A collage of questionable scenes from the ongoing BB Naija
Hehehe.....This
is another insightful analysis of the popular reality show, Big Brother
Naija which has been accused of promoting pornography and sexual
immorality since its return.
"I logged unto Instagram on a Sabbath Day to connect with an
old friend only to see Nigerians on the social network in raptures over a
video clip of a shambolic 'Truth or Dare' game that prompted one (now evicted) Big
Brother Naija housemate, Coco Ice to offer her nipple live on
television for sucking by her male counterpart while the other
housemates applauded as she exhibited a dance of shame in excitement.
The ferocious sucking by the male housemate showed the
possibility of him being weaned ahead of time by his mother during his
suckling days as a toddler.
Then I asked myself some rhetorical questions; how did we get
here as Nigerians? Is this lascivicious act part of our culture, values,
heritage or historical background? Keeping quiet out of diplomacy is a
disservice to the society.
For posterity sake, let it be on record that I, Osayimwen
Osahon George used my medium as a writer to re-orientate and re-direct
Nigerians whose identities and sanity of minds have been threatened
covertly by the capitalist innovations of the men that be".
When the Big Brother Africa reality game show debuted on the
television screens under the platform of M-Net and Africa Magic
Entertainment on the 25th of May, 2003; the imported Eurocentric
initiative was re-branded to suit local realities by ambitious
capitalists who were only interested in their private interests and not
societal development.
The idea of bringing 12 African contestants of different
nationalities under one roof was premised on the need to promote the
African culture and heritage as well as encourage peaceful coexistence
amongst the participants of different backgrounds and orientations who
were watched by millions of people from 42 countries all over Africa. It
was staged as an avenue for different individuals to showcase their
unique skills and talents to the outside world.
The prize of some thousands of dollars was attractive enough to
secure several applicants for the T.V show which was given rapt
attention by the general public. But the paramount question is this; how
well has this intercontinental programme promoted 'Africanism'?
The Big Brother Africa reality show has posed to be one of the ills
of globalization with ideals that don't conform with the African life
introduced to the people. This is similar to the apparent celebration of
nudity by women folks under the guise of modern day fashion trends
leaving their boobs, bum, hips, tummies and other sensitive body parts
bared publicly just to make bold statements at social gatherings and
work places.
For holistic effect, it should be noted that it was imperative to
analyse the BBA first before touching the Big Brother Nigeria which is
an offshoot of the former. One of the initial failings of the BBA was
the outrageous amount of money charged on text messages from the
audience that horizontally strolled at the base of the TV screen and
also for voting. This happened in tandem with the pornographic Shower
Hour.
There was a viral tentative 2013 report that the BBA raked up to N7
billion approximately from ‘The Chase’ edition after investing N375
million. Massive turnover was made from SMS charges courtesy of
emotional fans.
Initially, a single SMS to the show cost an inexplicable sum of
N100 as against the normal cheaper rates as at then. The programme
enjoyed tons of text messages from millions of viewers who wanted to
support their country representatives.
The anticipated Shower Hour captured the private moments of
contestants in the bathroom. BBA through a VIP section created an online
platform that was highly monetized to showcase the bathroom moments of
housemates for public pleasure.
There were disturbing reports of under-aged children sneaking out
of bed to enjoy the sight of the nakedness of the adult participants. In
fact, some of the participants bared it all to win the hearts of
viewers and bathing was seductively done like a strip show. The
cumulative effect of this was an increase in sexual relationships among
kids, addiction to porn, masturbation, sexual abuses, incessant
erections and wet dreams as well as high patronage of brothels among
minors.
Since the nature of in-house discussions for the period of three
months was unregulated, participants refrained from all educative and
constructive issues to focus on common societal vices like sex, smoking,
drinking, betrayal and semi-nudity etc. BBA purposely made the romantic
scenes the highlights of the day to boost the curiosity of viewers and
sustain their viewership.
After 10 years of dormancy, the Big Brother Nigeria which organised
its maiden indigenous TV show in 2006 returned in 2017 leveraging on
the progress of the BBA according to the Managing Director of
MultiChoice Nigeria, John Ugbe and the show was tagged 'Big Brother
Naija'.
It adopted the modalities of the BBA excluding the Shower Hour. The
winner of the 11-week contest of 78 days will be given N25 million cash
prize and a brand new Kia Sorento SUV car. The show sponsored by
e-commerce company - Payporte started off on the wrong foot by
de-marketing Nigeria on the continental business scene.
The organizers flagrantly moved their base to South Africa as they
produced majorly for a Nigerian audience on the heels of a recessive
local economy where the Federal Government is working laboriously to
restore the confidence of investors in the corruption-ridden and
infrastructural facilities-starved country.
High production, meeting timelines and usage of a fully equipped
house were asserted as reasons for such an image-tarnishing move
according to one Caroline Oghuma who issued a public statement for
MultiChoice after the Nigerian Minister of Information and Culture – Lai
Mohammed ordered a probe of the action.
Whatever the smoke-screen reasons given for public consumption, the
cryptic message was clear that Nigeria in this 21st century and almost
57th year of existence amidst abundance of human and material resources
lacks the adequate infrastructural facilities to produce a common
24-hour TV show not to talk of enabling business growth.
Since the night of the 22nd of January, 2017 when the Big Brother
Nigeria kicked off amidst hysteria from a large section of Nigerian
youths, the seeming 'adult show' has taken the place of 'soft porn' in
the hearts of people.
The level of moral decadence flaunted by participants in the course
of daily tasks and organised games has proven to be unrepresentative of
the fundamental principles of the BBA itself. In fact, the spate of
immorality have been assumed to be a subtle and viable replacement of
the infamous Shower Hour for the purpose of gaining popularity amongst
Nigerians and other Africans since sex sells the entertainment industry
nowadays.
