VIMBAI TANDI
With only two weeks as Bulawayo Mayor, David Coltart is frowning upon continued use of the local currency saying the city was in current mess because of the continued use of the Zimbabwean dollar.
Coltart was elected Mayor by a full council meeting at the instigation of Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) leader Nelson Chamisa who tasked the former Education Minister with fighting corruption.
Corruption had become rampant in the second largest city with residents saying the said graft was affecting service delivery.
But Coltart insists the use of the local currency was one of the reasons the city was facing a crisis.
“Having been in the role of Mayor of Bulawayo for just over two weeks, it is clear to me that a major cause of malaise facing the city is the continued use of the Zimbabwe dollar,” Coltart said.
“Budgeting in such a volatile currency is almost impossible and paying staff in Zimbabwe dollars has caused morale to plummet,” he added.
His input attracted mixed reactions with some observers saying it was impractical in an environment where the majority of workers, particularly civil servants, were being paid in local currency.
Zimbabwe uses a multicurrency system with the US dollar being the dominant.
Traders have of late been snubbing using local currency in the recent past.
