Ike Bazooka Quartey and the pseudo-psychologists

Recently, a photo of two former world boxing champions - Azumah Nelson and Ike Bazooka Quartey - started flooding social media.

It wasn't for the praise but for all the negative and booing reasons.

Most people thought that Ike Quartey looked quite unkempt and older than his elder brother, Azumah Nelson. To them, Ike Quartey, being younger in age than Azumah, he should have looked more presentable.

These people, whom I would refer to as judgmentalists, concluded in their own interesting wisdom that the former handsome boxing champion, Ike Bazooka Quartey, might be suffering from drug addiction.

I'm not an expert in photography but I know that in photography, there are various orientations or angles that when a shot is taken can alter the actual looks of a subject. Sometimes too, the way a subject positions him/herself can produce either a beautiful or ugly shot. All these contribute to the psychological impact of a photograph.

Ike Quartey had been off-camera for so many years after his last fight. It never occurred to anybody to ask about him or even to check on him to find out how he was faring.

Yet, when a photo of his looks at the time that photo was taken came out, the very people who never checked on him are the same people who were spewing negatives on him.

There is this concept in Psychology I learnt when I was in Level 100 at the Ghana Institute of Journalism. It is called "Pseudo-psychology".

Pseudo-psychology is basically an approach to understanding or analysing the mind or behavior of somebody using unscientific or fraudulent methods.

Simplistically, The term 'pseudo' means 'false'. Thus, Pseudo-psychology refers to a psychological practice that is false or unfounded. Therefore, all who practice such are called pseudo-psychologists.

Most Ghanaians have become pseudo-psychologists. They are too soaked in falsehood such that just at first sight they would conclude something falsely. Maybe I should refer to such Ghanaians as pseudo-Ghanaians.

The pseudo-Ghanaian will never make the little effort to do any further enquiry about an issue or about a person; but will hurriedly come out with their pseudo-judgement and before one could say jack, reputations are destroyed or there is chaos everywhere.

The most unfortunate aspect is when that pseudo-Ghanaian is actually a journalist or manages a media portal and publishes half-truths or falsehood.

I keep saying because journalists or the media construct reality and that it is what they project that is taken as the gospel truth, they must at all times ensure that the reality they create is responsibly and truthfully real.

It turned out that the appearance of Ike Quartey in that photo and the pseudo meaning some Ghanaians read into it is far opposite who the champion boxer really is, even currently.

May we not be quick to judge falsely. Social media is not at our disposal to unmake people. It is actually a tool to unmake evil and to make good.

Writer's email: [email protected]

McAnthony Dagyenga

Journalist/Communication Specialist

Regional Correspondent, Ghanaweb

Koforidua - ER, Ghana

Cell: +233208792950/ +233541672888

Twitter: @mctonydag

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