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Tag: piracy

Why we’re bothered about piracy, by BoI

•As Task Force arrests pirates, confiscate goods

There have been worries by right owners and the regulatory agencies, about unauthorized replication of films and musical works but not as much as the reality that hit stakeholders, seeing the heap of pirated Nollywood DVD titles packed-ready for export to different countries.

This was the situation, as exhibits said to be worth over N50 million, and confiscated from film pirates at Alaba International Market, Lagos, were displayed for all to see, at the Lagos office of the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) on Monday.

Industry players from banking, cinema, and marketing sectors joined actors and filmmakers whose works were illegally replicated to condemn the dastardly act, while lauding the raid by the NFVCB and members of the Film and Video Producers and Marketers Association of Nigeria (FVPMAN) which took place between August 12 – 15, 2017, leading to the arrest of four suspects – Ndu Celestine, Okechukwu Ikuagwu, Austine Ugokwe and one Mayor who have since been taken to Abuja for questioning.

Executive Director of the NFVCB, Mr. Adedayo Thomas, while addressing newsmen at the event, said the raid was the first in the series of the operation done by the Board’s special Task Force and security agencies against unauthorized distributors, as well as uncensored and unclassified works.

He said: “Between August 12 and 15, the National Task Force waged war against producers of unapproved and unclassified works. We enforced a raid on the distributors of unclassified films operating without the prerequisite licence. It was a successful activity and we appreciate the support of the Minister of Information, Tourism and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, and other stakeholders in the industry. I am delighted that with the arrest made so far, we have sent a strong signal to perpetrators who commit economic crime against the industry.”

Some of the confiscated titles include ‘Ayamma’, and ‘Three Wise Men’, produced with support from the Bank of Industry’s (BoI) NollyFund, a loan scheme which some beneficiaries are yet to redeem.

Speaking on how piracy has affected the scheme, Mr. Okechukwu Madu, Assistant Manager (CI), BoI, said although the NollyFund structure did not take into consideration, revenue streams from DVD distribution, pirating NollyFund films has some level of psychological challenge for the management of the bank.

“Pirating NollyFund films has some level of psychological challenges for the management of our bank. Even though it wasn’t in the original financial projections, but then, it would be a reference point when it comes to approving new projects and making funds available for film producers. Meanwhile, the piracy of course also disturbs the producers psychologically no matter how much they have made from their film in the cinema; DVD is another vital source of income which can solve some forms of financial challenge for the filmmakers.”

He said the bank would continue to support any drive that would enhance the commercial viability of the films in the market, “and in doing so, we would also ensure that going forward, producers give us measures that they put in place to minimize the impact of piracy, not just in terms of their cash flow but also to the society.”

On why BoI is so concerned about the effect of piracy, even though the filmmakers are bound to payback their loans, whether or not they run at a loss, Madu said, “The bank is a DFI (Development Finance Institution), and being a DFI, we are the first among equals. We want to pave the way for commercial banks to see the prospects in this industry, and to pave the way for commercial banks and other funders would mean that we have a safe market in terms of RoI (Return on Investment). The bank is bothered because messages that seems like the industry is not well regulated have the potential of making the banks to scale back on its financial intervention. It also has a potential of making commercial banks to be hesitant in giving money for film production. We have also seen the contribution of the sector to the national GDP, as rebased. What that means is that with more financial interventions this sector can do more. So, we are concerned about the market not being unruly, knowing the implication for the wider financial sector.”

Actress and film producer, Funke Akindele-Bello, who was at the event also lamented the extent to which her series, ‘Jenifa’s Diary’, was pirated, disclosing that there are loads of original copies in her office that her marketers have not been able to sell.

The comic thespian thanked the Executive Director of NFVCB for taking the bold step against piracy, saying; “We support all initiative to stop pirates from killing the industry. It is sad when you see your job being pirated and at the end of the day you get nothing out of it.”

Managing Director of Filmhouse/FilmOne Distribution, Mr. Kene Mkparu who was among the stakeholders at the event, when asked if it does bother cinema owners that some of these titles being pirated have only been released in the cinemas, answered in the affirmative.

