But people sometimes forget the third certainty. The third certainty is the rigging of elections in Zimbabwe by Robert Mugabe and Zanu PF.

Along with this certainty is also the old certainty that African leaders traditionally turn a blind eye to such corruption and rigging by Mugabe and recognise him as the legitimate leader of Zimbabwe.

But maybe just maybe African leaders will do things differently this time. Maybe they will see the election results, if that is to be the case, were rigged by Mugabe’s regime, and that the real winner unquestionably was the MDC. Maybe they will tell Mugabe that they didn’t accept an illegal seizure of power in Anjouan, Kenya and Togo and they most certainly are not going to accept it in Zimbabwe. Maybe they will say, ‘the game is up Mr. Mugabe, we are no longer willing to play by your rules.’

Good honest African leaders would say these things and not accept a rigged result. And so this election is an acid test for Africans everywhere and their leadership. They must prove themselves good and honest or else corrupt.

Make no mistake the rest of the world is watching Africa on this matter. Foreign investors are waiting in the wings to see if democracy will truly prevail in Zimbabwe or else dictatorship. If African leaders side with a dictator, then all that foreign investment will be lost as the investors go to the Far-East with their money where there is no rigged democratic elections. No investor wants to invest their money in a continent where corruption is perceived as the normal course of events.

And so African leaders must show that Africa is a continent where rigged elections are a thing of the past.

The overwhelming result of the Zimbabwean election is undoubtedly defeat for Robert Mugabe and Zanu PF. The rigging of the election if that happens to be the case and which nominally gives Mugabe the ‘numbers’ of votes to be declared constitutionally to have gained a majority is still an illegal seizure of power, one for which African leaders must have zero tolerance for.

Make no mistake, Western democrats can only do so much. Now is the time for the combined weight of African democrats to stand up and not stand for a rigged election in Zimbabwe.

African leaders have said they will not accept a military coup yet that is what Mugabe may just resort to. If Mugabe does return to power on the back of a coup it is immediately incumbent on such African leaders to intervene and ask Mugabe to step down as they have done so recently to leaders in Anjouan and Togo. If the results are rigged they must intervene as they did in Kenya. They simply cannot allow one leader get away with rigging regardless if it is Mandela, Mugabe or anyone else.

Clearly if the current leadership persist in using the army to maintain Mugabe in the presidential palace by force, then the centre of the issue moves from Zimbabwe to the rest of Africa.

Zimbabwe cannot be a special exemption for African leaders committed to the principle of non-violent transitions of power. Mugabe is clearly using force to remain president which directly runs against African Union policy. If the African Union choose to ignore such a violent seizure of power then they immediately lose all moral and political credibility and must surely be seen as part of the problem for Africans and in particular the people of Zimbabwe rather than being part of the solution.

Zimbabwe was once the jewel in the crown of the African continent. But Mugabe with the support of his fellow African leaders has taken the shine off it.

The mistake African leaders have made in the run up, during and after the Zimbabwean elections is not to state clearly and categorically they will not accept rigged election results.

Clearly with so little respect for the will of the people being displayed by Mugabe it will take either a violent coup to keep him in power or a violent coup to remove him. Let us hope that African leaders do not accept the coup to keep him in power and condemn any coup to remove him.

Clearly Mugabe’s rigging is a PR exercise to demonstrate to fellow African leaders that he won fairly and squarely. Will African leaders be so naïve to believe this?

Any country cannot be ruled by one man for life. Mugabe has had his day, now is the time to step aside.

Let the people of Zimbabwe be assured, Democrats everywhere are watching the outcome of this election, more so than any election in Zimbabwe’s history and they will not relent pressuring above all African leaders to ensure that no leader comes to power as a result of even one illegal vote, let alone tens of thousands of phoney votes.

I also think that should Mugabe win this round Tsvangirai,Makoni, and others must fold up their sleeves, work together, go around the world, campaign for ARMS and remove Mugabe and his demons forcefully. there should be someone out there willing to help them.

Africa should now face facts and realize that the millions of Zimbabweans scattered across the face of the earth have more value that Mugabe.

I really wish that i could Strangle the idiot!!

See: http://www.zimbabwejournalists.com