Parliament adjourns to Friday .. not enough MPs for bond notes debate

The Parliament of Zimbabwe was on Wednesday adjourned to Friday after not enough legislators turned up to craft amendments to the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Act that is meant to formalise the introduction of bond notes.

Parliament needs a minimum of 70 MPs for debates to take place. 

Several MP’s who had planned to go for their Christmas holidays before Friday will now have to cancel their travel arrangements.

Parliament took a break to allow Zanu PF legislators to attend their party conference in Masvingo and also give them time to analyse the 2017 National Budget before passing it.

Although President Robert Mugabe’s regime short-circuited the process by ‘nicodemously’ introducing the bond notes, the RBZ Act is an attempt to regularise the currency, which was introduced through the Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) Act.

The RBZ first announced plans to introduce the bond notes in May to address the chronic cash shortages and supplement the dwindling U.S. dollars that have been in circulation for the past seven years. However, the announcement was followed by a run on the banks as Zimbabweans tried to empty their accounts of hard currency.

“People are skeptical because of what happened to our old currency in the past when the money lost its value. That is why they think it could happen again,” said 36-year-old street hawker Tennison Tigere, after withdrawing $50 of bond notes.