WHAT DO you know about Zimbabwe, apart from President Robert Mugabe? The Victoria falls perhaps? For instance, did you know that President Mugabe is the most educated President in the world? The current African Union Chair holds a total of 7 university degrees; Bachelor of Arts (History and English) (BA) degree from the University of Fort Hare (1951) South Africa, Bachelor of Administration (B.Admin) from University of South Africa (Unisa), Bachelor of Education (B.Ed) from the University of South Africa (Unisa), Bachelor of Science (BSc.) in Economics from University of London, Bachelor of Laws (LLB) from University of London, Master of Laws (LLM) from University of London and Master of Science (MSc.) in Economics from University of London. Interestingly, the two law degrees were earned while he was in prison (between 1964 and 1975) and the MSc while leading the Zimbabwe government after independence. He has another 11 honorary degrees bringing his total to a staggering 18! Some pundits would like to bestow this honour to India’s Manmohan Singh but the latter’s degrees are mainly in economics as opposed to Comrade Bob’s which are multidisciplinary. But the point here is not to lionise good old Bob. The point is to show just how little we might know about people and things we thought we know very well. This is the role that the press has and needs to take very seriously, especially in Africa. Recently, I was awestruck by a short speech from another great African and Zimbabwean; Strive Masiyiwa. Masiyiwa is a media mogul who owns Econet wireless. He is the richest man in Zimbabwe and one of the most influential Africans. He is also a humble yet passionate; business savvy yet a philanthropist, and a man of deep faith. Listening to his short speech, I saw a practical Pan-Africanist who has, for example, given out scholarships to 40,000 plus students. Surprisingly, very few of us Africans, know of Masiyiwa and many others like him right in our midst. In my humble opinion, the chief duty of the press is to keep us informed and updated. This should be done earnestly and professionally. I would like to get the facts then make up my mind and not the other way round. I am afraid to say, however, that this is not what we normally see. In most African countries, the press pendulum seems to swing between cynicism and sycophancy. Worldwide, a section of the so-called ‘free press’ is fairly irresponsible. They want to say anything anytime about anyone no matter how unjustified they are, and should never be held to account. A good example is what happened to Britain’s potential ‘Obama’- Chuka Ummuna. The potential Labor party leader was literally hounded out of the contest by a press that did not know or care to know the ethics of respecting one’s privacy. In their bid to sell more papers they pried on and on driven by the need to dig out a scandal. They were willing to go to the extent of creating a scandal if there was none. We have also seen this in Rwanda; when foreign press made an issue of whether or not President Kagame would seek a third term right after his election in 2010. His repeated and consistent answers to the same do not take away the question. That is cynicism. Sycophant press is on the other end of the cynical press. Put simply, for the sycophant it is see, hear, or speak no evil, while for the cynics, it is always only evil. Both are acute cases of ‘lazy journalism’. They do not wish to challenge, investigate and research the narratives given. They do not want to work – they are lazy. In Africa, it is common to get the breaking news of what is happening in our own backyard from the international media. Our own reporters then carry on the narrative. The problem with this is that there is a lens through which we are viewed out there. There, Africa is only war, strife, disease, dictatorship and doom. An election must lead to turmoil or else it is not free and fair. Inspirational Africans like Strive Masiyiwa, James Mwangi, Aliko Dangote and our very own Sina Gerard are barely featured. It is always politics, and it has to be bad…you will never be told about Mugabe’s degrees, his freedom fighter role or anything good that will mess up the dictator image. Given this scenario, African media must do more and give us the true, correct and professional picture of things. They must do more, the continent longs for inspiration. The writer is a Project Management and Entrepreneurship Development Consultant based in Kigali.
