Political marketing in the digital age: a critique of Uganda Government’s Communication Strategy of 2022 to address online political dissent

Abstract

This investigation examined the Uganda Government‘s Communication Strategy (2022) as a political marketing tool to address online political dissent within the broad view of harnessing digital platforms for public and political participation while protecting citizens‘ freedom of expression. The strategy, which is a revision of the 2011 communication strategy, was developed to enhance its communication capabilities and foster a positive national and international image. Central to this strategy was the proactive monitoring of mainstream and social media to track opposition activities and promote a favourable government image. Employing a qualitative methodology, this study analysed the communication strategy, communication policy documents, and the regulatory and legal framework within which the strategy operates, including article 29 (1)( a) of the 1995 Constitution of the Republic of Uganda, which guarantees freedom of speech and expression. The study further analysed supreme court rulings and judgements in respect to freedom of expression, for example, Justice Joseph Mulenga‘s ruling in Charles Onyango Obbo and Andrew Mwenda v Attorney General, Constitutional Appeal No.2 of 2002 in which the journalists overturned their conviction for publishing false news. The Communication Strategy of another jurisdiction, the United Kingdom, was analyzed to examine political marketing practices that harness digital platforms for public and political participation. The researcher conducted in-depth interviews with Uganda government officials, political marketers, government and non-government communication specialists, online political activists, academics, and civil society leaders, to critically assess how the Uganda government‘s communication strategy intersects with public and political participation, and freedom of expression. The study was premised on political marketing and critical political economy theories. The findings reveal that while the Uganda Government‘s Communication Strategy supposedly aimed to enhance the effectiveness of government communication by integrating digital platforms, its execution tends to skew towards controlling and suppressing online political dissent, something that contradicts political marketing practices. Indeed, such a tendency has fostered a climate of increased surveillance and monitoring of online discourse, which stifles the broader discourse necessary for public and political participation. Particularly, criminalising online political dissent is inconsistent with the right to freedom of expression as provided by the Constitution of the Republic of Uganda. This study explored the dissonance between the government‘s narrative of enhancing communication and the reality of some of its practices that suppress online political dissent by legal or extra -legal means inconsistent with engagement to persuade as postulated by proponents of the political marketing theory. This highlights the critical gap between policy intentions and their practical implementations, underscoring the need for a reevaluation of the implementation of the communication strategy. The dissertation argues that, for Uganda ‘s communication strategy to be effective, it must not only advance government transparency and responsiveness but also foster an environment that upholds and protects freedom of expression, public and political participation, as enshrined in the Constitution. This research contributes to the field of political communication by highlighting the nuanced challenges of implementing communication strategies in the digital age and political environments, and suggests pathways for aligning such strategies with political marketing practices.