Hither elections, Statesman or Politician?

Elections are just two months away; the electorate must prepare to invest their votes judiciously to shape their lives and those of posterity.

Although there are over 100 presidential hopefuls, there are only two serious protagonists on the political market. This year's elections have generated great interest both locally and internationally, mainly because they are featuring two new candidates from the two main contesting political parties in the country. President Emmerson Mnangagwa took the reins at Zanu PF following the resignation of former President Robert Mugabe in November last year while Nelson Chamisa assumed charge at the bigger offshoot of the MDC-T in February this year following the death of Morgan Tsvangirai.

This year's elections have new candidates who are selling themselves for the first time. Thus, the electorate must be more meticulous than before and this can be done through listening and interrogating their policy proposals. For all these years, serious elections were about Mugabe and Tsvangirai, and their policies were always predictable. By interrogating what the main political actors are saying, one will see that there is a Statesman and a politician on the political market. According to an American clergyman, James Freedom Clarke, a Statesman thinks of the next generation while a politician thinks of the next election.

A politician thrives on dirty tactics to win the votes, making politics a rough and tumble game. Politicians lie and they promise things that are not achievable. A Statesman is practical. While a politician moves around promising people this and that, a Statesman will be busy delivering.

On the market is President Mnangagwa who squarely fits in the description of a statesman. Mr Chamisa perfectly qualifies to be a politician. What the two men have been doing since assuming leadership of their respective parties set them apart statesman and politician.

During his inauguration as the President, Cde Mnangagwa emphasised that his administration would focus more on economy than on politics. He opened Zimbabwe for business and his common mantra now is "Zimbabwe is open for business." True to his word, the President has been pre-occupied with resuscitating the economy which has been on the nose-dive for the past decade. He has been on the hunt for investors, a mission that saw him visiting different countries across the globe. Despite criticism from the opposition, the expeditions have been very fruitful as the country has so far attracted $11 billion investment commitments from across the globe.

Although some of these investors have adopted a wait and see approach, wherein they want to see how the elections will be conducted before investing their money, some of them have shown unwavering confidence in the new dispensation. Qatar for instance, is sending a high-profile business delegation to Zimbabwe before elections and has pledged to fund various projects in the country.

As a statesman, Cde Mnangagwa knows that Zimbabwe cannot remain a pariah State which lives in isolation, hence his re-engagement efforts with the countries that had severed ties with Zimbabwe. He is being well-received and promises of assistance in economic development have been pouring. The erstwhile enemies are fascinated by his vision and policies, his promise to hold free, fair, transparent and peaceful elections and reforms on some of the investment policies among others. He has not been loquacious, choosing to be action-oriented. That describes what a statesman is.

On the other hand, Mr Chamisa is already in full-sized campaign mode. He is trotting the country where he is talking about politics and politics alone. The few instances he has attempted to talk about economy and social issues, he made boo-boos big time. He has been making promises that are stranger-than-fiction. Stephen Sackur, the BBC anchor had to tell Chamisa straight in his face that his promises were "nonsense." What come to mind quickly are; the proposed introduction of bullet trains, construction of spaghetti roads, village airports, abolishing roora/lobola and making everybody in the rural areas migrate to urban areas for employment. He has vowed to reverse the land reform and Chinese investments.

With this kind of pronouncements, Mr Chamisa still expects to win this crucial election and he had the guts to stake his sister if he lost the battle to President Mnangagwa. His undoing has also been his chauvinistic attitude that manifested in the way he haunted out Thokozani Khupe and other opinionated remarks he made at public rallies about women.

He has started following up on the entire diplomatic offensive launched by Government through the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Lieutenant General (rtd), Dr Sibusiso Moyo and President Mnangagwa. He is not looking for financial assistance to take the country out of the economic doldrums upon his election. No, he wants money to bankroll his campaigns.  All he sees is the election ahead, and nothing else beyond that.

A British Professor, Dianna Jeater sees Chamisa the same way yours truly sees him. Writing on her twitter handle after listening to Chamisa speak, she dismissed him as a potential president. Even BBC's Sackur blatantly told Chamisa that he was going to lose the election.  German's Federal Agency, BPB also predicted that Chamisa will lose the election.