By Bizna Brand Analyst
Kenya Film And classifications Board Chairman Ezekiel Mutua is the collective definition of all the attributes that a person in a leadership position should not have. He’s a subject of near constant criticism and defense. He’s always in the news for the wrong reasons. This week, he has been at it again after insulting Facebook users who questioned the kind of thinking behind his decision to brag about getting a diplomatic passport.
As Kenyans, let’s not even debate about it. Mutua has constantly created a pressure cooker atmosphere and it’s high time he gets the sack. Here are some logical reasons why
Naivety
A good boss should not be naïve. How does a person earning hundreds of thousands of shillings, or possibly millions a month boast about getting a US visa on social media? There are people who travel around the world every week yet they never disturb our peace. What message are we giving the outside world when the leader of such an important organization flaunts his passport just to look cool? Or just for the so called haters to see. This is not 1970 where boarding a plane was a monumental achievement. I would expect such kind of behavior from campus girls, not a grown man. It’s indeed sad
He focuses on doing tasks that are not exactly his
Ezekiel Mutua is the kind of employee that loves to create the impression that he is really doing a good job. The most obvious reason why he does this is to appease his superiors. That would be great if he was actually doing the job he was assigned to do. Instead, he bans YouTube videos, award-winning foreign films and youth events. Since when did events have anything to do with film?
He’s blocking foreign investment
Mutua has officially declared that he’s anti-LGBT. Having open anti-LGBT views is not such a wise move in today’s world especially if you are a leader of some kind. Mutua’s case creates a toxic scenario because liberal foreigners who would love to invest in Kenya’s film industry would choose not to do so, knowing that the man at the helm might sprinkle stones on their pathway. Foreign film makers would also think twice before shooting a film about/ or in Kenya, given that most Hollywood movies nowadays have plenty of LGBT elements. This hinders the growth of our local actors who would have otherwise been assigned lucrative roles
He is universally hated hence his decisions cannot be respected
Think of it this way. When a boss is hated by everyone in a company, no one will be willing to go by his instructions or ideas. A boss needs to be respected for his decisions to be effective but at the moment, no one respects Mutua. If he says a certain movie is banned right now, people will be like “That guy doesn’t know what he’s saying” and they’ll still watch it. Rarely anyone ever offers praise for Ezekiel Mutua’s management skills. It’s taken as a given that he is a poor decision maker, and the evidence is almost too voluminous to try and provide a rebuttal.
His maturity is questionable
Mutua claims to uphold moral values but his actions prove he is not mature at all. We need someone mature for this position. Someone who would actually help Kenya’s film industry move forward. We don’t need a trigger happy person who finds fun in shooting down magnificently made projects and globe-trotting. In short:
It’s time for the government to fix its biggest mistake: hiring Ezekeiel Mutua