He however assured that cinema houses in Nigeria are 90 percent safe, as measures have been put in place to curtail illegal recording in cinema theatres.

“Piracy is a syndicated crime and a whole chain of people are involved in it. It could be anyone from the editing studios down the chain to the consumers. So, what we are looking at is that from production to post production, editing studio to the cinemas and the people that handle the distribution, up to film festivals level etcetera, there needs to be mechanisms in place to checkmate any possible loophole… For instance, a whole bunch of our cinemas actually have infrared goggles. Thus, curtailing the old way of bringing out cameras to record film from the screen illegally – we have goggles that can detect such and a whole bunch of things,” he said.

Other stakeholders at the event include Executive Secretary of Lagos State Film and Video Censors Board, Mr. Dele Balogun; Chairman, Yoruba Video Film Producers/Marketers Association of Nigeria (YOVIFPMAN), Alhaji Adbulrasaq Abdullahi; Chairman, Film and Video Producers/Marketers Association of Nigeria (FVPMAN), Emeka Aduah; President, Directors Guild of Nigeria (DGN) Fred Amata; Filmmaker, Chief Eddie Ugbomah; film marketer Gabriel Okoye, aka Igwe Gabosky; film marketer/Producer Yinka Ogundaisi, and actor Saint Obi.

August 24, 2017
Task Force arrests another piracy suspect

•103 bags of DVD seized

Following last Monday’s raid of the notorious Alaba Market where three suspected pirates were arrested, the taskforce set up by the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) against unauthorized distribution/uncensored and unclassified movies, on Wednesday, increased its arrest to four, while on Thursday, it also confiscated a container-load, consisting 103 sacks of DVDs of different titles, believed to have been imported from China.

The 8-man taskforce made up of largely members of the Film and Video Producers and Marketer Association of Nigeria (FVPMAN) alongside the Nigeria Police, on Monday, arrested three men – Ndu Celestine, Okechukwu Ikuagwu and Austine Ugokwe – and confiscated several film titles and machines said to be worth N50million. The suspects were immediately taken to Abuja from the Area E Police Command, Festac Town.

Some of the film titles include, ‘Ayamma’, ‘Wedding Party’, ‘Three Wise Men’, ‘30-Days In Atlanta’, ‘A Trip to Jamaica’, ‘Lekki Wives’, ‘Wives On Strike’, ‘Jennifer’s Diary’ and ‘Fifty’.

The fourth suspect popularly called Mayor is said to be the assistant Financial Secretary of the Fancy and Furniture section of Alaba International Market, where CD and DVD business holds sway.

The raid was spearheaded by the Executive Director of NFVCB, Alhaji Adedayo Thomas; notable film marker, Gabriel Okoye, aka Igwe Gabosky; Chairman of FVPMAN, Emeka Aduah and film marketer and lawyer, Nobert Ajaegbu.

Speaking to newsmen at the Area E Police Command on Monday, Adedayo described the unlawful distribution of uncensored intellectual properties, and piracy as a serious economic crime.

He said: “We are saying no to unwholesome, unclassified and uncensored content visa-a-vise piracy. Piracy is a serious economic crime. What they are doing to intellectual properties is worse than what you can imagine.

“We had warned them to stop the unlawful act. Unfortunately, they didn’t stop and we promised the stakeholders and those concerned within the film and creative industry that we are going to start action. So, this is one of the actions that we have promised them, and it is going to be continuous because now, we have the full support of the police. It makes our job easier; the lawyers are ready to prosecute.”

According to Okoye, “majority of the stakeholders have been rendered prostrate by the activities of the pirates, and no more operating, some of them have gone broke.

“If you go to Alaba where our business used to thrive, the situation is not the same, as cosmetics and phone accessories sellers have taken over because the pirates have driven us away and feeding fat on our sweat. They have even started investing in hospitals and other businesses while the creative industry is getting broke.”

Continuing, he said, “The Bank of Industry floated a loan scheme for people to come and take and produce contents to engage Nigerians to be productive, but all those who took the loan are owing the bank. These films are genuinely produced but before my company, G-Media could release them, they had been pirated and we have been tracing most of these people who have been hiding themselves inside Alaba. Imagine Alaba operating as if it is a sovereign state of its own.”

