Monrovia – I’m squeezing near the plinth of a platform set up for journalists to get view of the podium where Liberia’s most important politicians and foreign heads of states are seated to see George Weah swears in as Liberia’s 24th President.
Above me, journalists scuffling to get a clear shot of Mr. Weah as he hugs Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, the woman he would succeed in the next couple of minutes. The noise from the crowd in the stadium is deafening; the scene is ecstatic. And all is set for the former football icon to assume the highest office in the land.
Meanwhile, the sun is showing no mercy, so I picked a spot in the blur shadows of the steel plinth. All I want is my laptop and smart phone and the Internet. The world has to be up to speed with the happenings here, I said in my head. Next to me, my colleague maneuvers a tight spot too. He is struggling to connect our portable Wi-Fi signal to his laptop.
“Do you have any luck yet,” I asked for the ninth time in about 30 minutes. He ignores me.
“Is the internet connected now?” I shouted.
“No!” He lifts his head and looks at me. His face covered with frustration.
"He has tried to publish a story to our news website for the last two hours and the Internet was just not working.
“This so-called 4G Internet we have in this country is a complete mess,” he said; this time his disappointment was even more palpable.
“I tell you oooh,” I agreed with a shy. My eyes glued on my phone hoping the Skype App goes online.
A Turkish television station had asked me to file live reports to them, but the Internet is now a menace.
About 15 minutes later, there was still no luck with the Internet. I’m thinking our devices are faulty. Just maybe.
The two Internet service providers – Lone Star and Orange – are just not working.
“I’m really fed up with this damn Internet today,” someone exclaims from the crowd of reporters.
“You’re experiencing the same problem with your Internet,” I said quizzically.
“Yes,” he turns to me – the smirk on his face showing disappointment. “In fact, my Lone Star (Lonstar Cell/MTN) calls are not even going through. I don’t know what’s happening today.”
I look at my colleague for reaction. We’re not enduring a miserable Internet alone, I would have said to him.
But he’s finally given up. He’s done trying to connect to the Wi-Fi.
But I’m persistent.
“I am going to ask these international journalists if they are facing the same problem with the Internet as we are,” I said, pointing to a group of foreign reporters standing a few meters away. He still shows no interest in my probe.
“Excuse me,” I glided my arms for attention. “Do you speak English?”
“Yes,” said an Asian-looking reporter, apparently in his late 30s. I assumed the guy is a Southeast Asian either from China or Japan.
“I am from New York … with the Times,” he said. “New York Times.” His accent clears my doubt completely.
“I can’t even send pictures of text; the Internet is just not helping my work today, dude,” he said, but in a cranky tone.
I conceded it was a real problem hampering every journalist covering the inauguration ceremony.
“Same thing with me,” I replied. “This is a serious problem for our work today. Any way, thanks for your time.” I walked away.
An hour later, George Weah is now officially President, but the Internet is worse than ever.
Several reporters doing live streaming on Facebook are in ire. One of them, an acquaintance, turns to me for solace.
“This is a complete disaster, what will I do?” He asks hopelessly.
“I think these cellphone companies should have brought boosters on this stadium to beef up the internet signal because a lot of people are trying to connect and the signal is just over jammed,” I said.
“Maybe they should start doing it for big events like these. We can’t have this situation. It’s unbearable for our work. This is modern time, and we need Internet to do efficient work as reporters,” he adds.
“Most definitely,” I said, turning around to pick up my camera.
“All we can do now is take notes, photos, and record. It’s impossible to do real time reporting; the Internet is a disaster,” I said.
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