The world woke up to yet another distraction from Sahara Reporters, which has since carved its own image as a comprehensive smear machine.
Again, it’s about the First Lady of Nigeria and her state of health.
The world woke up to yet another distraction from Sahara Reporters, which has since carved its own image as a comprehensive smear machine.
Again, it’s about the First Lady of Nigeria and her state of health.
It should be established upfront here that the nation has since moved on from the last mass distraction of the nation and her good people over whether the First Lady was ill or not.
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Of course SaharaReporters has continued to jubilate over its “leadership” of that last campaign.
Whatever may be the case, and this was obviously a mixture of truths, half-truths and outright irresponsible lies, plus a presidential handling that many people took exception to, Dame Jonathan has since returned.
Expectedly, everyone, especially the media, has turned its focus to more pressing personal and public matters.
These include crucial issues in the life and development of the nation. Here, the media is back at its traditional role as agenda-setter for growth and development of society.
Right now, the concern of all well-meaning Nigerians and well-wishers should be how to free the nation from the shackles that keep her down.
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For instance, we are on the brink of losing an opportunity to bring order to the much-abused petroleum industry, by the controversy assailing the Ribadu Report; the seemingly intractable fuel queues are back and biting hard; public engagements are on-going towards a review of the constitution with the attendant need to assist the people to understand that this is an opportunity to turn the focus of the constitution to their own welfare; the issues of safety and security are still here, and many other such.
It is therefore worrisome and suspicious that some young Nigerians will, in the midst of all these, devote themselves to mundane matters, such as whether the First Lady travels with the husband and how often. Is that a constitutional requirement? Or how far will that go to free the neck of Nigerians from petrol scarcity or crime-breeding youth unemployment?
Besides all above, outfits like SaharaReporters should begin to show concern for the collective integrity and honour of the media which they all inherited and are enjoying.
Or would the young men at SR say this is the legacy of patriots and fore-runners like Ernest Ikoli, Nnamdi Azikiwe, Babatunde Jose, Lateef Jakande, Adamu Ciroma, Segun Osoba, Dele Giwa, Sam Amuka, and others too many to mention?
One can’t but wonder if such glorious virtues of the media which these notable icons represent were built out of mud-slinging traditions that outfits like SaharaReporters have committed themselves to, such as the proverbial greedy fly and the corpse.
Doesn’t it occur to them that pull-him-down and smear-campaigns like these further the unfortunate public impression of “cash-and-carry journalism”?
As a matter of fact, if SR cannot join the rest of the positive media to set constructive agenda of national development for the country, it should at least stop distracting well-meaning people from their focus on private and public good!
All said and done, if SR can’t find more beneficial social, economic and political things to form their focus other than “First Lady is sick, First Lady is not sick’’, then let them and their sponsors be told that Nigerians are tired and would like to have issues of development on the plate.
I beg!
CLETUS SOGA
Marina, Lagos
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect those of SaharaReporters
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