One of the suspects, Austine Ugokwe from Anambra State when questioned by our reporter said he was innocent and was set up by his Liberian friend called Mr. Obi.

“I was set up by someone. It was a friend Mr Obi who usually comes from Liberia that called me to come and he directed me there and immediately I got there, I saw taskforce people, and they arrested me. I am a business man, I sell Nylon and CDs,” he said.

When asked how he got to know Mr. Obi, he said “he buys blank CDs from me.”

On his part, Celestine Ndu said “I’m being accused of piracy. I was arrested because I was trying to help someone to package his goods (CDs).

“I am not the one doing it, I was just helping the owner to package it. The owner calls me to help and he gives me some money. Mr Bassey the man who called me to come and package the CDs for him is not my boss. I don’t know where he lives; I only know his shop in Alaba, shop GJT28.”

August 18, 2017
Censors Board Task Force arrests three piracy suspects at Alaba

Three men suspected to be pirates of film and musical works were, early Monday morning arrested in a raid carried out by the newly inaugurated task force on uncensored and unclassified movies by the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB).

The raid, led by notable marketer and member of the task force, Mr. Gabriel Okoye, aka Igwe Gabosky, took place at the popular Alaba market, leading to the seizure and confiscation of films and replicating machines estimated to be worth over N50million.

The suspects were then taken to Area E Police Station Festac Town, Lagos, where they were interrogated.

While journalists waited for the arrival of the suspects at Area E Police Station, a member of the task force, Nobert Ajaegbu told The Nation reporter that the movement was being delayed because “the market union has been raising all sorts of money to bribe and frustrate the process. But, we are adamant,” he said

“As I speak, there is still contributions ongoing at Alaba,” he added.

Some of the movies that were seized included titles such as ‘Ayamma’, ‘Wedding Party’, ‘Three Wise Men’, ’30 Days in Atlanta’, ‘A Trip to Jamaica’, ‘Lekki Wives’, ‘Wives on Strike’, ‘Jennifer’s Diary’, and ‘Fifty’.

The suspects , he said, were Ndu Celestine, Okechukwu Ikuagwu and Austine Ugokwe.

Members of the task force were said to have swept on the suspects at about 1.30am on Monday.

The special taskforce was constituted by the NFVCB in June, to checkmate the upsurge of unlicensed and unclassified movies in the country.

The move was one of the steps taken by the new Executive Director of the Board, Alhaji Adedayo Thomas, who assumed office barely six months ago.

The feat, according to many, was a subtle approach to minimize piracy of intellectual property in Nigeria.

Inaugurating the 8-man taskforce at the Ikoyi office of the agency, Thomas said the reconstituted national taskforce against unwholesome movies, was one of the mandates given him by President Muhammadu Buhari “to revitalize the dying dreams of the founding fathers of the film industry, whose shear efforts brought the sector to phenomenal limelight, but have so far recorded pains and tears as a result of the sabotaging works of people bent on crippling the industry.”

August 15, 2017
Censors Board Task Force arrests three piracy suspects at Alaba

Three men suspected to be pirates of film and musical works were, early Monday morning arrested in a raid carried out by the newly inaugurated task force on uncensored and unclassified movies by the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB).

The raid, led by notable marketer and member of the task force, Mr. Gabriel Okoye, aka Igwe Gabosky, took place at the popular Alaba market, leading to the seizure and confiscation of films and replicating machines estimated to be worth over N50million.

The suspects were then taken to Area E Police Station Festac Town, Lagos, where they were being interrogated.

While journalists wait for the arrival of the suspects at Area E Police Station, a member of the task force, Nobert Ajaegbu told The Nation reporter that the movement was being delayed because “the market union has been raising all sorts of money to bribe and frustrate the process. But, we are adamant,” he said

“As I speak, there is still contributions ongoing at Alaba,” he added.

Some of the movies that were seized include titles such as ‘Ayamma’, ‘Wedding Party’, ‘Three Wise Men’, ’30 Days in Atlanta’, ‘A Trip to Jamaica’, ‘Lekki Wives’, ‘Wives on Strike’, ‘Jennifer’s Diary’, and ‘Fifty’.

