The Monitor (Kampala)
EDITORIAL
July 10, 2003
Posted to the web July 10, 2003
Emmanuel Mukanga
Kampala
Readers must have read the journalistic juxtaposition of the excerpts of an interview between US President George W. Bush and African print journalists at the White House on July 3 against Ms Mary Karooro Okurut's column "Bush Could Not Have 'Embarrased' His Guest".
Mr Cobb, one of the journalists, asked Bush "What will you tell Mr Museveni, whom I know you admire in terms of his HIV/AIDS and his economic policy-with regard to the role of militias that he created and are responsible for much of the violence in eastern Congo?"
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Bush said that he talked to Museveni about "ongoing democracy. We talked about transfer of power. We talked about the fact that he has been a remarkably good leader on many fronts, and that we would hope that he would adhere to the concept of having any democracy with a peaceful transfer of power at the appropriate time."
His answer clearly vindicates Tororo County MP Geoffrey Ekanya and The Monitor and exposes Karooro's lies.
Bush said that Museveni listened very carefully "to our admonition that we expect for people to honour agreements that are being forged".
Recently, in one of her columns in The Monitor, Karooro, admonished Mzee F.D.R. Gureme, for what she called "insulting the president" in his column. The old man obliged and promised to take another look at what he had written and if found wanting, would apologise, which he did.
The encounter between the two was outside All Saints Cathedral, and it is possible that their hearts were filled with the grace of the Holy Spirit and therefore willing to apologise and make amends.
However, the bitter diatribe Karooro launched against The Monitor and Ekanya was not unprecedented but definitely out of character for someone of her literary reputation and standing in society. As Mr Julius Mucunguzi observed on Tuesday "I will never cease to be amazed at how some people in Uganda have chosen the path of selling their souls for political, and other forms of expediency. President Yoweri Museveni's Press Secretary, Ms Mary Karooro Okurut, joined this group last Saturday."
In her story, Karooro raises issues of protocol and insinuates that The Monitor, due to not being acquainted with diplomatic etiquette and lack of professionalism, fabricated "the most incredible fables for public consumption". She also gives the impression that she is an authority on American protocol, public relations and news gathering.
She presumes that as often happens, here, the Head of State can leave the country without the media being briefed about the purpose of the visit and expected outcomes. She should, therefore, not be surprised that Bush did not need Museveni's permission to talk about the content of their meeting to the American people and by extension to the people of Uganda.
She presumes that the people at The Monitor neither check nor cross check their stories and sources. But more important, she does not realise that it could have been in the interest of the Americans to let the cat out of the bag.
In tandem, with his president the American Ambassador, Mr Jimmy Kolker, during a Fourth of July speech, was quoted by the government owned The New Vision newspaper saying that, "Uganda also has the chance this year, to put in place the procedures and institutions that will ensure a vibrant political evolution, leading to something Uganda has never known before... a peaceful handover of power from one leader to another"
Unwittingly, and as if by premonition, Karooro reminded her readers of '...that old and tired proverb that you do not ask the monkey to be the presiding judge in a case on whether or not the forest should be cut down or not".
Karooro should be reminded of another monkey proverb. "'The higher a monkey climbs, the more it exposes its bottom". This may help her abandon the pedantic approach to media professionals, whom she thinks "ought to mature into serious and professional journalistic ranks by learning never to believe things at first sight or first hear".
The implications of the Press Secretary to the president apologising to The Monitor and Ekanya, whom she ridiculed and insulted, could save her soul and improve the image of information from State House.
If Karooro is of the view that, that is the type of stuff the reading public should be fed on, then it would be more appropriate to call her column either The Wrong View or better still, The Short-sighted View instead of The Long View.
Mucunguzi in his article identified some training needs for Ms Okurut. Having read Mr Moses Byaruhanga's article in the Sunday Vision which was along the same insulting lines, it becomes doubtful that civil servants, who have adorned the politicians mantle, would benefit from receiving skills in journalism, mass communication, public relations, media relations and diplomacy. All the above disciplines have codes of conduct but none offers expediency modules.
However, it is not too late for the press secretary to the president to establish a rapport with the independent press. These are not adversaries but colleagues who should compliment each other.
Karooro could, for instance, arrange regular and informative briefings for the media. She could become proactive on issues where discretion is sought, and consult editors, as is common practice the world over, rather than fire fighting.
And most important, she should make her boss accessible to the media, especially for frank and off-the-record discussions.
This would enable the editors authoritatively inform their readers on whether Bush was justified to admonish Museveni or not and why he intends to do it again.
