The 2 -year old baby whose mother had been arrested by KCCA enforcement officers for hawking merchandise was run over by a KCCA vehicle in the Authority’s premises on November. This caused widespread public anger and condemnation. Any death occurrence will raise difficult questions and someone must take the blame. The arrest of mother of the child for violating existing city vending law was within the mandate of KCCA law enforcers. Removal of vendors from the streets by KCCA is commendable.
Accidents happen to good Companies all the time but the response matters.KCCA did not quickly act when it should have. This did not give KCCA more control of media coverage to lessen negative publicity. Information moves fast and the more reason KCCA had to be heavy on media. The KCCA PR Machinery failed to grow with the crisis.
The best option would be for KCCA to handle all burial arrangements not necessarily just shopping. This could have been a one day PR disaster. This KCCA oversight offered politicians an opportunity to take advantage of the sad situation to toss the little one’s remains around to suit their objectives. The incident shows security weaknesses at City hall. Did the security team do their job?
No drastic moves with proper steps in line with the KCCA’s’ mission and values were done to protect the KCCA brand. KCCA never stated their values like Excellence nor did they explain training, recruitment, guidelines and discipline mechanism of its staff. There have been outcries against KCCA’s enforcers exhibiting heavy-handedness, even before this tragedy.
The only thing that could stop the scandal would be goodwill. There were little Goodwill activities on the side of KCCA. Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) Executive director Jennifer Musisi and the Kampala minister issued public apologies which are commendable but actions speak louder than words. The issue of issuing a statement to the media not in the grieving environment would not have much more impact. Certainly it didn't come across as heartfelt, if KCCA team handed over these items properly, it would not be that chaotic. A Public KCCA apology with a mother in sight would also help reduce the opposition. The KCCA team could have opted to visit the grieving family during the trying time. The Uganda police IGP Gen. Kale Kayihura has been able to calm PR Crises with simple acts like visiting victims or camping in such areas for some time.
Official facts from investigations are not out and so we can not tell who was negligent. The only immediate action that was taken was on the KCCA driver.KCCA cooperated with police and courts of law. As a number one citizen, this is commendable. The KCCA driver has since been arraigned in court. There is no mention of action to KCCA officials who refused the mother to breastfeed.
In court of Public opinion, its emotions you have to deal with. Any move with logic may backfire. The officers on duty could be suspended pending investigations as the institution buys time for the crisis to quell.
Handover of burial material support items was not professionally done which affected KCCA brand. The KCCA ambulance from Mulago allegedly dropped the grieving family midway. No wonder the family rejected the money and items and instead returned them together with the dead body to City Hall in protest. Story portrays the absence of customer care and the inhumane behaviour among KCCA staff.
In a media interview with local daily, the mother of the child alleges that the baby did not die instantly but KCCA refused to give them an ambulance. They opted for a boda boda to rush the little one to Mulago. Click here
PR and Organisation diagnosis specialist.
Ivan.N.Baliboola
Disclaimer
This article strictly offers academic insight meant to create awareness about crisis PR communication management. Therefore it should be used for educational purposes and not viewed as an attack on institutions or individuals. It offers a professional PR insight into Crisis management in Uganda which is still a young profession. I hope that Lessons shared can better the PR fraternity in Uganda. I commend the inclusion of Best Crisis Management Award category in the PRAU Excellence Awards. PR Practitioners need to be fully involved in crises from the start. The writer assumes no responsibility for contrary interpretation of the subject matter herein.
The author has worked with some of the most well-known and influential East African brands in construction, healthcare, Insurance, cosmetics, and banking. He carries a wealth of experience in marketing, Public relations, crisis management, and social media. He is a proud Award winner of a prestigious Public Relations Association of Uganda excellence award. He has volunteered his life to addressing environment and health related causes. He is also a blogger, professional critic, and strategist.
nbaliboola@gmail.com
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