President Goodluck Jonathan and his gang of educated fools are doing a good job of gagging the Nigerian press on Boko Haram. What use is it that everyone in the world knows what is going on in Nigeria except Nigerians?
We rely on information from BBC, CNN, Al Jazeera and SABC while our news journalists pander to the highest paying politicians and crooks of the day. It is no secret that the majority of Nigerian newsmen and women are on the take.
The general practice of major news organizations getting paid to cover news events totally undermines the credibility of these organizations. Payola is normal everyday business so all news outlets in Nigeria are paid stooges in the same way.
I had a heated debate with a couple of “pressmen” on their lack of ethics and integrity, they like everyone else that call themselves journalists because they can flash an ID card issued by the Nigerian government that says so, invoke the name of Dele Giwa as if they rehearsed their talking point.
“You want them to letter bomb me” I wonder if these cats understand we are in the digital age, emails, texts and social media even India finally sent out their last telegraph. So the only way they could be “letter bombed” is if the bomb is in a “Ghana must go bag”. They rather live dishonest lives than die honest men, while their opposition live to die “honest” in a live to let live world.
I watched an address last year to the Nigerian press core by the minster of information Mr. Labaran Maku instructing them to ignore Boko Haram. He advised them that Boko Haram is seeking attention so the press should be good citizens and do their best to ignore them. I wonder if the strategy is to continue ignoring them. Maybe the killing of 30 people in the dormitories of Government Secondary School Mamudo Village would make them rethink their stance or maybe that proven tactics of ignoring your enemy will eventual work for President Goodluck Jonathan and Nigerians
We have dealt with electric blackouts for decades in Nigeria while Ghana celebrates decades of steady electric supply. Seems to me Nigerians will be dealing with decades of news blackouts. It is no longer a game of fat cats and mice between the presidency and the press it is a game of rats.
Ogbeni Ayotunde
