1st Annniversary of SBS DINKA Radio: Ajak Deng Chiengkou and his Spoiled Audience
5 min readSBS DINKA RADIO: AJAK DENG CHIENGKOU AND HIS SPOILED AUDIENCE
By Kur Wel Kur
Sadness and bitterness engulfed, all undecided supporters who almost drifted to Riek’s side and Riek’s active and passive supporters who blindly and tirelessly supported Riek’s fake democracy all along. Tears trickled down their faces because Riek failed them when he didn’t defend the rebellion.
They cried as babies because they think Ajak Deng Chiengkou pushed their leader, Riek to the edge of the cliff; they cried rivers because in their thoughts, they owned SBS DINKA and Ajak Deng Chiengkou is their journalist who can sell their cheap and baseless ideas.
Before, I narrate why so much sadness and bitterness among Riek’s undecided supporters, passive supporters and active supporters; I would like to give a little background of SBS programme.
By the way, SBS stands for Special Broadcasting Service, for those who don’t know it. Since I came to Australia, I enjoyed watching news and movies from exotic places on SBS; however, I didn’t know how the media giant of multiculturalism came into its existence; until in 2006, when my cousin wrote an essay on whether Australia is racists’ country or not!
I happened to read his essay, which fascinated me immensely so I followed up his argument about SBS with extra readings in the book (Ethnic broadcasting in Australia, 1979/Special Broadcasting service).
The author reported that SBS came into presence as an amplifier of the multiculturalism; a medium where other races could voice their stories in their own ways. Purposely created in 1975 for minorities to explain the Medicare and health care in their own languages. For other media centres air only national news and stories/movies in English.
So SBS came into being for Medicare and to cover overseas’ news and subtitled movies. SBS gives equal chances to all. As SBS DINKA came along, it got the traditions of SBS in place so it has to follow these traditions with nothing to add or detract.
This article will discuss why so much bitterness and sadness among Riek’ supporters (active, passive and undecided supporters).
Why Bitterness and sadness?
In perspective, the football world cup ended some two weeks ago, as we know, Brazil hosted it; Brazilians’ national team came all the way to semi-final only to be humiliated by the Europeans’ football giant, the mighty Germans; 7 goals for Germans to a goal for Brazilian.
What happened to the Brazilians’ fans? They cried their eyes and hearts out because they couldn’t stomach the humiliation on their home ground in their own world cup!
No different between the Brazilians’ football fans and Riek’s supporters with the SBS DINKA, though the former happened to be sport fans with the latter being the politics fans; both lose on their home grounds.
The SBS DINKA’s audience who as well support Riek has thousands of reasons to cry or criticise the SBS DINKA’s presenter; all along since the war about status quo erupted in Juba, Ajak has interviewed many undecided, passive and active supporters of the rebellion in an atmosphere that gave their claims high grounds.
They (supporters and SBS DINKA’s audience, their fans) enjoyed boneless meat from the presenter, the rests who supported the government struggled with the toughest questions. So Ajak, himself, spoiled the rebellion supporters by giving them false morale and hopes, leaving the rests to find their hopes and morale somewhere else.
Ajak should know all those polished questions he offered to Mama Rebecca and the likes, leaving out the questions of accountability, gave the supporters of Riek a false sense of owning SBS DINKA. So when their hero faced the unpolished questions, questions of accountability and he failed terribly, the supporters thought Ajak failed their leader.
I consider Riek’s failure to justify his rebellion or his denial of the killing of Ajak Yen by Gatdet, himself and killing of thousands of civilians in Upper Nile as normal because that’s how criminal minds act, they commit complicated crimes but they don’t justify their crimes.
The audience (the Riek’s supporters) protested that the presenter humiliated their leader, that he didn’t respect him and that Ajak unnecessarily interrupted their leader.
They wrote many comments towards Ajak on sites such as Facebook and PaanLuel Wel:
One wrote, “Regardless of unnecessary presenter’s interruptions, Riek should have found the way to explain his ideologies.” What? Unnecessary interruptions? I fear to say that the pressures control our world; for football’s fans, our best players scored goals we love under pressures. The Nobel Peace Prize winners, won under pressures.
Dr. John Garang negotiated our peace and strolled away with the CPA, leaving the high profile functionaries of Khartoum government to occupy the lowest point in their political careers; Dr. John did it under pressure! Those Kids (white army) who died for him (Riek), died under pressure; Dr. Riek should has not failed to establish himself as a leader for all on SBS DINKA, a rare platform!
Another wrote (threatening), “I talked to Dr. Riek about you… this would be last chance you ever have. You don’t have respect Ajak from the beginning I now you in Kenya. We got some many people in Australia who knows you very much.” What? Talked to Riek? About what?
It saddens when people don’t understand journalism; journalists gear interviews in the directions they wish. Nothing wrong with asking the responsible with questions of accountability. My advice to the author of the last quote, if you don’t like the interview, go and hang! Or welcome to our bony meat (unpolished questions) neighbourhood.
In conclusion, SBS DINKA belongs to all of us (Riek’s and government’s supporters) and Ajak Deng Chiengkou is our presenter. No grudges. We must respect the freedom of expression in the media. Otherwise, be blessed.
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