Information secretary Ndavaningi Mangwana on Friday issued a statement suspending mobile money transactions and trading on the stock exchange in order to facilitate investigations into illicit activities said to be sabotaging the economy.
The drastic measures did not only leave the general public in a state of panic, but also in the dark as to the fate of their funds deposited in the mobile money accounts.
That such a pronouncement with far-reaching consequences was made by Information secretary and not by the Finance minister nor Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe governor, also raises eyebrows.
As anticipated, all the mobile money platforms immediately issued statements urging clients to disregard Mangwana’s statement and continue transacting using the platforms until further notice from the official fiscal and monetary authorities.
The central bank later added a new twist to the drama with a statement announcing a partial suspension on mobile money agents’ accounts while the rest of the public was left to transact freely.
