The current cash crisis in the country has for the second year running hit hard on tobacco farmers, who since the beginning of the marketing season have endured the burden of spending days and weeks queuing for money at the auction floors.
The farmers have intimated that the hassles they face in trying to access cash now surpasses tobacco farming and harvesting process.
When 263Chat visited the Tobacco Sales Floor (TSF) auction floors last week, farmers reported to spending over a week trying to get through processes of selling their tobacco and withdrawing the $300 cash limit from banks.
“I came here with my family way before independence to sell my leaves but weeks later I am still here. Even after reducing cash limit from last year’s $500 we are having to spend over two weeks trying to withdraw that little $300. We expected things to get better this year but look, it is getting worse,” said Petros Mukanje a Hurungwe tobacco farmer.
With an increasing number of people sleeping at auction floors and around banking halls some farmers who spoke to 263Chat cried out high health risk and poor hygiene
“Since i got here seven days ago I haven’t bathed at all neither have I changed these clothes, there are no bathrooms and toilets here, people are just using these maize fields as toilets.
“With such dirt on us thieves find it easy to identify farmers once we hit the Harare Central Business District Area,” added Christopher Chitiyo.
Meanwhile robbery, theft and infidelity dramas have become the order of the day at the various auction floors around Harare.
“Just yesterday a nephew was caught bedding his uncle’s wife, humanness is slowly fading away here. We witness sex everywhere at night just as dogs do, no shame at all,” bemoaned Othilia Manuwa.
