Minister of Industry and Commerce Mangaliso Ndlovu has said that the government is not out to punish businesses which are profiteering and that the government has no intention to introduce price controls. The Minister said that the government will only introduce a price monitoring system to identify people “sabotaging” the economy. Said Ndhlovu,
Price control are not on the table, Government has not taken that position and it will not take that position. We have made it quite clear that it’s not coming…Certainly, Government will not consider doing that and I like the fact that you put it clear as a punitive measure, we don’t believe anyone has to be punished for anything, this is a situation that we all have to collectively deal. So far, interactive platforms have worked and we believe we can do more through such platforms.
However, Ndlovu’s deputy Raj Modi has said that the government is working on introducing a law to protect consumers which will impose heavy fines and revoke licences of all businesses which increase prices without justification.
More: Sunday Mail