The Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra) has come under fire for “exorbitant” penalties imposed on hauliers for minor deviations from their declared routes when trucks are transiting the country.
The issue was brought to our attention by a trucker who told FTW that poor signage had recently resulted in his driver losing his way – and for that “deviation” he was fined US$2 000, a geo-fence violation penalty imposed for diverting from his prescribed route.
“We believe it’s unreasonable and in violation of nearly every SADC protocol regarding free trade and movement of goods,” the haulier told FTW.
According to Federation of East and Southern African Road Transport Associations (Fesarta) executive director, Mike Fitzmaurice, this penalty was introduced as part of Statutory Instrument 113, implemented in September 2017, and its purpose was to prevent the smuggling and offloading or dumping of transit goods in Zimbabwe to avoid paying duties.
“I have heard of cases of transporters being penalised for the deviation of a stipulated route, but only one such case has been reported to Fesarta, which was resolved without anypenalty being imposed.” He said he could not comment on any cases that had not been directed through Fesarta. “As far as poor signage is concerned, that is the norm in most African countries today, but with GPS mapping on cell phones today, it is hardly an excuse – and drivers who run these routes on a regular basis, ie, at least two trips a month, can’t really use this excuse either.” There have however been several similar cases reported to FTW.
In one scenario, a transport operator reported that one of his trucks had made a wrong turn after entering into Zimbabwe from the Beitbridge border post but had only deviated from the correct route for 400 metres before turning back to the correct route. The truck’s seal and load were recorded to be intact all the way through to Chirundu but it was still slapped with a fine at the border post. In another instance, a truck was sent from Johannesburg to northern Mozambique through Zimbabwe.
According to the transporter, it was fitted with a tracking device at Beitbridge and while driving through a small town in Zimbabwe the truck driver made a wrong turn. Within one kilometre, he realised his mistake and made a u-turn to return to the correct route. The road freight operator claims that the truck did not stop and returned to the correct route in under ten minutes but was still fined.
In both cases the transporters filed an appeal with Zimra but the authority refused to waive or reduce the penalty and is now holding both trucks, as well as any goods, until the fine has been paid. In a letter seen by FTW, Zimra stated: “There is no latitude for waiver or reduction of the fine as the wording in the statutory instrument is clear on the matter.”
Fitzmaurice said that if there was a genuine case where a driver had made a mistake, either due to poor signage or for any other legitimate reason, he could report this to the nearest police station and make an affidavit so that the deviation could be defended and the penalty revoked. A spokesperson from transport company Gigatrans told FTW that transiting cargo through Zimbabwe had become a “don’t pay don’t play” situation, with other excessive and unnecessary penalties being imposed besides the geo-fence violation.
He claimed that a R2-million truck with a R1-million trailer carrying R1 million in goods had been stopped and impounded by Zimra for allegedly carrying contraband. The company had then sent someone personally to inspect the truck and called on Zimra to provide proof of contraband.
Despite the fact that no proof was forthcoming, the truck was only released after payment of a US$5 000-bribe.
This is just part of doing business in other countries in Africa, you must pay to do business. – Haulier
