The Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation (ZMDC) has been handed a special grant from the government, with the intention to prospect in an area covering 1.8 million hectares. The area is believed to be rich in diamond and gold deposits. ZMDC chairperson Goodwills Masimirembwa, a legal expert linked to ZANU PF, confirmed the development.
“The 1.8 million hectares cover Marange, Chimanimani and Checheche, right up to the point where Save River goes into Mozambique. They are all highly prospective for diamonds,” Masimirembwa was quoted by the state media as saying.
Political analyst Clifford Mashiri said that the ZMDC is “an arm of ZANU PF which is being used as if it is a government venture to acquire shares in international ventures.”
“The ZMDC is a fishing line used to hook big fish and those who consume the fish are ZANU PF themselves,” Mashiri said.
He said this was clearly revealed in the Chiadzwa diamond mines, where the ZMDC was originally touted as the state arm of joint venture operations there. This was mean to ensure that the national Treasury received remittances from the joint ventures. But it has since emerged that the ZMDC is no longer involved in at least two of the three ventures the government was meant to be a part of.
“This is why we are arguing that ZMDC is arm of ZANU PF and used to reach out for something it values in the areas of mines and minerals. That is a worrying factor because these are not resources going to rest of the country,” Mashiri said. SW Radio Africa
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