In
a
Facebook
post
on
Wednesday,
Makumire
said
he
contacted
the
Civil
Registry
Head
Office
in
Harare
to
find
out
why
stationery
shortages
had
stopped
the
issuance
of
these
documents.
He
was
told
that
the
Ministry
of
Home
Affairs
and
Cultural
Heritage,
which
oversees
the
Registrar-General’s
Office,
has
no
funds
to
buy
basic
items
such
as
receipt
books
and
printer
toner.
This
is
because
all
revenue
from
passports,
IDs,
and
related
services
is
taken
by
the
Treasury,
leaving
nothing
for
the
departments
to
use.
Said
Makumire:
“This
afternoon,
I
engaged
the
Civil
Registry
Department
Head
Office
in
Harare
on
the
stationery
shortages
that
have
halted
the
issuance
of
national
IDs
and
birth
certificates
in
Chiredzi
District.“From
the
engagement,
it’s
now
clear
that
the
problem
goes
beyond
the
Registrar-General’s
Office
and
the
Ministry
of
Home
Affairs.“The
ministry
has
no
funds
to
buy
basic
supplies
such
as
receipt
books
and
printer
toners
because
all
revenue
collected
from
passports,
IDs,
and
related
services
is
taken
by
the
Treasury,
with
nothing
retained
by
the
departments.“More
than
55
districts
across
Zimbabwe
are
affected.
This
is
no
longer
an
administrative
problem;
it
is
now
a
national
identity
crisis,
with
thousands
of
citizens
unable
to
access
essential
documents.“This
same
problem
is
affecting
other
ministries
such
as
Mines
and
Local
Government.
The
Minister
of
Finance
must
be
summoned
urgently
when
Parliament
opens.”