{UAH} Pojim/WBK: Without even using the ‘F’ word, may we dare hope for reforms that - Comment
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Without even using the 'F' word, may we dare hope for reforms that
Confession: Of course I voted for the one woman candidate, Anna Mghwira, but not just because of raw and direct feminism.
It had more to do with the whole underdog situation: When in doubt, always select the underdog vying for a position of power. In this particular case, the bonus was that Ms Mghwira was frankly the best presidential candidate debater with the exception of a gentleman whose name escapes me at present.
Because the candidates from the main political conglomerates — CCM and Ukawa — fled the scene of dialogue before we went to the polls, there was the opportunity for less well known personalities to shine. Which meant that there was also more opportunity for quiet common sense to be heard over the posturing and growling of the usual rally talk.
The democratic romantic in me is always looking for an opportunity to let the best woman win through the reasonableness of her arguments. There's a handful of us who ended up feeling this way since Mghwira's party ACT managed a credible 0.1 per cent of the vote. If that's not some impressive under dogging, I don't know what is.
There are two schools of thought when it comes to having women well represented in power. One is the idea that the very fact of being a woman in power would make a woman more sensitive towards and competent with the issues that directly affect women.
Oh, and also that women leaders are less likely to indulge their violent and narcissistic streaks — something worth considering in a region experiencing internal strife caused by men who cannot, for whatever reason, step down.
The other point of view is simpler: Since women make up half of the population, they should by rights also make up a decent chunk of the political class, and the idea of a woman president shouldn't even be novel. No big deal, right?
Not to harp on about it, but the reason we have to embrace feminism is because the face of poverty has always been a female, and a young one, in our African societies.
It makes no sense to talk about development or growth without putting women at the centre of the discussion. Surely you have come across the old saying that when you empower a woman you empower a whole society.
So all in all, yes, it just made sense at the end of the day to vote for the one candidate who happened to be a woman. Clearly, that went well.
Anyways, the year is coming to a close and this new dispensation has to be embraced, or at least tolerated. Magufuli hasn't cancelled Christmas (someone may want to tell that to the dozens of former head-honchos who have been given their marching papers in the past month), proving that he's not completely mechanical.
But what does he think about the ladies? As we settle in, I think it is important to ask if the Magufuli presidency is going to be a good one for women.
If this administration manages to achieve even a fraction of its ambitions, the benefits to women will be enormous. Safe childbirth, roads to get to clinics, education, maybe even pre-primary services, and clean water — these alone would revolutionise life for the majority of us.
And it is the kind of work that doesn't even need to raise debate about feminism or not. So far, I am cautiously inclined to think, that maybe yes, the fifth administration may be good for women, especially because so far it has not pandered to the female vote in any objectionable way.
There's something comforting about its obsession with reform and competence. This kind of obsession knows no gender, so we may be looking at a brutishly efficient and gender-neutral political culture in the offing. Then again, this is an East Africa country, so... let's wait and see.
Elsie Eyakuze is an independent consultant and blogger for The Mikocheni Report, http://mikochenireport.blogspot.com. E-mail: elsieeyakuze@gmail.com
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