|
25 Zim businessmen face jail
12/07/2007 16:47 - (SA)
Harare - Police in Zimbabwe have arrested the head of the country's most popular supermarket chain while a magistrate has ordered the arrest of 25 other company officials, say reports.
It was reported that Willard Zireva, the chief executive of OK Zimbabwe was arrested at his upmarket home in the capital, Harare, on Tuesday night.
Zireva was arrested on allegations that some of his supermarkets had ignored a directive from the government of President Robert Mugabe to reduced prices to June 18 levels, said reports.
He was due to appear in court later on Thursday.
Meanwhile, the directors of at least 25 firms, including supermarkets, liquor stores and milling companies in the second city of Bulawayo faced arrest on Thursday for defying the two-week old order to slash prices by almost half.
It was reported that Bulawayo magistrate Ntombizodwa Mukondiwa ordered the arrest of the directors on Wednesday.
1 768 business people arrested
The magistrate said the big companies should not expect to get away with mere fines, hence the need to charge their directors in their individual capacities, said reports.
So far, police had arrested 1 768 store owners and business executives for allegedly overcharging, hoarding scarce goods or failing to display prices, as ordered by the government.
Mugabe's government ordered a blitz against Zimbabwe's business community after weeks of spiralling prices that companies blamed on rampant inflation.
The government claimed the price hikes were part of a plot to unseat it by sparking civil unrest by charging unaffordable prices.
The authorities had fiercely defended their blitz, even though it had resulted in shortages of many basic goods like bread, meat, flour, sugar and fuel.
The state-approved economists were quoted as saying the clampdown was a necessary move that averted a massive economic catastrophe.
Meanwhile, industry minister Obert Mpofu on Thursday dismissed claims by Zimbabwe's main labour union that government also intended to slash workers salaries by half in line with the price cuts.
He said: "We as the government will not slash salaries. Our idea is to give workers a significant disposable income."
Sapa-dpa
- SAPA
|
News
Zimbabwe Special Report
