Presidential and parliamentary campaigns in Rwanda are already in high gear. The campaign venues of president Paul Kagame who is the Chairman of RPF have exhibited mammoth crowds.

Without question, the large turn out is an indicator of very big support for the party. In Muhanga District, a woman who attended the campaign went into labor and was rushed to the hospital where she delivered a baby boy and named him Mwizerwa Ian Kagame.

For the mother of the baby, Kamugisha Marie Goreth, to attend a campaign rally well aware that she was heavily pregnant leads to another interesting aspect that Rwanda’s western critics have failed to understand of how the country registers higher voter turn up than in other countries. There is also another example of the zealousness of RPF supporters. It happened in Huye District where people started arriving as early as 02 am in order to have a strategically good position to follow the event. 

The above two examples show that when it comes to voting, Rwandans take the exercise as a personal duty for which one cannot find an excuse unless when one is not physically able.

The absence of these facts to outsiders usually leads them to a misguided conclusion that elections in Rwanda are rigged in favour of Paul Kagame.

To the contrary, Western media coverage on Rwanda wants readers to believe that Kagame has stifled the opposition from participating in the campaign to create an impression that Kagame’s win would not be genuine because his ‘real challengers’ are absent.

For example, a story published by Deutsche Welle (DW) a Germany public news agency on June 22, titled: “Kagame backs opposition ban as Rwanda election nears,” mentions Ntaganda, and Ingabire being locked out of the presidential race. “Two prominent opposition candidates are barred from running by an appeals court decision”, the story without a byline reads.

First of all, the title of the story is misleading. Opposition parties or candidates have not been banned from participating in the campaigns. Frank Habineza of the Green party and Philippe Mpayimana, an independent candidate, belong to the opposition. They are not within the coalition of political parties  that supports the RPF.

For the Germany state owned news agency to show concern that Ntaganda and Ingabire are the symbol of the desirable opposition in Rwanda who must have been allowed to stand for election, is similar to questioning why prominent neo-Nazi politician Markus Frohmaier, a leader of the AfD political group in Germany, cannot be allowed to contest in an election for the Germany chancellor or other competitive political positions. 

Ingabire and Ntaganda have criminal records related to harboring genocide ideology and ethnic divisionism, which are the root causes of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda.

It is unlikely that any of the current establishment parties will work with the AfD to govern Germany, primarily because the AfD supports policies that are so far removed from what typical German parties would find acceptable. The same applies to Rwandan political parties or individuals with genocide ideology that cannot be allowed to engage in politics.

What Ingabire and Ntaganda stand for is contrary to the constitution of Rwanda.

Typical of the Western media reporting on Rwanda, the DW article simply mentions Kagame’s achievement in passing and in one sentence that,  “Kagame is credited with improving the living standards of thousands of millions of Rwandans, thanks to a booming economy.” This is one major factor why Rwandans keep voting him as their leader. 

However, I give credit to the author, who for unknown reasons remained anonymous, for being honest and used a photo that shows the strength of Kagame and RPF during the first campaign rally at Busogo.

The article hints at Human Rights Watch criticism of Kagame. This is nothing new. HRW has never looked at Rwanda in the right perspective. It is public knowledge that Human rights has been politicized and turned into a weapon against leaders like Kagame who are independent critical thinkers on how to approach challenges faced by their countries and do not subscribe to the Western rule book.

It is contradictory to associate Kagame with human rights abuse while he has spent the biggest part of his life as a freedom fighter, fighting so that oppressed people can have freedom.

He is credited for stopping the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. He has improved the living standards of millions of Rwandans. He has initiated social protection programmes to make life better, and the economy is booming.

When Westerners claim that Kagame has a bad human right record, and the comparison of his accomplishment and the endorsement by the Rwandan people, there is a contradiction.

It is like saying that Kagame is a source of light and darkness at the sometime which is scientifically and practically erroneous.

The popularity of Kagame has a history written in blood, sweat, and sacrifice and therefore, no matter the bad stories and wishful thinking, the strength of Kagame and RPF cannot be wished away by Western critics.