THE BOISTEROUS Affirmative Action Group (AAG) has been on the news lately, threatening fire and brimstone as financial institution swoop on defaulting businesses and business executives owing them a couple of millions.
GAMMA MUDARIKIRI OWN CORRESPONDENT
Frothing from the mouth, an executive of AGG last week told Southern Eye Business that they would be blood on the floor if the auctioneers sold off properties of defaulters as financial institutions sought to recover their monies.
Last Friday the black empowerment grouping failed to block banks from auctioning properties owned by some Bulawayo business people as it had threatened, raising questions on the efficiency and effectiveness of the Zanu PF-linked lobby group.
The auction went ahead on Friday despite the hullaballoo made by AAG threatening to stop the sale of 20 residential houses among other properties as banks moved to recover their undisclosed loan amounts.
A dramatic scene erupted as members of the AAG tried to force themselves into the auction room at a local hotel, but were barred by police who said they have been given an operational directive not to allow anyone without an auction card to participate.
Visible angry AGG members including the national vice-president Sam Ncube had little to do, but to parade outside the auction building as properties went under the harmer. Four of the houses are owned by local businessman Delma Lupepe who had borrowed money through his company Mespin (Pvt) Ltd, but failed to service the loans.
Banks including Ecobank Zimbabwe (formerly Premier Banking Corporation), MBCA Bank and Interfin Merchant Bank swooped on Lupepe’s properties to recover their money.
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Lupepe, however, has blamed the failure by his company to repay the loans on inflated rates being charged by the banks, which he said were as high as 500%.
AAG could not stop the sale of the Lupepe properties and those of other local business people with critics arguing that the Zanu PF-linked lobby group is a toothless bulldog.
But AAG officials told Southern Eye that the battle was not yet over, claiming there was still room to oppose the sale of properties through the courts adding that it had abandoned plans to stop the auction violently after consultation with its stakeholders who advised them on alternative measures.
“We did not fail to stop the auction, but we were advised by our stakeholders not to be violent as we have planned,” AGG vice-national chairperson Ncube, said.
“We were denied access to the public auction and we had to get clearance from the officer-in-charge and when we got it some of the propertied had already been sold,” he added.
Ncube said the affected people whose properties were sold should file an opposing application to the deputy sheriff adding that AAG was willing to assist in the process.
The AAG Bulawayo branch has been calling for a moratorium on litigation against businesspeople battling to pay rentals, utilities and loans arguing businesses were currently in distress and not in a position to pay arrears.
But critics have said the push for a moratorium was personalised to serve the interest of some members of AAG whose businesses are saddled with huge debts which they are battling to service. Ncube, who has been vocal on the setting up of the moratorium, recently lost his house in the leafy suburb of Selbourne Park after it was auctioned for $60 000 to recover an undisclosed debt he owed POSB.
But Ncube claimed that he had opposed the sale of his property at the high court adding that he was not serving his personal interest by trying to stop auctions, but that of the general public.
The Zanu PF-linked lobby group appears to be singing the blues with its Bulawayo chapter president Roy Siyanda’s restaurant last week being closed by the city council for operating without a health licence.
Contacted for a comment Sibanda referred all questions to the restaurant general manager who said they were still resolving the issue with the local authority.
“We are working with the local authority to process the health licence and I am not in a position to disclose on how far we have gone with that,” the manager who preferred anonymity said.
But the restaurant was open on Friday despite the fact that it still needed to acquire a health licence.
The local authority only issued a notice inviting persons wishing to object to the application to set up a restaurant last Friday.
