffer.
“The ordinary Zimbabweans are suffering already because now you can’t find food at normal outlets. The shelves are empty because the food is now available on the black market at high prices. So the whole thing is going to at the end of the day affect the workers, the peasants, the impoverish of our society, the poor of the poor,” Chamisa said.