Why FG Wants To Stop Nigerian Music And Film Production Abroad

Jul 17, 2017 10:21 AM

Plans are underway by the federal government to ensure that Nigerian music and films are produced in the country as part efforts to promote the Nigerian content.

During a visit to the Copyright Society of Nigeria (COSON) House in Lagos, over the weekend, Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism Lai Mohammed decried the situation in which the films and music meant for consumption in Nigeria are made in foreign countries.

The minister stressed that government is determined to amend the Nigeria Broadcasting Code in order to discourage the practice and ensure that what is consumed in Nigeria, including films and music, must be made in Nigeria.

“We cannot continue to go to South Africa or any other country to produce our films and then send them back to be consumed in Nigeria.

“The Broadcasting Code and the Advertising Code are very clear on this. For you to classify a product as a Nigerian product, it must have a certain percentage of Nigerian content,” the minister said.

Lai Mohammed argued that the practice had hampered empowerment of practitioners in the industry, the development of the sector and the nation’s economy in general. According to the Minister, when Nigerian artistes fly out of the country to make their recordings, they patronise the economy of that country and then bring the products back to Nigeria for consumption, Vanguard reports.

“It is like somebody going to China or Japan to make a product that looks like palm wine and bring it back home to label it Nigerian palm wine. As long as we are not able to implement our own code to ensure local production of Nigerian music and movies, our young talents will not get jobs.

“It is Nigerians that pay for the consumption of these products and therefore they must be allowed and encouraged to participate in their production.

“I am going to meet with the relevant stakeholders over this, to see that whatever amendment that is needed to be made to our Broadcasting Code in this regard, is done urgently,” Lai Mohammed said.

The Minister said efforts are also being made to give the Creative Industry a pioneer status so it can qualify for such incentives as tax holidays and waivers, especially of customs duties on the equipment for film and music production, among others.

With the pioneer status, the creative industry would be entitled to certain incentives and tax holiday. He also mentioned that there would be waivers for shipment of imported music and films production equipment, adding that the federal government was committed to making the creative industry viable, dynamic and sustainable.

As expected, various stakeholders in the entertainment industry have reacted to the development such as the Okoye brothers and rapper Ruggedman.

Paul joined voices with his brothers, Peter and Jude Okoye in slamming the FG with an Instagram post that reads:

Rapper Ruggedman has also reacted to the proposed plan in a post that reads: