I noted with some concern that Mugabe’s government has taken over Olivine Industries in Zimbabwe. I do not mind the actual take-over, but am concerned that the government somehow stumped up US$6,8 million.

It is a well known fact that the Mugabe government is broke. They even admit to it, and you read appeals for the private sector to make contributions to various national celebrations (which I note are only attended by the rich and powerful - not the people who contribute…) and they have also taken to making compulsory deductions off the salaries of civil servants to fund these forays…

So where did this money come from?

I cannot see Mugabe ordering Gideon Gono (manager of Bob’s take away, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe) to print the bearer cheques - because I don’t think that Zimbabwe has that much paper… bear in mind that the bearer cheques in circulation at present are printed on normal paper and have no real security features, and are not recognised in a court of law in Zimbabwe as legal tender.

If Mugabe had ordered Gono to print this money for exchanging in the black market (just about the only place in Zimbabwe where one can buy foreign currency), they would have to print off ZW$ 2150000000 worth of bearer cheques - working on a very rough rate of ZW$250000 to the greenback.

That would work out at 430 million ZW$200000 bearer cheques.

Any conversion like this in Zimbabwe would have to be on the black market.

How do I know this? Gideon Gono, in his wisdom, pegged the US dollar at 250:1 and stated that the rate would only change when a certain amount had been traded on the stock market in any given day - I did look to see if I could identify that figure, but failed…

Now, to achieve the amount that they needed to buy Olivine Industries, and so as not to raise any suspicion, this money would have had to be exchanged either in small quantities, making time a factor - or on the black market.

Now you know that Mugabe and his government are never going to do anything up front and by the book, so where did they really get this money from?

We will probably never know the truth to this question, but rest assured that it was done behind closed doors, under cover of darkness and with one objective in mind - to take over a foreign concern in Zimbabwe. Not that I mind that, but feel that the people that will be given some sort of control in the day-to-day running of that company will be by government appointment and the decisions they make will be politically based, not business based… that is assuming that they attempt to run the company, as opposed to asset strip it…

I continue to watch the events unfold in Zimbabwe, but fear that there will be no let-up in the activities practised against the good people of that country.

Hang on - it’s going to be a rough ride!

Take cae.

‘debvhu