ENERGY minister Fortune Chasi is under fire from fellow cabinet ministers and senior government officials after he submitted a list of people who owe Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) to President Emmerson Mnangagwa, the Zim Morning Post has established.
Zim Morning Post is reliably informed that Chasi submitted the list to Mnangagwa before a cabinet meeting last month.
“He took the list to Mnangagwa because some ministers and senior government officials top the list,” the source said.
“Mnangagwa informed cabinet ministers to be exemplary and pay their bills. It is after this that some ministers were angry with Chasi.”
Sources said government officials on the list are now decampaigning him (Chasi) claiming he is not protecting fellow Zanu PF members.
Chasi has been on an offensive, even on his microblogging site, Twitter handle, urging everyone who owns Zesa to settle their bills.
“After Chasi submitted the list to Mnangagwa some ministers tried to convince the President that Chasi was incompetent and he should be removed from his Ministry but HE (Mnangagwa) told them to just pay what they owe to ZESA,” said a source close to the on goings.
According to one of the ministers who spoke on condition of anonymity most ministers and high-profile people were used to be protected by the late former President Robert Mugabe.
“Most of them (ministers and senior government officials) were used to enjoy the protection of the President but ED wants parastatals to function and the only way out is to make sure people pay for the services being provided.”
Most ministers have played a part in bankrupting the power utility, by failing to pay their bills on time especially at their farms resulting in the institution now failing to provide the much needed electricity, plunging the whole country into darkness
Zesa is owed about USD1,2 billion and in turn owes regional power utilities over USD100 million.
Failure to settle regional obligations has seen the utility failing to import more power to augment dwindling local production which has resulted in massive load shedding.
