Mlotshwa fights harsh ZIMRA order
by NQOBANI MATHIBELA
GWANDA – MATABELELAND South Senator Nonhlanhla Mlotshwa has emerged as one of the strongest parliamentary voices defending ordinary citizens after a new Treasury directive instructed the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA) to permanently confiscate goods classified as smuggled, removing the option to correct documentation or pay duty.
Addressing the Senate on 26 November, the Gwanda-based lawmaker said the move risks punishing innocent travellers, small traders and women in cross-border business whose livelihoods depend on legitimate movement of goods.
She argued that the directive—introduced without prior parliamentary engagement—creates an unnecessarily punitive framework instead of addressing long-standing challenges at border posts.
Senator Mlotshwa said many residents of Matabeleland South rely on cross-border trading due to limited local economic opportunities, making them particularly vulnerable to administrative errors.
She warned that the permanent forfeiture of goods for minor paperwork mistakes violates the spirit of Section 68 of the Constitution, which guarantees fair administrative conduct.
Calling for transparency and legislative oversight, Senator Mlotshwa urged Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube and the ZIMRA Commissioner-General to appear before Parliament to explain the legal basis of the policy, the rationale for inland processing, and the safeguards available to citizens.
Her intervention has been widely noted as part of her ongoing efforts to ensure that national regulations remain fair, constitutional and sensitive to the realities of communities in Matabeleland South.
