Digital campaigns: Will praise songs deliver votes?

The political campaign season is something to look forward to – typically vibrant, characterised by electrifying processions, lively rallies, thunderous music and colourful party regalia.  
You don’t have to follow the Electoral Commission (EC) schedule to know where candidates are holding rallies. The music, boda bodas hooting, and supporters revelling on the streets in party colours will guide you to every political party’s rally in your area.
However, these exciting moments and fanfare will be missed as the country prepares to officially kick off campaigns ahead of the 2021 General Election.
 Restrictions to control the spread of coronavirus disease have forced the EC to ban public rallies for the 2021 political campaigns.
 The country’s electoral body directed that campaigns will be conducted through media such as radio, television, newspapers and other channels such as social media.
This directive has, however, been received with mixed reactions, especially  regarding equal access to media platforms by candidates.  
While the EC says there are guidelines on how much space and time is allocated to candidates on the national broadcast, many politicians have become creative and devised means of reaching voters through music, talk shows, paying for mentions on radio, press conferences and social media posts.
This is because getting sufficient media space comes at a high cost. In Arua, for instance, radio stations on average charge between Shs1.9m and Shs2.4m for a one-hour political talk show. 
For most politicians, especially first time contestants with limited resources, this is unsustainable.
This possibly explains why many politicians in West Nile have resorted to use of  praise songs and sound clips.
The Ayivu West Division  Member of Parliament,  Mr Bernard Atiku, says there are limited avenues through which politicians can reach the voters except through mass media.
“For me to reach out to the voters, I have lined up talk shows, DJ mentions, sound clips and music that has been composed with my message, especially on issues affecting [my constituents],” he says.
He adds: “I look at scheduling the programmes in peak hours so that I can grab the listenership very well. The challenge is that you interact with few people who call in during the shows.”
Most politicians in  West Nile Sub-region are paying artists to compose songs for them. 

