WHEN BBC LOST THE ESSENCE OF OBJECTIVITY

By John Blanshe Musinguzi

On 3^rd April 2014, BBC published an investigative story titled “Uganda clinics selling bogus HIV certificates.” On the same day, it was one of the headlines on the World Service Radio. I listened to the report from morning to evening and read it on the BBC website.

The story is all about clinics in Kampala selling fake HIV negative certificate to positive patients. It further assert that Catherine Byaruhanga, BBC correspondent in Uganda with colleagues visited about 15 clinics in Kampala disguising themselves as HIV positive looking for negative certificates. Amazingly, 12 out these 15 were willing to sell negative.

Here, I agree, we have these clinics selling fake certificates to positive patients. Bribery is the order of the day in Uganda. It’s a common among Ugandans to bribe because this is the quickest way of attaining what one aspires.

 From politicians, mainly NRM led by president Museveni, to journalists, church leaders, doctors, lawyers etc, they bribe or they are bribed on daily basis. Indeed, Corruption is a creeping vice that we are yet to tame.

However, I disagree with the kid stigma that these patients are facing which could be the reason behind buying these fake certificates as BBC reported.

The Stigma has been over exaggerated. First, I discussed this story with my friends. All of them says that they know HIV positive patients working and living normally.

However one of them says a positive HIV friend took time to reveal her status due to fear of stigma. When she revealed, true she was shunned by friends for about 2 months.

Secondly, two years ago, I stayed with my uncle who was a counsellor at a community hospital in western Uganda. We used to dine with HIV positive patients freely who were employed and living a happy positive life after being counselled.

Even with last year’s National Forum of People Living with HIV/Aids Networks in Uganda (Nafophanu) which   found that more 60% of them faced stigma; either being shunned by relatives or friends or losing a job.

This survey does differ between those losing jobs or being shunned. What if only 10% of that 60% positive patients are losing jobs?.

Apart from these positive patients facing stigma, I my argument, Byaruhanga and her team were also supposed to take into account the other side. Interview HIV positive patients who are living a happy life- loved by friends and relatives as well as working.

Where is that 40% of national forum of people living with HIV/Aids in Uganda (Nafophamu)?

Actually Western world played a central role in proliferating this stigma?. In principle before lifting the ban in 2010, USA would refuse entry to foreigner nationals known to be HIV positive. Wasn’t that discrimination even when USA, world’s most liberal state which claim to be fighting for human rights globally?. History will never forget this.

And do African countries retaliate in reciprocal by denying HIV positive patients visas?. The answer is no, for example in Uganda we accept you as you’re.

Yes most of HIV positive patients live in Africa, but we also hear Aids in other parts of the world.

According to statistics in 2012, 25 million people living with HIV are from Sub-Saharan Africa. Also 1.3 million people in Eastern Europe and central Asia, 860,000 in western and central Europe, 1.3 million people in North America, and 1.5 million people in Latin America are living with HIV.

So there is no reason why a country with HIV positive nationals should deny visa to HIV positive foreigners.  

Yes, some people in Uganda still see it as a disease of the immoral, those who have led a promiscuous life. But Catherine and her colleagues exaggerated the core principle journalism- seek the truth and report it.

I admit and most Uganda do, we are not up to the standard but we are working towards making HIV positive patients live a happy life.

For the first time in many years I have listed to BBC World Service Radio, I felt that this report was exaggerated.

On a good day, I listen to BBC radio for 5hrs while on a bad day for at least 2hrs. I start my day with New Day and end with Focus on Africa Editions. Outside Source and WHYS are the other programmes I can’t manage to miss.

It also a must to visit BBC website every morning for among others football gossip

I will never forget the days when my father used to ridicule me. For the days he returned home drunk, he would ask me to translate BBC English programmes into our local languages. And guess what I would confidently!, switch off the radio or tune up another station.

But you’re still the best.

The author is an undergraduate Journalism and Communication student at Makerere University- Uganda.

Email: johnblanshe77m@gmail.com