One might be forced to ask if this was the brightest idea of ways
MultiChoice Nigeria intended to "enhance the quality and variety of
content available on its platform'' as quoted from the Vanguard
Newspaper. Is this the way the leadership of MultiChoice intends to
unearth Nigerian talents like he they did with On-Air-Personality Ebuka
Obi-Uchendu? Are they recruiting for the developing soft porn industry
in Nigeria which a former Nollywood actress, Judith Mazagwu self-styled
Afrocandy and singer Caroline 'Maheeda' Sam have tried building in
futility.
The 'Truth or Dare’ game played by housemates has ended up being
horrendous. The kissing, smooching, humping, fingering, sucking and
other vulgar scenes have become so provocative, uninspiring and
loathsome to matured minds.
In this age of unrestricted blogging and social media resurgence,
the questionable incidents on Big Brother Naija are currently flooding
popular sites to serve as click baits to drive traffic.
They are being sponsored by sites and put in the face of innocent
and uninterested people using social media platforms religiously.
Big Brother Naija has in its own way dignified promiscuity and
distrust in the society owing to the way housemates romantically shuttle
among themselves without caution or iota of mortification. Yes, it’s a
game, it might seem like a painless game to viewers but it puts the
state of the mind at risk and that's the easiest way to destroy a human
being.
The house schedule is very simple and easily predictable. If Gifty
isn't flirting with Bally, she is with Kemen or probably flirting with
both simultaneously. The next one could be Bisola narrating an erotic
experience with her breasts used in demonstrating while a card game is
being played at the background by other housemates. Debbie Rise might be
on the next scene showing us the flexibility of her waist in a
seductive dance around obviously horny young men. She could even join
Gifty in twerking. Bisola and Kemen could be engaged in a kissing
contest or Igwe Efe could be made her partner for presumed rotational
effect.
The following highlight could be the same Bisola in another
sensational French-kissing contest or she sucking the finger of Bassey
to illustrate her oral sex prowess. Uriel’s boobs could make the next
scene as they are carelessly cupped in her hands during a heated
argument. What about the lonely nights when Gifty shamelessly switched
from the beds of the evicted Soma to that of Bally? What struck your
minds when Bally did a brief dance performance for Bisola in the pool
with both parties scantily clad? The Unnecessary cuddling scenes of
Tboss and Miyonse before his eviction cannot be left out of the picture
of flagrant immorality.
What about the infamous Bally and Coco Ice kissing contest? Soma
sucking Gifty's nipples for 10 seconds, Bisola's recent intense romance
with Thin Tall during which they kissed and closely caressed each other
not to talk of her tongue-licking act performed on him. Coco Ice even
dared Debbie to strip naked which Coco did to lighten up the mood of the
house. The transmission and enforcement of corrupt ideas goes on and on
unrestrained.
It will stun my readers that the lose Gifty who hails from Anambra
State – South-eastern part of Nigeria is happily married to a Nollywood
movie director, David Sorochukwu Akumah but the light-skinned lady has
openly dishonoured her marital union in her quest for the BB Naija
prize.
Without being economical with the truth, there is nothing educative
about the show except if the aims and objectives have been redefined to
suit the current pornographic taste.
N25 million is a whole lot of fortune to be made shortly by one
person alongside the beneficial fame and other perks associated with the
reality show but we shouldn't enslave ourselves because of the size of
the funds. We should be more concerned about protecting the innocent and
fragile minds of the young and also preparing them to grab the mantle
of leadership tomorrow.
What does a child stand to learn from a Miyonse who abandoned his
serious relationship to strike an illicit romance with another lady in
the house – Tboss? He spent silent nights attempting to invade her
'honeypot' under the dark only to return to kissing his lover on his
exit which was facilitated by his romance partner. Everybody purposely
lives under the illusion that it is all a game not minding the fact that
impressions of betrayal and promiscuity are being made in the hearts of
people.
The human mind is a blank slate, and the society imprints on it
according to the legendary English philosopher and physician, John Locke
using the Blank Slate theory as a framework of analysis.
He posited validly that human minds start off empty, as blank
slates, and are filled in by personal experiences. According to Locke,
thoughts begin by absorbing sensation and become more complex through
reflection on what is sensed.
It burns my heart that multinational brands like Legend Extra Stout
and others that have failed in their social responsibilities towards
Nigerian citizens are queuing behind the evicted housemates to lobby
them with possible endorsements due to the media focus on them.
This is the kind of support that makes the Christian folks beg and
pray for the change of the scheduled Armageddon to an earlier date to
avoid colossal losses among the few souls won for Jesus Christ.
If indeed these companies endorsing the acts want to give back to
the society, they could always sponsor educative competitions like the
Cowbell Mathematics competition for Secondary School students, the Peak
Milk Essay Competition and others to encourage formal education and
discover the diamonds in the dirt. The African Independent Television,
AIT constantly showcases unfortunate Nigerians with life-threatening
ailments needing funds for medical attention. We urge these companies to
set a good example in history by wading into such critical issues as
part of their social responsibilities instead of using their profits to
legalize embarrassing frivolities.
The National Broadcasting Commission in the face of an erring and
provocative Big Brother Naija has proven to be another government agency
established to squander the state's scarce resources. The NBC which in
the past engaged in public facade operations of banning harmless
Nigerian songs and musical videos for the purpose of deceiving the
general public about its efficiency has again proven to be sicker than
the President as it woefully fails to curtail the questionable
operations of the Big Brother Naija.
Osayimwen Osahon George writes from Festac Town, Lagos.
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