Regional
Kagame, RPF strength cannot be wished away by Western critics
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.