The Director-General of Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC),
Afam Ezekude, has expressed the renewed determination of the Commission to clampdown on activities of Pirates, saying the Commission is
more serious than ever to enforce the law against piracy.

According to him, minimizing the activities of pirates will ensure that copyright owners are protected and the owners of Copyrights get the benefits of their talents and investments. “Our vision is to harness the potentials of creativity for national
development while the mission is to advance the growth of the creative
industry in Nigeria through the dissemination of Copyright knowledge,
efficient administration and protection of rights”, he said.

Ezekude also pointed out that the Commission has done significantly well in its
primary mandate of enforcement and prosecution of
Copyright offenders. He stated that they have had a very good working relationship with the
Nigerian customs Service (NCS), which has led to the seizure of over
20 containers which is unprecedented in the history of this
Commission, adding that the collaboration between the NCS and NCC has yielded very
fruitful results in the last four years.

He also stated that in terms of prosecution, the Commission activities have been scaled up against what it used to be before he
joined the Commission four years ago, and that NCC did not have up to 10
convictions for the 22 years of the establishment of this commission.

Ezekude explained that it has so far recorded 53 convictions and some of those convictions were not just a slap on the wrist of the offenders but
severe prison sentences for Copyright offences. “The Commission believes that
that a sound copyright regime facilitates development through foreign
direct investment, job creation, access to knowledge, information,
transfer of technology, trade, services, domestic innovation as well
as research and development”, he stated.