I am a journalist, but not particularly a fan of electronic media (radio and television). My preference has always been for print media, and more recently, what is referred to as digital or new media. However, I recently stumbled upon the programme known as the ‘Berekete Family’ on Facebook, a part of social media.
The ‘Berekete Family’ programme, for the less informed like myself—those who may have only heard of it but never watched it—is a very popular radio programme aired in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, and financed by a Good Samaritan. It exposes the wrongdoings of those in positions of power or authority, which the society may try to hide or have already concealed from the public.
When I first heard about the programme, I was sceptical, but my scepticism turned into belief when the presenter was ‘arrested’ and put behind bars for something very inconsequential. He was detained for a few days before being released. His ‘sin’ was that he fought on the side of an aggrieved party, and those who hold the reins of power did not find it amusing.
The Berekete Family has a setting like a court, with the ‘complainant’ sitting in full view of everyone while narrating their ordeal to all present. The narrator could be the person directly involved in the ‘abuse of authority,’ or someone reporting on behalf of the aggrieved, who, in some cases, may have passed away, ‘executed’ by people whose job briefs do not include callous summary executions.
The first ‘drama’ I saw trending on social media involved a young man who was arrested, handcuffed, and jailed on the orders of the Sokoto State Governor, Alhaji Ahmed Aliyu, for the ‘crime’ of sharing a picture of the governor’s wife ‘spreading’ money at an event. The original video clip was shared by a close friend of the governor’s wife. However, nothing was done to that close friend, but only to the poor, defenceless youth.
After that, I watched several other episodes where a simple case of ‘misunderstanding’ would lead to the death of the ‘weaker’ person in the argument, and the ‘perpetrator’ would go scot-free—until the intervention of the unofficial ‘human rights’ campaigner, the Berekete Family programme.
It must be stated that the programme is helping many poor individuals obtain justice in a country where those in positions of authority often escape accountability for their deliberate wrongdoings.
Therefore, the ‘Berekete Family’ programme needs the support of ordinary Nigerians, as we live in a land where only the ‘haves’ have their way, while the rest of us are often left at the mercy of society.
May the programme succeed beyond the expectations of those who wish for its failure.
Labaran wrote from Katsina.
