The traders have been suffering because of the improved economy and the availability of goods inside Zimbabwe, but with many people planning to go home for the Christmas break, they expect business to boom.
Simba Dlodlo,32, said that Zimbabwe’s mini-economic recovery had robbed them of a lot of business, but they were set to cash in from the hordes of people expected to travel home this month.
“Now that we are fast approaching the festive season, we have to take advantage of the situation. We have been struggling to make money,” he said.
Adding to their woes, Zimbabweans living in South Africa have been issued with work permits by the Department of Home Affairs and Zimbabwean passport holders are only allowed to visit South Africa for three months a year.
Thabani Ncube, a self-confessed human trafficker, explained how this affected business.
“When things were tough at home we had many customers because many wanted to migrate to neighbouring countries. We took advantage of them – but that is now history. I am happy the country is recovering economically, but for my business it’s really bad. We have to take advantage of the Christmas holiday,” he explains Analyst Nsununguli Mbongolwane highlighted the vital role Omalayisha played in society. He challenged the government to issue passports to enable citizens to return for the holidays.
“We appreciate the important role played by Omalayisha in our society. We have managed to link up with our families through them, but we urge the government to speed up the complete recovery of our economy. We are over-charged by Omalayisha whenever there is a holiday. Normally they charge R250 per head, but now that fee doubles to R500 because we are approaching the holidays. For groceries, furniture and other goods you are charged R2 000 upwards. This is outrageous,” he said.
Post published in: News