Information is power and the disseminator controls everything; so be it for the bloggers within the main opposition, All People’s Congress (APC).
At a trying time, APC is seemingly failing, faltering and wavering in the struggle to get back electoral victory owing to an unending communication crisis.
The bloggers have split into splinter groups with no set goal to achieve as their communication activity is not in line with the party’s vision and mission.
Instead of giving out accurate information about the party’s struggles and mobilising effort to achieve set objectives, the bloggers are each other’s throat in the name of ‘Attack Collect and Defence Collect’ strategy usually in a form of capsule or episodic reporting. Mainstream or conventional media was known for this age-old attack-collect syndrome, but the bloggers appears to have taken over.
Social media platforms (Whatsapp, facebook and Tiktok) which are platforms for fake information are readymade tools used by the bloggers for assassination of character knowing fully well that the long arm of the law could not reach them.
With a fractured communication system in the APC, it would be difficult for the party to gain the necessary public support it deserves at a time the party needs the people most.
Currently, no one knows who actually handles the communication in the opposition as the Public Relations (PR) wing becomes weak all the time.
One can also hardly distinguish official communicators (PR officials) and the unofficial wing (media bloggers) in the party, a situation that has created an unending PR disaster evidenced by a myriad of politics of invectives and quarrels among the bloggers.
Currently, the likes of APC Malaika, Mrsta Salone, Media Wan, the Political Scanner, APC Wurie, the APC Enclopaedia and others are more influential in the party than the official communication unit led by Sidi Yayah Tunis and Mohamed Pope Kamara.
Communication within APC is fluid so much that information comes from different quarters and accepted by some gullible groups of APC members and supporters.
They see the bloggers as their main source of information as they give out information that either consoles or make them happy for a short time. Hardly do they know that the bloggers, if not all, are good at creating a world of fantasy.
In their move to provide information to their audiences, the bloggers have gone into different groups funded by senior politicians in the party thus brewing verbal attacks against each other.
Scenes where APC bloggers used abusive words and make scathing allegations against highly respected members of the party are not uncommon. For quite too long, the party’s Chairman, Minkailu Mansaray and his executive officials especially Chernor Maju Bah has come under fire owing to corruption allegation.
The officials have been grappling with allegations of a sellout to the ruling party on a bribe of $2m to let go the election rigging.
Without proof, the allegations of complicity, according to other members of the party, is a smear campaign of respected APC personalities worsened by an endless array of abusive words used by the bloggers.
Some bloggers even called for the investigation and impeachment of Chernor Maju Bah who many now see as a snitch undermining his boss, Dr Samura Kamara. But, by all indications, when Chernor Bah and his boss are on good terms as there has never been a time in which they have disagreed on any issue confronting the party.
Tunis and his deputy also wrestle with similar allegations as they are accused of sharing the loot collected from President Bio.
The bloggers claims enjoy popular support in the party since the accused are just reticent and stoic about everything leaving them to believe that the claims could be true when they could not be true.
At the time of the allegations, Mr Mansaray and his executive officials were expected to host a press briefing or use the same social media as platforms to debunk the claims. Failure of the Mansaray executive to shatter the allegations by way of truth brewed suspicion and misunderstanding among the party’s rank and file. However, some surrogate bloggers engage the anti-Mansaray smear campaigners in somewhat proxy wars that seemingly have no end, a move that swayed them from the right objective.
It goes without saying that once the allegations remain unchallenged, the execeutive’s reputation especially those in the party’s PR wing is ruined making it difficult to successfully communicate to the people since nothing works without trust.
Messages of anyone whose reputation is in ruin could be hardly accepted by their audiences.
Left to enjoy a field day, the bloggers succeeded in soiling the reputation of credible men in the party including the PR wing, and in such a situation, the people as well as the party’s low cadre members look up to the bloggers as the only sources of information.
The bloggers are hardly seen but their messages broadcast sometimes thousands of miles away from home are strong and compelling penetrating every barrier within the party.
Once the people consider the bloggers as the main conduit for information, there is little or no argument about their dominance in the party at the expense of the communication wing thus raising the question of who sets the media agenda.
