Publishers, copyright commission rally media, security operatives against piracy

Director-General, Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC), John Asien, and Executive Secretary, Nigerian Publishers Association (NPA), Emmanuel Abimbola, have appealed to the media and security agencies to collaborate with the commission in the fight against piracy.

The duo, in a meeting with members of the Oyo State chapter of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), said “collaboration with the media and security agencies” has become imperative to check piracy, considering the effect the crime on Nigerians’ intellectual properties, the media practitioners inclusive.

Piracy, to them, is being taken beyond human imagination, such that foreigners now collaborate with some criminally-minded Nigerians to pirate academic works and other intellectual properties belonging to Nigeria and Nigerians, which could have improved the economy of the country and its people.

Asien lamented that for every case of piracy, there is always a huge repercussion on the author and publisher.

He recounted how a container-load of over 300,000 cartoons of pirated books worth over N300 million was accosted recently at one of the ports in Nigeria.

“You could imagine the economic damage such did to the publishers of those books if it was not accosted and seized? I express appreciation to the security agents and the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) for the great assistance they rendered.”

According to the DG, cooperation with the media is deemed necessary to sensitise Nigerians about the dire economic effect of piracy on the people and the nation at large.

He said the commission had made arrests and secured convictions “We can still do better if all hands are on deck to fight piracy. I also commend the judicial system for taking a tough stand against piracy. The various security agents also need to take a tougher position against the crime.”

In his remarks, Abimbola flayed the South West states for placing arbitrary administrative charges on book reviews, periodically, under the guise of making revenue.

Abimbola said: “Piracy is one challenge that must be collectively addressed by the commission, NPA, media and security agencies. However, the South West states are making things difficult for publishers of textbooks being used in schools; they place arbitrary charges on book reviews. This happened only in South Westand the implication is that such cost is passed on to parents while purchasing books for their wards. Education is under social services and should not be seen as a revenue-generating venture.”