Heir to the throne: photography and the rise to presidency by politicians in Zimbabwe and South Africa

Abstract

Photographs are rarely given much academic attention, especially, in Africa. This is against the popular use of photography in political communication. Against this background, this study examines the use of photographs in communicating political power in Zimbabwe and South Africa. The study will analyse photographs that circulated on Twitter on the week when Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa and President Cyril Ramaphosa of South African assumed the power as Presidents of their respective countries in 2017 and 2018, respectively. Through the use of visual discourse analysis, as an analysis method, findings demonstrate that Mnangagwa and Ramaphosa were visually framed as the rightful heirs to the throne. The study further found that visual memories are used to ‘argue’ and make sense of the present. However, photography further evoked sad memories of the past that often characterise Mnangagwa and Ramaphosa’s political image and these are the ghosts of Gukurahundi and Marikana massacres, respectively.

DISCLOSURE STATEMENT

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 Ahead of the hotly contested 2002 presidential elections, while giving a media briefing, the then Zimbabwe Defence Forces commander, stressed that the liberation struggle is used as a yardstick and key for the presidency.

2 Mandela was impressed by Ramaphosa’s role in ensuring that the country had a smooth transition including the crafting of the constitution. He was seen as a good negotiator who exhibit leadership qualities (see Munusamy, 2012).

3 Jacob Zuma tenure as president was characterised by many negative media framing which most centred around him being accused of violating the constitution. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-17450447

4 Soon after being elected into power, Ramaphosa pledged to work for the people, through his thuma mina campaign.

5 Ramaphosa is estimated to worth more than R6 billion. In 2001, he established Shanduka Group as a black-owned investment holding company, building up a diverse portfolio of listed and unlisted assets. The group had an influence in banking, energy, insurance, real estate and even telecoms.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Lungile Augustine Tshuma

Tshuma Lungile Augustine is a Research Associate in the Research Centre for Communication and Culture, Catholic University of Portugal, Portugal. Lungile’s research interests are on photography, memory, journalism and genocide studies. His work has been published in local and international journals such as Journal of Genocide Research, African Journalism Studies, Critical Arts, Nations and Nationals, Journal of Communication Inquiry, and Media, Culture and Society.