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Business reluctant to criticise Mugabe for destructive price cuts
Tererai Karimakwenda, SW Radio Africa
August 06, 2007

http://www.swradioafrica.com/news070807/business070807.htm

The Mail & Guardian newspaper in South Africa reports that despite the disastrous results of Robert Mugabe's current price control exercise, business leaders are "tiptoeing" around him and "remain reluctant to openly criticise his policies." The story said they went so far as to praise him for the June 26 order for all businesses to cut prices by almost half and continue to operate at a loss. The information came from confidential minutes taken at a meeting held last week between Mugabe and a 12-member business team.

With shelves in the shops now empty and serious shortages of basic items becoming worse, the business leaders reportedly praised Mugabe saying the price cuts "had very good reasons" and "the country" was to blame for the economic crisis because it failed to meet his goals of "creating a prosperous society for all." They referred to Mugabe as a "decisive" leader and said his "contribution to Zimbabwe was without equal."

It is surprising that business would praise Mugabe after 7,500 executives, business leaders and traders were arrested for failing to comply. Just this Monday a police spokesman told The Herald newspaper a total of 7,495 people had been arrested. Most were jailed briefly and fined. But some were sentenced to do community service, cleaning government buildings in order to embarrass them.

Harare based economist John Robertson said people are nervous about making direct criticism of Mugabe because it would put them at risk. He also said it is an aspect of African culture to be very well mannered and respectful of the superior authorities in any situation. The economist was also suspicious, saying: "You would have to assume the minute-taker in that situation would have been somebody working for the president and not for the private sector."

The Mail & Guardian said that a confidential business plan was submitted to Mugabe by the business team, with proposed reforms that would "require extraordinary measures and unconventional methods," to help stabilise the economy within 90 days. The plan recommended that Mugabe assemble "a team of business and government" to carry out the reforms, therefore ending all forms of government controls on the economy.

The plan would also require foreign currency injections from "friendly" states and institutions," a new pricing policy that is viable for business and consumers, and to reform state-owned enterprises. Robertson said it would not be possible to make any useful changes without political change. He explained: "None of those economic changes would be possible without an acceptance by the politicians that they had mistakes and that they should change."

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