Parental guidance in the entertainment industry is century old

OPINION

By James William Mugeni

Editor, theoretically speaking, television ratings provide one way for parents to protect their children from witnessing what parents judge to be potentially harmful television.

This has become literally impossible as there are so many devices providing unlimited exposure to children to scenes one would consider unwholesome.

In practice, however, it seems that effectively using the currently-existing television rating system is a considerable challenge.

The music industry may not have these guidelines. I have listened to many songs sung by what would be innocent children.

I remember songs like Mike ya Zigidi tesaga,Kuba emmese and many other songs were songs that hit the Uganda market but with sexual innuendos. They became children rhymes sung by nursery children.

Now this new Ugandan kid, "Fresh Kid," who is the talk of the nation. Does this child deserve this media hype? The answer could be yes or no.

Anyone ever watch the American program America has got talents what do you see there?

Fresh kid has taken the industry by surprise just because we have not created opportunities were talent easily expresses itself and get identified and nurtured.

The child deserves control and serious parental and national guidance?

It is very difficult to help this child's situation as it appears everything around the child has been carefully crafted and blown out of context. Attaching the child to his poor family is a problem, attaching the child to any none existing authority is a problem itself.

I have not more than once in my current place of aboard been invited by parents to attend their children's music concert.

I have also been invited to attend swimming competitions for children and being a track and field coach, I have been invited to attend kids' athletics to the extent that I was shocked to see children doing sprint hurdles with age rated barriers children as young as 6 but in their age-related category.

Football has a kids league even motor sport and Motorcycling has kids categories where an average Ugandan can't compare.

Soccer academies for football. Do we have a music academy to our Ugandan situation despite the many musicians who have won world accolade awards like Pastor George Okudi, Eddy Kenzo, Bebe Cool etc?

Parents take their children to piano classes, guitar classes, dance classes, Karate classes, even vocal classes etc. There is a strong parental attachment to what children are doing and where they are going.

Children with talents being the most sought after by institutions which also alleviate possible developmental expenses for the talent.

In the US children are the first law that everyone tries to protect followed by women if one can know how to handle those two then it appears one knows the law and can easily live in USA.

Back to our little sweet star trust me everything has gone wrong the only thing remaining is the talent. Shattered innocence, extreme exposure and a highly tinted mind the child is now between a wall and the rock.

Does this child deserve schooling yes; the child absolutely deserves schooling but which school? Now from the many interviews and exposure this child can only go higher and are we ready to provide this?

This is the time for state scholarship to an institution anywhere if not in Uganda or international music schools. You have a child already a grandiose the little times I have seen that child do interviews I feel for him.

He now need special needs school of which schools in Uganda are only associated with people with disability, but not people with abilities. Like it or not that child's mind is crashing fame is not something easy to handle.

Composing songs to mock authority itself is a very wrong track of life. Whoever is being presented as a manager for this child himself needs helping and managing.

Kenya in the neighbourhood has had multitudes of problems with their high-profile athletes having problems ranging from violence, suicides, and drugs and these are only athletes swimming in millions of dollars.

How did Brenda Fasie fair, what about the Jackson 5s and many others? Here is where one would perhaps want to see governance the true use of Istate scholarships. Fresh kid to a special music school away from the tinted environment.

Minister Nakiwala is a wrong minister for this case that looks more of ministry of education since it is education being emphasized. What happened to pastor kid (Omuto)?

That one too looked like a special talent but his was religious affairs. That said Uganda has talented children in all spheres who can create a lot of space for development the relevant authorities need to wake up.

Mental aspects of Fresh kid is very important and as a matter of fact Musicians take to drugs sometimes to pump up energy for the demanding industry. Fresh kids' media rating is now too much his expectations notwithstanding.

 Hopefully, with the continued development of the Music industry, one can only hope to see a music academy and organised control. The deaths, the crimes associated with the Ugandan Music industry would worry any informed parent about the future of their child.

The writer is a Certified Public Manager /Medical Clinical Officer