MINISTERS are set to abandon plans to ban the importation of second hand vehicles older than five years after near universal public objections.
Transport Minister Nicholas Goche will make a statement within days announcing a policy U-turn.
The proposed ban, set to take effect on November 1, has seen a spike in vehicle imports as thousands race to beat the deadline.
But the proposals, which ministers said were aimed at protecting the environment and improving road safety, have been criticised by members of the public, MPs and other senior government officials including Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara.
Now Goche is ready to pull the plug in a major climbdown, sources said.
“The government has listened to feedback from public consultations and it has become abundantly evident that this ban is very unpopular,” a senior transport ministry official revealed.
Goche has also been privately lobbied by MPs and ministers to abandon the plans – originally proposed by Environment Minister Francis Nhema.
Publicly, officials insist that the deadline, which should have taken effect at the end of March this year before beign pushed back, still stands.
With Zimbabwe’s car manufacturing industry virtually dead, ministers have struggled to justify banning cheap vehicle imports.
The Zimbabwe Revenue Authority [ZIMRA] had also warned that the ban could cost the government millions of dollars in lost revenue. The duty on vehicles over five years old is more than double the price of the car.
ZIMRA is currently clearing over 450 vehicles daily through Plumtree and Beitbridge border posts.