Canadian perspective on Zimbabwe election day

As the whole world reviews with bated breath on the results of the 31st of July Zimbabwe national elections, within Canada the common question being asked by non-Zimbabweans is whether this was finally President Mugabe's final curtain call.

Due to the lack of unbiased balanced information coming out in the public sphere, the general prism that Canadians view  Zimbabwe politics is simply as a battle between Morgan Tsvangirai and Robert Mugabe, wherein Morgan Tsvangirai is seen as morally good and Robert Mugabe is seen as being morally bad. This simple distillation of Zimbabwe's domestic geopolitics has resulted in a lot of information being disregarded in the media and within the larger international community.

Another strange phenomenon that is noticeable, within Canada is the context in which Zimbabwean politics; is viewed from a non-Zimbabwean perspective. African and Caribbean Canadians have latent sympathies for Robert Mugabe identifying him with Kwame Nkurumah, Rastafari and Pan-Africanism , whilst on the other hand Anglo-Saxon and European Canadians generally support Morgan Tsvangirai because they view Mugabe as a dictator who suppresses his own people. Very few individuals within these two camps; really understand the complex dynamics that are involved within Zimbabwe and what the generally ambivalent populace really want.

Simply educating a Westerner, to start picturing the Zimbabwean political field, in terms of the rural areas being republican/conservative whilst the urban centres are seen as democratic/liberal, immediately enables non-Zimbabweans, to subjectively start asking the right questions about Zimbabwe psyche and voter issues; mainly because they start viewing the Zimbabwe system in relation to their own political system.

Taking into account corruption, vote rigging and intimidation, Zimbabwe politics is the flip-side of North American politics. Unlike Canadian or American politics where population densities are located in the urban areas requiring the winning party to pick up some seats within both urban and rural ridings. Currently Zimbabwe's population is still mainly rural based, resulting in all the swing ridings being all within rural areas.

Ndebele provinces can be compared to the province of Quebec within Canada; the people are more loyal to Ndebele values, both major political parties struggle within the provinces however at the end of the day just like in Canada they only need to just pick up a few seats to keep the running tally for ruling party majority.

Asking whether Robert Mugabe is finally going to get kicked out, is like asking whether the U.S Democratic party has finally found a plan to take back the Conservative South, or whether the Canadian Liberals will develop an action plan for Conservative Alberta. Mugabe has nothing to do with it; the seeds of his party have already been planted and taken root.

Again please note; taking into consideration the corruption, vote rigging and intimidation that will occur during the election, regardless of all that; the rest of the remaining votes will be distilled from plain old political strategy of which political party gets the most ridings.

 If an observer took the time and listened to the political rhetoric from both parties one would soon form, a somewhat clear premise; of what both parties' political platforms stand for.
In terms of what they stand for generally, MDC is "Prosperity through human rights, liberty, justice and free market economics"; whilst Zanu PF is, "Prosperity through land and property rights, planned economy and self empowerment."  
The Zimbabwean people simply want a better way of living and an opportunity to compete on the international playing field. Historical pent-up emotions and tribalistic-buzz words mixed with a growing Zimbabwean economic-class system, has been used by all the political parties to group and rally their voter blocks for this election.  The swing riding's such as Bindura, are an example of where the even proportion of rural and urban ideologies' will be where; the fight for this election will be fought.

Living here in Canada, when I am asked whether this election will be the silver bullet to Zimbabwe's ills? All I can point to; for disillusionment; is the geopolitical situation on the ground in Zimbabwe. Both parties MDC and Zanu Pf are not going anywhere they will be the norm for years to come, the only thing being determined in this election is on the issue of the national lightning rod; who is the current President of Zimbabwe, nevertheless the politcal game and the issues have only just begun.

 The true question to ask is; who will take over Zanu PF if Mugabe loses or once he is gone? Or if MDC forms a government will they be able to transform their party platform, in preparation for the next election?
Zimbabwean people want land, property rights, liberty, justice, jobs, and global access; our two political parties have divided these various issues amongst themselves and have developed talking points based on their own parties' origin.
Nevertheless the political game and social system has now been prepared for future Zimbabwean generations to debate over for the next century. The only wrench that can be thrown in this natural progression of democracy is if the army is allowed to stage a coup de tat.

Within the Canadian Diaspora, astute Zimbabwe leaders who; most of the time end up being religious leaders and social activists, try by all means to stay clear of Zimbabwean politics, why? Whilst interviewing a local religious leader within Toronto, he pointed out that Zimbabwe politics thrives on muddying the waters for the citizen.

Tribalism, family history and identity are now easily defined once an individual who is Zimbabwean states his affiliation to a certain political party. A commonly known fact amongst the Diaspora is that progressive thought is usually found amongst independents and those who refrain from involving themselves from partisan activities.

 In order to understand Zimbabwe elections, one needs to first learn how to ask the right questions. This election is not about Zimbabwe and what benefits Zimbabwe as a nation, that discussion will be held later on this year and the following decades to come.

This election is simply a referendum on President Robert Mugabe as a leader. Should Zimbabweans let him die gracefully from power or are Zimbabweans finally sick and tired that he held on to power this long and believe it is time for him to go. Morgan Tsvangirai happens to be the only protagonist that from day one persisted in this play for Mugabe to go. After inevitably Mugabe does depart, Morgan Tsvangirai's worth will be tied up according to how his policies match up with the feelings of the populace.

This week as I make the rounds answering the Zimbabwe question amongst Canadians, I remind Zimbabweans that this is the first chapter in a new book being written on Zimbabwe history.
Regardless of whoever wins this election the rules of engagement on the political field have now been set and established for the next 50 years in Zimbabwe politics?

Tsungai Chipato is a Journalist and blogger within Toronto Canada
Contact @: mugaradzakasungwa@gmail.com