The social media has acquired the power that surpasses the traditional media. Some years ago, I wrote a newspaper article in which I noted, deducing from available evidence, that social media would soon send traditional media into oblivion or near extinction.
When the piece was published, media mogul Rupert Mudorck was still buying newspaper houses, a move which gave the impression that there was something the business man saw that others did not. He later explained that he wanted to use those newspapers to address smaller groups of readers. He wanted city newspapers in place of humongous ones that expended so much funds to circulate physical copies. Some people berated me for doing the article as though I was predicting doom for my profession. That was reality staring us in the face. The day has finally come all the news you need is in your phone. It drops as notification to your handset when the incident happens such that newspapers tend to lose relevance in terms of being current.
Newspapers may have to turn their focus on investigative and exclusive stories in order to command attention and remain relevant. The way things stand, electronic and social media are on the prowl, from the look of things, by consistently becoming the source of news. Little wonder the newspapers are adding television and a heavy dose of social media to their offering. Although the authenticity of news from that medium can be contentions, in some cases, it has become the fastest way to make stories go viral.
One good example of the power of social media is the story I have chosen to tag modern-day Solomon. That tag may not exactly fit because the Soloman in the Holy Book, the Bible, had wives and concubines. He had 700 wives and 300 concubines (1 Kings 11:3). The story in question, which has put the tiny county into world reckoning, is the involvement of a high-ranking government official in Equatorial Guinea, Baltasar Ebang Engonga, in a massive sex scandal involving 400 women. He’s been caught on video engaging in multiple sexual activities with multiple women, including wives of government officials. These videos have gone viral, sparking widespread outrage and discussion.
The situation has also prompted concerns about the exploitation and consent of the women involved. One of the women whose identity was obscured expressed anger and humiliation, questioning how the videos were leaked and why Engonga kept them without consent. The scandal highlights that country’s ongoing struggle with corruption, power abuse and human rights abuse. Human Rights Watch has long documented that country’s poor human rights record, including restrictions on freedom of expression and association.
It is doubtful that the country has come to the front burner beyond its present trending global status on account of the super sexual prowess of a 55-year-old government official. No one knows how and why the adult and apparently consensual intimate activities were recorded on video and what the recordings were geared to achieve. But the point may well be that the official was exploiting his office and sexual prowess to have them lining up to have him. Those are private matters but the world seems incensed because of the evident moral depravity in sleeping with married women and recording the act. Perhaps it was intended for a blackmail bargain or it was Engoga’s sexual fantasy, which has now gone south.
Reactions from here should not give the erroneous impression that our society is immune to such acts. Government officials, lecturers, politicians, pastors and sundry people exploit people sexually on account of their position. People make demands of job seekers to make out with their prospective employers to get the job. The video of a certain senator trended in Nigeria when he was said to be negotiating with street girls. My suspicion is that Engonga used his power or sexual prowess to get the women. It could well be, going by later leaks of the wife’s alleged sex escapades with another man, we are imposing our morality on a society that hardly gives a hoot about adultery. The widespread condemnation ought to let people who indulge in such acts to sheathe their sexual swords and know that one day hidden facts would come to light.
Outside the moral depravity imputed in the act, sex between consenting adults is a private matter but to record the act with a view to blackmail or intimidate those involved is condemnable. If that country wallows in open adultery, they ought to know that the world is outraged by that seemingly rampant act now exposed by a sexual pervert.