The Coalition of Democrats Zimbabwe (CODE) has reiterated calls for government to privatize Air Zimbabwe.
In a statement to 263Chat, CODE president Mr Elton Mangoma said Air Zimbabwe just like any other parastatals must be privatized.
“It is an open secret that the airliner like many other parastals is failing to stand the heat hence it is continuously sinking on the market despite several attempts by government to resuscitate it.
“The continued mismanagement of the airline by successive government-appointed administrators, huge debts, skills flight and the continued use of expensive and hardly serviced ageing aircraft has rendered the national airliner incompetent compared with other airliners regionally and internationally,” said Mangoma.
The airline is still battling to restore its solvency, and faced with imminent competition from new entrants on the domestic market.
The statement went on to say that government has to resuscitate the national airliner through privatization as suggested during the Government of National Unity (GNU).
During the GNU, an intensive analysis on Air Zimbabwe revealed that the struggling airline should be closed or privatized since its operations were running at a loss. The airliner has been rendered incompetent to sustain itself thereby costing government and the nation.
CODE President, Elton Mangoma added that Zimbabwe is not realizing any meaningful returns from the national airliner which he described as an economic “goblin” on an already overstretched fiscus.
“The airline is just chewing money and our country has never made any profits through the parastatal,” said CODE President, Mangoma, adding that it is highly unsustainable to continuously invest in a business which ran at a loss yet there are viable options that include privatization.
Government was encouraged to emulate, regional counterparts which include Kenya and Ethiopia, that have privatized their national airlines.
“Zimbabwe should learn from the Kenyan and Ethiopian airways, which have since been privatized and they are performing better compared to other airlines across Africa,” said Mangoma
