Opinion / Columnist
How Harare Vote propelled Mnangagwa to Victory
04 Aug 2018 at 20:31hrs | Views
Contrary to popular belief that rural Zimbabwe carried Emmerson Mnangagwa (ED) to the Zimbabwean presidency, I would like to categorically state that it was instead the Harare vote that carried the day for ED.
Those Harare numbers: Chamisa 548,880, Mnangagwa 204,710 did it. The worst ED could do from this point on was a run-off. I the pictures that raced in my mind were Chiwenga in Mabvuku! His hard work in and around Harare had paid off handsomely. Before the election, it was unthinkable that ED would get 10,000 votes in Harare.
By ZANU PF standards, the party actually did not performed well in the rural areas. If the rural vote had unified around ED, this election could not have been so close. Its closeness shows that the opposition MDC made significant inroads into the usually ZANU PF rural strongholds.
As the elections have come to pass, my only ask is for both sides to sober up and take the country forward. In life, they say whenever you fall but can rise up, then you have a chance to make it next time. MDC fought a good fight but must now go back to the drawing board and learn from their mistakes.
For ZANU PF, my suggestion is for them to refocus only 10 percent of the energy they take in winning the elections and direct it towards developing the country. If they can afford to do that, Zimbabwe will be the next African giant in a short period time.
To the people of Zimbabwe, my advice to you is going on with your lives. Take charge of your lives. Do not be used by politicians to do stupid things. Don't wait for the government to create jobs for you, Government don't create jobs, they create an environment that make business thrive. It is businesses that create jobs.
Those Harare numbers: Chamisa 548,880, Mnangagwa 204,710 did it. The worst ED could do from this point on was a run-off. I the pictures that raced in my mind were Chiwenga in Mabvuku! His hard work in and around Harare had paid off handsomely. Before the election, it was unthinkable that ED would get 10,000 votes in Harare.
By ZANU PF standards, the party actually did not performed well in the rural areas. If the rural vote had unified around ED, this election could not have been so close. Its closeness shows that the opposition MDC made significant inroads into the usually ZANU PF rural strongholds.
As the elections have come to pass, my only ask is for both sides to sober up and take the country forward. In life, they say whenever you fall but can rise up, then you have a chance to make it next time. MDC fought a good fight but must now go back to the drawing board and learn from their mistakes.
For ZANU PF, my suggestion is for them to refocus only 10 percent of the energy they take in winning the elections and direct it towards developing the country. If they can afford to do that, Zimbabwe will be the next African giant in a short period time.
To the people of Zimbabwe, my advice to you is going on with your lives. Take charge of your lives. Do not be used by politicians to do stupid things. Don't wait for the government to create jobs for you, Government don't create jobs, they create an environment that make business thrive. It is businesses that create jobs.
Source - Sam Wezhira
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