Cynthia Mwangi
Kenya
Kenya's history is riddled with broken promises, unethical behaviour, and shattered trust. This desire for transparency and leaders to lead and speak honestly is deeply felt. There is a gap between politicians and the electorate, which echoes in Kenya and Africa.
Ethical communication serves as a bridge between leaders and people, laying the groundwork for trust. A little backstory: I grew up in Kinangop, Magumu in Kenya. Our mud nursery school was close to the police station. With the geography of the place, thistles grew everywhere. Anytime criminals were apprehended, they would be taken there, and we truly believed they were beaten with the thistle! One day, after a great lesson outdoors, the teacher couldn’t trace her watch. She assumed one of us took it. She locked us in our mud class and headed to the police station to get a policeman who would beat the truth out of us using thistle.
I rallied the “troops”- all 5 of us- we opened the door latch and ran away. None of us mentioned it to our parents. The following day, we met up all dressed for school, but we didn't know where to go, so we asked who knew another school we could attend. Someone said they’d seen another school in the opposite direction. I said why not? and off we went. We attended this new school for weeks without anyone questioning our origin until it was time to pay the fees, and our parents found out! That period of my life is still so vivid in my mind because of the injustice I felt was meted against us young, helpless children. The lack of an ethical process to find the watch that catapulted me into leadership in such formative years has become almost innate.
As a communications specialist thinking about Futurelect lessons, clear messaging is imperative. The program has shown me what clear communication can do for a nation. The who, what, where, when, why and how of communication will determine a politician’s election or re-election. Great leadership is predicated not just on grand goals but also on how we convey them.
It became even clearer that I want to help politicians communicate and connect better with their electorate. In the run-up to Kenya’s 2027 elections, I am preparing to support various political candidates with communications campaigns. Listening and paying sincere attention to other people's murmurs is as essential as the pronouncements we make from a platform. Being part of or leading the team curating speeches, social media content, and interactions on the ground with candidates who listen and can articulate themselves clearly, ensuring that every message cuts through the noise, will be a win for me. This means leaving little to no room for misinformation, misinformation and disinformation.
Our biggest mistake as a country and continent is talking big but reverting to 1999 communication strategies. We don't understand that the new electorate is better, faster, smarter, and agile. They don’t know fear and will call you out. They will also generate a tone of fake information just to get to you. And you want to stay ahead of the curb not just because you’re running or trying to but because the internet never forgets.
The gap with most campaigns is they are only for that there are no long-term strategic approaches to communication. Rarely do politicians plan for effective communication strategies, as it is not considered a priority, leaving most to simply wing it and make promises and grandiose statements they do not intend to fulfil. Say what needs to be said, get the votes, win the election, and do this again in 5 years.
Candidates and politicians tend to choose the best in the industry, but that does not guarantee they will take their advice. Employing seasoned communication experts would improve strategic listening, message crafting, and the alignment of actions with words, ultimately fostering trust and preventing crises.
In a perfect world, if winning candidates accomplished just half of what they promised, there’d never be a need to rig elections because the people can see tangible results. There’d be no need for covert operations with hired goons because things are working. There’d be no need for multiple press conferences to address rising unrest or, in Kenyan terms, ‘maandamano’/protests because work there’s concrete action. All pun intended.
Strategic, calculated communication is all one would need. Not a room full of bloggers and keyboard warriors armed with bots from here to China and back trying to water down concerns raised by the electorate.
Communication helps bridge the sometimes great divide between the ruling elite and the people that they serve. It serves as an important connecter and helps build trust and confidence, which is often lacking. Consistent updates on the progress of projects and plans for the New Financial Year, among other things, are necessary because, like in any relationship, silence means something is wrong. And conclusions shall be drawn, none of which are good.
This journey with Futurelect was an eye-opener. Interacting with leaders who showed that ethical leadership and clear-cut communication win elections has renewed my faith in Africa. It is possible; it can be done, and it shall.
As a communications strategist, my voice will ring out with a firm commitment to the truth. What does that look like? It's doing the less popular things, leading by example, and Promoting transparency in my actions and decisions. It's holding myself and those I work with accountable for their actions regardless of their position. It's leading the troops on that path to building public trust.
As I finish, Wangari Maathai’s hummingbird story remains in my heart. My ‘small’ contribution to this has to start somewhere. I have volunteered at a community-led organisation where I live to understand their needs better and learn how I can serve them better. If this leads to me running for a political seat, I will be better placed to articulate their needs and have their trust—just like the troops I led back in our mud classroom in nursery school, to justice and beyond, Or just better classrooms and beyond lol.