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Tag: commission

  • Copyright Commission and impunity

    Copyright Commission and impunity

    Would a Director General wilfully disregard the directive of the nation’s chief law officer without any consequence? Or, should a lawyer flagrantly disobey a subsisting court order barring the agency he heads from any such act by despatching his men to raid such a body corporate? These posers would form the basis of this discourse. But first, a brief background to what has become a titanic rivalry between a government regulatory agency and a private organization within the same sphere of influence.

    The Nigerian Copyright Commission, NCC, came into being with the promulgation in 1988 of the Copyright Decree (No. 47) of that year. The Decree was re-designated the Copyright Act in Cap 68 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1990 and amended by the Copyright Act (Amendment) Decree (No. 98) of 1992. The Act makes provision for “the definition, protection, transfer, infringement of, and remedy and penalty thereof, of the copyright in literary works, musical works, artistic works, cinematograph films, sound recordings, broadcast and other ancillary matters”.

    The Musical Copyright Society Nigeria, MCSN, on the other hand was set up in 1984 to take over the responsibilities of Performing Rights Society, PRS and Musical Copyright Protection Society, MCPS both of the United Kingdom as they divested from Nigeria. Prior to this, most Nigerian composers and authors were registered with them for the collection and distribution of performing and mechanical rights in musical works. While many Nigerian creators transferred to MCSN, others remained with both PRS and MCPS. This prompted MCSN to enter into reciprocal representation contracts with them by which it (MCSN) became vested with the copyright in virtually the entire repertoire of copyright music in Nigeria.

    Also, MCSN has reciprocal representation arrangement with SACEM of France, ASCAP of USA, whereby it represents their interests in Nigeria and vice versa. It is a full member of La Confederation Internationale Societies des Auteurs et Compositors, CISAC, (International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers), the International Bureau of Organizations Managing Mechanical Reproduction Rights, BIEM and affiliated to 225 societies in 118 countries.

    MCSN thus predates the establishment of the copyright commission and the expectation was that both would work together to create a robust copyright system in the country. After all, the government regulatory agency was just starting out and with MCSN already on ground, a symbiotic relationship was all that was needed to expand the frontiers of copyright for the benefit of musicians, authors and publishers. Sadly, the commission shut out MCSN from its radar once it took off, choosing instead to midwife a brand new organization, called Performing Mechanical Rights Society, PMRS, which morphed into today’s Copyright Society of Nigeria, COSON, licensed as “government sole collecting society”. Meanwhile, MCSN’s application for approval as a collecting society was rejected! Why the pioneer Director-General of the commission (and others that followed) could not license two collecting societies to pave the way for the liberalisation of the sector and create choice for stakeholders is still a matter of conjecture. Refused approval by the commission, MCSN was either to atrophy or seek life support. It thus instituted a series of court cases against the commission many of which it won giving it the leeway to operate as owner, assignee and exclusive licensee.

    But the commission has refused to recognise the court rulings and would rather abate the infringement of MCSN’s works by writing to corporate pirates not to pay royalties to its rightful owner because it “is not approved as a collecting society”. This has crippled the administration of copyright in Nigeria since its “sole collecting society” does not own the works it was officially licensed to collect from! And the petitions to the commission by MCSN are treated with levity. That was until the current Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Adoke, SAN, waded in.

    Initially, he referred the dispute between MCSN and the commission to the World Intellectual Property Organization, WIPO, for mediation. But in a letter to MCSN dated August 10, 2011 discontinuing the process and signed by the current Director-General, Afam Ezekude, the minister directed that “both parties be advised to seek judicial resolution to the issues in dispute by pursuing on-going suits instituted at the Federal High Court. Parties are further advised to refrain from taking any action which is capable of undermining the judiciary and to ensure respect for and observance of the law”.

    A few days after, one of the pending cases instituted by MCSN against the commission for the enforcement of its fundamental human rights occasioned by the raid and arrest of its chief executive with another staff, as well as the removal from the office of files and essential equipment in 2007, came up for ruling.

    In his landmark judgment on August 25, 2011, Justice Archibong of the Federal High Court Lagos, was unequivocal when he said: “The first Respondent (Copyright Commission) has failed to acknowledge, appreciate, or welcome the notion and reality that owners and assignees of copyright can enforce property rights without necessarily being registered as a collecting society by the copyright commission. registration as a collecting society is not a prerequisite for the enjoyment and exercise of rights of an owner or exclusive licensee of copyright”.

