The Sunday Mail
Fungai Lupande
Mash Central Bureau
ZIMBABWE’s Constitution has put women on an equal footing with men but they are still struggling to occupy powerful positions in politics in Mashonaland Central.
With a population of around 1,2 million, Mashonaland Central province has 18 constituencies which were all won by men in the 2018 harmonised elections and all councillors in Bindura, the provincial capital, are men.
One may be forgiven for concluding that women in the province have no interest in politics or are not willing to challenge men for political positions.
But the women in the province are willing to stand up and take leadership roles with the likes of Tabeth Kanengoni-Malinga who won the position of Member of Parliament (MP) for Mazowe Central in 2013 to 2018.
However, participation in politics still falls short of the benchmark set by the regional and international policy frameworks that promote and support women’s participation in politics and decision making roles.
According to Gender Links, women’s political representation has fluctuated over the past 10 years.
Following the adoption of the new Zimbabwe Constitution in 2013, the proportion of women in the National Assembly increased from 14 percent to 32 percent and in the Senate from 33 percent to 48 percent, resulting in an overall representation of 34 percent women.
However, in the 2018 elections, this proportion reduced to 31 percent despite the fact that Zimbabwe has a 30 percent proportional representation quota for women at national level.
Mrs Patience Tapomwa who contested for the Mazowe South Member of Parliament seat in the Zanu PF primary elections and lost, is one of the brave women who stood up but could not make it beyond the ballot booth due to a number of underlying issues.
She is not done with politics yet and is willing to participate in the next harmonised elections with hope that the political arena in the province will change for the better.
Talking about her experience in politics, Mrs Tapomwa said women are not economically empowered to participate and they face many difficulties trying to get political office.
“Women don’t have the financial resources to fund political campaigns and some women ask for financial assistance from men. We cannot compete against men and make independent decisions when we ask for help from them,” she said.
“Most men are economically empowered and they make their own decisions. Another issue affecting women participation in politics is lack of support from fellow women. Women think men are better political candidates compared to women.”
Mrs Tapomwa whose interest in politics was stirred by WIPS (Women in Politics) said women need to be educated on the importance of supporting each other to realise the 50/50 representation.
“We don’t want to talk about 50/50 without putting our words into action,” she said.
“There is a need to disaggregate women and group them according to their concerns and needs. People are taught different politics and there is a need to understand each group of women, educate and light them up until we are at the same position.
“Women need a lot of advocacy to embrace the challenge and take up decision-making positions. Men will not talk about women’s problems and it is the duty of women to be part of discourse that concerns their welfare.
“Women represent other women better because they share the same experiences. There is a need for women to stand up and be part of decisions regarding their lives and the use of societal resources.”
Mrs Vernancia Madake, a successful businesswoman who contested and lost the Bindura South Zanu PF primary elections said her career in politics began at a very tender age when she joined the liberation struggle as a war collaborator. Her family is very supportive of her political career and she started as a cell member back in 1981. She thanked President Mnangagwa for being clear on the involvement of women in leadership and politics in line with the Constitution.
“I thank Zanu PF Women’s League Secretary Cde Marble Chinomona for not tiring in encouraging and supporting women to actively participate in leadership positions at party and national level. When you stand your ground and have an open mind men tend to fit you,” she said.
“I say to you all women let’s be sisters in the struggle and walk arm in arm to improve our status and amplify our voice in social, political and economic issues. Let’s learn to support each other. We are the majority of the population.
“A woman leader is like a mother. A mother’s love for her children is endless and she makes sacrifices. The Government is promoting women participation in the political quarter system but more needs to be done to create an equal playing field during primary elections.”
Mrs Madake said she will continue to serve people and assist in her community and will contest for a political office in the next elections.
In November 2019, Cabinet approved the amendment of section 124 (1) (b) of the Constitution to extend the women’s quota for 10 more years.
The amendment excluded local government and on December 15 last year President Mnangagwa revealed that a system would be put in place to ensure that 30 percent of all local government councillors are women.
Women Coalition of Zimbabwe Bindura chapter chairperson Ms Mandi Piyasi welcomed the quota system in local government and urged women to use the opportunity.
She added that lack of confidence is another barrier contributing to lack of participation by women in politics.
Zimbabwe is a signatory to the SADC Protocol on Gender and Development and to keep abreast with global trends, the Southern Africa Gender Protocol Alliance agreed to review and align the SADC Gender Protocol to the post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Beijing Plus Twenty Review and the Africa Agenda 2063.
