In the immediate aftermath of Alan Kyerematen’s bombshell announcement of resignation from the New Patriotic Party (NPP), a hashtag was launched by the party to rally supporters.
Among others, the General Secretary, Justin Kodua Frimpong, shared the #WeAreNPP hashtag even as party rank and file quickly shared it, some of them with the NPP logo and others with some government achievement.
Imagine going into labor and this is your ambulance !! #WeAreNPP pic.twitter.com/hG9vCrsctX
— EFIAODO (@Efiaodo1) September 25, 2023
Barely an hour after the hashtag was launched, it had been copied to serve a totally different purpose from what the party intended it to do.
Social media users, esepcially those on Twitter (now X), quickly started using the hashtag but accompanied it with some government’s failure be it of bad roads, bad drainage, abandoned project, failed promise etc.
#WeAreNPP and we’ve constructed the best road from Juaboso to Dadieso. pic.twitter.com/qu1RCilkrW
— YAW SUGAR😇 (@YawSugar_) September 25, 2023
Quite a number of the hijackers also included the #OccupyJulorbiHouse hashtag that had been top of the trends since Septemer 21, when the first of a three-day anti-government protest kicked off.
#WeAreNPP but our water bodies turn Cocoa Tea 😭💔 pic.twitter.com/oyZ94ESY1L
— Efo Filey 🔑 (@efo_phil) September 25, 2023
This is the busiest highway in the country when it rains. #WeAreNPP #OccupyJulorbiHouse pic.twitter.com/hFgB8d0b5i
— eddie bamba. (@edasiamah_) September 25, 2023
Government was also accused, during the protest, of deploying online BOTs that tried hijacking the #OccupyJulorbiHouse hashtag by promoting wrong variants such as: #OccupyJulorbijouse, #Occupyjubileehouse, #Occupyjubilorhouse, #OcvupyJulorbiHouse and #OccupyJuborliHouse.
The hijack of #WeAreNPP appears to be a pay back of sorts by activists.
See hijacked versions of #WeAreNPP X posts:
