A flea balanced against an elephant
As the gloves come off for a bare-knuckle tug-of-war and the snarls get louder from both sides, it is fascinating to read between the lines of the surreal cage fight in the upper echelon of our society; which to me, is nothing but a distraction from the fundamental problems of the nation.
However, the perilous spat raging between the media and those in the corridors of power right now, fanned by the octopodial communications network of the government; emphasises one point – the need for introspection from all sides.
Although the combatant mood of our media which has unleashed the sound of thunder from the government quarter is amusing in a way, the reprehensible streak in the characters of both sides, evidenced in the series of controversies, gives an eye on the savage judgement of posterity.
It is clear that there is only going to be one obvious winner; whichever way you look at it. Against a judiciary that is less than fit for purpose and an over-bearing executive arm, we all know that we talk about democracy but those in power are far from being democrats nor is the system as democratic as it says on the tin.
On one hand, those with the authority are telling their Alsatian not to bite, without exactly bringing it to heel while the other side is armed with a tooth comb against the ferocity of the powerful dog.
Anyway, the outrage, tinged by theatrics and hypocrisy, only confirms the fact that if you continue to stick your head in the sands of denial, you deserve to have your arse kicked.
Yes, we can justifiably blame our political leaders for whatever we want, but truthfully, the Sierra Leone media remains an integral part of the problem of our country today.
Faced with the key challenge of helping to change the old order of doing things, the media has been consistently courted into sucking coated nectar and selling its conscience since the inception of the present administration; as most of the members became beneficiaries of the decadent system and lost sight of the fundamental functions of the fourth estate of the realm.
As the establishment perpetuated the illusion that it was going to set new standards in transparency and democratic tolerance, media practitioners, like a dog following a bone into the dark alley, fell for the hollow ritual and abandoned the moral ground of not only setting the socio-political agenda but also the relevant authority to challenge maladministration and inherent flaws of our society and the democratic system.
Rather than live for the national cause instead of the applause, most members of the media put survival first and forgot the dictum that there are no permanent enemies but permanent interests on the political dance floor.
As events ensured that Sierra Leone was turning into a country without conscience and mercenary commentators as well as spin doctors took over the landscape; while the executive rendered the other arms of the system powerless, the media was sucked into the depraved system of socio-economic and political polarisation and most of the practitioners refused to make it clear that this was not the way to conduct national affairs
When the nation looked up to the press to ensure that at least majority of the people are politically educated and aware of what exactly is good governance; which has nothing to do with tribe or party or the individual in power, the media became a willing tool in the perpetuation of mediocrity and imbecility, as dividends of our democracy.
Take the last election for example. Rather than be the agenda setter, the media fearing persecution, sold its soul and allowed systematic manipulation of the whole process to make an irrelevant theme, the focus of a key period for a genuine assessment of our development and vision.
Instead of the spotlight being on issues like the increasing poverty level, the army of unemployed youths roaming the streets, lack of ideologies by the major parties, corruption, our crumbling educational sector and a myriad of such socially relevant and critical concerns, the media became ‘for sale’ and embroiled in the tangled web of hypocrisy and deceit.
When the issues of morality and ethics enveloped this administration and an avaricious leadership-culture gradually became entrenched, alongside the lifetime political habit of vulgarity, gross inequities, ineptitude, callousness, dishonesty and jaundice which have been the national lot since independence; the media became eerily silent about the lacunas surrounding these discredited mantra.
With government appointments as compensation and looted dollars floating all around, mediocres became superstars; ragtag sheets emerged from every quarter sponsored by those with grotesque and utter contempt for truth; merit took a back stage along with sincerity of purpose and those who should stand on the side of truth and impartiality became mirrors for all that was wrong with our society.
Motivated not by nationalism or sincere political allegiance but by the fear of being out of the gravy train and the primal force of fear of persecution, the media has had several opportunities to cut itself free and establish its independence but it collectively compromised its soul.
Instead, issues that are critical to the social, economic and political development of the country and which needed to be approached with all seriousness and rigour were reduced to an opportunity to score political points; or became a platform to take pot-shots at easy targets and an avenue to play politics by other means.
So, realistically, what is the moral authority of the Sierra Leone press today, having lost sight of its core social responsibility and the collective aspiration of the nation since the advent of the present administration?
As the broad smiles that used to be the hallmark of both sides gives way to grimace from all quarters and the love affair that blinded and enchanted, moves from the indecent to the diabolical; with combatants behaving like drunken louts on a stag trip, the fourth estate of the realm needs to appreciate that whatever ugliness is being seen now, was made by the same media that failed to point out the character flaws of those in power.
But there is something faintly sinister about the mouths of bluff and bluster in the current familiar ego-driven dictates of the political class and the media, at a rather fraught period for the present administration,
It is true that media storms are part and parcel of every administration, which, because of its grip on power always navigates a way through with geniality; but one fundamental issue that has made this spat a bit different is that the uneven distribution of wealth and stagnation in the lot of the generality of the people since the emergence of this regime, has fanned the embers of this potential for populist discontent and irritability.
Spurred by civil organisations and vested interests, it seems all of a sudden, a segment of the press appears to have found its voice in a furious backlash against what is seen as dictatorial posturing, display of insufficient humility for services rendered and a deficit of decency by the pay masters.
The media in Sierra Leone is already smeared and black guarded by the whispers of lackeyism; which is why those who inflict endless futile campaigns on justice when it soothed, are either at the fore front or are now resorting to total silence; while others embedded in graft, are mysteriously becalmed in the dark.
While it lasts, let the public enjoy every bit of the sensationalism and shock-horror headlines; lies and tissues of lies; as well as fabrications and the power-play on offer. It is the fruit of change.
Meanwhile our crushing poverty and debilitating unemployment which wastes so many potentials and has left our kids half-baked can take a back seat as the war of attrition against the press escalates.
Maybe the rest of the Sierra Leone media will appreciate the fact that the lascivious appetite of the political class is insatiable and once you start dining with those in power at the expense of truth, the pit you’ll end up, is bottomless
Be that as it may, in my last piece- IS IT GETTING HOT IN THE ACTIC? I wrote:
“Is there not a bit of a dichotomy about a leadership that wants praise but does not want criticism? That it is incomprehensible, how those in power now suddenly find the growing public anger about pain and suffering and the general melodrama of our governance, an inconvenient irritation in their mental kitchen.
That the glimpses of irritability emanating from the corridors of power; especially since the advent of the government’s second term of office was becoming more visible because the missing link in our national daily life was now unraveling as the inevitability that the bubble of our so-called meteoric development was bound to reach the sticky patch of truth someday looms larger”. (Random Musing 21/10/13)
If we refuse to consign our disfiguring cover for corruption, barbarity and deceit to the bin of history, the result of the circus and cabaret around our governance and served by the media will continue to be more dismal than the august rain.
The unfettered love for a speck of service which should actually be like a slab around the neck of our leaders like a concrete slab has continued to be sacrificed for amusement.
That is the reward of our democracy and why not? Simply because we do not yet have the ingredients for true revolutionary activities, that will set the structures straight.
By: Raymond Dele Awoonor-Gordon
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