Obviously, I am not in support of all what Big Brother Naija, a reality TV show sponsored by PayPorte, an online shopping platform, and aired by Africa Magic on DStv, stands for. But here in Nigeria, we have a culture of pushing blames or looking for excuses for our helpless situations. Whenever we raise such alarm, we just do not look at the foundation.
When BBNaija first came on screen, most Nigerians were angry that it was being aired in South Africa. The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, even claimed they had set up a committee to look into the matter. But no one has since talked about that again. Complains later gave way and the programme became one of the most talked about on the social media.
The fact that the reality show promotes immorality and is against everything we stand for as a people is now in the news. A law maker, nongovernmental organisations, religious bodies and individuals have expressed displeasure over the content.
Personally too, I find is disturbing that people in the BBNaija House had to act irresponsibly, denying their families and do all sorts of unprintable things just for the sake of the N25m cash prize.
The Lagos lawmaker, Segun Olulade, last week, spoke on the negative implications of Big Brother Naija on the nation’s culture and youths. The Chairman, Lagos State House of Assembly Committee on Health Services, insisted that the content of the programme was completely foreign to our culture.
He said, “We have culture and tradition in this country that we must not allow to die.
“The Federal Government, through the Minister of Information and Culture, needs to reconsider the implications of Big Brother Naija on our culture and youths. The content of the show is alien to our culture. This show is contrary to the rich cultural values we are trying to promote and bring to the front burner. It is sad that our young children, including adults, are made to watch such content. This kind of programme promotes obscenity and immorality. We must not encourage such if our hallowed cultural heritage would be preserved. We cannot prevent our inquisitive young ones from watching the obscene displays that permeate the show.
“I think the Nigeria Broadcasting Commission should, without delay, stop this programme if this government means business in the promotion of our cultural values. The show does not add any value to our education, social and economic life. It is a big mockery of the Nigerian culture and tradition.”
For CitizenGo, an NGO, it is a corruption of TV reality shows and the Nigerian public is complaining about the moral perversity in the House of the Big Brother.
It said, “In one episode last two weeks or so, the inmates were shown openly kissing and caressing one another. This is a celebration of obscenity, erotism and idleness. More importantly, it is a big mockery of Nigerian culture and tradition. Since the inmates are Nigerians, they should have been projecting the Nigerian cultural heritage. But instead of doing that, they are bastardising it.
“The biggest tragedy of the on-going Big Brother Nigeria is that our children are also glued to the TV screen watching it. Children are our future. Therefore we should protect them from lewd exposure, which might prevent their growth into free, independent and well-developed citizens.
“The NBC must live up to its bidding as a body charged with controlling, monitoring, regulating the electronic media and monitoring of satellite transmission in Nigeria. Our TV stations cannot become dumping grounds for all sorts of immoral programmes.”
Their argument basically is for the children, who are being exposed to obscenity. But inasmuch as they have made valid observations, before the commencement of Big Brother, there have been television programmes or things our children see, which are even worse than the reality show. And no one has done anything about it. Don’t they kiss in musical videos or movies? Don’t our children see them? All these also have the power to influence a child negatively.
My point here is that technology has opened up children to many things at their young age. They have grown fast and now know things adults do not know. Placing bans or criticising BBNaija without making moves to ban others is a waste of time.
Also, BBNaija remains a pay TV programme, which means it could only be shown to subscribers. In other words, you must have paid to watch the programme. So, in this case, parents can always monitor what their children watch through parental control. It is an adult programme with clear inscription showing the age limit for viewers.
Since we are helpless, our duties here are to guide children and prevent them from seeing it. NBC do not have enough reasons to ban the show and the earlier we face the reality, the better for us.