    He had then pronounced: “Nothing in the Copyright Act denies the owner, the assignee or the exclusive licensee of a copyright the right to collect royalties for the performance of their works in public or to transact commercially with anybody in respect of such works or appoint agents to claim and enforce directly their rights under Section 6 of the Copyright Act and I so hold. The offence of purporting to perform the duties of a society without the approval of the copyright commission created by Section 39 of the Copyright Act cannot and does not relate to the activities of owners, assignees and exclusive licensees of copyright and I so hold”.

    The judge further clamped a Garnishee order of N40 million against the commission for damages with the specific order for the applicants: “not to be arrested or further arrested or detained by the respondent or any of its officers, or agents unless a proper and complete investigation has been carried out and the applicants are reasonably suspected to be guilty of a criminal offence”.

    But on September 18, officials of the commission raided MCSN again, this time arresting five staffers who were detained for two days and carted away files and computer units. In a statement justifying the action, Nseabasi Ukagwu, of the Public Affairs Unit of the Commission stated: “The operation was carried out following information that the said MCSN was performing the duties of a collecting society without the approval of NCC”. And it relied on a 2010 judgment which is on appeal at the Supreme Court by MCSN between it and an alleged infringer, not the commission as basis for the action. Pray, what about the subsisting court order of 2011? Is it a question of selective adherence to judgments?

    • Johnson, a public affairs analyst wrote from Abuja.

  • NAICOM pegs group life commission at 8%

    NAICOM pegs group life commission at 8%

    The National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) has pegged group life insurance commission at eight per cent, The Nation has learnt.

    A source said the commission had written underwriters and brokers, ordering them not to charge more than eight per cent commission on group life insurance. Violators, he said, would be sanctioned.

    “NAICOM made it clear to the operators that group life commission is not nine per cent as being canvassed by some practitioners, the source said.

    It was gathered that underwriters and brokers have been on a running battle over what should be charged as commission.

    Investigation revealed that both parties early in the year agreed to raise the commission to nine per cent, but the underwriters later reneged on the agreement, as it was considered inimical to their operation.

    The circular by NAICOM, it was gathered was issued to halt the running battle between brokers and underwriters.

    From a reliable source, it was learnt that NAICOM made several attempts to settle the rift between the parties, but failed because the underwriters were not ready to keep to the agreement reached with the brokers early in the year.

    Though brokers were uncomfortable with the new policy issued by NAICOM, they agreed to abide by it to avoid being sanctioned.

    The commission would be applied on this year’s Federal Government group life insurance, which premium is valued at about N7 billion and over 300 brokers appointed by the Federal Head of Service.

  • Fayemi: We’ll commission 10 roads, 100 schools in October

    Ekiti State Governor Kayode Fayemi has said 10 roads and over 100 renovated schools would be commissioned in October.

    Fayemi spoke on Wednesday on his monthly media chat, “Meet Your Governor”, which was aired on all radio and television stations in the state.

    The projects are to be inaugurated as part of activities marking the second anniversary of Fayemi.

    He said all the public schools undergoing renovation under Operation Renovate All Schools in Ekiti (ORASE) would be ready by October 2, when students resume.

    Fayemi said: “I am amazed at the pace of work going on in the schools and this speaks volumes to our commitment to revamp education and ensure that learning takes place under a conducive environment.

    “I have been receiving messages on the work we are doing in our schools. Our people are elated, they are happy and appreciate good things that are happening in the schools.

    “ANCOPSS, Old Students of Ekiti Parapo College and various communities have written to me to appreciate what we have done some of them pointing out that some of those schools have not been touched for over 40 years now.”

    Fayemi accused the local government workers’ union leaders of being used by politicians.

    He said: “We are carrying out a staff audit at the local government level to know who is the authentic local government worker. Do we continue to pay those who are not supposed to be in the system?

    “That exercise has been completed by the Local Government Service Commission and the report has been submitted to me.

    “I want the local government workers to return to work and I have assured workers that the genuine ones will receive arrears to the point of when it was supposed to have been paid.

    “The leadership of NULGE must withdraw the allegation (of illegal deduction of council funds) and they cannot do that by subterfuge and when they do that, we will go back to the negotiation table. I have my name and integrity to protect and I want them to be intact after I might have left office.”

  • Defending bigotry and cant at both inec and the federal character commission

    Defending bigotry and cant at both inec and the federal character commission

    INEC and Federal Character Commission have to do more to convince Nigerians that they have no ulterior motives

     Nothing can be more indicative of the synergy between the Independent National Electoral Commission and the Federal Character Commission in their determined bid to protect inequity at INEC than the fact that while Prof Jega, the INEC Chairman had caused Kayode Idowu, his Chief Press Secretary, to do a lengthy defence of INEC’s indefensible management composition, Prof Oba has, himself, resorted to granting newspaper interviews to achieve the same result. But only the unwary can be deceived by either of these two professors who head very vital, indeed strategic, national institutions.

