The power of choice

zanu-pf-supportersBeatrice Tonhodzayi-Ngondo
I had a good laugh the other day. A colleague of mine posted on her Facebook wall that people should allow her the freedom to be. She said the one good thing about Zimbabwe right now is that people get a chance to choose. She was angry that some Facebook pals of hers were complaining that she was posting too many pro-Zanu PF posts on her wall. She then came back by posting a bold statement that everyone in this country at this particular juncture is blessed enough to fist it (the Zanu-PF clinched hand sign — chibhakera) or flat palm it (the MDC-T open palm sign) as much as they want because we are in election season.

I could feel what she was going through because some time ago someone in my circle of friends also came down hard on those of us who post on religious beliefs.

Her issue was that if one has a personal relationship with their God, they do not have to post it on FB for everyone to see.
I and many others of like mind took offence because as far as we were and are concerned, we can shout it from the mountaintop that Jesus Christ is our Lord and if the rooftops and mountaintops are our FB walls, then who should stop us?

My friend by posting pro-Zanu-PF comments on her FB wall daily also faced a similar fate. She attracted a mixed bag of comments but I was not bothered.

What struck me was the truth of what she was saying.
She was pointing out that no one should get irritated at the other for making a choice because this is a life of choices, and in Zimbabwe we are currently in a big season of choices and no one should lose it over somebody else’s freedom of choice.

Isn’t that so true?
Just take a look around where you are. People are walking about wearing their yellow, green with a dash of red outfits as they go to attend rallies or just to show solidarity with their party of choice.

On the other side, you see others wearing their very vibrant red as they also go from place to place. They too are showing support for their party of choice. Others wear lime green, some yellow, the list is endless.

As this happens, there are some who are just going about their normal duties.
It is again a matter of choice for them to ignore what is going on around them.
What maybe needs to be questioned is, if one does not participate in the important choices, what then do they want to participate in?
As my colleague indicated on FB, everyone really has the room to make a choice in their life and as Zimbabweans our being able to do that is not something that should be taken for granted.

As she went on and on via her FB page, I could not help but think of the many places in this world where one cannot even exercise the right to choose what to wear, where to go and which religious persuasion to follow.
Yes, in some places it is a crime to be a certain colour, creed, religion or even sex.

Your being you militates against you and you can get killed for believing in something.
Have we not all read about countries where albinos are just not safe? Or places where women are not allowed to have their faces seen by the public?

But here in Zimbabwe as my colleague put it on her FB wall, we have upon us the most important choice of all staring us in the face.
On Wednesday next week those of us who registered to vote and who will not be working, like me, will get the opportunity to show what their preferred choice for governance is, once and for all.

There is therefore no need for anyone to get angry with the other for making a choice as my colleague did on her FB wall.
I decided to focus on this particular topic this week because it resonates quite well with the calls for peace that are coming from all the political parties.

All political leaders in the country are agreed that there is need for peace and there is no real need for violence as we go for the election.
That peace is what enables people of different viewpoints to respect each other’s spaces. Let us never take it for granted.
We have homes where the wife is able to support her political party of choice while the husband supports their own. Yes, right now in this country, there are such scenarios and why not?

Or a mother who marches off to one rally while her children go to another. You will laugh when you hear the kind of discussions that take place in these homes after hours as the family tries to prove that their preferred choice is the better one.
While it would be ideal for a family to pull in one direction, what such scenarios show is the human being’s capability to respect the unique differences that are found in us as human beings.
That is why one can fall in love an enemy’s child.

It is that ability to realise and respect differences but still move forward.
We need never take for granted the blessing that we have to be able to make choices.
So as we go to vote next Wednesday, let’s maintain the peace that we currently enjoy.
And let’s never take it for granted.

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