Ballot papers debate, corruption dominate twitter conversation

The credibility of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) and the ballot scandal were the big issues of concern among Kenyans on Twitter this past week.

Commenting on the scandal @RalakWallace  said: “The so called Tribeless Youths and Peace Caravans why are they quiet on #BallotPaperScandal? And where is (sic) the religious leaders?”

@NyamaiPhilip wondered about the credibility of the election body:  “How do you become referee when you have taken sides with the team and players? IEBC is rotten & stinking #BallotPaperScandal

But others felt that the National Super Alliance presidential cnadidate Raila Odinga is out to create fear and uncertainty about the election. @jimmyef7 said: “Raila Odinga is creating political unrest with this ballot paper row! Am sure IEBC had done due diligence before awarding the tender.”

From June 9 – June 15 tweets referring to Jubilee were double (42,014) the ones that mentioned Nasa (22,647), just like the previous three weeks.

In keeping with last week’s trend, corruption led the conversation with one in four tweets focusing on the issue. Education was on the mind of 17 per cent while the economy came in third 16 per cent of the tweets

Jubilee’s peak day was June 12.  Conversations were driven by President Uhuru Kenyatta’s address at the State Lodge in Eldoret about the IEBC National Elections Conference, where he promised to concede defeat if he lost the August 8 presidential election and urged all other contestants to do the same, an analysis of Twitter data by Nation Newsplex and @Twitter reveals.

@makaumutua reacting to the president’s speech tweeted: “Why does @UKenyatta say he'll CONCEDE DEFEAT if he LOSES? It's not his CHOICE. Accepting verdict of voters is the LAW, not act of CHARITY.” The tweet sparked a lot of mixed reactions, with 1,266 retweets, 1,318 likes and 234 replies.

@BethuelMwangi said: “Heartfelt excellent moving speech! Our beloved nation must be first before all others# peace reign.”

Jubilee’s peak hour that day was 11am, with the trending hashtags being #MbeenikuseonaJubilee and #UkambaniSupportsUhuru, which were started to show support for the Jubilee Party in Ukambani.

The hastags were created a day after the National Assembly Minority Leader and WIPER Party member Francis Nyenze reportedly backed Uhuru for re-election during a National Youth Service function in his constituency.

@Boncrazy1 said: “It's only the current regime that has ensured counties like Makueni have dams that can benefit the locals. #UkambaniSupportsUhuru”.

The President and Deputy President commenced their tour of Nandi and Uasin Gishu counties on this day, June 11.

User @raioptima,  reacting to DP Ruto’s claims that Nasa was planning to revive the ICC cases once they get in power, said: “The ICC issue won't work in the 2017 Elections, Uhuru and William Ruto are desperate.”

Tweets referencing Jubilee were 24 per cent negative, 16 per cent positive, and 60 per cent neutral. 

Nasa’s peak day was on June 13, with Raila Odinga’s speech at the National Elections Conference driving the conversations. He questioned the IEBC’s credibility and accused it of directly sourcing the ballot-printing services from the Dubai-based firm Al Ghurair, allegedly under the influence of some top Jubilee leaders.

@kennymigwi  was impressed by Odinga’s speech. He said: “Raila Odinga didn't disappoint. That was a great speech. Took IEBC by the horns. Raila for president!!!

However, @millergibbz was having none of it. He said: “Raila Odinga was - who Believes All Government Systems are wrong and against him and who is not ready to accept defeat. #JoshuaEmptyPromises

During Nasa’s peak hour of the day at 4pm, conversations were driven by @RailaOdinga’s tweet: “Kenya is bigger than tribalism, cronyism and thuggery. Vote for a President that Cares about YOU! RT & Like if you agree. #MamboYabadilika.” The tweet got 1,368 retweets, 1,996 likes and 255 replies.

@zahrawairimu resoundingly endorsed the Nasa presidential candidate. She said:  “Baba. You have my vote. Go to Statehouse and transform the country for all of us.” But  @africanrahman  was clearly unimpressed. He said: “First show us the achievements of your Nusu-Mkate time in office since we've already seen #GoKDELIVERS for your opponent. #ElectionsKE2017 ”.

Tweets referencing Nasa were 24 per cent negative, 15 `per cent positive, and 60 per cent neutral. 

Who was the most talked about candidate?

During the week under analysis, President Kenyatta was the most talked-about candidate, retaining his spot from last week.

Two out of five (44 per cent) tweets on the 10 topics that the Nation Media Group is tracking related to him, while about a quarter  (30 per cent) referred to  Mr Odinga and 19  per cent of the tweets were related to Deputy President William Ruto.

A quarter (23 per cent) of the tweets that mentioned Uhuru were related to corruption while a third of the conversations that referenced Odinga focused on graft.

Which topics drove the social media conversation?

In keeping with last week’s trend, corruption led the conversation with one in four tweets focusing on the issue. Education was on the mind of 17 per cent while the economy came in third 16 per cent of the tweets.

@yule_msee  replying to @UKenyatta’s tweet that the Jubilee government ‘has a track record of inclusive development that has transformed the lives of Kenyans in every part of the Nation’ said: “Jubilee government has a track record of massive corruption scams that are inclusive of a few individuals”.

Nasa too didn’t avoid blame. @Fu_Talent said: “Nasa all they do is condemn The government for corrupt right? But themselves (sic) have been in corruption scandals #Nasa10MillionLies”.

A total of 3,347 tweets from June 9 to15 focused on the 10 topics that, in addition to corruption, education and economy also include: health, jobs, food and water, security, Kenyan spirit, devolution and land reforms. In total there 89,831 tweets that referenced Election 2017.