South Africa’s 24-hour trend report – 26 April 2020

President of the Republic of Madagascar Andry Rajoelina (C) attends his swearing-in ceremony in Antananarivo, Madagascar, 19 January 2019. (EPA-EFE/Henitsoa Rafalia)

By Centre for Analytics and Behavioural Change

27 Apr 2020

This is a summary of the trending, highest impact, and most active themes and narratives related to social cohesion in South African public-domain social media conversations on 26 April 2020.

Covid solidarity

Solidarity against Covid-19 was the top trending topic on Sunday.

The arrival of Cuban doctors to assist South Africa was the top story by volume, trending with a burst of 98%.

The second biggest trending topic was the project by the Lamiez Holworthy and Khuli Chana Foundations.

Cuban doctors became the top trending topic for the day after @JacksonMthembu tweeted a picture of uniformed Cuban doctors with their national flag on their way to South Africa. The post was retweeted over 1,000 times and about 1,500 people talked about the doctors yesterday.

Responders showed mixed emotions. Some asked how much the Cubans would be paid, while others explained SA would need more hands when restrictions are eased. South Africans seem divided: “We don’t need them now” vs “We need to be prepared for when this gets worse” are the main sentiments of opposing camps.

In a stunning display of solidarity, Switzerland has projected the national flags of several countries, including South Africa, onto the Matterhorn. Conversation peaked at 08:00 as people shared the image of the SA flag on the mountain. Sentiment toward topics like Swiss Alps, Matterhorn and solidarity with South Africans was very positive.

Between 10:00 and 15:00 there was a spike in conversation about an outreach by Lamiez Holworthy and Khuli Chana, who tweeted pictures of themselves distributing essentials to needy families.

Photos of the masked performers were retweeted over 1,000 times, with the hashtag #planetofthehavenots.

Responses included “God bless you”;“are they a couple”; “I love your boots” and “Do we really have to know?” Most people reacted with big ups and gratitude for the outreach.

Lockdown levels

Conversations about the new industry classifications and the Level 4 lockdown regulations permeated South African social media over the weekend.

The EFF's Mbuyiseni Ndlozi, 23 July 2019. Photo: Chanel Retief

@MbuyesiniNdlozi’s post questioning the easing of restrictions was the top post by impact and reach.

The SAfm post regarding Ethekwini Metro was the fourth highest post by reach, and the eighth by impact.

Industry Classifications trended as the second biggest topic by volume on Twitter after Ministers Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma and Ebrahim Patel released the classification of industries as part of the risk-adjusted strategy to reopen the economy.

Most lockdown rules would remain in place. People leaving home must wear cloth masks, curfews would be imposed and social gatherings remained banned.

Dlamini Zuma’s address received significant backlash on Twitter for being in English and Zulu but not in other South African languages. Others said her speech was confusing and difficult to follow, with many requesting infographics.

“Level 4” trended as the fifth biggest topic by volume as South Africans debated its rollout.

The DA supported a phased lifting of lockdown restrictions. The EFF strongly advised against the premature lifting of restrictions, saying it would put South African lives at risk.

The EFF’s Mbuyiseni Ndlozi: “Guys we are under lockdown, and the curve is on the rise... what is going to happen when we end or relax the lockdown? The average number of new infections this week is above 150. Relaxing the lockdown is going to achieve only 1 thing: tripling the infection! We are regressing!” The tweet was widely acknowledged and shared.

Others supported news that Ethekwini Metro could remain in Level 5 longer because of the high number of infections.

Life in lockdown

‘Love’ and ‘Life’ were the fourth and sixth top trending words on Sunday.

The post by @pamela_mtanga asking, “What have you learnt about yourself” was the third biggest post by reach.

Comedic posts by @Juks_Afrika and @ThulaniTeeTee were fifth by reach.

The lockdown has given many a chance to pause and reflect on life and love.

One person said she loved the lockdown because her father was sober and no longer beat her mother. More than 1,300 people liked the tweet and over 400 talked about it.

Another tweeted: “We fell in love over texts during the lockdown”, pointing to the ways young people are trying to search for love in the isolation of lockdown.

@ammaarah05 tweeted about how her friends helped to celebrate her birthday with an online scavenger hunt and a Zoom party.

These stories of hope reflect the resilience of the South African spirit, as people strive to find happiness in the darkest moments.

@MyLifeAsSne tweeted that online learning during lockdown was cruel. The 22-year-old’s post was retweeted about 400 times, reflecting how many students are struggling without the familiarity of attending classes with classmates.

In an article in The Krugersdorp News and other publications, Dr Jaco Putter explained that humans don’t like the feeling of being out of control, and this feeling can become unbearable right now.

@Kenziekay’s tweet that she never wanted to experience a pandemic like this again was retweeted over 18,000 times.

South Africans are not only coming to terms with the lockdown, but are embracing it with a stream of jokes, memes and comedic content on Twitter.

@TheyloveNdiswa lightened the mood with a little coronavirus romance: “You are my sanitiser, the quarantine of my heart. My one and only covid, when you are not there, I feel like I’m in lockdown. The mask of my life, you will always be my virus, you know why? Cause my love for you keeps on spreading.”

@JuksAfrika thought he would conquer 2020, but 2020 has caught him with his pants down. His pictures had Twitter in stitches.

Organic 'remedy'

President of the Republic of Madagascar Andry Rajoelina (C) attends his swearing-in ceremony in Antananarivo, Madagascar, 19 January 2019. EPA-EFE/HENITSOA RAFALIA

Several African leaders, most recently the President of Guinea Bissau Umaro Embalo, are supporting an African organic “remedy” launched by the President of Madagascar, Andry Rajoelina.

Rajoelina thanked Embalo for his offer to supply his country and neighbours in West Africa with TAMBAVY CVO/Covid-Organics.

Twitter users have had an extremely positive reaction to the news of African solidarity.

@RebonaPico states, “Covid-Organics is derived from Artemisia, an indigenous plant widely known to us as Umhlonyane in Zulu and Lengana in Sotho and Tswana.”

Mosque arrests

A few men in Pretoria disregarded lockdown regulations and met for Friday prayers as Muslims headed into Ramadan.

A video of SAPS forcing the praying men to lie on the floor during the raid has gone viral. A video posted by @Abramjee has gone viral with more than 600,000 views and 8,000 people talking about the post.

Conversation around the mosque arrests continued throughout the weekend. The narrative of abuse of power by SAPS resurfaced. @MphahleleRidge tweeted that the police must not behave like criminals to enforce the law.

The Muslim Judicial Council said they understood the need for the arrests, but were appalled by the heavy-handed way the police responded to the men, who were not resisting arrest. DM

The Centre for Analytics and Behavioural Change (CABC) is a non-profit organisation incubated at the Graduate School of Business at the University of Cape Town. The CABC aims to effect positive behavioural change for social upliftment and environmental benefit. The main areas of focus are enhancing social cohesion, preventing narrative manipulation, furthering sustainability, managing climate change and improving public health. Cutting-edge social media analytics are used to identify both progressive and anti-social stances on any theme. Analysts isolate social media conversations and conduct rigorous data analysis to predict trends. The CABC stimulates positive social change through engagement, dialogue and advocacy. www.cabc.org.za

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