What a relief! So, the Big
Brother Naija reality television programme is finally over. It ended Sunday
evening with 23-year old Efe Michael Ejemba, University of Jos graduate of
Economics and singer winning the N25 million + SUV at stake, with 57.6% of the
votes from over 24 million voters across Africa. Warri, where Efe’s
family lives, erupted in excitement. At the Multichoice viewing centre in
Ikeja, Lagos, where Katung Aduwak took charge so brilliantly, there was a
similar eruption of incandescent joy. I was relieved because for about 70 days,
the Big Brother Naija show was a big distraction, crass capitalism at its most
cynical edge, a source of unmanageable madness in homes and on the streets. Now
that it is over, it is time for some honest frank talk for the attention of all
stakeholders involved.
Let me
start with the lessons, on a positive note, before delivering the blows. Lesson
one: In a very instructive manner, the Big Brother Naija reality television
show promoted the ideas of choice and people power at the heart of democracy.
Televised across Africa, the viewers had the final say in determining who
stayed in the house or left during eviction moments on Sundays. The votes were
collated, audited and confirmed by Deloitte, a firm of auditors and thus, the
viewer as the voter determined the outcomes. In that regard, a reality show of
that sort promoted a consciousness of democracy, choice and influence and it
further explained why the people from Nigeria to Cape Agulhas all the way up to
the Mediterranean sea took fierce ownership of the programme. In a continent
where power is the ultimate aphrodisiac and every access to power, fame and
influence is seen as an opportunity to oppress and demean, whatever is done to
promote a consciousness of choice and the civil society is laudable.
Multichoice, thanks.
Lesson
Two: in every business concept, perseverance pays. Multichoice has been
running its Big Brother Naija and Big Brother Africa concepts for a number of
years. Apparently, this year’s Big Brother Naija has been the most impactful,
the most profitable and probably also, the most exciting. In one week,
over 11 million persons voted to determine the eviction. In the final week of
the programme, over 24 million persons voted – that is more than the total
number of persons who voted in the Nigerian Presidential election in 2015.
This year, Multichoice has made more money from the Big Brother franchise
than it has ever done. The programme was sponsored by PayPorte, and with all
the voting, and the money spent on recharge cards, Big Brother and Multichoice
are the biggest winners. In the end, it is all about business and profit.
Everybody has been used. In business, once you have a good, attractive product
and you can capture the market, you can fool everybody and make profit.
Multichoice, weh done - in Falz, the bad guy’s voice.
Lesson
three: humility pays. At the end of the day, in the last week of the programme,
the decision by the viewing public was a moral, sentimental one. The biggest
star of the programme was, I don’t know what you think, TBOSS (real name:
Tokunbo Idowu), half Nigerian, half-Romanian. She dominated the space with her
Jezebelic antics, even got some of the male participants ousted by entrapping
and outsmarting them with her sexual wiles. She projected herself as a sex
object, the ultimate manipulator, the champion Delilah of the Big Brother
Africa series. She even made a joke of the entire Big Brother concept by saying
she didn’t need the money and if she won, she would spend it in two weeks to
pay off debts, and in any case, she had men hitting on her, offering to take
her on a ride in their private jets. She played the role of a female barracuda.
Given
her looks and talents, she would have been a perfect winner. She would have looked
good on the billboards. But she lost because of her arrogance. Attitude is
everything: this is the lesson of TBOSS’s disgrace and humiliation. When she
was sent out of the House as the second runner up, the viewing centre in Ikeja,
Lagos, including Kemen whose nemesis she was, danced in joy. “They are
taunting me?” she asked Ebuka, the anchor. No, sweetheart, they were making a
far more serious statement about you. The melodramatic ending of Big
Brother Naija 2017 is its only redeeming outcome.
Bisola,
the first runner up does not even have a degree but she showed talent and
resolve, even if her whorish flirtation with Thin Tall Tony is so cheap and
self-denigrating. Her One-Nigeria consolation prize is something big she
should take seriously. Efe won because of his humility. He is considered the
poorest and the most needy of the contestants. Patrons of the programme chose
to vote for the contestant who looked and sounded like he would need the money
and the opportunity. They gave him a chance in life, although the organizers
must ensure that going forward, the show does not become a poverty alleviation
scheme.
Bisola
came second because she too looked like she needed help. Debbie Rise and Marvis
also made the finals, but that was meant to be a great compliment to their good
conduct, but they didn’t have enough support to make it to the top. TBOSS is
the main star who lost. I hope she was taken out of South Africa with a private
jet or maybe a submarine! Beauty is not everything, baby.
Lesson
four: Marketing helps. Branding is everything. Propaganda is profitable.
Packaging is nice. Big Brother Naija is nothing but marketing, branding,
propaganda, and packaging. A reality show is supposed to be nothing but
reality, virtual reality as it happens, but let no one deceive you, everything
that happened in the 70 days of BBNaija was packaged, marketed, carefully
branded and manipulated. Ebuka, the Big Brother, thumbs up, the scenic
designers, kudos, the content developers, three hearty cheers, Multichoice, you
guys are the smartest capitalists around, well done! The finale was a bit
overdone though, dragged out, over-delayed. Tiwa Savage (hey baby, watch that
growing fat around your waist and thigh), Tuface (thanks TuBaba but next time
tell Annie to twerk for us- what was that!). In all, the power of television
was well advertised.
Now the
hard knocks: I rate the theatre high but I consider the whole show a sham, a
419 manipulative effort by a corporate agency, long overdue for an ethical
review and scrutiny, a bad influence on corporate ethics. The owners of the
programme are just a bunch of insultive, manipulative and exploitative
capitalists, feeding on public need for distraction and the negligence of the
authorities. Big Brother Naija 2017 is something that should never happen
again in the shape we have seen. If Multichoice as a corporate investor wants
to make a contribution to Nigeria, it must find ways of doing so in more
meaningful forms.
