Own Correspondent|The opposition MDC last week grievously pushed government in parliament to make sure that enough fuel is availed in the country during the festive season.
In a hot debate, Deputy Minister of Energy and Power Development Magna Mudiwa had refused to commit government to making sure that fuel is availed during the busy period. The Deputy Minister claimed government had no capacity to pay for the fuel.
“We do have enough fuel at our depots in Mabvuku and Masasa but it is bonded. This means that we need to pay before we can withdraw that fuel. We are discussing with RBZ who issue letters of credit to fuel traders so that they access the fuel. I can assure the nation that we do have enough fuel at our depots save for the lines of credit,” Mudiwa said.
MDC Mutasa South Member of Parliament Regai Tsunga responded,
“The issue that has been raised by the Hon. Minister is likened to a father who tells his children that there is mealie-meal in the storehouse when they are hungry yet the children are not eating sadza. According to her, diesel and petrol are in the reservoirs but no one is consuming them. The Minister’s responsibility is to ensure that the fuel reaches service stations. We would like to know the plans that the Minister has to make sure that there is fuel at service stations and not tell us about the reservoirs. We want fuel for consumption.”
Long fuel queues since disappeared in most parts of the country, with many service stations having supplies.
The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) provided Letters of Credit to fuel dealers towards this festive season, allowing them to draw on the stocks already pumped into Zimbabwe.
In particular, the Letters of Credit guaranteed the payment of the foreign currency component, usually a little over 60US cents a litre for petrol and diesel.
This is the landed price and includes all costs of procuring the fuel and pumping it from Beira into Zimbabwe.
The rest of the pump price comprises local mark-ups, pumping and handling charges, plus excise duties.
A Letter of Credit is letter issued by a bank to another bank (especially one in a different country) to serve as a guarantee for payments made to a specified person under specified conditions.
Over the past months, some filling stations had effectively closed and displayed “no petrol or diesel” signs, leaving motorists and commuters stranded.
There was a rush for fuel before the public holidays when many managed to fill up and demand may increase from this week’s levels as people start returning home or resuming more normal work and school trips.
