Image: AFP PHOTO / ZINYANGE AUNTONY
It is a week away from make-or-break general elections in Zimbabwe and the two front runners‚ incumbent president Emmerson Mnangagwa‚ 75‚ of Zanu PF, and closest challenger Nelson Chamisa‚ 40‚ from the MDC Alliance, are not leaving anything to chance.
Pictures of the two on the road went viral on social media telling interesting stories.
There was that of Chamisa doing push-ups in public – portraying a Rocky Balbao image‚ a people’s champion‚ one who understands politics is not about how hard you hit‚ but how hard you can get hit and still get up.
The other picture showed Mnangagwa‚ who was on former president Robert Mugabe’s side since 1980 at independence‚ taking medication in public.
For many‚ “The Crocodile”‚ as he has come to be known‚ is a political immortal and the first sign of weakness was captured on camera.
But his spokesperson‚ George Charamba‚ said his boss had been under the weather while on the road campaigning and the persistent cold spell in the region had not made it any easier.
Image: Supplied
“Even the president lives under the same weather just like you and me – they are also susceptible to cold. The president is back in form and that is why he is back on his campaign trail‚” Charamba said.
Numerous polls conducted so far give both candidates an edge over the other.
For some this close call indicates a possible inclusive government.
“Because the presidential race has tightened considerably‚ there is a very good chance that no party or alliance will be able to achieve a landslide win or to declare a broad electoral mandate‚” Pan African research institute Afrobarometer said.
Chamisa’s campaign has seen him conducting a rally at night in Ngundu‚ a rural area in Masvingo.
Mnangagwa and his deputy‚ Constantino Chiwenga‚ resolved to do separate rallies to cover as much ground as possible‚ to the extent of holding two rallies within an 80km radius at the same time in Beitbridge a fortnight ago.
They even survived a grenade scare that killed two and injured 41 at a rally in Bulawayo last month. The other 21 presidential hopefuls have been going about their business low-key.
The likely distant third and fourth in the race‚ Joice Mujuru of the People’s Rainbow Coalition (PRC) and the MDC T’s Thokozani Khupe‚ said they could surprise.
“Our chances are excellent and we have tried our level best to campaign given our resource limitations‚” Mujuru said.
Khupe said: “My chances should not be judged by the number of candidates I am up against. My chances are good because I believe I possess the best leadership qualities Zimbabwe‚ at this juncture‚ needs.”
Being a high-stakes general election‚ numerous observer delegations have arrived in the country, but the main fear in the public‚ according to findings by Afrobarometer‚ is that the army might refuse to allow an opposition victory.