Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta is a pretty powerful man; not only is he the most powerful man in Kenya, but he is also pretty powerful online.
Yes, he has a massive social media following, but that is not exactly why he is powerful on those platforms. Many do not even know his name or title; to them he goes by “The guy in the memes.”
Take @NomfusiLengs, a South African Twitter user who discovered that the man whose photo she sees being used to express a hilarious point online is an actual President and you get the meme republic point.
The guy in the memes is the President of Kenya!??? ??♀️?? SHOOK#GlobalCitizenFestivalSA #Globalcitizen #Mandela100 pic.twitter.com/fZP6GKkm9i
— NOMFUSI LENGS (@NomfusiLengs) December 2, 2018
That tweet went viral and since the internet is never defeated, the comments that followed her tweet were, you guessed it, memes of President Kenyatta.
Mr. Kenyatta is a pretty expressive and largely happy man who likes to take selfies and mingle with Kenyans and that, in the year of our Lord 2018, is a perfect recipe for glorious meme material.
I honestly did not know ???? pic.twitter.com/YwMYIFOCQT
— NOMFUSI LENGS (@NomfusiLengs) December 2, 2018
People using Mr. Kenyatta’s photos as memes is not derogatory nor does it mean they adore the man. It is just hard not to use a photo of him where he is smiling, wearing his glasses low, taking a pint of alcohol or trying to hold back laughter. It’s nothing personal, just internet.
There are countries where memes of leaders are frowned upon but luckily that is not the case in Kenya and pray that it remains that way since politicians need to learn how to take a joke.
Yes It’s me. pic.twitter.com/7bzwoXDGmq
— Willy? (@willywahungu) December 2, 2018
Memes are an online culture where an image, short video or clip art are used as a reaction piece. A meme typically preys on funny facial expressions or human reactions we can all relate to; sad, disappointed, holding back laughter and many more.