GIDEON Gono . . . Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe governor

HARARE – Four Zimbabwean workers have asked the High Court to bar the country’s central bank from limiting cash withdrawals, saying the daily limits were too little and also degrading given the number of trips one has to make to the bank to get enough cash.

The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ), which is struggling to import special paper required to print banknotes, limits the amount of cash individuals and firms can withdraw from their banks per day as part of desperate measures to curb a shortage of cash.

The central bank on Thursday increased withdrawal limits for companies and individuals from ZW$1 000 to $20 000 and $10 000 respectively. But the new limits remain too low in a country hit hard by inflation and where people have to pay several thousands of dollars for simple purchases such as household groceries.

The four workers Roger Chagwededza, Tinashe Gotora, Jackson Mabota and Precious Mwateyeni said in papers submitted to court that the wanted the limitation of cash withdrawals declared unlawful.

They said: “We are making an urgent application seeking certain acts of the Respondents to wit, limitation of withdrawals, to be declared unlawful, inhuman and degrading and a violation of the right to life and other rights as enshrined in the Constitution of Zimbabwe and other international conventions.”

Finance Minister Samuel Mumbengegwi who does not run the RBZ but exercises some oversight on the central bank is named as first respondent in the matter. The RBZ is second respondent while CABS building society, Metropolitan bank, and POSB bank are cited as third, fourth and fifth respondent.

To drive their point home the four workers -- who are being represented by Mbidzo, Muchadehama and Makoni law firm – submitted to court a breakdown of their daily cash requirements.

They said each of them required about $10 000 cash for transport, $1 000 for a loaf of bread, $3500 for meat, $500 for vegetables, $2 500 for fresh milk and $2 500 to buy lunch while at work – which works out to $20 000 per day or double the maximum cash individuals can withdraw from their accounts per day.

The workers say in addition to the daily expenses they also needed cash for monthly expenses such as school fees, clothing, rent, water and electricity bills as well as other incidentals, all which require cash in excess of $2 million.

They said to get the hard earned cash from the bank they had to endure standing in long queues out in the streets exposed to the blistering sun as summer approaches, adding that RBZ’s policy of limiting cash withdrawals could easily cause one to suffer mental breakdown.

“Respondents’ policies if continued unabated will in no time make us suitable candidates for admission into mental institutions, for psychological pressure brought upon by living under respondents’ policies which is no longer bearable,” they said in the case that the is the first time the RBZ is being taken to court over its controversial and mainly arbitrary policies.

Both RBZ governor Gideon Gono and his spokesman Kumbirai Nhongo were not immediately available for comment on the matter.

With its value eroded daily by the world’s highest inflation of more than 11 million percent, the Zimbabwe dollar is nearly worthless, a point made clear by the country’s central bank when it announced this week that it was licensing shops and garages to sell basic commodities and fuel in foreign currency.

A collapsed currency is the most visible sign of Zimbabwe’s devastating economic recession that is also seen in rising unemployment, deepening poverty, shortages of food and every basic commodity.

A power sharing deal signed by President Robert Mugabe and opposition leaders Morgan Tsvangirai and Arthur Mutambara is seen as the first real opportunity in nearly 10 years for Zimbabwe to begin work to end the crisis.

But the three leaders have so far failed to appoint a new Cabinet to run the country because they cannot agree on how to share key posts in the new government, a development that has caused many to wonder whether the power-sharing deal can stand the strain given deep seated mistrust among the parties involved. – ZimOnline.