By Ofwono Opondo
One year to the next general elections, the government finds itself running shadow boxing with critics who trash its achievements often without substance, but causing substantial damage locally and internationally. And when the crisis hits hard, some of the critics become turncoats, silenced and co-opted at huge costs, at which point, fortune hunters also come, posturing as the problem solvers, but often do a conman job at heavy budgets, and disappear in thin air.
Over the years government has failed, refused or not found the need to proactively plan, provide consistent and adequately fund its communication strategy and platforms, a sector many governments today give priority because it is the era of new media and digital revolution, and ‘war’ theatre as it provides easy, fast and cost-effective access to multiple audiences.
The government flatfoot has ignored its communication including the directorate of information, Uganda Media Centre, national broadcaster UBC, and the various communication platforms in ministries, and agencies to a peril, unable to fight back disinformation, misinformation, fake news, and toxic narratives deliberately being driven with malicious intent.
There has been an endless lamentation that Agriculture and health are paid the least priority, yet by the most current data they score highly in the success stories in food production like maize, milk, grains, sugar, eggs, and rising life expectancy, declining infant and maternal mortalities. Many people also claim that Uganda is rated poorly by the superficial outsiders on democracy, yet at every election circle has one of the highest voter turnouts, number of candidates participating for each electoral position, and highest attrition rate for incumbents. Even the highest in government, well-connected and with money like a vice president, and senior ministers, have often fallen at the feet of political novices.
Save for Kampala’s potholed roads and dirty environment, mainly due to mismanagement and corruption, Ugandans like to mourn poor energy and economy, yet figures show that Uganda enjoys the lowest inflation, debt to GDP ratio, and a more favourable balance of trade in the region. Comparatively, Uganda’s attraction of FDI, tourism, and entry through Entebbe International airport has been consistently on the rise since Covid-19 restrictions were ended in 2022, yet Ugandans including MPs shout comparing infrastructural costs with some neighbours often without any iota of shame.
Things are not any better over governance, security, and corruption perception index when the IGG’s reports are alarmist, often without context as recently claimed that Uganda’s daily loss due to corruption stands at 25bn, yet it bundled together factors delays occasioned by absenteeism, bureaucracy, litigation, contract reviews, and lack of due diligence. The common mind is made to falsely believe that trillions are lost through direct theft by individuals. There is also the tendency by government officials to throw out health concerns like Ebola or Murburg alerts, yet tropical diseases we live with daily. Other countries usually don’t rush with alarmist reports that scare, but are measured.
It’s much the same with security agencies who when they detect or arrest suspects in criminality, in order to attract relevance, or funding, often classify them as ‘terrorism’ which provides fertile to western diplomatic missions to issue negative advisories to potential tourists or investors. By failing to fund its communication, the government has surrendered the media spectrum across the country to disinformation, misinformation and fakes, mostly to people with malicious intent.
Over the last three years, opposition surrogates have mounted a sustained negative propaganda to paint Uganda black to domestica and foreign unsuspecting audiences. As a result, the government’s media and communication strategy to debate and persuasively explain, and otherwise well-intentioned, but poorly packaged policies like the anti-homosexuality, or land issues have run into unnecessary troubles. It’s my view that the government must realise the critical role proactive and effective communication plays in today’s world.
The author is the Executive Director of the Uganda Media Centre (UMC) and the piece was published on the UMC website on October 19, 2024.
