Like a tornado tearing through a tranquil town, November 19 was chaos on X (twitter).
To be direct, an influencer orchestrated a heated debate that surpassed the Primary schools’ showdowns which used to happen on Friday and always ended in a predictable stalemate, perhaps because of our profound naivety that lingered within us to the core.
In Precise, MJ, an X account owner, made a post on her page that left Kenyans fuming in anger. Thanks, she was only virtually present, the rest you would imagine.
The post, under the hashtag, #OMTATAWAJABA supposedly laying bare that Okiya Omtatah, the Busia senator, is a man under the influence of a famous drug, khat.
And therefore, his assertions on the 17B oil scandal, that has captured the headlines by storm in Kenya, is a profound lie.
However, this did not sit well with hawk-eyed Kenyans, who not only disliked the remarks but also questioned the moral standpoint of MJ as an influencer.
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While one will defend influencers for their seemingly ‘ cheap posts’ arguing, that, they’re human beings, living in a real world, with real bills to take care of, one will also ponder, at what point do the influencers come to draw a line on what content they publish on their accounts, that boast enormous following among other metrics, in the strife to put a warm meal on their dinner table, and a roof over their head.
Impact of Content Shared by Influencers
Unless you come from Mars, you are profoundly familiar with Okiya, he’s literary the face that shows up in court, like Perry Mason the fictional character, challenging oppressive government pronunciations; from hustler fund to housing levy, name them.
Busia County Senator Okiya Omtatah is popular, and easily likeable for his bravery.
The post by MJ was a kick below the belt to Kenyans at large. Even some of her fellow keyboard masters castigated her premise, while X lovers didn’t shy expressing their disappointment on the comments section.
Many couldn’t resist their desire to pose the question, why she accepted to take a job that tainted and maligned the image of Okiya, a revered hero by many.
While others compelled her to demystify the content which she deliberately went mum on, a clear indication that not even an ounce was she aware of the content she had published.
The million-dollar question will be, do influencers really understand the impact of their published content to citizens. That every content they publish lands on people like meteorites.
Nevertheless, the outrage by netizens on Sunday is a testament that influencers hold a key position in a functioning society.
In such hard economic times, when prices of basic commodities have skyrocketed, and Kenyans are barely hanging on, it should be influencers who stand with the innocent souls, citizenry, rather than with the oppressor.
Many have betrayed us. For a meagre Ksh 528, less than a peanut, in exchange of feeding us with fake information from their filthy sponsors.
Call to Influencers
Let it be known that I have nothing against influencers, not even an ounce with MJ, but I have everything against some of the sponsored content they publish on their handles.
Being key players in our society, influencers, like MJ should, see to it that they publish content that, don’t register as a mockery to the dire Kenyans, who are languishing in poverty due to punitive taxes and rooftop high cost of living.
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Furthermore, morally, they ought to reject, and call out leaders who pay them to peddle lies or fake information.
Lastly, all influencers should stand up and condemn acts of corruption and injustices, instead of going to bed with the oppressor.
Owing to their position in new media, they hold a privileged position, and all influencers can leverage this to engineer the success of the country.
As such, MJ should apologize to Kenyans for publishing content that made a mockery to Kenyans, and this should register as the proverbial call to all influencers.