The suspects include, he said, include Ndu Celestine, Okechukwu Ikuagwu, and Austine Ugokwe.

Members of the task force were said to have swept on the suspects at about 1.30am on Monday.

The special taskforce was constituted by the NFVCB in June, to checkmate the upsurge of unlicensed and unclassified movies in the country.

The move was one of the steps taken by the new Executive Director of the Board, Alhaji Adedayo Thomas, who assumed office barely six months ago.

The feat, according to many, was a subtle approach to minimize piracy of intellectual property in Nigeria.

Inaugurating the 8-man taskforce at the Ikoyi office of the agency, Thomas said the reconstituted national taskforce against unwholesome movies, was one of the mandates given him by President Muhammadu Buhari “to revitalize the dying dreams of the founding fathers of the film industry, whose shear efforts brought the sector to phenomenal limelight, but have so far recorded pains and tears as a result of the sabotaging works of people bent on crippling the industry.”

August 14, 2017
Piracy, indebtedness: book publishers to screen sales reps

If book publishers can ascertain the integrity of their sales representatives, it will reduce the level of indebtedness by the latter, while also promoting a long lasting relationship between the two parties.

This is the view of the Nigerian Publishers Association (NPA), which hopes that in line with global best practices, there should be a new paradigm with respect to approach to their sales representatives.

Country Manager, Cambridge University Press, Aladesuyi Lawrence, spoke on the theme: ‘Book distribution and the future of publishing in Nigeria’ during a seminar as part of the just concluded Nigerian International Book Fair (NIBF) held at University of Lagos multipurpose hall on Wednesday, last week.

Aladesuyi lamented that for years, book publishing firms in Nigeria, have been at the mercy of sometimes dishonest sales representatives who often help themselves to the sweat of publishing companies by refusing to remit cash from sales of books collected from them.

Aladesuyi said unlike in saner climes, this trend has been allowed to prevail in Nigeria because this is a society where background checks are hardly carried out on prospective business partners.

He said: “If I registered a company 20 years ago and I want to use it today, I need to revalidate; but to do that, a discreet check must be carried out on me on my various activities including why I refused to sustain that company. But we are happy that now background checks are gradually being carried out in Nigeria because people want to take informed decision.

Some reps will owe Cambridge (Press) and still run and register with Longman Press. The advantage (of verifying prospective sales reps) is that you are dealing with somebody you know. Human beings are relatively different. Unfortunately, we are also in a society where people commit crimes and damn the consequences. But if you want to carry out a plan today and somebody has to do a check of your activities 20 years ago, these things won’t come up.”

Aladesuyi who challenged publishing firms to take a leaf from Cambridge style of distribution, described as ‘wasteful’ the manner in which distribution is being executed.

“Some of us run offices in each state of the federation. Some of us have vans to distribute nationwide, while those who don’t have contract them out. All these make business becomes unproductive,” he noted

Rather than incur huge bills, Aladesuyi suggested that publishing firms could have regional distributors at the zones, adding that they could then dump the books at the regional offices for their clients to pick up later.

President of Nigeria Publishers Association, Gbadega Adedapo, urged government to address inconsistent electricity supply, and ensure improved policy on importation of printing materials.

Gbadega described the seminar as an eye-opener for NPA to start doing things differently in the book distribution chain.

He said the event was also to checkmate those who masquerade as sales reps but eventually pirate books.

“We had always thought that only the poor patronise pirates, but we realised that it also includes the rich probably because the awareness is not there, while others simply find it difficult to identify the original from fakes. This is why we must as well acknowledge the integrity of our book sellers,” he concluded.

May 18, 2017
Hard battle against piracy
Why is the Federal Ministry of Justice’s presentation of the reviewed Nigerian Copyright Draft Bill to the Senate being delayed? This is the question stakeholders from the academia and creative industry gathered at the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (NIALS) in Lagos to tackle. Assistant Editor (Arts) OZOLUA UHAKHEME was at the seminar.

