THE Registrar General (RG) Tobaiwa Mudede has closed a foreign currency account held with the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) after failing to recover US$7 million deposited with the central bank.

A recent parliamentary report said following the closure of the RBZ account, the registrar’s general resorted to keeping revenues collected at its offices in violation of the country’s banking requirements.

At one stage during a visit by members of Parliament (MPs) the money kept at the offices amounted to nearly US$253 000 and 88 000 Rand.

The RG’s Office is said to have since opened accounts with various other banking institutions.

“Regarding the violation of banking requirements, the registrar general’s office used to bank all its money with the RBZ. However, the department could at one point not get the money.

“A total of US$7 million could to date not be recovered,” the parliamentary report said.

The report added that MPs had quarried why the RG’s Office was retaining 100 percent of all revenue collected, when the law authorized it to keep 10 percent only.

“The department is authorized to retain 10 percent of all revenue collected for purposes of financing its operations.

“The department was however retaining 100 percent apparently on the basis of a variation minute issued by treasury dated 5 September 2002 and expired on 31 December 2003.

“It is considered that the variation is invalid as it cannot override a determination which was passed by Parliament,” the report added.

Meanwhile the RG’s department is just but one of several institutions and companies that have failed to recover money deposited with the country’s undercapitalised central bank.

The RBZ recently extended for another six months special bonds issued to gold miners in lieu of deliveries after failing to honour them when the matured at the beginning of the month.

The country’s biggest platinum miner Zimplats is also owed US$34 million.