Hooliganism Uncool!

The Monitor Editor | Tuesday November 30, 2021 06:00

It was not only hazardous to others but also embarrassing and shocking. The outbreak of COVID-19 forced governments to impose restrictions to curb the spread of the potentially fatal virus, and one of them was a temporary ban on festivals and music shows. While necessary, these decisions affected the incomes of music promoters, musicians, different companies, which deal with sound equipment amongst others. Now that most of the restrictions have been lifted, a handful of rascals have decided to exhibit untoward behaviour, which may have detrimental consequences on the industry. Not too long ago, government had taken a stand that it no longer would rent out its stadiums to promoters for music festivals, citing the tendency by some party-goers to vandalise property.

After much deliberations the government went back on the decision, and one of the promises was that promoters or whoever books a venue for a music show will ensure that there is enough security to control the people.

The Francistown show, however, did not seem like there was enough security to control the crowd. Just before the confusion escalated, a considerable number of hooligans can be seen seated on the metal structure used to assemble the stage! Like really now? How could those people have climbed such a tall structure without any intervention from the security personnel? Apart from compromising the security of musicians, the act was also very unsafe for those who thought it was cool to hold beer bottles and consume alcohol at such a high altitude without proper support.

What if one of them fell to their death? Who’s responsibility was it going to be? Let's say those hooligans ended up causing damage to the stadium, whose responsibility would it be to fix the damage? The entertainment industry is as important as any other, but it is high time that those in the industry start taking their craft with the seriousness it deserves. Yes, profit is an important element of any business, but business owners should not compromise people’s safety for the sake of making a few extra bucks.

Let's not complicate matters for ourselves and cry foul later. What if the Francistown show is used as a yardstick for the government to base some arguments on what unfolded during the show? What if it fuels a decision to suspend shows for the Christmas holidays? This will not only have economic consequences to many families, but it will be yet another sad festive season for party-goers! Let's stop behaving like animals, the very conduct that is unbecoming for rational human beings if only they are to have responsible fun.