Reality
shows have become an established form on television, but whereas there are
reality shows that promote talent, music, human capability and genius, enhanced
relationships, and intellect, Multichoice, through its Big Brother Naija and
Big Brother Africa franchises seems committed to the promotion of base values,
chiefly adultery, prostitution, love of money, nudity and sex. What just ended
as Big Brother Naija 2017 was nothing other than the corralling of some human
beings into a zoo, pressured to behave like nothing but animals. The organizers
made money devaluing other human beings. Multichoice and Payporte, the
sponsors, turned alcohol and pornography into legitimate sport.
TBOSS
and the other girls kissed and got groped by the boys on live television
putting their upbringing to shame. TBOSS, who claimed she didn’t need the money
even exposed her breasts on live television more than once. I have seen better
breasts TBOSS. I am not too sure those private jet owners will be excited by
your fluffy, South-looking, slightly bigger than mangoes breasts. If the same
men see bigger assets, I mean, those interesting Ojiakor-like ones that look
like papayas, pineapples and watermelons, they will not send private jets, they
will deploy submarines and fighter jets! And that ‘s why you got N500k in the
end, way back behind Bisola with her hard facial features, and Efe whose
victory is based on poverty logistics and appeal. But I have no doubt that
TBOSS will end up doing better in the larger, outside market than the other
finalists, because even those who did not vote for her, know in their hearts
that she represents the message of the programme.
It is a
wrong message and that is why Big Brother Naija drew more audience in Southern
Nigeria than in the North. In the last week of the programme,, every town in
Southern Nigeria was seized by the #BBNaija fever. Prayers were offered
in churches for Efe. One lady threatened to commit suicide if Efe did not win.
Another one said she would not stop crying until Efe won. Nollywood stars
declared support for housemates. There was Team Bisola, Team Efe, EfeNation,
TBOSSNation, TeamDebbieRise (small), TeamMarvis (even smaller). There were
public processions even in universities. We were told how to vote.
Twitter was on fire. What I saw was nothing but sheer madness.
T-shirts
were printed. One musician turned his personal car into a billboard. Nigeria
became a mad house because of one reality television show. It looked like mass
hypnotism at work.
But it
should not be allowed to happen again. BBNaija should not be hosted and staged
in South Africa as has been the case. Multichoice, Payporte and their partners
made crazy money and got brand promotion off the back and sweat of Nigerians.
Do the maths; we got peanuts in return. We were told BBNaija could not be staged
in Nigeria due to electricity problems so the studio had to be in South Africa.
And the Nigerian government looked the other way. Wawu! All the billions that
the South Africans are running away with, after giving our boy a Kia SUV and
some N25m, who is going to collect the Value Added Tax on that? Nigeria or
South Africa? See the real Gobbe! All the staff who worked on the programme
with extremely marginal exception were South Africans. Where were the
Nigerians? Abi, Lobatan oh.
The
Nigerian government must assert itself. Nobody henceforth must brand anything
involving primary production, Nigerian off Nigerian soil. We can’t get far by
wearing made-in-Nigerian clothes on Mondays and Wednesdays, turning the country
into an extension of Nollywood, but we can gain a lot by insisting that
economic production and profit based on Nigerian talent and resource must have
significant Nigerian content.
Congratulations
Efe; the grace of God is forever sufficient, but sorry Nigeria.
Aliko
Dangote at 60
Alhaji
Aliko Dangote is 60 and understandably the entire country is busy paying
tributes. He is the richest man in Africa, but more than that he is one of the
most successful, forward-looking and resourceful entrepreneurs in the entire
continent. He has investments and connections virtually everywhere.
I think
a special remark should be made about his less known attribute - his humility
and humanity. Aliko Dangote, for all those who have related with him
closely, is a very humble man. His life is not driven by money, but belief in
hardwork and the impact that he is able to make. He is helpful, supportive and
kind, always believing he can make a difference. I offer a special testimony.
Many
years ago, before the Abuja job, I used to visit Aliko at home, sometimes on my
own and sometimes with my family. On one occasion, he gave my first son money
as he saw us off to the door. It was that kind of money that caused a fight
between father and son. My son wanted to hold on to it, and there I was
insisting the boy must hand over the money because it was enough to pay his and
his sibling’s school fees. The innocent boy said the money was for him. How
could it have been for him? We resolved the fight, big fight, right
there, with Aliko pretending not to notice.
On
another occasion, Aliko asked if I had built a house and I told him I was
building a house somewhere in Ajah. This was in 2006. He said we should
go there. He jumped into my miserable Tokunbo car and followed me to the
uncompleted building. He walked round the building and asked me what I
wanted. He ended up giving me enough cement to complete the house and the money
to paint it. He told me I should contact him if I wanted to build any other
house, but after that other house, I stopped bothering him, because it was
obvious the bricklayers knew cement was free, and they were busy taking
advantage.
I went
to Abuja to work. The true story of that job is best told by Aliko Dangote, Mr
Alex Ibru, Rotimi Amaechi, Femi Otedola and Ojogbane Adegbe. They supported me
as best as they could without interference. It was Oronto Douglas who made the
phone call. One day, every story will be told. Thank you Alhaji, for being a
friend and a brother. Thank you. May you see many more seasons.
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Thanks for the truth. I am happy that even if all Nigerians should go mad some still have the serenity and sober mind still.
ReplyDeleteSad that even Clerics, Ministers and Governors are celebrating this madness. It is a Shame!
Keep quiet... where was Reuben during occupy Niger. Please we r done with all of u
ReplyDelete