The following words were posted on Twitter by @CisNyakundi account. It is an opinion piece on political events that are likely to inflame passions and cause trouble.
The blogger warns that they should be banned.
CisNyakundi
Yesterday the media treated Kenyans to ugly shenanigans orchestrated by wrangling politicians at a funeral in Kisii. Which brought back disturbing memories of the 2007 PEV & the media’s role. Live coverage at politically charged events should be banned.
While some of the media practitioners have walked the moral high-ground and purported to condemn the incident, they cannot absolve themselves from blame, after beaming the politically charged event live to audiences across the country.
Media has largely escaped scrutiny from their role in fanning the flames of conflict and ethnic strife, with the closest moment being the indictment of former KASS FM radio presented Joshua Arap Sang.
Due to the impotence of regulatory bodies managing the media, the conflict of interest in the editor’s guild where most officials are active employees in various media houses, media has operated untamed, creating havoc in the country.
And the irony is that they’re busy condemning a vice that they’ve propagated on TV. Which is a total lack of ethics and moral responsibility to their audiences, most who may be underage.
The role of the media in entrenching toxicity in the country continues to be ignored, even as they continue escalating tensions through their subliminal endorsements of various political factions ahead of the 2022 elections.
There are so many events other than politics or religion which media can cover, but consciously choose not to, because they want to sow the seed of politics, which they believe drives ratings up.
Unfortunately if unchecked, media will burn this country by continuing to offer live coverage of events which are escalating political temperatures in the country.
Even presidential events where a seemingly drunk Uhuru is always berating and castigating his deputy, does not augur well with his supporters and further serves to escalate tensions in the country.
Uhuru’s off-the-cuff comments at funerals have only served to ignite and provoke anger from opposing groups, with accusations and counter-accusations flaring tensions and setting the stage for another post election-violence.
We all know that Ruto’s supporters are die-hard lovers of war and conflict, and the careless utterances by politicians, beamed live by a reckless and irresponsible media, are doing more harm than good to the country.
Indeed, we are hoping that ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda is closely monitoring the situation in Kenya, and will ensure that media share in the responsibility for any violence that may occur between now and August 2022.
Uhuru, Ruto, Raila and their key lieutenants should be blacked out from television, and events they address should not be beamed live on TV, due to the damage they risk causing.
Vernacular radio stations in the country should be banned from discussing politics completely, if we are going to avert a post election violence. Failure to which, the country is going to burn for good.
Journalists should walk the talk and not just condemn politicians on social media, while according them unlimited airtime on national television. Shows putting politicians against themselves should be banned.
War-mongers like Mutahi Ngunyi who openly antagonise communities on their tweets, should be barred from mainstream media completely, and interdicted by the NCIC, if it even exists.
David Murathe, Francis Atwoli, Kimani Ichungwah, Oscar Sudi, Edwin Sifuna, and all other chatter boxes who aggressively defend the positions of their paymasters should be barred from mainstream media, if we are to avert a PEV.
It is unfortunate that all these heightened political activities come at a time when COVID is still present but somehow Uhuru and Njee Muturi will blame bars and alcohol in their silly press releases next month. We know it’s Njee who writes that garbage.
In his drunken state, Uhuru utters some very unfortunate words, meant purely to provoke and not unite Kenyans. He should cease appearing on TV drunk and media should stop giving him live airtime.
