The one-hour, multi-aired, family-friendly programme –Who
Wants to be a Millionaire- a MTN concept, has undoubtedly set out to garnish
the standard of living of average Nigerians who are loyal subscribers of the South
Africa-owned telecommunication service provider. The telecoms giant purportedly
embarked on the T.V. quiz game show to stamp its Corporate Social
Responsibility, CSR, by helping their fast-growing subscribers in the society
who they think deserve to be millionaires by bringing them on set and play the
quiz game for ten million naira, with three available life lines: Call a
Friend, Ask the Audience and Fifty-Fifty, whereby computer deletes two wrong options
(out of four) and leaving only two options for the player to choose the correct
answer. It is locally-viewed (STV, NTA, AIT, etc) every Fridays and Saturdays
from 8pm to 9pm.
Although MTN give cheques to winners every week, Nigerians
(subscribers) are indirectly the unofficial cum unmentioned sponsors of the
12-year-old programme because (with every degree of certainty) MTN’s profit
continually rises to the ceiling from this game show. According to reports
(nairaland.com), MTN gulp up N1.665 billion weekly, N6.660 billion monthly and
N79.920 billion annually, excluding proceedings made from promos.
In a much grimmer vein, the calculated “looting” is carried
out via the Home-Play segment of Who Wants to be a Millionaire, where an
estimate of 33.3 million MTN customers are asked to send an SMS each for N100.
At least quarters 8,325,000 lose their money weekly to nothingness. It can be
easily predicted that the programme might go down the doldrums in the absence
of the weekly “contributions” from millionaire-wanna-bes, average Nigerians. In
some situations (such as this), even the wisest man could act the goat.
In the words of Frank Edoho, presenter of the programme: “MTN
is using Who Wants to be a Millionaire T.V game show as a platform to give back
to the Nigerian society nationwide and help loyal subscribers achieve their
dreams and goals in life, which has to do with financial need…”. The validity
of this statement is another focal point for this discourse.
Apparently more disheartening is the fact that some viewers
do know that the in-house audience programme is not a live programme as it
appears to look. It is a rehearsed, recorded and edited programme. So what
better explanation could one get for a mad rush of unsuspecting Nigerians who
strive to participate in the N100-billed, SMS-sending segment of a recorded
programme aired on different stations at different hours. Nigerians tend to make
wishes everyday, not minding whether it is attuned to reality or not. We are
always eager and prepared to play dice with the devil.
As observed every week, when a qualified contestant finally
makes it to the hot seat (a la miracle), in a fever-pitched crescendo, he plays
for N10 million, hopefully, when he thinks everything seem to be going
smoothly, but half-way, before you say Jack Robinson, MTN throws a curveball of
unthinkable question at his budding millionaire dream. Albeit the double-edged question
on the lips of every right-thinking Nigerian is: Where are the remaining
billions of naira? Is the programme truly a charity programme? Its high time
MTN stopped defrauding subscribers under the guise of CSR and Public relations.
Almost is nothing, if you must help, do it with no strings attached. Why give
with the right hand and collect with the left?
Conclusively, it can be safely argued that when we only
scratch the surface, we would submit that Who Wants to be a Millionaire is quite
informative, educative and a financial life-support machine. But the tones of
smiles on the subscriber’s face can be increased if less charges are demanded
from participants in our earn-to-spend society. This will go a long way to
reduce the gamut of unsavoury issues rising against the T.V. programme, improve
operating environment and also win more customers easily.
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