#Politicianeyes (Let ME Help you Lead you)

Cannon Rumanzi’s photographs of election posters satirize the nature of democracy in Uganda

ART | DOMINIC MUWANGUZI | Uganda is only two years away from the next general election but the election fever is already in high gear. The recent country-wide tour by the leading opposition party, National Unity Platform, that attracted mammoth crowds or the regular friction between the different political camps within the opposition often reported on in the local dailies, echo this tempo. This pulse is carried forth to the artists who unapologetically are braced with the task of being mirrors of society and critics of the status quo through their creative practice. In the context of #Politicianeyes (Let ME Help you Lead you), a solo photography series exhibition, showing at Goethe Zentrum Kampala, the artist Cannon Rumanzi plunges into the politics of general elections in Uganda where politicians use their eyes to beg for votes from the electorate. It is a norm in every election in Uganda that the politician will print posters of themselves gazing directly in the face of the electorate with the intent of pleading to be voted into political office.

Canon’s choice of politician eyes as a metaphor for those seeking political leadership plays on the sarcastic nature of his art. The artist has often used sarcasm in his photography to critique the social or political status quo in order to elicit deep conversations for his art and the message that underlie it. In this exhibition, the artist is navigating the murky waters of democracy in Uganda- obviously a thorny subject in Ugandan politics- and in an attempt to critique the political environment within which it (democracy) is situated, he displays photographs of election posters randomly taken around the dirty city suburbs and the central business district. The photographs mainly collected after the 2016 and 2021 General elections, constitute those of Presidential, Parliamentary and local council candidates.

The showcase of discolored, distorted and worn-out campaign photographs against a backdrop of clean walls in an organized office space, speaks to the “melee” in Ugandan politics that manifests inform of greed, corruption and violence. Uganda is a beautiful country, the Pearl of Africa, but the activities of the State have continuously led many to question such identity in recent years. Equally, the inane chorus “look at Me, I am the capable one, now trust ME to HELP you LEAD you…’ is a testament to the nature of Uganda’s politics that is wrought with self- entitlement and manipulation. The politicians come to their constituents every after 5 years asking them to ‘trust Me’ and promising to ‘LEAD you’ to a better country [ a new Uganda], but after the voting, they never return.

But there’s a deeper mockery in this commotion called ‘politicianeyes’ as presented by the artist. The sharp contrast between the politicians in expensive suits with healthy looking faces smiling from the comfort of the posters and the average urbanite with an empty stomach and shabbily dressed with a sullen countenance, suggest a complete disengagement between the political elite and the public. Similarly, the staggering design of the posters, the filth and dirt that covers them seem to communicate a deeper tension between the two parties. Even with such promises of ‘let me lead you’, there already exists an aversion to either the election process that brings these leaders into office or specific politicians in high office.

The series #Politicianeyes (Let Me Help you Lead you) is a satirical portrayal of what Ugandan politics has become in recent years. It is not surprising to hear a sizeable number of the population refer to the elections as an opportunity for those already in political office to vote themselves back in office. Even for those standing for political office for genuine reasons, to ‘help lead you…’’; they are perceived as self -seeking individuals. This is the reality within which elections, as facet of democracy in Uganda, finds itself in. It has descended to being a mockery where no one is taken seriously. The cynicism of the electorate, including the artist himself, is what they communicate subtly in the imagery of the photographs.

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The exhibition is showing at the Goethe Zentrum Office on Bukoto Street, Kamwokya until 20th October 2023.