In the just concluded few days, Rwandans headed to the polls to elect the President of the Republic. As many of you may recall, this was the second time such an event was taking place. Can we say that, history was merely repeating itself? The date was “09th August 2010”, most of us headed to the polling stations nearest to us in order to have our say! By the turn of the day, we had had our say; the outcome was a victory of greater than 90%, this was no surprise to many of us, and what else did others expect? Comparing the Rwanda of 2000 and that of 2010 (forget the 1994 – 2000 period), the changes are quite remarkable; there is no doubt even the skeptics know it but just do not want to admit it! In the olden day, while at school, we used to head out for football matches, our “motto” was always the same, “we either win or they lose”! Do we need a country torn apart by “politicking” or a more prosperous country? From the Latin doctrine of “RES IPSA LOQUITUR” (actions speak louder than words or for themselves) or better stated, “imvugo niyo ngiro” (words into actions, as stated in his campaign speech, candidate Paul Kagame enumerated the many achievements his government has been able to attain and that, these would “septripple” (go up seven fold). Who in his normal sense would not vote for such a man? How easily the human mind can forget! Of course there are many skeptics out there; they are always looking at the negative side of things rather than the positive. People were trying to compare our African conditions to those of America and Britain and yet, we are living on different continents with different socio-economical situations. The term “democracy” was first used by ancient Greece. Democracy may be termed as “government by the people; a form of government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised directly by them or by their elected agents under a free electoral system”. By the way, many of these skeptics are the ones that enjoy most from the achievements and yet they try to hoodwink the masses. In Africa, we are so used to the politicians that lose the elections and blame it on rigging even when there wasn’t any! What is surprising is that, if they had won the same election, they would have declared it free and fair! Politics is not about throwing dirt at others just for the sake of soiling them; it is not about distorting the truth and expecting the electorate to elect you! It is all about people choosing their leaders. It is quite absurd to hear someone in the comfort of American and European cities. These guys work tooth and nail to rubbish whatever good others do, they are constantly begging their foreign sponsors to declare the elections not free and fair! If the politicians of their choice had won, they would be singing with the other sides of their mouths! All the same, I will say without fear or favour, Congs Mr. Paul K, carry on, it is alright. We as ordinary people do not care much about the rhetoric but what comes after the elections is what matters. Now that the storm is over, we can see the sunshine! Let us all work together towards the “Seven Fold”. Mfashumwana@fastmail.fm
