America has been shortchanging its own… for Zimbabwe capital has no colour: Ambassador Mutsvangwa
3 min read
By Margaret Kamba
ZANU PF Secretary for Information and Publicity Ambassador Chris Mutsvangwa says America has been preoccupied with changing the political landscape in Zimbabwe while shortchanging its business people.
His remarks made during a press briefing this Friday at the Party Headquarters follow comments made by American Senator Pamela Tremont during a Congressional briefing recently.
Cde Mutsvangwa did not mince his words in explaining how America has been left to play catch-up.
“Just yesterday the new Ambassador to Zimbabwe was having her Congressional briefing of her approval of her job, there are some matters which rose out of her Senatorial Congressional briefing in America which we feel we must answer immediately to put the record straight. Our President, His Excellency Cde Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa values investment from any quarter in the world regardless of the colour of money, regardless of the creed of money, regardless of the religion of money, regardless of the geographical location of where the money is coming from,” Cde Mutsvangwa said.
“Making countries are making progress, capital is growing and becoming flat unlike in the 20th century when only western Europe had excess capital. Now capital is found everywhere, so for us capital has no colour.
“There was an attempt to redline capital from another country, a big country, the second largest economy in the world in the American Congressional briefing as if investors from China get favours from the Zimbabwe government in order to invest, in which case we are seen to be tilting the investment table in favour of China as the second largest economy in the world and a historical friend. I want to put it on record that is as far from truth as can be. We treat investment equally from whichever quarter it comes.”
Cde Mutsvangwa disclosed that most of the Chinese investment over the last 12 to 18 months has been driven by private sector business companies who bought shares on the Australian Stock Exchange.
“This is a free market economy and there’s a free market in the minerals asset of Zimbabwe and some of these assets are traded on public stock exchanges of the world. American investors are free to go and bid for those assets when they are on offer at any particular time,” he said.
“America should not have anybody to blame except themselves and in this instance we want to highlight that because America has always been preoccupied with trying to change the political system in Zimbabwe they have been shortchanging their businessmen about the prospects which Zimbabwe can offer.
“We are a mineral rich country and that should have been open to American businessmen if their government had had a positive attitude to Zimbabwe but unfortunately because of their handfisted diplomacy on Zimbabwe, they then tied the hands of their investors from participating in this bonanza of lithium which Zimbabwe is.”
Cde Mutsvangwa insisted that Zimbabwe will stop at nothing to get its fair share of the global capital and that the American Ambassador should pack her bags and come with an open mind to Zimbabwe.
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