Why BDP is buying Facebook likes
Thalefang Charles | Friday September 26, 2014 16:38
The Botswana Democratic Party’s (BDP) social media strategy was infiltrated and leaked to the enemies. When Mokgweetsi Masisi delivered the pompous war speech inside a closed hall of the red army, a brave ‘inward’ spy had their tape recorder on, capturing the self-confessed bootlicker in his true robustly cunning self, lecturing to MaDomi how they are going to fight the enemy. He told them that they would invade Facebook with fake profile identities to cause confusion and deceive the opposition.
Like a war general that has just finished reading Tzu’s The Art Of War, Masisi was preaching a total warfare strategy as described by the Asian warlord. In this sacred blueprint for battlefield strategy, Sun says, “All warfare is based on deception”. He disclosed that they were going to deceive their enemy with “bo Tom Mang Mang” on Facebook.
After the shameful leaking and being ridiculed on social media, BDP switched tactic and used the leak as a gambit. They conceded defeat by accepting that the spy successfully infiltrated and exposed them. But the BDP went on with its tactics of social media warfare. They started by buying Facebook likes. The BDP started paying Facebook to get sponsored posts. These are the posts that allowed them to reach as many Facebook users as they could buy. Their official pages, Botswana Democratic Party with over 18,000 likes, and the elections page, BDP 2014 with 8,400 likes started appearing on timelines of users that are not their fans.
This is how the Facebook algorithm works when you buy likes from them. They make sure that even haters see your posts.
BDP’s paid ads on Facebook increased their presence and started adding more red on the blue Facebook. Then their Facebook foot soldiers were unleashed on opposition groups, rebutting and confusing the enemy’s messages. This is the war that is still raging, with certain BDP people spending time on social media doing BDP’s defence and assault.
When the BDP Facebook foot soldiers were getting overwhelmed after Gomolemo Motswaledi’s controversial accident that led to his death, BDP unveiled their last social media ammunition from the commander himself.
They launched a personal Facebook profile of President Ian Khama. The last time we checked this year, Khama was using the brick-like ancient Nokia 5120 mobile phone. But they claimed he logged into Facebook, filled in his biography and created a page. Interestingly the President browsed Facebook and pinched images showing him in party colours from various pages. His profile picture is a portrait of him taken in 2009.
Curiously the picture was airbrushed on the chin to remove dark beard stubs, probably to make him look younger with a smooth clean-shaven face that would appeal to the youth. The jacket in the Facebook profile picture has also been turned black instead of the vintage striped charcoal suit he is wearing on the original picture.
The presidential picture that is hanging in most establishments is actually showing a 2004 face of Khama. President Khama’s Facebook page made headlines, especially his first status update. He wrote, “Welcome to my official Facebook page, where I look forward to interacting with you as we share experiences and more importantly ways through which, together, we can move our country forward.
I will from time to time be available for live chats with you. Looking forward to engaging debates with everyone.”
It was amazing that a President who notoriously hates debates and engages the media will have time for Facebook chats. Khama has never held a press conference in his entire presidential tenure.
His second update was while in Mmadinare, also on BDP business. But sooner than later, in his ird post, Khama was doing what he really loves best. You probably guessed it; he posted images of himself riding a huge blue motorbike around Gaborone. He posted a picture wearing all black matching the Biker’s Society members’ entourage in their Harley Davidson and Hells Angels regalia following him.
The caption read, “It was great to join the Botswana Bikers Society’s ‘Mass Ride’ today, for the fifth year in a row. The ‘Mass Ride’ is an excellent event, which raises money for underprivileged Batswana, and I enjoyed joining these great guys and girls in having fun and helping to improve the lives of our people.”
He was like a true adventurist, who always performs stunts to help someone, be it getting mosquito nets, feeding the homeless or fighting cancer. Although he has not yet found time to chat with his fans like he promised, Khama’s page has surpassed 16,900 likes this week, more than double the likes compared to the official BDP elections page.
However, on closer inspection of Khama’s page, it is clear that some flower girl or boy within the BDP, is managing it. It is a BDP brainchild. Unlike other popular presidential pages like US Barack Obama and Kenya’s Uhuru Kenyatta, Khama never posts anything concerning official government business. The page is rather all about BDP business and Khama’s adventurous lifestyle.
Ever since the launch of Khama’s page, there has been a counter-page called ‘Tired of his Stunts’. The page said it “purports to urge the one and only to come off Facebook and have real live presidential debates and host genuine press conferences regularly”. But it is only telling its 1,600 fans. The BDP understands the value of social media and although likes will not necessarily win them votes, they are displaying a robust strategy to win the social media war.