Give us both sides of the story
15/01/2007 09:28  - (SA)  

Jon Qwelane

It was a strange sight indeed earlier this year when the new Oprah Winfrey Schools for Girls was inaugurated during a very glittering get-together of the high and mighty of the showbiz world, because Winfrey is a showbiz personality supreme.

There they all were, the men and women whose dazzling performances on stage and film, and whose lives are often the stuff of legend and fantasy.

South Africa had its own good number of the local glitterati, headed, of course, by that grand old man, the quintessential Madiba.

What was so strange about that gathering, you may well ask, because all those people, despite their lofty thespian and statesman credentials, were after all, human beings of flesh and blood like the rest of us?

For me, the subtle subtext of the gathering was the presence of one Jackie Maarohanye, founder and headmistress of Ithuteng Institution in Pimville, Soweto.

The last four or so months have been hell for this reputed Angel of Soweto.

Untested and very damaging - arguably defamatory - allegations have been made against her and the institution she single-handedly created: she was branded a charlatan and a liar who had forced her pupils to concoct untrue stories about their backgrounds, in order to solicit public sympathy for Maarohanye to fleece the unsuspecting business and showbiz worlds.

Certain newspapers, acting on the strength of the TV allegations, went to town to smear her solid. None embarked on their own investigations to interview and photograph those making the allegations. As far as I remember, we were told she was "not available" for comment because, I have since learnt, she was on a conference in Egypt at the time.

The basic inviolate tenets of journalism are accuracy, honesty, fairness and balance. Implied in these is the time-honoured principle to record both sides of a story.

Makes you think

Was the need to broadcast damaging information about Maarohanye and her school so imperative that the producers could not wait for her return, given that her absence would only be temporary? And why was it that it was only a few past students who were paraded before cameras, and no attempt had apparently been made to interview those who went on to study further and have since come back as teachers at the school?

A few days later, during the holidays, there were amazing scenes at the Protea magistrate's court in Soweto when Maarohanye appeared on one or two charges: here was this alleged cheat, this charlatan and crook, mobbed by hundreds of pupils of her school, dressed in their uniforms. They were accompanied by scores of their parents, who had taken the day off from work, to lend her moral support.

Even accommodating the suspicion of "rent-a-crowd" tactics, it is very difficult to imagine that all the meaning of the wording on the hundreds of posters: "We love you Mama Jackie!" was contrived, and the placards were insincere.

I am not an apologist for Maarohanye, nor am I holding any brief for her.

What I am saying is at the opening of the Oprah school there was the head of Ithuteng School among the glitterati of Hollywood, attending as an invited guest. There must be a strong and silent message in there: it is inconceivable that Oprah would invite a fraudster to such an occasion, and totally unthinkable that local business heavyweights like Tokyo Sexwale and Patrice Motsepe would wish to be seen in the company of such types. To say nothing of the likes of Quincy Jones seated next to her!

Amazingly, the daily newspaper that had contributed much to the spreading of the allegations against Maarohanye was the one that covered the opening fairly, and noted she had suggested to Winfrey to set up the school. In later editions the line was expunged.

Makes you think, doesn't it?