ZANU PF interim provincial chairman Paradzai Chakona has called for the reopening of the defunct Shabanie Mashaba Mines (SMM), which were wrested by the government from business magnate Mutumwa Mawere.
Tatenda Chitagu Own Correspondent
Speaking at an end of year party organised by the Zimbabwe Union of Journalists on Friday, Chakona said the dormant mines should be revived to create employment, suggesting that the government should hand them over to a private investor.
“SMM are closed, but that is not what we are looking at when there is such high demand for asbestos,” he said.
“We need to revive them as they employed around 6 000 people and the economy of Masvingo was vibrant.
“The asbestos was usually bought two or three years in advance and there is need to re-energise all the assets that are lying idle. We have to court investors here.”
Chakona said there were investors interested in reviving the mines.
“We have investors willing to come, there are investors with big purses with investment plans of $50 billion,” he claimed.
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SMM were run down by the government when they were placed under curatorship and Mashava, where one of the mines is based, is now literally a ghost town.
Former workers have turned to illegal panning, vending, prostitution and selling drugs to make ends meet.
Mashava was recently bailed out by the Great Zimbabwe University, which has established a campus there after getting a 20-year lease.