    In my article: ‘What game is the North up to at INEC?, 18 August, 2010, and sundry other publications, attention was drawn to the overwhelming preponderance of officials of Northern extraction in the management of INEC. My aforementioned article went the extra mile of accusing the Federal Character Commission of being an accessory to the fact of this out rightly illegal composition going by the constitutionally prescribed functions of the FCC.

    In his laboured defence, Prof Shuaibi Oba Abdulraheem, the Executive Chairman of the commission said as follows: ‘the Federal Character Commission is essentially focused on the public service recruitment, at the entry point only. That is when we ensure equity of opportunity of all persons to be able to enter into an establishment by drawing the benchmark for merit’. In a quick volte face, as if he could not see the contradiction, he went on: ‘the other point which we get interested in is at the management level, which is where the INEC thing you are talking about comes in. We encourage all establishments that when it comes to management positions, there must be a practice of equity of distribution of offices among the various interest groups in Nigeria. The issue of INEC is about the management structure which is arising from the internal development of the individuals within that structure up to a particular level. Yes there are some issues there, but it is not intentional in the sense that at the management level we have given instructions, guide lines. Our circulars are there, that for all establishments, all management positions must be advertised and made public, even while we are practicing equitable distribution, but some institutions have been sufficiently clever enough and have been protected by whatever forces, I don’t know how they are able to manipulate the internal structures and appoint persons into, for instance, management positions…’

    Exactly the point that critics now being demonised are making.

    But beyond that it can safely be said that Prof Oba was being economical with the truth when he claimed that FCC is concerned only with the entry point, that is, unless he has since changed the practice at the Federal Character Commission since he became the emperor.

    One of the earliest reactions to my article of the 18 August, 2012, was a telephone call from my former boss at the University of Ife, (Dr J.G.O.Adegbite who, for many years represented Ekiti State on the Federal Character Commission .As he vividly recalls, the commission was nothing but an ombudsman which guided not only entry point appointments but also ensured an effective federal character presence in the workforce, especially, at the management level. Otherwise, why would Chief Executive Officers, only, of federal agencies and ministries be invited to present and defend their extant staff positions? Indeed, Dr Adegbite remembers, in particular, an occasion when, Mallam el Rufai, as the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Privatisation Agency, was about being refused entry into the chambers believing he was not the Chief Executive Officer, because of his generous stature.

    Professor Oba should tell Nigerians if he has since changed this procedure.

    Dr Adegbite also went further to inform me that non-compliant agencies, where management placements are noticed to have been unduly skewed in favour of a particular zone were always given a 6-month grace period to make amends. I will personally not be surprised if this has changed since our professor took charge of affairs at the commission.

    And what was INEC’s effete defence?

    Let us listen to Mr Idowu.

    After berating the Media for being a washed with what he called weird tales of goings-on within the commission, he generously informed us as follows, like we were some kindergarten: It is also alleged that there is regional disproportion in the chairmanship of INEC committees by the National Commissioners. That, simply, betrays grievous ignorance of legal provisions setting up the Commission and governing its operations. Section 14 (1) (a) of Part 1 (F) of the Third Schedule of the 1999 Federal Constitution (as amended) provides that The Commission shall comprise the following members: (a) a Chairman, who shall be the Chief Electoral Commissioner; and (b) twelve other members to be known as National Electoral Commissioners. In practice, the 12 National Commissioners are appointed by Mr. President on geo-political basis: two from each of the six geo-political zones making up the country. Also, Section 7 of the Electoral Act 2010 (as gazetted) provides that “the Commission may appoint one or more committees to carry out any of its functions under this Act.”

    He then went further to educate us on the criteria for appointment into the chair of these committees which he listed as: ‘personal expertise, previous experience and ultimate responsibility.’ What he failed to tell us is that only Northerners have these in overflowing abundance since we would have required that eternal truth as proof positive of how unbiased the composition of INEC management is.

    For ease of reference, and to help Mr Idowu, I recall writing as follows in my article under reference: ‘INEC’s top management is made up as follows: 1. Prof Jega (Chairman)- Kebbi 2. U.F Usman (Director of Logistics) –Kebbi 3.A. Muktar (Director of Human Resources) –Sokoto 4. A.A Uregi (Director of Finance) –Niger 5. M. Kuta (Internal Auditor) –Niger 6. E.T Akem (Director ICT) –Benue 7. I. Biu (Director of Voter Education) – North East 8.I.K Bawa (Dep. Director, Legal) –Plateau 9.Okey Ndeche (Director, Operations) –Anambra 10. Nyise Torgba (Director M& E/Performance) –Benue 11. A.A Adamu Head, Commission, Secretariat) –Kogi 12. M.Ekwunja (Director, Civil Societies) 13. E. Umenger (Director, Public Affairs) –Benue 14. Regina Omo-Agege (Director, Political Monitoring) –Delta. 15. B.E Edoghotu (Estate & Works).