•58 per cent of products in circulation is pirated

for many years, the war against piracy has been fought on many fronts. Stakeholders, such as right owners, the Copyright Commission, collecting management organisations, security agencies and the judiciary, have battled pirates to no end.

Penultimate Saturday, a special event with the theme: “Innovation: Improving Lives” was held to commemorate World Intellectual Property Day. It was organised by Copyright X Nigeria Alumni, under the auspices of Cora-Arterial Network Nigeria in conjunction with Harvardx (Copyright X). The event provided a platform for stakeholders to assess how far the Ministry of Justice has gone in the presentation of the Copyright Draft Bill to the National Assembly for hearing.

It was also to celebrate the Nigerian Copyright X Affiliate Programme with the topic: “Nigerian Copyright Reforms: The Role of Civil Society”.

Lagos Zonal Director, Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC), Mr. Obi Ezeilo, said the fight against piracy was ongoing, but lamented the commission’s shortcomings, especially in the areas of capacity and logistics.

Ezeilo, who represented NCC’s Director-General Mr. Afam Ezekude, said the commission raided five warehouses of books worth millions of naria at Ajegunle, Apapa, Lagos. Over 58 per cent of products in the markets, he said, is pirated.

According to him, the commission used 10 trucks to evacuate items from the warehouses in a three–day operation. He noted that the commission impounded 28 containers of pirated works valued at over N10 billion.

Ezeilo, who spoke on Nigerian Copyright Reforms: The Role of Civil Society, called for supports and intelligence reports from civil society groups and collecting management organisations. He explained that a Draft Bill has been sent to the Ministry of Justice for harminsation and presentation to the National Assembly for public hearing. He therefore urged stakeholders to pressure the Ministry of Justice to push the Draft Bill reform in order to pass it to the National Assembly.

Copyright Society of Nigeria (COSON) Chairman Chief Tony Okoroji stated that government needs to up its game in the battle against piracy noting that wealth is no longer measured by the size of blocks and bricks but by the intellectual property.

He however commended the organisers and expressed optimism that the CopyrightX participants and the alumni would be the future of copyright advocacy and development in Nigeria.

In a communiqué issued at the close of the conference, the stakeholders resolved as follows:
- That we are deeply concerned about the delay in presenting the Nigerian Copyright Draft Bill by the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation to the Senate to commence public debates and plenary session on it. We hereby call for prompt response and action from the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice;
- That we call on the Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC), to do a structural re-engineering of its enforcement process for effective operations through advancing its capacity building and man power and adoption of innovative technology etc.;
- That we call on the NCC to share the final draft bill with major stakeholders, including Copyright X Nigeria Alumni and all participants in the 12-week course;
- That other professionals such as those of visual artistes and dance guilds etc, be encouraged to have their own Collective Management Organisations (CMOs);
- That all CMOs, Civil Societies and stakeholders in the creative industry and knowledge economy should activate intelligence efforts to complement the NCC’s effort;
- That Copyright X Nigeria Alumni is ready to collaborate and work with other key stakeholders in the creative industry and knowledge economy to advance the course of improving the lives and well-being of Nigerians without unnecessary competition and rivalry amongst existing stakeholders and group.
Other speakers at the conference were Zonal Director (Southwest), National Board for Technology Incubation Dr. Julie Momah; Chairman, Chairperson (Nigeria) Arterial Network Mr Jahman Anikulapo and Dr. Ifeoma Sodeinde. At the event were Society of Nigerian Artists, President Mr Oliver Enwonwu; Tade Adekunle; Dr Olatunbosun Taofik and Fola Martins, among others.
May 10, 2017
WIPO Day:AVRS takes piracy talks to Alaba market

IN what a guest described as using love to ‘kill’ piracy, the dreaded Alaba International Market, Ojo, Lagos, played host to some filmmakers who seized the opportunity of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) Day to speak directly to film marketers on the need to desist from unauthorised replication of their works for commercial gains.

Alaba has been described as the headquarters of piracy activities in Africa. And previous attempts to raid the market of pirated works had been resisted violently. But the subtle approach used during last Wednesday’s visit, produced a different experience.

