Local empowerment group the Affirmative Action Group (AAG) says that it is prepared to take the sale of shares in Barclays Bank to First Mutual Bank of Malawi, to the highest office in the land. The AAG said it was going to challenge the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) after RBZ Governor John Mangudya said that the transaction was above board and complied with the country’s indigenisation laws.
At a press conference on Tuesday, AAG President Chamu Chiwanza said:
We have taken note of the events that have taken place over the past weeks with great concern.
What is worrisome to us is the lack of participation in the indigenisation and empowerment policy which has been grossly ignored by some parties or formulations of power to completely disregard the law.
The law is the law. And the law says that locals have the right of first refusal.
If we are not careful, Zimbabwe might be going back to a structured colonisation…They must interrogate why there is no local in the (Barclays) sale. We are taking it to the highest office of the land.
Government will heed our call and observe the interest of the public. It must not segregate
So, we are defeating ourselves. This is the only country in Africa which is not consistent with its policies.
Zimbabwe is good at putting policies on paper but very bad in implementing them. Does the indigenisation law still exist?
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