Dr. Lam Akol’s flunkies: Stand behind your comments!
By Luk Kuth Dak
July 21, 2009 — Some of Dr. Lam Akol’s die-heart flunkies try to abuse and intimidate you when you write an opinion on the chairman of the so-called SPLM-DC. They went pretty much for you to be their friend or their enemy, you are either a tribalist or an SPLM, an idiot or a genius. It’s not always a correct assumption, but it goes with the territory.
Like most of us who publish opinions papers from time to time in Sudan Tribune or elsewhere, we know that we are going to get some feedbacks. And it’s not all going to be pretty. And that’s fine, too. I often learn a thing or two from some of the bad e-mails.
But there is one thing that I have never been able to stand; E-mail cowards.( I mean those who comment on the opinions).
As you may know, I normally put my name and e-mail address out there with any article I write. When you read my words, you know who wrote them.
Not so with the e-mail cowards.
The e-mail cowards tell you how stupid you are or how tribalistic you are, but they will never sign their names. The venom of the insults are always delivered anonymously, like the one I got after I wrote an opinion on Dr. Lam Akol titled: “ Dr. Lam Akol, you have skewed your legacy.”
“ Dear Luke you are still expressing your stupidity. I know you are not a learned person because you did not benefited from the money Upper Nile State gave you for studies in US. By the way what qualification did you get? As I know you, you do not have Sudan School certificate. Did you continue your High School in the USA. Please you have stayed too long in the US and also a bechelor. Your former girl-friend is now live in Australia. What you learned is only to quote Martin Luther King nothing else. As I told you what you are going to do with your people killing and hunting themselves like animals in Akobo. Your people managed to displace the peaceful Anywak tribes from their rightful homeland.” Africano!
Obviously, this guy is one of Dr. Lam Akol’s die-heart flunkies angered by my opinion mentioned above. You’d think he or she’d be proud of that and sign his/her name, but no.
Others, of course, when they have nothing to say, go for easy insults. Clearly, this guy doesn’t know me. If he did – as he claims- he would have known that am an alumni of the elite Malakal al-Amirria, Malakal and Shendi Secondary Schools respectively.
Furthermore, writing can be learned. It can also be a gift. CNN’s Larry king, arguably the undisputed heavy weight of the TV talk- shows, did not attend college. And the late Peter Jennings of ABC, was in 3rd grade when he told his father: the school’s boring. Yet, he ruled the American media to the last minute of his life. I could go on, but you got the point, I hope.
Over the years, I have received quite a few e-mails. The people who agree sign their names. People who disagree, but relay a valid point without resorting to insults, sign their names, too. But the cowards with nothing but insults never do.
If you don’t agree, fine. If what I write makes you mad, please, you have my permission not to read it. But if you are going to take the time to insult me, at least have the guts to stand behind it. Put your name with your words. Otherwise, I will assume what I think to be true: You are not very proud of them in the first place.
Moreover, if the flunkies lunatics think insulting individual journalists will stop them from voicing their opinions, they better think again. Their actions, in fact, would only generate an unwanted attention to their man, and make the subject even more attractive to the media.
The author is former anchorman at Juba Radio. He can be reached: [email protected].