H Metro - Real Life Real Drama

The recent move by the government of reducing the price of a standard passport from US$140 to US$50 is a blessing to Zimbabweans. It further increases the already existing freedom of movement that our citizens enjoyed. This freedom was technically being threatened by the unaffordability of attaining a passport.

The price of acquiring a passport was the same as the civil servant salary which means it was practically impossible for a civil servant to get a travel document for themselves met alone a spouse or child!

Their right to mobility and the fundamental right to a passport were being threatened. This was of course resulted in by the challenging economic environment that the country was under. Manufacturing a passport was costly since the Registrar General‘s office had to import some of the material used in the manufacturing process.

This in turn means if the price had been reduced then, we were going to overburden the RG’s office. So this price reduction can also be used as an indicator to show that the country’s economy is on a decent road to recovery. If government can afford to bring to a sane level the production costs then it means our economy is picking up. The price reduction also helps in alleviating cases of border jumpers who had to cross the border illegally because they could not afford the exorbitant passport fees that were being charged.

Those that had failed to travel or had been deported because of their Emergency Travelling Documents (ETD’s) also have something to smile about. The reduction of the prices hopefully shows that the economy is on its road to recovery. Another refreshing thing to note is that the Home Affairs ministry said that this price reduction will not affect the revenue that the RG’s office was getting. Minister Makone was quoted clearing the air on that issue.

Another positive development is the scrapping of fines on lost or defaced passports. Those fines were very unfair considering that losing a passport is not a deliberate move hence there was no need for punitive measures. The world has become a global village and people must visit other countries and enjoy the freedom of movement, which is one of the basic fundamental rights for every citizen in a democracy.

The International Organisation of Migration must be smiling because illegal Zimbabwean immigrants had become a menace in neighbouring countries. That’s a sad fact! Owning a Zimbabwean passport must be accompanied by a feeling of pride and joy. It cultivates a sense of patriotism to the peoples, and they wouldn’t want to be associated with any other country’s passport. But with the exorbitant prices that were being charged, some people were opting to fraudulently acquire South African or Malawian passports which were more affordable.