Two days after South Africans cast their votes in the 2016 municipal elections‚ social media was still a hive of activity with political leaders and the public still mulling over the results.
Some leaders‚ however‚ seem to have gone into hiding and had not said a word on social media since the final race to the polls began.
The Economic Freedom Fighters’ (EFF) official tweeter page was last updated on August 1.
The party’s spokesperson‚ Mbuyiseni Ndlozi‚ last tweeted on August 1.
It said: “On Wednesday‚ 3 August‚ 2016‚ we vote for the future‚ we #VoteEFF — Our Last Hope for Jobs & Service Delivery”.
>https://twitter.com/MbuyiseniNdlozi/status/760163221064081408“ANC loves you!”‚ was African National Congress spokesperson Zizi Kodwa’s most recent tweet on August 2.
>https://twitter.com/zizikodwa/status/760595583031705600ANC’s chief whip Jackson Mthembu last tweeted on July 9‚ although he did go on air on Friday morning to concede defeat in Nelson Mandela Bay
Meanwhile‚ much of the discourse around the ANC was about the party reportedly blaming “clever blacks” for its loss of support‚ and comparisons between how the ANC faired in the local government elections under former president Thabo Mbeki’s leadership and how it’s faring in the 2016 poll under President Jacob Zuma.
One tweeter user‚ Sive Cvez Hani‚ said: “In 2006‚ under #Mbeki‚ the ANC got 66.3% votes nationwide. The DA got 14.8%. Today ANC‚ under Zuma‚ got 54% and DA got 26%”. #ElectionResults
>https://twitter.com/CvezHani/status/761411749237186560The Democratic Alliance’s Western Cape premier‚ Helen Zille‚ responded to Hani’s tweet‚ saying: “And do you remember how Mbeki was vilified?”
“I see parts of ANC Twitter are blaming ‘clever Blacks’; ‘divided Blacks’ & everything under the sun except the ANC for the declining support‚” Koketso Moeti said.
>https://twitter.com/Kmoeti/status/761237880639479808To this Zille replied: “Of course. Didn’t you know that the ANC OWNS all black people? How dare they exercise freedom of choice?”
Zille also responded to reports that the ANC had withdrawn its complaint about results in Nelson Mandela Bay‚ where it lost to the DA.
“They must have searched high and low for something to complain about‚” she said.
Twitter user @MediaPuntaRSA asked a media personality to deliver a message to the leader of the ANC for him: “@kaysexwale when you see Zuma please tell him the Kleva people did not vote for his party‚” Gunner4L said.
>https://twitter.com/MediaPuntaRSA/status/761271170926772225@Kay Sexwale replied: “I never bump into him so I suggest you find his email address and talk to him directly”. — Tiso Black Star GroupDigital