BBN: As the controversies rage…

Of late, no issue seems to be presently attracting as much discussion and attention on the various media, as Big Brother Naija (BBN), a reality television programme, on Dstv, designed to further entertain and delight its teeming subscribers.

As noble as the intention of the pay TV platform, Multichoice, may seem, tongues have been wagging on its decision to shoot the reality TV show, currently being aired on the platform, in far away South Africa.

While some Nigerians have argued against this decision, describing it as a major minus to the local content philosophy of the Federal Government, not a few are reluctant to heap any blame on the pay TV platform since, according to them, as a private enterprise, the platform has every right to such decision.

Throwing his weight behind the decision of the pay TV platform to shoot the film abroad, Suleiman Alooma, a media practitioner believes as a private concern, Multichoice has the right to do a cost benefit analysis of its operations to know the strategy to adopt.

“How does one expect Multichoice to film in Nigeria where the government cannot guarantee six hours of uninterrupted power supply? How will a sane entrepreneur shoot a live programme that will last several weeks on an alternative power source with the present cost of diesel and petrol,” he argued.

He believes before the local content policy of the Federal Government can become attractive to businesses, the government needs to create an enabling environment for business ventures to thrive.

Alonge Michael, an entrepreneur and owner of Mikeangelonews argued that as a business enterprise, the pay TV platform owes nobody any explanation, regarding the best strategy to run its business, as long as the rules of the land are not violated.

“As the owner of mikeangelonews.com, my host country is Amsterdam; nobody can compel me to something that will not be of any benefit to me anywhere. Our elected government officials swore to the constitution of the country to be faithful, loyal and honest, but when they fall sick, they fly to treat even common ear problem,” Michael queried.

Interestingly, Dayo Thomas believes some of the arguments above would not hold water; as far as the issue is concerned.

“The profit the company makes in Nigeria is more than what it realises in all other African countries combined. I can count more than three high profile estates in Lekki area, in lagos that have 24 hours uninterrupted power supply. Multichoice as a company is more than capable to build a Big Brother house in one of those estates,” he stated.

Why we filmed in SA- Multichoice

But the company in the eye of the storm has, however, given reasons, why South Africa was best suited for the shooting of BBN.

A statement issued by the company said the decision was informed by the desire to deliver the same high quality production that its subscribers are accustomed to on its platforms.

“It is with this commitment in mind that a decision was taken to stage the show in the fully-equipped Big Brother House located in South Africa. This Big Brother property has been previously used to stage other successful and seamlessly-delivered Big Brother productions, including Big Brother Xtremo (for Angola and Mozambique) as well as all past Big Brother Africa series,” MultiChoice said in the statement.

The statement added that both MultiChoice and its customers are currently experiencing tough economic times, which have compelled the company, as a business, to review its operations so it can continue to deliver the best entertainment value without compromising on quality.

“Staging the show in a Big Brother facility that already exists – and has been specially built for such purposes is not only cost-effective but has also allowed MultiChoice Nigeria to maintain the same excellent production values as with previous Big Brother editions whilst meeting tight timelines,” the company explained further.

Government’s angle and the moral question

Perhaps one of the questions on the lips of many, remains whether the government of the day has any right to question this decision, as it is being presently touted.

For instance, besides not creating an enabling environment for businesses and the penchant for its officials to always seek medical treatment abroad, the fact that the shooting of its new public awareness campaign, ‘Change Begins With Me,’ launched in September last year, was done outside the country, put a huge question mark on the right of the government to query Multichoice’s decision on BBN.