Hisiah Campaign Launch
The Hisiah Campaign aims to educate and inform the public about cyber bullying and its effects, and is championed by Gospel Music artist Jimmy Gait. The launch was held on May 28, 2018, at the Sarova Panafric Hotel, Nairobi.
Jimmy Gait in his speech spoke about being a victim of cyber bullying after releasing his cover of Adele’s hit song ‘Hello’. He also received a lot of hate after releasing the song ‘Yesu Ndie Sponsor’. “This song was received with a lot of ridicule, and people said I blasphemed God by calling Him sponsor, going by the understanding of the word sponsor in the Kenyan social circles. So many memes were created and circulated online with my photo and ridiculing messages. This is when I decided to quit music!” he said. “The experience led to a great loss on my part: cancellation of performances, endorsements and friends, mostly due to my dented public image. Of course, given that I wasn’t earning a living, I incurred major debts, and worse, affected me emotionally, spiritually and socially! It was a dark season for me!” he added.
According to Jimmy Gait, his personal experience led him to pay close attention to the issue of cyber bullying. The Hisiah Campaign seekd to create awareness on the effects of cyber bullying.
Jimmy Gait addressing the guests at the launch of the Hisiah Campaign, at the Sarova Panafric
“The message we seek to share is Kabla U-Click, Fikiria. When people share content about others online, they never take time to think on how the share could affect the person being shared about. You know… “send as received”. They never think, what if this could be my close family, parents, child, spouse or even myself. It could also be my business that is under attack, which could lead to great financial losses. We want to see change on how people interact online!! Ladies and Gentlemen The Hisiah Campaign aims at creating awareness on the presence of cyber bullying and its effects on victims. We seek to encourage positive interactions and also create a reporting mechanism for all cases of cyber harassment. Our desire is to see behavioral change across all demographics in society with regards to internet use,” said Jimmy Gait on the launch of the Hisiah Campaign.
Jimmy Gait expressed his thanks to Safaricom for their support in the launch of the campaign. He also thanked other strategic partners including After40 Hotel, Silicon, Mambo Microsystems, METTA, NAS International and Ark Entertainment Kenya, Phands Publishers and the team from SAP for their support and encouragement.
