Launching a community share ownership trust in Collen Bawn, some 130 kilometers south of Bulawayo, Mugabe said government will not tolerate excuses by companies resisting the indigenization law.
The policy has turned away potential investors and rattled the power-sharing government with the two formations of the Movement for Democratic Change saying it has far-reaching consequences.
Mr. Mugabe did not clarify how the foreign companies will be nationalized as the country’s constitution does not permit forcible seizure of private enterprises by the state.
Twenty mining companies including Blanket, Jersey and Fazik mines pooled their financial resources to set up the $10 million Gwanda Community Share Ownership Trust.
Several other such community trusts have been set up across the country in compliance with the black empowerment policy.
Mr. Mugabe said many Zimbabweans are suffering while foreign-owned companies are reaping huge profits from the nation’s abundant natural resources.
"We came here today to launch this program … we will soon be back this time during elections and we hope you will vote for us, vote for indigenization, vote for your empowerment," he said.
The controversially-fashioned Indigenization and Economic Empowerment Act requires foreign firms operating in the country to transfer a 51 percent stake to local black investors.
Speaking at the same occasion, Local Government Minister Ignatius Chombo said time had come for Zimbabweans to be in charge of the economy.
Reacting to Mugabe’s threats, Investment Minister Tapiwa Mashakada told VOA Studio 7's Blessing Zulu that such pronouncements are discouraging foreign direct investment.
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In 2000 Mugabe instituted the now infamous land grab supposedly to redress the country’s historic injustice and more significantly to alleviated the economic misery of the masses. Mugabe needed the farms as loot for his ever demanding and ever wasteful party loyalists. This destroyed Zimbabwe’s agricultural sector and trigger the economic melt down in which the Zimbabwe economy shrunk by a staggering 84% in six years. The landless poor and the rest of the nation at large were left worse off than before the land reform.
Mugabe’s thugs have the farms but failed to make them a viable economic proposition and are back demanding fresh loot. The few white owned companies, the only sectors of an economic value left, are on the dictator’s cross wires. The threat to seize white owned companies has done untold damage to Zimbabwe’s economic prospects and carrying out the threat will be the last straw that broke the camel’s back!
Don’t Know whether he wants investment and bring country back on it’s feet or just the vote…
Loook around and smell de koffee
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