Outgoing transport minister Fikile Mbalula is the most popular member of cabinet on Twitter, followed by President Cyril Ramaphosa and energy minister Gwede Mantashe.
Mbalula, who was recently elected as the new secretary-general of the ANC — he will soon take up the role at Luthuli House full-time — has 2.89 million followers on the Elon Musk-owned social media platform, according to a new report by Decode Communications.
The report, entitled “South African Government Leaders on Twitter 2022”, found that Mbalula grew his follower count by 10% in the past year. His boss, Ramaphosa, grew his count by more than 20%.
Decode Communications describes itself as a pan-African reputation management company that helps brands understand communication patterns by mapping trends.
But some cabinet ministers still shun the social media platform: examples include Joe Phaahla, the minister of health, and Bheki Cele, the minister of police.
The report said that gimmicks, controversy and scandal were the biggest contributors to follower growth – perhaps Mbalula is onto something, then, with his often contentious and irreverent tweets!
Placed fourth in Decode’s list is cooperative governance minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, with 420 000 followers – a 6.1% increase over 2021. She’s followed by Lindiwe Sisulu, the minister of tourism, with 276 000 – a big jump of 21.5% compared to a year ago.
Highest growth
Water & sanitation minister Senzo Mchunu saw the highest year-on-year growth at 197%, albeit off a low base, with a gain of 1 639 followers.
Two cabinet members joined Twitter for first time in 2022: defence minister Thandi Modise and basic education minister Angie Motshekga.
When it comes to government departments, the presidency’s Twitter account has 2.3 million followers, a 13.3% jump from 2021, giving it the number-one spot among national departments. – © 2023 NewsCentral Media
