Lead by example on cost-cutting, MPs rged

BINDURA residents have called on members of the National Assembly to lead by example in cutting Government expenditure in the face of austerity measures recently announced by Minister of Finance and Economic Development Professor Mthuli Ncube.

This came out at a 2019 National Budget consultative meeting held last Tuesday in Bindura organised by the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Budget, Finance and Economic Development which was led by Mr Willias Madzimure.

Residents said the measures should not only target the already overburdened ordinary Zimbabweans, but all sectors of the country.

“We want you honourable members of National Assembly to be exemplary in the face of the austerity measures introduced by the finance minister to resuscitate the economy by cutting down on your lavish allowances and expensive vehicles.

“The new measures should not appear as if they are only targeting the already suffering ordinary Zimbabweans,” said one resident.

“You have to show us that you are committed to the resuscitation of the economy by first of all cutting down on your own expenditure, otherwise people will see the measures as just another way of milking the suffering masses.

“We don’t think that at the moment with the current state of the economy you should get three top of the range vehicles, which need to be imported using scarce foreign currency at the expense of service delivery.”

Some of the speakers at the meeting called on Government to avail funds in their 2019 Budget for the construction of sports and recreational facilities in order to reduce the health bill by encouraging people to exercise.