No more Fongkongs

MONKAGEDI GAOTLHOBOGWE
Staff Writer | Friday October 15, 2010 00:00

 

Others say the freezing of the import cars to Botswana has been on the cards after South Africa froze the sale of cars to Namibia and Zambia last year. Those who say discontinuation of selling of the imports to Botswana was expected point to rumours that were rife in December when some Durban car dealers contemplated relocating to Namibian shores to flee the crack-down by the South African government.

There has also been talk that the South African government has been under pressure from car manufacturers there who complain that the Japanese imports are killing their business in the region.  The Japanese cars are not sold in South Africa but South Africans can buy them in Gaborone where there are more than 40 dealers and later drive them in their country with South African number plates, it has been realised. Whatever, the Indian owned garages dealing in imported cars are said to be now stuck with stock of cars they are unable to sell because of the latest stance by the South African tax-man. On the other hand local car dealers have been cashing in on the jittery situation in Durban to hike prices of the imported vehicles as they will no longer be competing with hundreds of middlemen who traditionally drive between South Africa and Botswana to get their clients cars. Car dealers around Mogoditshane, the hub of the imported cars, are painting a gloomy picture of the situation with leading Durban dealers in Japanese imports reported to have been closed down by the taxman in recent weeks, while the remaining ones cannot operate after they were refused clearance certificates by the South African revenue services, making it impossible for Botswana car buyers to continue acquiring cars from Durban. The freezing of Japanese cars to Botswana comes two years since clearance certificates to Zambia and Namibia were discontinued by the South African Revenue Services (SARS). Since then, Namibians and Zambians buying Japanese imports have been beating the system by using Botswana where their cars would be cleared before being driven to their final destinations in Zambia and Namibia, Mmegi has found out.

Investigations by Mmegi this week found that local buyers who had been to Durban to source the cars from Thursday last week to Monday this week were turned away and told clearance certificates for the Botswana bound Japanese and Singapore imports have been stopped indefinitely. A phone call to Wheels, Durban's largest garage for imported vehicles yesterday confirmed the fears to be true but an unidentified official said that they do not know how the problems started but sales of cars to Botswana have been frozen.

'We only know that clearance certificates have been discontinued but we do not know whether this is temporary or permanent. We are still trying to sort out this thing, and at the moment we are not in a position to entertain media queries. She however confirmed that the Botswana market consumes the bulk of their cars.

Mmegi investigations around Mogoditshane revealed that only cars that have been arriving in the country over the last few days are for those orders that had already been processed before last week Thursday. Now desperate Botswana car dealers say they are being advised by the Durban dealers to buy the cars through Zimbabwe, but the cars now will have to go to Harare, and then to Plumptree and Francistown before finally arriving in Gaborone.  The Zimbabwe tax department levies US 2,000 per car cleared, an equivalent of P14, 000, which does not make business sense for local dealers. G Motors in Mogoitshane say they wanted to buy six cars last week Friday when they were reimbursed and told that there were no cars for Botswana anymore.  The buyers were not told when the situation would be resolved. At King's Motors, still in Mogoditshane, officials say the latest stance has taken them by surprise and it could lead to loss of jobs.

An individual car dealer who has benefited from the Durban imports after buying himself four that he uses as cabs says that he has been making P2,000 a week in profit from going to Durban to buy cars for clients. The dealer says the latest news has hit him hard as he has now lost business. However, a number of Asiatic dealers in imported vehicles in Mogodithane have welcomed the decision by South Africa to close down the Durban garages claiming it could mark a victory for Botswana traders. One Mogoditshane dealer who chose to remain anonymous says he buys his Japanese and Singapore cars directly from Japan and Singapore and ferries them to Botswana through Botswana Railways. He claimed his business will not be affected. At Kazume Car Centre, the owner, also of Asiatic stock, also celebrated the closure of the Durban Japanese imports business because he buys directly from Japan and Singapore. Mark, a Nigerian dealer also selling Japanese imports from Durban says since the news of the indefinite suspension of the cars to Botswana, he has been able to hike prices of his remaining stock as people do panic buying.  He showed a car that few weeks ago used to cost P27, 000, but now goes for P40,000, due to the situation at Durban.