Is Mugabe’s government stock-piling food to use to buy votes next year?
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I am involved in the Dry Food business in Zimbabwe and we source and supply various commodities from protein based products to cereals.
At this time of year, we get this in to stock as the demand increases as domestic maize supplies diminish particularly in the rural areas.
In attempting to buy large quantities of Kapenta (Dried Fish) and also nuts, I found that stocks were all but non existent.
I was told that the Government is paying cash (notes) to the suppliers with the word that they wish to buy everything.
We have elections coming up early next year and they will occur at a time when the food deficit will be at its worst. In the past, they have used maize and maize meal to lure voters by placing stock in the vicinity of polling stations added to which is word that they will get food if they vote the right way.
Each polling station (mostly in schools) counts the vote right there and therefore the authorities can determine just how the local population chose their candidate.
I have no doubt that as Maize is in desperately short supply this year, this type of food will be used to cheat the system once more.
