By Evans Mathanda, independent journalist and development professional
who writes in a personal capacity.
The notion of democracy and good governance has been debated for decades in Africa, particularly when comparing African to Western systems of governance.Some concluded that it was even better to live in colonial Africa than in independent Africa. Independence gave hope to many people as they foresaw that they would have a better life.
In Zimbabwe, as in the rest of Africa, musicians like Thomas Mapfumo and Oliver Mtukudzi also composed songs celebrating the new dawn.
Ironically, after decades of independence, many African countries are still battling poverty, economic inequality and human rights violations.
In Zimbabwe, the Chinese have become our new colonizer and appear to have unlimited rights and access to our minerals and land.
In the south, many South Africans still claim economic independence as the white minority still has a tight grip on the wheels of the country̵
Botswana and Rwanda have shown somewhat positive stories over the years, which the rest of Africa should emulate.
We have heard that the insurrection in Mozambique is slowly being questioned, thanks to the President of Rwanda Paul Kagame.
« Kakistocracy » is an appropriate term for most governments in southern Africa characterized by leaders who formulate bad policies to safeguard only the interests of the elite.
Whether it’s a dictatorship or a command leadership, as you can call it, Kagame is moving in the right direction.
Advances in Rwanda show that Kagame’s leadership style is reaching a climax.
Kagame does not go back, African leaders must learn from Rwanda.
The development of Rwanda is an example of what individual countries could achieve, if only they were better governed.
Rwanda’s economy is recovering from a horrific genocide at a faster and more interesting pace.
Kagame revived the economy, reduced corruption and maintained political stability.
This is the development advance that many other leaders can only dream of, making Rwanda’s economic success story one to love in Southern Africa.
Most economic analysts in Africa have argued that heads of state should operate more like Kagame, but what makes him different from other African leaders?
One could take a closer look at the 1994 Rwandan genocide in which at least 800,000 people were killed over a span of around 100 days.
No economy would have survived such a war situation, but Kagame, a former rebel leader who has ruled Rwanda since the aftermath of the 1994 genocide, is taking Rwanda to a new level.
In addition to rebuilding the economy, 150,000 perpetrators of violent conflicts in Rwanda have faced justice to bring about reconciliation and reintegration in a population of which up to one fifth is estimated to have been killed in the genocide.
At least 71 offenders were convicted by the United Nations International Criminal Court for Rwanda, and some confessed to their criminal activities in special village courts called gacacas.
Sure, peace and reconciliation are a long process, but countries like Zimbabwe have failed to address conflict resolution issues.
The Gukurahundi massacres may need a new government that did not participate in the genocide that killed some 20,000 people.
Peace and reconciliation under President Mnangagwa’s rule are just a dream.
The Gukurahundi issue is a tough hot potato to handle, “Hot hot” (it’s hot) as Zimbabweans say in Shona and Ndebele.
The healing and restoration process is not an easy game and so many resolutions have been made in the past, but no practical action has been taken to address the sensitive issue.
Kagame, is an African president whose leadership skills are appreciated by many despite some being of the opinion that he is a dictator.
Kagame deployed the Rwandan army as Mozambique’s military forces were struggling to regain control in the Cabo Degaldo province, which is home to one of Africa’s largest liquefied natural gas projects.
The Southern Africa Development Community (Sadc) is a useless regional bloc that has failed the Africans.
SADC was supposed to intervene in the Mozambican unrest long before Rwanda’s intervention, but the regional bloc sometimes takes a long time to act.
Rwanda’s intervention is to prevent what happened in 1994 from happening again in southern Africa, although some say Rwanda has a hidden agenda, well, let’s talk about peace and order for now.
The strategies that have been employed by Kagame for Covid-19 and its effects are simply outstanding and it is without a doubt that Kagame is doing great in Africa.
As a strategy to reduce the impact of the Covid-19 blockade, Kagame has ordered free door-to-door distribution of food to Rwandans and other services such as free energy (electricity).
Officials moved from house to house to conduct a fair distribution of resources under Kagame’s direct supervision to avoid favoritism.
In Zimbabwe, the $ 300 Covid-19 relief fund, which suffered a stillbirth, was like a mockery of citizens who already suffer.
In an interview last year, Finance and Economic Development Minister Mthuli Ncube indicated that the government had the ability to support vulnerable groups during the Covid-19 blockade.
« We are not short of funds in terms of support for vulnerable Zimbabwean citizens, » Ncube said.
« In fact, at the moment, we are waiting to reach our goal of one million vulnerable people. We appeal for people to come forward and sign up for social assistance because we have the budget. »
However, the $ 300 monthly grant wasn’t even enough to buy 10kg of meal.
No wonder the Zimbabwean government had to stop the program in its early stages.
In 2018, Kagame’s decision to close more than 6,000 churches and 100 mosques across Rwanda, including 714 in the capital Kigali for failing to comply with health, safety and noise regulations, made headlines.
Human rights organizations and some activists have accused the Kagame government of repressing freedom of worship.
Policies and priorities in Africa define leadership styles and governance techniques, in such a pandemic that devastated Zimbabwe’s economy the Mnangagwa administration had to sit down for a cabinet meeting to open churches.
Opening churches only to fully vaccinated people is an indirect push to increase vaccination in Zimbabwe.
The « Visit Rwanda » campaign is changing the face of travel in Rwanda and promoting economic development through tourism.
The Visit Rwanda campaign is a partnership between Rwanda and the Arsenal football team to promote tourism in the East African country.
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