The event was put together by the Audio-Visual Rights Society (AVRS), a company approved by the Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) as a Collective Management Organisation (CMO) for Cinematograph Films in Nigeria, in commemoration of WIPO Day.

April 26 of every year is used by WIPO to raise awareness of how patents, copyright, trademarks and designs impact on daily life and to celebrate creativity, and the contribution made by creators and innovators to the development of societies across the globe.

Harping on the theme of the event for 2017: ‘Innovation – Improving Lives’, Chairman of AVRS, Mr. Bond Emeruwa, noted that, for him, “the greatest innovation of recent times remains Nollywood. “A gentle fusion of technology and the African art of storytelling – making it possible for a simple campfire story to be seen and heard across nations – informing, educating, fostering unity, peace, love and most of all, entertaining.”

According to Emeruwa, filmmakers will soon have cause to smile, as their intellectual rights are being enforced for relevant returns.

“This is an exercise that we have been pursuing vigorously and we promise that soon, filmmakers will have cause to smile. We have engaged with hotels, broadcast organisations and other users of your works and the response has been very encouraging. We implore other users of cinematograph works to ensure they are licensed as we are set to use all means within our power to enforce our rights. The lives of our filmmakers must be improved,” he said.

He urged the federal government to speed up the process of implementation of the Copyright Levy (on Materials) order 2012 which he said was signed and left unimplemented since 2012 to the detriment of Nigeria’s creative economy.

The highpoint of the event was the speech by actress Hilda Dokubo, who was guest speaker of the occasion.

Speaking frankly to the crowd at the Film Plaza, Fancy and Furniture section of the market, Dokubo analysed how pirates of entertainment works have not only deprived right owners of their source of livelihood, but also of how they have contributed to the ‘collapse’ of film business in Nigeria.

“To those who decide to make us poor; because when you steal from us, you are actually ripping us off. Which means you have kept away investors from this business; both locally and internationally,” she said.

Continuing, Dokubo said: “We are all looking for international partners and treaties, so for those who pirate our work, they will kill those treaties and investment. So you are keeping partners away from us.

“This market is big enough to accommodate all of us, if we all agree to work together. I will tell you how this stealing works; because all of you will say you do not pirate.

“When you buy a copy and you duplicate and give it to the boys who push them around in wheel barrows for sale, you are a thief. You are killing people, I beg you to stop. That is because people who are investing in this business will not be encouraged.”

Dokubo however proffered some solutions. “My business here today is to tell you how you are killing us and I am not one of those who cry and not tell how we can correct it. I want to give a few suggestions on how we can correct them,” she said.

“Rather than you pirating,” she advised,” invest in it. You do not have to be the same investor; the three or more who pirate can come together, sell as group and invest in a work, so that you can distribute them. All the guys who pull themselves together to become mobile distributors, you too can come together to have an association and help us get these movies to the end users. And to those who buy and give to your friends at home; for every time you do that, you are killing this business.”

Chairman of Fancy and Furniture section, Mr. Emeka Mozoba, who admitted that piracy activities exist in the market, promised “to work hand in hand with the government, NCC, AVRS and other anti-piracy regulatory bodies to fight piracy in Nigeria.”

Others stakeholders at the event include the new General Manager of AVRS, Mrs. Olubunmi Fawole, Chairman of Film and Video Producers/Marketers Association of Nigeria (FVPMAN), Emeka Aduah, and Secretary of Yoruba Video Film Marketers Association of Nigeria (YVFMAN), Tunji Adetola.

Others are Aina Kushoro, Lilian Amah- Aluko, Fidelis Duker, Nobert Ajaegbu, Okey Ogunjiofor, Emma Isikaku and Paul Okoli.

April 29, 2017
Reduced piracy in Onne: Investors praise Fed Govt, OGFZA

Investors have commended the Federal Government and the leadership of the Oil and Gas Free Zones Authority (OGFZA) on the decline in pirate attacks around the Onne Oil and Gas Free Zones.

They said the huge scale back in the incidence of piracy followed representations to the federal authorities by OGFZA on security concerns in the area.