In  Madi Sub-region community, WhatsApp groups are inundated with songs in praise of various aspirants.
But some voters argue that this mode of campaign does not give them sufficient information to assess politicians and make informed decisions on electing their representatives.
“It is like courtship and marriage on social media. Any sensible marriage comes through interactions of intending persons and you can hardly study emotion, facial expressions, including political maturity or consistency in character display on radio or TV,” Mr Richard Vonze, a voter in Moyo District, says.
“We are seeing government-leaning aspirants running public rallies. Why can’t it (rallies) be declared official?,” Mr Vonze wonders.
Mr Vincent Adebasiku, an agent of Moyo Woman MP aspirant Anne Auru, agrees with Mr Vonze’s sentiments.
“Majority of locals do not own radios or TV sets, which makes it difficult for them to access the candidate’s political agenda. Besides, candidates do not even have enough money to spend on these radio stations and hence some poor potential candidates have failed to contest,” he says.
Mr Richard Araku, a National Resistance Movement (NRM) party official in Moyo District, says some people do not have time to listen to radios or TV shows other than morale boosting at rallies, where one can squeeze time to attend.
“ It is hard to convince someone via radio or TV because most people don’t have them in their homes, besides there are costs involved such as monthly subscription, batteries or paying for power,” Mr Araku says.
 The situation is not any different in Nebbi District where the Woman MP, Ms Jackline Aol, is  reported to have paid an artiste to compose campaign songs for her.
Besides talk shows, she has also recorded messages and circulated them on various social media platforms such as Facebook and WhatsApp in order to reach voters.
In one of her messages, Ms Aol urges contestants to remain united for development of the district. 
“You don’t dance with a live cow’s tail. It is better for us to avoid politics of divisionism even when we are campaigning. Let us look for votes with love without blackmailing,” she says.
In Pakwach and Zombo districts, aspirants like Ms Proscovia Awekonimungu (Forum for Democratic Change) contesting for Woman MP for Pakwach District, incumbent Woman MP for Zombo Grace Kwiyucwiny, Ms Sharon Adong (Democratic Party), an aspirant for Zombo Woman MP, are using graphics and video messages to woo voters, especially on social media.
Across the country, talks shows seem to be a common channel for most aspirants. 
In Fort Portal City and Kabarole District, many politicians have extensively used radio talk shows, adverts, social media platforms and campaign agents who move around hanging posters or promoting their candidates using mobile public address systems.
Similarly, aspirants are  hiring local musicians to compose and record songs highlighting their campaign manifestos. 
Some contestants such as Steven Kagwera (Burahya County) and Sylvia Rwabwogo (Kabarole Woman MP) have opted for  billboards, while others are  using traditional posters to promote their agenda.
The restrictions on rallies and gatherings have not, however, deterred politicians from meeting voters. While many have opted for small open meetings, others have openly defied health guidelines and are holding big rallies.
In Lango Sub-region, the race for various positions is taking shape. Going by the sideshows, voters and candidates have embraced the allure of local music, making the campaign some sort of a lyrical contest.
Lira City has for a long time been dominated by Uganda Peoples Congress (UPC), winning landslide victories over the ruling NRM party. That historical reality is, however, being tested by the current factional fighting in the party.
The leadership struggles, which started between the former party president Mr Olara Otunnu and Mr Jimmy Akena, the incumbent Lira Municipality MP, have spilled over to the electorate.
As a result, some frustrated voters could shift their support to NRM, FDC, and National Unity Platform (NUP) or run as Independent candidates. The battle for votes is now more about awareness than historical party names and colours. Hopefuls for various political positions are using  focus-group campaign sound tracks that communicate their interest.
Candidates such as Maj Pollar Awich Okwir, the NRM flag bearer for Lira City West, are using local songs to draw people to their campaigns.
It was Mr Akena who first introduced this tactic with his song Joni owao wer UPC keken (these people are nicely singing, ‘UPC only’) in the 2016 polls. 
‘Joni owao wer’ is even played at various pubs within the city, where Mr Akena is battling to retain his seat in Parliament, as a representative of the newly-created Lira City East.
Burials, weddings
In Namutumba District, politicians are driving through villages and streets while playing recorded messages to whoever cares to listen. Others are using community radios to sell their message to the people. Communal gatherings such as burials and wedding ceremonies have also become campaign channels.
Mr Seduraki Mugoya, an MP aspirant for Busiki North Constituency, decries the cost of digital campaigns, saying radios and TVs charge a lot of money for talk shows. 
“One can pay Shs500,000 for a talk show which is far more expensive than having a rally,” he says.
Mr Mugoya also says there is  limited access to radios and TVs in most rural communities.
 Mr Jonathan Kayogera, a contestant in the constituency  says  electronic campaigns are for the rich and the elites.
Some incumbent MPs such as Amuru Woman MP Lucy Akello already have  radio programme running.
 Ms Akello, whose programme runs twice a month, says she will maintain the talk show to reach out to voters. 
The legislator uses the programme to talk about projects that she has initiated in the community and what she intends to do.
The MP says she pays Shs1 million for each talk show and wondered how politicians vying for lower elective positions can raise such money.
“I am also giving listeners updates on Covid-19, with emphasis on measures put in place by the Ministry of Health to fight the pandemic,’’ Ms Akello, who is seeking a third term in Parliament on FDC ticket, says.
The Nwoya District chairperson, Mr Michael Lakony, who has shown interest in the Nwoya County MP seat, has embarked on door-to-door campaigns.
“Personally, I have embarked on reaching out to families of not more than 15 people. I make sure we sit in an open place following Standard Operating Procedures (SoPs) put in place by the Ministry of Health,’’ he reveals.
Mr Lakony, however, decries the high costs involved in meeting families where he spends between Shs30,000 and Shs50,000 yet he has to reach out to between three and four families daily.
Shunned
In Kamuli District, ‘scientific’ campaigns have been shunned and described by candidates as expensive.
 Candidates have instead improvised mobile studios, megaphones, and composed campaign messages in form of music.
Ms Veronica Babirye Kadogo, the Buyende Woman MP, says the struggle for attention on air is not very effective because sometimes people don’t have time to sit down and listen to an hour’s programme when they have to go to the gardens.
“We got ‘Wickie Dickie’ ,a popular artiste, to compose the campaign messages in a song and this effectively delivers the message, attracts the targeted voters and entertains,” Ms Kadogo explains.
The Speaker of Parliament, Ms Rebecca Kadaga, who is contesting for the Kamuli Woman MP seat, says as a way of promoting local content, acknowledging local talent and exporting Busoga’s potential, she has a host of local musicians to promote her campaign message.
Another contestant, Mr Henry Kibalya, who is vying for Bugabula South, says as a means of cutting costs and avoiding conflicting radio talk shows where one can be hosted by a ‘hostile’ host, time consumed by adverts and news, he bought a public address system.
“I have also mounted loudspeakers on motorbikes and put megaphones in every trading centre where my campaign songs and messages are played, which works better and [it’s] cheaper,” he says.
In Kigezi Sub-region, many candidates are using billboards, radio talk shows and radio spot messages, while others are using public address systems mounted on trucks and driven around the targeted constituency.
Just like in Namutumba District, politicians in Kigezi target functions such as burials and weddings to deliver messages to their intended voters.
Ms Annet Tibamanya, who is an aspiring councillor Ishaka Division, says: “Digital campaigns are very expensive because one must pay to go on radio to campaign and move from house-to-house.”
“In the past elections, we would meet people in big numbers at public places like churches and recreation facilities and speak to them freely. I can’t afford hiring musicians to compose songs for me,” she says.
Mr Jaffari Basajjabalaba, the  Bushenyi chairperson, who is seeking re-election, says in the past, people gathered in one  place and candidates would use the same public address system to campaign.
“Today, one must move from house to house. While some people are hiring musicians to sing about them, I’m using radios and moving house-to-house. It is expensive but I don’t have a choice,” Mr Basajjabalaba says.

Radio ownership
The  Uganda National Household Survey for  2016/2017,  reveals  that 45 per cent of the total population own radio sets, while 17 per cent own television sets.
There are nearly 300 licensed radio stations and 30 (free-to-air) TV stations serving an estimated population of 39 million people. Radio is a more popular medium than TV mainly due to poverty and lack of electricity. Apart from radios that are owned by the people, in 2015, BBC World Service’s nationally representative survey found that the majority of the Ugandan adult population had a working radio (87 per cent) and mobile phone (74 per cent) in their household.
Only a third had a working TV (34 per cent) and only 13 per cent of the adult population had access to the Internet within their household.

What others say
Strategy
“For me to reach out to the voters, I have lined up talk shows, DJ mentions, sound clips and music that has been composed with my message, especially on issues affecting [my constituents],” Bernard Atiku, Ayivu West Division  Member of Parliament.
Meetings
“Personally, I have embarked on reaching out to families of not more than 15 people. I make sure we sit in an open place following the Standard Operating Procedures (SoPs) put in place by the Ministry of Health,’’ Michael Lakony, Nwoya District LC5 chairperson.

Challenge
“It is hard to convince someone via radio or TV because most people don’t have them in their homes, besides there are costs involved such as monthly subscription, batteries or paying for power,” Richard Araku, NRM party official in Moyo District.

Compiled by Philip Wafula, Ronald Seebe, Bill Oketch, Cissy Makumbi, Fred Wambede, Sam Opio Caleb, Robert Muhereza, Joseph Omollo, Felix Basiime, Felix Warom Okello, Scovin Iceta & Milton Bandiho