SOCIAL MEDIA GAGS: 2017 was an active year on social media and among the things that trended and got us laughing, there were those that stood out.
It has often been said, that in future, world wars will not be fought with guns and bombs. They will be fought on keyboards, in the battleships of Whatsapp, Twitter and Facebook. Uganda did not play absentee to this fact, and in 2017 it had its fair share of memes, challenges and hashtags that did break the Internet. It was the meme generation at play. Without further ado, these carried the day;
1.#KenyavsUganda
Speaking of Facebook groups, none comes close to the interest generated by the Kenyan Group of Kilimani Mums and Dads Nairobi. Out of curiosity, Ugandans infiltrated the group and the numbers kept growing. On one calm night in June, the intelligence sources of the group broke the news that some Ugandans had hacked the group and were deleting Kenyans. This is when the battle of Migingo started and all hell broke loose. Kenyans could not believe that Ugandans were trying to take one of their favourite groups.
As such, the lines opened via the hashtag; #KenyaVsUganda. It was three days of intense war. More Ugandans were requesting to join the group, so were Kenyans. Ugandans were mocked about their long-serving president, their inflation and the whole backward vibe to this country. The Kenyan men were ridiculed for the ugly women, socialites of both countries were put on a weighing scale, some even hinted that Kenyans did not have yellow on their flag as it was already on their teeth. If there ever was a show of patriotism in Uganda, it was during this fight.
The final showdown happened at the Elgon Cup where the Kenyan Simbas retained the cup and stamped Kenya’s victory over Uganda in the #KenyaVsUganda war. Till next year, Ugandans will now bank on better sarcasm skills to win the next war. One of the posts went; “Welcome to Uganda where a girl borrows a friend’s clothes to visit a guy who has borrowed a friend’s room”. Next time it shall get better, if English is on our side.
2. #TweetLikeAnite
Give a man a mask, and he will reveal his true self. Find Ugandans on Twitter and they will take you back to school. In her speech at a UTL blood donation event, Minister Evelyn Anite noted that soon it would be compulsory for Ugandans to own a UTL Sim Card just as it was for a National ID. Like a wildfire, Ugandans were incensed and took to Twitter to retaliate.
In mockery tones, some joked that it would soon be compulsory to dress like Abiriga, that drip irrigation was going to be the standard irrigation method in Uganda. In her defence, Anite noted that she had implied that Ugandans needed to Buy Uganda, Build Uganda (BUBU).
3. #TweetLikeDonWanyama
Senior Presidential Press Secretary Don Wanyama was outed as having posted photos of a road in the US. He had referred to this road as that in Kisoro District. The mockery buttons began buzzing. Some posted photos of how the NRM headquarters looked like, of the Uganda Airlines, all in a sarcastic show of the lie that was Wanyama’s tweet.
So popular was this trend, when traffic officers took a day off the streets, Andrew Mwenda tweeted; “Last evening traffic in Kampala flowed smoothly after police were withdrawn. The people of this great city were able to reach home with ease. I call upon @IGPUGANDA to keep traffic police off the roads so that our people can enjoy their Christmas without traffic jams”. Many hinted that this was a tweet that sarcastically crowned the #TweetLikeDonWanyama moment.
4. #TrevorNoahVisitsUganda
Although Ugandans are quick to bash each other, they have always united when faced with a common enemy or threat. A popular online platform broke the news that Trevor Noah was on his way to Uganda. In a quick reply, Noah dismissed this as a scam which immediately riled Ugandans.
It was now time for Ugandans to educate Noah about Uganda and attract him to this beautiful country. Tourism officials could not be any happier as Ugandans freely shared millions of reasons why Noah had to rethink his decision. It was such a successful campaign that Noah finally accepted that he would at the right time visit Uganda. The country had won him over.
5. Pair of Buttocks
By now, most Ugandans have forgotten about Stella Nyanzi but she did shake the waves of the Internet with her post; “pair of buttocks” in reference to the President’s speech. When she appeared before court, Nyanzi noted that she had used this statement metaphorically. It was also a silent reminder of the time Museveni had warned Amama Mbabazi’s supporters against poking their fingers in the anus of a leopard. Every Ugandan picked up on this famous pair, and so did news websites. The Internet was being broken once again.
6. Kokonyo Challenge
When musician Angella Kalule’s bedroom video leaked via Whatsapp, some creative Ugandans decided to make a Kokoonyo video challenge out of it. These were led by comedian Salvado Idringi. This challenge came with its controversy as some women activists poured scorn on those who were trying to make a joke out of Kalule’s misfortune. Nonetheless, Ugandans went on with uploading various videos that cracked many a person’s spine.
7. #MboziZaMalwa
Although it did not pick that expected steam, it was still a fairly successful dance challenge as Sauti Sol and Bebe Cool asked their fans to compete. It was a friendly Uganda versus Kenya dance challenge. It provided the entertainment for the viewers but also helped in the promotion of this collaboration. As a result, Mbozi Za Malwa became one of 2017’s hit songs.
editorial@ug.nationmedia.com