In February, the Managing Director of OGFZA, Umana Okon Umana, had written to the National Security Adviser, Maj.-Gen.Babagana Monguno (rtd), to draw attention to deteriorating security around the seaport, marked by increase in the incidence of piracy and its consequential impact on investments in the area, particularly in the oil and gas free zones.

The initiative by Umana led to a security meeting with the Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) Eastern Naval Command, Rear Admiral James Oluwole, and a subsequent deployment of several warships and patrol boats to secure the region and provide safe passage for commercial shipping.

The better protection for shipping in the region’s waterways has helped to significantly bring down the rate of pirate attacks on shipping, as well as sabotage of oil and gas facilities in the area, Oluwole said at an interaction with the management of OGFZA.

Also, the Terminal Operator of Indorama/Eleme Petrochemicals Limited at Onne Free Zone, Manjunath Gowdara said: “Security has improved since the Umana administration came into office. For about three months now, there’s zero incidence of attacks both on land and at sea.”

Port security report states that Indorama security alert level has been lowered from level two to level one in the wake of the significant improvement in security around the free zone.

The Operations Manager of Brawal Oil Services Limited, Michael Agha and the Commercial Manager of the company, Ifeanyi Odili-Nwamana, made similar remarks, stating that the new management of OGFZA, has helped to improve security in the zone.

“There has been improved security and reduced militancy in the port,” Agha said, adding that the management of Brawal is pleased with OGFZA chief for his efforts at addressing security challenges in the port,, especially the issue of abandoned vessels at the quayside.

Both managers said Brawal has complemented the efforts of government by putting many measures in place to improve security in the free zone.

The General Officer Commanding (GOC) 6 Division of the Nigerian Army, Maj.-General Enobong Udoh, also assured Umana of adequate security when the OGFZA chief visited the GOC in his office at Bori Camp in Port Harcourt.

“We have made specific security arrangements to protect lives and property, as well as oil and gas assets in the region. I want to assure you that the 6 Division of the Nigerian Army will always support OGFZA,” Gen. Udoh said, adding that the 6 Division was established and headquartered in Port Harcourt to regularise and perfect all the previous ad hoc security arrangements set up to address security challenges in the Niger Delta.

April 27, 2017
Group endorses firm for solution to piracy

The Alliance of Nollywood Guilds and Association (ANOGA), an umbrella body for the Nigerian movie industry, has announced that it has found a solution to piracy, one of the problems facing the movie industry.

This was disclosed during a meeting of the association which held last Friday in Lagos.

The body came up with a resolution to tackle piracy in the movie industry.

They resolved that the solution to the challenges experienced by practitioners in the industry lies in the framework designed by the media distribution networks limited (an organisation based in Surulere, Lagos- Nigeria which specialises in providing world class physical and digital distribution systems for music, films, video, books, software, etc).

The company is trusted to provide an efficient and effective distribution system for the Nigerian movie industry.

The group announced in a communique signed by ANOGA president, Victor Ashaolu: “That the alliance of Nollywood guilds and association, ANOGA, has unanimously endorsed the Media Distribution Networks (MDN) project framework as designed by Media Distribution Networks limited and officially entered into a MoU with the framework for and on behalf of the Nigerian movie industry.”

It also revealed that the ANOGA has also entered into an MoU with the Media Distribution Network limited specifically to aggregate for and on behalf of its members with the Nigerian interbank settlement system (NIBSS) concerning the digital distribution of creative on the online platform.

“In addition, the Media Distribution Network Limited also appointed ZENITH BANK PLC as their LEAD BANK in the process of integrating the MDN project with NIBSS and harmonizing payment to content owners directly,” the group said in the statement.

“The umbrella body unanimously endorsed the coding and tracking framework as proposed by the MDN Limited and opened by the Global Standard one (GS1). This will form part of the coding, tracking and logistics framework of the MDN project.

“ANOGA however calls on all stakeholders in the telecommunication and broadcasting industry, digital distribution platform and all federal government relevant agencies and parastatals should take note of this new and progressive development in the film and entertainment industry in Nigeria.”

