The advent of social media has brought with it not just the good, but also the bad and ugly side of humans. We, for instance, now have an expanded democratic space, courtesy of social media.
The popularity of social media, especially Facebook and Twitter among Kenyans, has helped in catalyzing and effecting social change, among other positive political and economic initiatives.
Unfortunately, bullies have taken advantage of the expanded democratic space and freedom of speech guaranteed by the platforms and now use them to spread hate speech and harass others.
The bullies know no boundaries. Apparently President Uhuru Kenyatta exited all social media platforms, following insults from Kenyans.
Kenyan cyber bullies are infamous world over. So much so that a study conducted by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) last year, ranked Kenyan on Twitter as the worst bullies online across the world.
So rampant are cases of abuse of the platforms that the Cabinet Secretary for Interior and Coordination of National Government, Fred Matiangi issued a directive last month against social media users who propagate violence and hate speech in the run up to the 2022 General Election.
The use of hashtags has gained popularity among Kenyans, especially when politicians or activists are pushing social or political agendas.
With 2022 General Election around the corner, all kinds of propaganda hashtags, targeting rival political camps trend daily.
Experts say, when used properly, hashtag campaigns can lead to social change as happens in certain parts of the world. Remember the Arab Spring, which began in Tunisia and later spread to other regions?
Well, closer home, One of the first hashtags that popularized Kenyans on Twitter across the world around 2009 was #makmende.
The hashtag trended for weeks, as Kenyans popularized a local hit song dubbed Ha-He by a leading musical group, Just A Band.
In the song, makmende was a fictional superhero character, who made the music video go viral across the world.
After the word Makmende, which is Swahili slang for hero, became an internet sensation, individuals who attempted to do what was considered to be practically impossible, were teased and told they are not makmende, for only the hero would pull off such.
In Uganda, the Lord Resistance Army leader, Joseph Kony gained international recognition through the hashtag #Kony. So viral was the hashtag that it got the attention of the US congress.
The US legislators discussed Kony and passed a bipartisan bill, calling upon the then Obama administration to champion international efforts to arrest him, and avert the threat his Lord’s Resistance Movement (LRA) posed to civilians.
Political Sphere
Speaking to Kenyans.co.ke, political analyst Barrack Muluka said the use of social media and particularly hashtags to push political agendas will be more common as 2022 General Election nears.
“The reach of social media using hashtags is tens of millions of people and we will see vibrancy of these platforms in the run up to the 2022 General Election. Zambia’s president used it for the campaigns and currently we are seeing more of the use by individual parties,” said Muluka.
The analyst said the expansion of the democratic space, courtesy of social media has led to individuals sharing their sentiments freely.
Muluka said attempts by CS Matiang'i to police social media was an exercise in futility, and advised him to largely focus on sensitizing social media users on how to use the platforms for positive social change.
Most political parties have embraced social media, with many preferring to use hashtags to make rallying calls, such as voter registration and spreading of party manifestos and election narratives.
Some observers view the move as an attempt to lure millions of young people who have never voted to participate in 2022 elections as they come of age this year or early next year.
Just the other day, thousands of Kenyans on Twitter using the hashtag #Kianjakomabrothers mounted a successful anti police brutality campaign.
The campaign led to the arrest and prosecution of police ho were accused of having been involved in the incident that led to the death of the two brothers in Embu County.
Social Change
A while back, #SomeonetellCNN and the hashtag on Sky News by Kenyans on Twitter led to world wide outrage, which saw the aforementioned international media outlets to apologize for "misreporting about Kenya".
CNN had to sent a senior executive to Kenya to deliver the apology over a news headline, which had described Kenya as a "hotbed of terror".
Sky News, on the other hand, had written about a stowaway who fell from an airplane in Britain, claiming that he was Kenyan.
The media house had to apologize after they failed to prove the stowaway was Kenyan, following immense pressure from Kenyans online.
Many other hashtags have been used, leading to social change, policy formulation within government, and even speedy dispensation of justice.
Social and political experts believe what we are witnessing is a mere tip of the iceberg and and more is yet to be seen, courtesy of social media and and hashtag revolution.