The bloggers play their game by taking the audience by their emotional or instinctual urges as they give out information that resonates with their interest.
Such move is in sync with the communication maxim which states that “audience maximises their exposure to news that is in line with their interest and reject news that opposes their interest.” The bloggers’ actions have operationalised such maxim as seen in the information given on the ongoing election probe conducted by the Tripartite Committee, a body set up to look into alleged irregularities of the June 24, 2023 election.
The committee is a product of a three-day dialogue between APC and the ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) under the auspices of the international community (Commonwealth, African Union and Economic Community Of West African States).
In the discharge of such functions, the Tripartite Committee is expected to present findings and recommendations that guarantee future elections to be free, fair and credible.
Recommendation of a rerun is not explicitly expressed in the communiqué of October 18, 2023 and also does not form part of the terms of reference launched few months ago at the New Brookfields Hotel in Sierra Leone’s capital, Freetown.
However, majority of the people of Sierra Leone wanted to see either a rerun or fresh election or the opposition leader, Dr Samura Kamara declared President of Sierra Leone.
Since the rerun is the people’s most acute need, the bloggers cater for such need by releasing information that insinuates that a rerun of the election is imminent.
Such information still filtered when US Ambassador, David Bryan Hunt said there would be no rerun of the June polls since APC politicians failed to challenge the election in the courtroom.
Ambassador Hunt’s statement was less trusted as long as the bloggers said there would be a rerun, a situation that portrayed the bloggers as the most powerful men in the party.
The bloggers, most times, are the first to give out information to the audience including hidden secrets even if they are verified or not.
It is not unusual to hear breaking news from Mrsta Salone and other bloggers about what is going on at the Tripartite Committee.
His recent news about the submission of the voter register to the Tripartite Committee by the Chief Electoral Commissioner hit the social mead news stand. It spread like a bush fire in the harmattan as that is one that the people wanted to hear.
This news was also picked up and taken further by other bloggers who said the data indicated that the APC won the elections without a run off even when such information is yet to be communicated to the party by APC representatives at the Tripartite Committee. At no time was it indicated that by a member of the Tripartite Committee that the documents submitted so far shows that the opposition leader won the elections.
The APC co-chair at the Tripartite Committee, Dr Kaifala Marrah recently labelled ECSL (Electoral Commission for Sierra Leone) as the only agency that was yet to submit papers demanded by the investigators.
He however called on the APC supporters not to preempt the outcome of the Tripartite Committee owing to its negative implication on state security.
Dr Marrah’s warning was also misinterpreted by the bloggers who launched what they called ‘Operation Preempt’ as a counter-measure. The bloggers use such platform to tell the Tripartite Committee that the APC members wanted to see either a rerun recommendation or fresh election or the opposition leader, Samura Kamara declared President of Sierra Leone.
The bloggers’ call has gained momentum among APC members, supporters and sympathisers as most have threatened to take to the streets if one of these demands is not met.
Information reaching this press shows that T-shirts and placards are currently being prepared ahead of the D-day, a situation that raised big doubt about the authority and leadership of the APC executive.
In response to threats of protest, President Julius Maada Bio has warned everybody to go about their normal businesses, and that those who bring bullets will be repelled with bullets.
The June 24, 2023 election, according to the President is over, and that everyone should look forward to 2028.
Another video, few days ago, popped up on social media where President Bio maintained his stance when he said to a group of soldiers that there would “no retreat, no surrender.”
It is a real threat to national security with the flames fanned by what many call the unregulated bloggers.
As the bloggers’ communication disaster continues in the party, many APC members look back to the good old days of ex-President Ernest Bai Koroma when the party see themselves as one, and speak with one voice and in complete unison.
The foundation for unity in the party was laid by Koroma himself who chose mainstream media institutions as vehicles for credible information and not bloggers, a factor that helped him to keep the party well afloat even in difficult moment.
No blogger, under the Koroma era could set the media agenda in the APC as it is today, a situation that compels the office of publicity secretary to fight back.