At the break of dawn I am staggering across the room, like a man succumbing to the effects of an intoxicating drink, as I make my way to the bathroom.
A turn of the knob and the water splashes out with a rapid burst, the coldness of the water catching me unaware. My body jerks backwards, in a split second of reflex action I bump my head on the overhead cabinet behind me. I moan agonizingly in the pain. I am not staggering anymore, in an instant I am fully awake and my senses are operating at 3 cups of coffee. As if to retaliate, I walk out of the shower angrily and put on some clothes, the shower is a failed mission.
This is not any other ordinary day, this is the 20th day of the 5th month of the year of our Lord 2014. This is the day the Malawian nation elects a leader to guide the nation for at least 5 years, God willing.
After all has been said through flamboyant campaign trails far exceeding the pomp of a thousand royal wedding processions, one leader will be chosen.
The trip to the polling station is short, accompanied by my housemates, jokes and laughter echo all round. Faces beaming with eagerness and anticipation of a bright future not promised to us.
I step out of the car with such intent and importance in my walk as if I am about to address a United Nations Assembly. A quick check for my voter ID in the wallet and next thing you know I am standing in line. Shielded from the cold abrasive morning winds by a black hoody and double layered pants, I am ready to cast the vote.
A glimpse of the queues, filled with people of all walks of life, gets me to think of our role as Malawians in this matrimonial act of democracy.
The aphorism that democracy is a game of numbers plays out innocently in the minds of many until you cynically add to it that at times all the fools can be on one side. At the end of the week, you could be a fool who voted for the ruling party or the fool whose party did not make it.
Calls to vote wisely have been rife on social networks you could be mistaken ‘’wisely’’ was the name of a presidential candidate. However, all in all, there is no wisdom when you cast a vote, just an opinion.
I do not wish to lay waste my words by being concerned with the abstract thoughts lingering in the minds of all these people. However, for as long as it is from these thoughts that an opinion is formed, and from this opinion a government is elected and supported, it can never be considered as a matter of little consequence.
The interest of the people in a leader lies not in what is promised but in what will be done for the nation. This is the premise upon which a vote is cast, action, long lasting action and not masquerades, white elephants and illusions.
We neither reside in dreams nor visions, but in the realities of the common man’s needs. The need to satisfy oneself in times of hunger; the need to get medication when afflicted; the need to live under a roof; and most of all the need to be dignified. I do not mean to demean the importance of dreams and visions, oh no, but if they are but words of no substance, they are mere rumors and tales.
Not everyone can agree, no absolute majority can be struck, no unanimous decision will be reached, this is the nature of a democratic system or so be it any system that operates on a consensus. There will always be winners and losers in an election. It is the responsibility of the winner to govern with resolute honesty and for the loser to provide balances and checks like a true statesman.
The paramount truth is that no single citizen’s opinion is wrong. How we arrive at our individual opinion may be flawed due to limitations of exposure to facts and other factors, but this does not invalidate one’s opinion. The opinion is an absolute. That is why every citizen has a constitutional right to vote and to do it only once. It is this opinion, no matter how it is arrived at, that carries the day. It is this opinion that supports a government, without which chaos is inevitable as a government is run by oppression.
A vote cast is cast in vain if it is cast for an individual and not the nation. Irrespective of the different ideologies, principles, and characters embedded in the presidential candidates, the furtherance of the country should far supersede our lines of differences. We can love different political parties but our love for the nation should be indifferent. The unearthing of this deeper love is what should unite us irrespective of who we voted for. This is a true and patriotic vote.
Democracy begins with the embrace of differences, an understanding that in the absence of differences, there would be no need for a democracy as one rule would suffice. It is astonishing to see people present dogmatic statements and show no willingness to listen to opposing views and yet attest their subscription to democracy. Baffling! An oxymoron of some sort.
The vote that is most important is not the vote that is cast for the winning candidate neither is it that vote cast for the losing candidate, but rather the vote that is cast and is counted. This is the vote for the nation.
At the front of the line now, with a patriotic vote to cast. God bless Malawi.
