Dorcas Rumano
The Churches and Civil Society Joint Forum (CCSJF) is conducting a survey on prices of basic commodities in all the country’s ten (10) provinces, the Harare Post has established.
The survey will be concentrating on prices of all basic commodities that fall under the consumer basket such as mealie meal, cooking oil, flour, washing powder, rice and sugar among others.
This survey was launched following the introduction of Statutory Instrument (SI) 142 of 2019 which abolished the use of multi-currency system and allowing only the use of the local Zimbabwean dollar as the legal currency on all local transactions.
In a telephone interview with Harare Post, the National Co-coordinator of CCSJF, Ms Abigail Mupambi confirmed the development saying the survey is already taking place in most provinces including Bulawayo and Matabeleland South provinces.
Ms Mupambi said there was an outcry by consumers on wanton price increases of basic commodities in most retail shops following the introduction of SI 142/19. She said the survey is a process which will focus on monitoring and make a comparison of prices of basic commodities, for instance the price of sugar, before the introduction of SI 142/19 and soon after the scrapping of multi-currency system, as well as assessing the point at which the prices will start to fall.
She added that the survey by CCSJF is being done at the interest of the consumers, as it is their right to know how retailers and wholesalers will be operating. She said their teams would be getting reflections on price increases from both retailers and consumers.
Ms Mupambi noted that after their teams have collected all the data on pricing, their organisation will rope in analysts, economists and experts to simplify and interpret it. She said the CCSJF will be updating the Government on the analysed data and submissions will be on weekly basis for further actioning.
In Bulawayo, a survey team was set up with Reverend Anglistone Sibanda being the Chairperson, Maxwell Mkandla representing War Veterans, Sakhile Siwela as Bulawayo Chairperson and Mthokozisi Ncube as a member.
The survey exercise will expose unscrupulous business people who are sabotaging Government efforts of turning around the economy.
Most retailers are still increasing prices of basic commodities despite the tumbling of the US dollar on the parallel market. Before the introduction of the SI 142/19, retailers were pegging their prices on the exchange rate on the parallel market, where they claimed to be their source of the foreign currency.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa recently warned all unscrupulous retailers hiking prices of commodities that Government will soon crack down on them.
He said, “Kana kuna vaya vaya anamuzvina bhizinisi varikuramba vakakwidza mutengo, aiwa varegei vakadaro. Pindai mumashop evakadzikisa mitengo, anenge achidhurisa kwete. Tiri kuvarongera. Yavo shamu irikugadzirwa zvakanaka naka, yaiswa pamushana, mumvura mune munyu.”
