Friends,
We have come full circle and today, after some thorough soul searching, I want to ask: of what value is the Kenyan Media to Kenyans and the World?
As I was posing this question to colleagues at the office this morning, Wex pointed out to me an article by Clay Muganda, an article which escaped me but one worth reading- An inspiring article worth reading by Clay Muganda...
Now, in the US, sorry to give this reference again, I was so impressed by the CNN Journalists who were able to give us clear projections as Americans went to the ballot in November 2012. Through the Exit Polls, they were able to call the Elections in favour of President Barrack Obama, and they did this in real time. Within minutes of the last man casting his votes, their equivalent of our Dependent Electoral and Boundaries Commission announced Barrack Obama as having won back his seat and with a landslide. The Elections were never as projected by Opinion Polls- too close to call. It was a clear Usain Bolt win, where one can never dispute.
In Kenya, our Journalists were glued to returns as posted by the IEBC at a time when they had the capacity to report on results as recorded from Form 34s across all the polling stations in the Country. As Journalist, it was their responsibility to inform Kenyans on what was going on and on who was getting what where.
That the IEBC could gag the Media on releasing results is something that calls to question the independence of our Journalists and the Media Houses. How can we trust the Media if they can be this easily compromised and restricted?
Was there a Conspiracy of Silence between the Media, the IEBC and the Dark Forces that were hell-bent on turning the wheels of change and reforms backwards? Can we find the Media complicit in the mass electoral fraud that Kenyans witnessed?
I am convinced that our Media Houses need to apologize to Kenyans and the World on their incompetence and sloppy handling of the Kenyan General Elections of 4th March 2013. I am also taking offense that The Standars Newspaper can have the audacity to use my Photo with Chairman Isaac Hassan in todays issue of The Standard at page 7 on a matter that I have no idea about. This is simply professional incompetence which I want to condemn.
That photo was taken on the 13th December 2012 when we as The Clean Africa Campaign joined in helping to mobilize Kenyans to Register as Voters and it has no relevance to the current situation in which Chairman Hassan has found himself in. To use the same photo now would create the impression that I am also enjoined in the electoral deceit that the whole World is witnessing. I am not party to that and I am having my Lawyers write to The Standard about this.
Lastly, even as the IEBC was releasing what they called Final Results, they read results from all the 290 Constituencies across Kenya. How come no Journalist interrogated this? The best a smart Journalist could have done was simply to play the tapes again and tally the results as they were announced and match this to the phantoms that IEBC posted as their last results.
I accuse the Kenyan Media and our Journalists for taking Kenyans and the whole World for fools.
Odhiambo T Oketch,
Executive Director,
The Clean Africa Campaign-TCAC,
Tel; 0724 365 557,
http://kcdnkomarockswatch.blogspot.com
Nairobi Kenya.
We have come full circle and today, after some thorough soul searching, I want to ask: of what value is the Kenyan Media to Kenyans and the World?
As I was posing this question to colleagues at the office this morning, Wex pointed out to me an article by Clay Muganda, an article which escaped me but one worth reading- An inspiring article worth reading by Clay Muganda...
Now, in the US, sorry to give this reference again, I was so impressed by the CNN Journalists who were able to give us clear projections as Americans went to the ballot in November 2012. Through the Exit Polls, they were able to call the Elections in favour of President Barrack Obama, and they did this in real time. Within minutes of the last man casting his votes, their equivalent of our Dependent Electoral and Boundaries Commission announced Barrack Obama as having won back his seat and with a landslide. The Elections were never as projected by Opinion Polls- too close to call. It was a clear Usain Bolt win, where one can never dispute.
In Kenya, our Journalists were glued to returns as posted by the IEBC at a time when they had the capacity to report on results as recorded from Form 34s across all the polling stations in the Country. As Journalist, it was their responsibility to inform Kenyans on what was going on and on who was getting what where.
That the IEBC could gag the Media on releasing results is something that calls to question the independence of our Journalists and the Media Houses. How can we trust the Media if they can be this easily compromised and restricted?
Was there a Conspiracy of Silence between the Media, the IEBC and the Dark Forces that were hell-bent on turning the wheels of change and reforms backwards? Can we find the Media complicit in the mass electoral fraud that Kenyans witnessed?
The Kenyan Media is rapidly also becoming part of our Dirty Environment that we must all join hands in CleaningI am convinced that our Media Houses need to apologize to Kenyans and the World on their incompetence and sloppy handling of the Kenyan General Elections of 4th March 2013. I am also taking offense that The Standars Newspaper can have the audacity to use my Photo with Chairman Isaac Hassan in todays issue of The Standard at page 7 on a matter that I have no idea about. This is simply professional incompetence which I want to condemn.
That photo was taken on the 13th December 2012 when we as The Clean Africa Campaign joined in helping to mobilize Kenyans to Register as Voters and it has no relevance to the current situation in which Chairman Hassan has found himself in. To use the same photo now would create the impression that I am also enjoined in the electoral deceit that the whole World is witnessing. I am not party to that and I am having my Lawyers write to The Standard about this.
Lastly, even as the IEBC was releasing what they called Final Results, they read results from all the 290 Constituencies across Kenya. How come no Journalist interrogated this? The best a smart Journalist could have done was simply to play the tapes again and tally the results as they were announced and match this to the phantoms that IEBC posted as their last results.
I accuse the Kenyan Media and our Journalists for taking Kenyans and the whole World for fools.
Odhiambo T Oketch,
Executive Director,
The Clean Africa Campaign-TCAC,
Tel; 0724 365 557,
http://kcdnkomarockswatch.blogspot.com
Nairobi Kenya.
The Clean Africa Campaign is an Initiative of KCDN Kenya.
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