By 
The recently promulgated Statutory Instrument 127 of 2021 is not only an ill thought statute but weak and dangerous financial measure which is meant to be selectively applied and disenfranchise other business players in Zimbabwe.
The past laws put in place and this latest statute has failed to make sure its applied fully across the board with fuel traders like Zuva service station selling their products strictly in USD before getting a clause for exemption.
This is bad at law and discourages other players to operate competitively
Statutory Instrument 127 of 2021 statute demands that
A natural or legal person shall be guilty of a civil infringement if he or she, being a seller of goods or services not authorised by law to charge for them exclusively in foreign currency, refuses to allow any buyer thereof to tender payment for them in
Zimbabwe dollars at the ruling exchange rate.
While this statute reads very well on paper, it poses the danger of retuning to the old days where some selected government and state linked enterprises were not previously fined or demanded to do the same.
The statute makes it illegal for any enterprise to charge in USD without accepting any other currency at the prevailing low bank rate, stating that this causes arbitrage for those getting the forex from the bank rates.
However the same statute was violated by the selected.The fact is if you were buying something for one dollar, the equivalent in bond Zimbabwean dollars was pegged at 120 RTGS so as to safeguard the depreciating Zimdollar from shortchanging the retailer but now forcing the retailer to be shortchanged will trigger inflation.
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