    INEC’s national commissioners who head the vital committees overseeing the most important departments are as stated hereunder though he tried to delude us into thinking that no committee is more strategic than the other:

    1. Col. Hamanga ( Chairperson, Logistics Committee) –Adamawa

    2. Dr Nuru Yakubu ( Chairperson, Operations Committee) –Yobe

    3. Ambassador Wali (Chair person, Procurement Committee) –Sokoto

    4. Prof Jega (Chairperson, F&GP) –Kebbi

    5. Prof Jega ( Chairperson, ICT) –Kebbi

    6. Hajia Amina Zakari (Chairperson, Political Monitoring) –Jigawa

    7. Membership of a newly constituted INEC 9-Man Strategic Planning Committee reads as follows: Nuru A. Yakubu, Istianus Dalwang, Mustafa Kuta, M.S Mohammed. Torgba Nyitse, Emanuel Akeem all from the North with only Mike Igini and Okechukwu Ndeche from the South.’

    What needs be added is the undue emphasis on the restructuring going on in INEC. What Nigerians have seen, and which I suspect is the leitmotif for the exercise, is Professor Jega’s undue eagerness to emerge much more powerful by being crowned the commission’s accounting officer as if not being that had, in any considerable way, stymied his effective performance.

    In all, our friends at both INEC and the Federal Character Commission will have to do much more than what they have offered till date to convince Nigerians that there are no ulterior motives at play in INEC as things stand today, albeit, without a whimper from the almighty national ombudsman..

  • NDDC assures on projects completion

    •Mr Alloysius Nwagboso (middle) with Mr Peter Ezeobi to his right and Hon. Dominic Edem on his left as they inspect a road project

    The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) has reiterated its commitment to the completion of existing projects across the nine states covered by the commission. Head of the Corporate Affairs Mr. Ibitoye Abosede stated this on Monday while reacting to concerns being expressed in some quarters about the fate of such projects.
    He said such concern by stakeholders and communities about the fate of the many projects awarded by former boards of the commission is genuine but that they should rest assure as the present board has taken the issue of completing existing projects as a matter of priority.
    “The board is aware of their concern and appreciates it. The MD/CEO, Dr. Chris Oboh has said at various fora, that no existing project would be abandoned. He means just that and that is what the Commission is focusing on,” he stated.
    Indeed, the desire to complete existing projects is a cardinal focus of present Board. There many uncompleted projects initiated by previous boards of the interventionist agency since it was set up by the  government in 2000 to drive development in the oil rich region which has suffered serious neglect and degradation over a long period of time.
    At one of his major media briefing in April, the MD/CEO acknowledged the challenges posed by such uncompleted projects had declared his determination to deal with the issue.
    “One of the challenges we met when we came on board was the multiplicity of uncompleted and ongoing projects across the region. We are aware of stakeholders’ concerns and are committed to ensuring the completion of as many of such projects as possible within the limit of available time and resources.”
    And to give effect to the new vision by the board, Oboh told members of the Presidential Monitoring Committee on the Niger Delta who visited the commission recently that: “the 2012 budget would target completion of existing projects and they have all been placed on priority list. A lot of projects have been awarded since the establishment of the NDDC; we intend to focus on the completion of the projects.”
    The Commission has since swung into action by undertaking a comprehensive and extensive audit of all on-going projects across the region, an exercise Oboh described as a “demonstration of the commitment of the board to the completion of projects awarded since the inception of the NDDC in December 2000”.
    And the Board’s approach was simply to constitute itself into three monitoring committees made up of three members each to go round three states and see things for themselves. One for Delta, Edo and Ondo states; another for Rivers, Bayelsa and Akwa Ibom states and the last one for Cross River, Imo and Abia states.
    The monitoring committees made up of the nine representatives of the various states on the board of the NDDC have since inspected projects in all the states spread across the region. These include roads, bridges, land reclamation and shore protection, flood control and channelization as well as university hostels projects.
    The task before the monitoring groups was to assess what was on ground and recommend measures that would facilitate the completion of the projects placed on fast-track by the commission.
    The first monitoring committee to Bayelsa, Rivers and Akwa Ibom was led by Mr. Edi  Orubo, the Bayelsa State representative. The others were Prof. Ibitamuno Aminigo representing Rivers State and Imaobong Inyang, representing Akwa Ibom State.
    Orubo said that some of the problems that had previously slowed down the pace of work on NDDC projects had been addressed.