Durban - As political parties look to social media to make a connection with young voters, they have responded by voicing concern about the lack of education, job and skills training opportunities.
Four major political parties in the province - the ANC, IFP, DA and EFF - have taken to various social media platforms to reach out to young voters.
“Young people are concerned about education as they feel that it is expensive. They are also worried about lack of job opportunities and skills development,” said ANC provincial spokesman Mdumiseni Ntuli.
Facebook had been more widely used than ever before by the parties to debate political issues.
Ntuli said the party had put together a team of 40 people to conduct its social media campaign.
He said 10 of these were focusing on the whole province, while 30 others were dealing with regions.
“Over the past two to three weeks we have increased our dominance in that space. It is a platform exposed to many young people. We used it unapologetically,” said Ntuli.
He said the party had found social media useful to communicate its election message to middle-class citizens.
“The middle class, in particular, do not have similar needs to people you find when conducting door-to-door campaigning.
“In most cases we cannot even access their houses because they have high walls.
“So social media becomes an alternative avenue to reach them,” he said.
The DA recently sparked anger within the ANC and Mandela family when it used the name of Nelson Mandela in its campaign. DA leader Mmusi Maimane, in response, posted on Facebook on Monday: “We cannot claim to honour Madiba’s legacy when so many of our people are without work and without hope.
“Use your vote to hire a DA government, knowing that you can use that same vote to fire us again if we disappoint you. But first give us a chance.”
EFF spokesman Mbuyiseni Ndlozi said his party had embraced social media.
“The main EFF campaign strategy depends on social media. We have been to the social media stage, from Facebook to Instagram, precisely because of its impact. We use our accounts to their full potential,” he said.
Political parties have been using social media to post statements, such as notification of rallies and campaigns, something which they would have traditionally released to media houses.
Even the IFP has turned to social media to communicate its message to its members, who are mostly based in deep rural areas in the province.
IFP MP Mkhuleko Hlengwa said the party had rushed to upgrade its website to take advantage of social media.
“Our membership is quite active on social media. My Facebook page is abuzz with party activities. Our website is active in promoting the party manifesto,” he said.
Cape Town political analyst Daniel Silke said the DA and ANC had been constantly visible on social media.
“Both parties (DA and ANC) have been using social media quite effectively.”
He said the EFF had been less visible on social media than the DA and ANC.
“The smaller parties such as the IFP and UDM have also not taken advantage. I think smaller parties could use social media beyond their size. I would argue that the smaller parties have failed to make an impression.”
The EFF, ANC and DA make full use of social media to get their message across.
The Mercury