Ghanas Foreign Minister, rolling her tongue inside her lovely cheeks, said the #occupyflagstaffhouse campaign was more successful on social media than the actual turn out. No wonder the King is Naked... With her tweet, she only volunteered to reaffirm the out-of-touchness of the Mahama monarchy. My three most significant observations from this event: (1) It shows how quickly (just 2 days), a non-violent social movement can be organised by a disillusioned people against a non-performing govt, using social media, and at virtually no cost. (2) It shows how willingly supportive and proactive the traditional media are in helping to spread the message of discontent against a non-performing govt. The protest was carried live on radio. (3) It shows how fed up some particular groups of citizens, traditionally, not known for unleashing public anger, are today. What was significant about the people was two-fold: not so much about the numbers that turned up physically to join, but (a) the numbers that supported the movement beyond vicinity and (b) the profile of the individuals (including families) who showed up in the vicinity. We saw on the streets today a group of people who, hitherto, preferred to complain quietly inside the straitjackets of insouciance, lethargy and apathy, within their financially padded walls, feeling schadenfreudly shielded from the shrills and lamentations of the poorer masses out there. Today, the citizens of Ghana, regardless of shades of hue, are prepared to come out to be seen shouting: enough is enough! My hunch, this may just be the beginning...
Posted on: Tue, 01 Jul 2014 16:13:25 +0000
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