April 13, 2017
NIMASA partners Navy, Air Force to fight oil theft, piracy

TO fight oil thieves and pirates on our territorial waters, the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) is partnering the Nigerian Navy and Nigeria Airforce.

It has acquired some surveillance equipment to monitor the waterways and secure the ports.

In furtherance of the engagement, NIMASA now operates a 24-hour surveillance regime, capturing vessels in the nation’s maritime domain irrespective of weather conditions.

More than 5,000 ships ply the territorial waters yearly. Some vessels, sources said, violate international laws by engaging in illegal activities, including stealing of crude oil and other criminal activities.

Its Director-General, Dr. Dakuku Peterside, said the agency achieves profile analyses, which include the flag, registered owner, operator, beneficial owner and movement of ships over a specified period.

He said: “The system enables us to take very swift decision in real time, on any targeted ship. Currently, all offshore areas of interest have been electronically cordoned off with a guard zone via our surveillance system and we can at once link activities in the oil fields and on crude oil platforms.

“ The system has not only greatly increased our capacity to block revenue leaks but has increased our revenue as all vessels coming into Nigeria are now captured and analysed for billing.

“Our administration has been able to integrate surveillance data with billing control information, thereby driving our desire for the agency’s billing system to be fully operational by two-thirds, from 72-hour down to 24 hours while keeping our eyes the target timeline of six hour billing,” Peterside said.

A senior official of the Federal Ministry of Transport (FMoT), who craved anonymity, said the nation loses 200,000 barrels of crude oil to theft.

“They are collaborating to curb oil theft, piracy and other criminalities, The Nation has learnt. More than 5,000 international ships ply the territorial waters yearly. Some of the vessels violate international laws by engaging in illegal activities.

“The Air Force has acquired three maritime 128-6, F27 and ATR-42-500 jets and other planes to monitor the activities of oil thieves and other criminals.

“The high-tech plane ATR-42-500 jet is being operated by the Air Force. The plane is fitted with sensors, radar and Electro-Optic Surveillance and Tracking (EOST) equipment, which houses three cameras to monitor ships in Nigerian waters.

“The 20-seat plane can fly as low as 200 feet (60 metres) above the sea and passes on information about maritime traffic to the navy, who can intervene with fast-attack craft if necessary.

“The collaboration is aimed at fighting all manner of maritime crimes in the country. With this aircraft, we can spot any vessel hundreds of kilometres (miles) away,” said Group Captain Enobong Eneh Effiom.

“The aircraft is inscribed with the words: ‘Vigilance over the ocean’. The cameras installed in the planes function well at night based on their high powered lights.

“For any sustainable and meaningful growth in the maritime sector, a robust maritime domain awareness system is inevitable. NIMASA has, therefore, entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the Nigerian Navy and the Nigerian Air Force to enhance water patrol and aerial surveillance of Nigeria’s maritime domain.

“The collaboration with the Air force will assist NIMASA in tackling the challenges of large and unrestricted navigational areas, small and non-cooperative objects taking advantage of the dense maritime activity to conceal their actions and it would also protect the ports and ships against attacks,” Effiom said.

He said the agency was striving to ensure that the government and security agencies had access to accurate, comprehensive and up-to-the-minute situation data of the vessel traffic at sea.

The jets, it was learnt, were built in France and equipped in Italy with radars, cameras and other security gadgets.

It was gathered that the Navy has also acquired an equipment called Regional Maritime Awareness Capability Centre (RMAC) to aid the fightt.

The equipment, findings showed, was imported from Japan for about N2 billion. It has high-frequency radio and long-range cameras, capable of spotting ships up to 48 kilometres away on the waters.

“From the domain awareness centre, we can see ships from anywhere in the world coming or leaving our maritime space. It also gives us the ability to ascertain the actual threat the vessel poses,” the official said.

The idea for the tripartite collaboration, a source said, started a few years ago

It was learnt that NIMASA sought the help of the Air Force when it discovered that the war against pirates was complicated.

“With the equipment in the planes, NIMASA can monitor even the unusual movement of vessels at sea and keep their records,” the official said.

The jets, it was learnt, draw on the latest technology to provide a reliable, round-the-clock monitoring.

March 28, 2017