By Cde Bekezela Mkonto kaMthwakazi

Our beloved ZANU PF government, in a perpetual state of selective taxation, continues to paint its true colors, which are elitist, procedural, and blissfully indifferent to the ordinary citizen.

While the so-called wealth tax—originally aimed at owners of properties worth US$100,000 or more—has been “put on ice” until Parliament completes what Finance minister Mthuli Ncube politely calls “administrative modalities,” the working masses were not so fortunate.

Commuter omnibuses, taxis, driving schools, and goods vehicles have all been told to cough up hefty new presumptive taxes, regardless of whether their operators can afford to do so.

Under Public Notice No. 51 of 2025, kombi operators must pay between US$50 and US$100 per month, depending on capacity.

Taxi drivers are charged US$35 monthly. 

Even heavy goods vehicles, the workhorses of the nation’s commerce, are now burdened with levies ranging up to US$500 per month, depending on weight.

ZINARA has been appointed as the diligent collector, ensuring that no coin escapes the grasp of government coffers.

True patriots, while the masses brace for rising transport costs and inevitable price hikes on everyday goods, the government has simultaneously slashed parking fees, clamping penalties, towing charges, and even vehicle number plate costs.

In Harare, hourly parking fees have been halved from US$1 to US$0.50, and in Bulawayo, daily parking packages have dropped from US$4 to US$2.

Clamping and towing penalties were similarly reduced by 50%, and vehicle number plates, previously a hefty US$500, now cost a mere US$50 thanks to local production at the University of Zimbabwe.

Finance minister Mthuli Ncube praised these reductions as part of a “comprehensive review to eliminate unnecessary fees and regulatory overlaps, making it easier for businesses to operate.”

One could almost forgive him for suggesting that slashing parking fees is a victory for the people—if only it weren’t offset by the crushing burden of the new transport levies, which cascade down to every commuter and ordinary citizen.

Zimbabwe’s social landscape now glaringly divides into three regimes of people: the wealthy, the middle-income earners, and the ordinary masses.

The first group enjoys procedural protection and delays that keep the wealth tax at bay; the second group is squeezed by rising costs and stagnant wages; and the third group—truly the nation’s backbone—bears the brunt of a system that taxes them at every turn while promising nothing in return.

Norton legislator Richard Tsvangirai rightly described the new transport taxes as “unfair,” warning they would deepen poverty and increase the cost of living.

In essence, the ZANU PF government has perfected the art of optics: generosity for the motorists who can already afford private cars, yet merciless levies for the public transport operators that serve the masses.

One could almost call it a work of art if it weren’t so cruelly effective at sustaining social inequity.

So, while Zimbabweans inch toward a future of higher transport costs and mounting financial pressures, the elites wait patiently for their wealth tax to finally take effect—hopefully after another round of parliamentary “consideration.”

In the meantime, ordinary citizens can take comfort in paying more while seeing less, and perhaps, for an hour or two, park a little cheaper.