There are no winners when evasive officials turn interviews into PR stunts

Answer: I think, maybe the question, or how I would look at it, is that I have now been the PS of Internal Security for three years, and is the security situation any better than when I came into office? And the answer is ‘Yes’.

In this interview with PS Raymond Omollo, NTV senior reporter Ibrahim Karanja had sought to address “a wide range of issues” affecting the country, including the security situation and police reforms.

However, right from the first question, it was clear that the PS had come with a well-rehearsed script. If a question proved too tough, he would ask his own, then proceed to answer it using his mental notes.

Mr Karanja did not invite the PS for a cup of tea and friendly banter. He set up an interview on national TV to discuss serious national issues.

He was asking questions on behalf of millions of Kenyans who have no access to the PS. For the senior government official to squander most of the time on self-praise, scapegoating, and diversionary tactics was both a waste of a public resource and an insult to the public.

The interview did not inspire public confidence that their security is guaranteed. Online comments affirm this.

A similar situation has played out regarding the secret deal between the government and the United States of America to set up an isolation facility in Kenya for Americans infected with the deadly Ebola virus.

Seeking to confirm and clarify reports by US media, the Nation team sent Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale “ten specific questions about the facility”.

The team wanted to know why Kenya, where the quarantine facility would be located, when the people exposed to Ebola would be arriving, and whether Kenyans faced any additional risk of infection.

A genuine and transparent reaction to these questions would have been to respond to each of the questions.

However, as both NTV and the Daily Nation reported, the CS instead issued a two-page statement that failed to respond to any of the questions.

The carefully worded statement neither confirms nor denies the existence of the reported facility. It confirms awareness of discussions but stops short of confirming the existence of the facility. In two pages of circumlocution and nothing specific, the statement leaves the public to guess the truth.

Situations like these, especially on live TV, can be extremely frustrating for both the interviewer and the audience. However, the journalist should be prepared for these situations and ready to pull some tricks out of the bag of interviewing skills.

Ahead of the interview, the journalist should research the issues to be discussed thoroughly and prepare a list of direct questions and anticipated follow-ups.

The journalists must have all the known facts, including statistics, beforehand to avoid being led on by the interviewee.

During the interview, the interviewer should cut the public relations and persist with the question until it is answered. The journalist should remind the interviewee to answer specific questions and keep hammering at them.

This may make the interview “hostile”, but it would yield better results. The journalist must resist the temptation to move to the next question or topic and instead ask follow-up questions until the issue is addressed satisfactorily.

Another option is to present incontrovertible evidence, including video clips and photographs. For example, during the interview with the CS, it would have been useful to play clips of police standing by and looking on as armed goons beat and rob citizens during demonstrations last year, before asking him to respond. This would have made it difficult for him to make the blatant denials on air.

The Daily Nation’s handling of Mr Duale’s response was a masterclass in dealing with such officials. The decision to reproduce the Cabinet Secretary’s vague statements exposed the government’s insincerity in responding to a matter as serious as Ebola and a lack of respect for Kenyans.

The government is either determined to hide the truth from Kenyans for reasons known to it, or it lacks clarity about what it is getting into. This is not how to build public trust and avoid speculation and disinformation.

Unfortunately, when State officials evade questions about critical public interest issues, there are no winners, only losers.

The public is denied its right to know about decisions and actions being taken on its behalf, and the media is denied its right to inform citizens. The government loses a chance to stamp authority on an issue.

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