Showbiz Honors: Another mushroom award.

 I think Emklan Events, the organizers of the showbiz honors are confused.  Or rather it is the concept of the awards that is. The conflicting messages thrown up by the procedure before the fact and proceedings at the ceremony they organized to award Nadia Buari for her “exemplary role as an actress” give them an uncertain image.

I didn’t attend the ceremony but from what I gleaned from the news and those who attended, part of the ceremony came across as a birthday party organized for a friend with cutting of cake by the winner. The part that resembled an awards night had a short film on Nadia Buari with none other than the Vice President praising her works. Though, none of those works was particularly selected as the reason for the award.

It was her “Exemplary role as an actress” which won her the honor. Whatever the organizers sort to convey with their exemplary role tag, may I say, we didn’t get it. It is the most ambiguous label ever to be attached to an award supposed to be for excellence. Besides ambiguity, I’m at my wits end trying to understand how Nadia ended up been the only one awarded during the showbiz honors night.  If it is an alternative awards show, then she shouldn’t have been the only one. And definitely we should know  exactly what she is been awarded for in the year under review or which of works is worthy this award.

I think Nadia Buari is fine person. Probably a fine actress too. I have lost track of her considering the number of movies she makes in a year. She makes more movies in one year than Oscar winning Sandra Bullock does in ten. And some of them are horrible with bizarre plots and ridiculous dialogue. I have been told some of them are really good but even if I take time off work I doubt I will finish watching them all. That not withstanding I agree she does deserve an award or two for at least for getting up every morning to stare in so many movies.

However whoever decides to award her must disclose the reasons why she deserves the award especially when the award is setup to be an industry award. I am baffled at the lack of clarity surrounding the showbiz honors.  What happened to usual procedure associated with awards, nominations, categories, selection panel and all? Yeah we need to know all those things else let no one waste our time and that of the Vice President by presenting a birthday party as an awards show.

What irks me besides the lack of clarity surrounding the award is the set of prizes which was given to her. Tacky doesn’t even begin to describe it.  Who organizes an award and gives as a prize, a year’s supply of sanitary pads? So what, if Agya Koo had own, he would have been given Fruits of the Loom briefs because they sponsored the show. Need I mention the ticket to somewhere over the rainbow and a year’s supply of non –alcoholic wine. Clearly this award show lacked the finesse and formula associated with such industry awards. Then again it was always going to be tasteless affair with the devil in the detail.

There is no award show in the world which is shrouded in this much mystery. The Nobel Prize for literature is usually awarded to one person but he’s not selected by Norwegians in secret and foisted on the world. No, invitation letters are sent to individuals qualified to nominate people for the year under review. There is a deadline for submission after which a committee assesses the works of candidates and draws up a shortlist.  Which is further reviewed by permanent advisers-and these advisers are specially recruited for their knowledge. Finally a winner is chosen through majority vote by members of another committee.

 Though the process may vary, all the popular awards we know and love do same. Every person who has ever won a Grammys, an Oscars or a Tony was selected via some sort of long intensive process. Even our deeply flawed Ghana Music Awards have some semblance of this order.

To be fair to Emklan events they did state the criteria for getting awarded.  One is supposed to have a good personality, be socially responsible and must have excelled in one’s chosen career. Good personality and socially responsible as determined by who? And who gives a toss how responsible or good a person getting showbiz honors is. It is their works that ought to be judged, not the person. Humanitarian awards are the preserve of the United Nations. Maybe Emklan should leave the good and socially responsible awards to them.

And whiles we at it, may I also suggest that we have enough mushroom awards that celebrate mediocrity so maybe Emklan should chuck their ambiguous awards and cheap prizes in the bin where it belongs.