Online Reporter
Diana Nherera
Herald Correspondent
HARARE Mayor Councillor Jacob Mafume said his council will implement the ban on second-hand clothes in a humane manner.
In an interview, Clr Mafume said it stands to reason that as a nation, there should be a plan to increase the sale of brand new clothes.
“We cannot have a lasting policy that is dependent on us relying on second-hand clothes not only to clothe ourselves, but also to create jobs,” he said.
“It is an unsustainable approach and the irony is that we grow cotton and therefore we should be able to turn our cotton into new clothes.”
Clr Mafume said the issue of second-hand clothes was a smuggling issue.
“For them to be in Harare, they have to go through the border and that’s where we need to tighten restrictions. As a city our role is to provide facilities for traders to sell goods that are obtained legally. If goods have been banned, it therefore follows that they are illegal and you cannot get the space to sell what is, in any sense, illegal.
“But we do understand that the implementation of the ban has to take into account the realities facing our people.”
Online Reporter