Nigerian movies, the public and FOI billBy Lugard Onoyemu
Published: August 1, 2006
Print When I attended a workshop on the Freedom of Information (FOI) Bill for professional groups and associations, I discovered that this all-important bill has been presented four times in the National Assembly without success. In the same vein, I discovered that this same type of bill was presented just once in several other countries (most of which would have been rated as low to Nigeria in all ramifications) and it sailed through to become law without stress.
While "lesser" countries (not to talk of the greater ones) are enjoying the gains of FOI, we are still at a crossroads of "should we be or not." The question is : Who is afraid of the FOI Bill? It is my considered opinion that the only person or group that can be afraid of a harmless bill as the FOI Bill is one with skeleton in his cupboard. There is no gainsaying the fact that we have lots of such people around. But must evil be allowed to dominate in Nigeria, world without end? Should we continue to be backward in positive development around the world while we claim to be the giant of Africa? Is it not high time we discarded this live and let die syndrome and adopt a "live and let live way of life"?
It is on record that FOI is a right and not a privilege. International organisations like the United Nations (UN), the European Union (EU), the African Union (AU), and the Commonwealth have a well-defined position on this issue. We of the Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), Lagos State Chapter, are calling on every well meaning Nigerian to support the FOI Bill for a better Nigeria. This call becomes necessary for us because in our profession we are the mirrors of the society. Without freedom of information, we will be like dirty mirrors that cannot present the true image back to the individual. We are a very strong unit of information outlet to the larger society and indeed the outside world. The screen has turned out to be a very strong avenue for the dissemination of information with more lasting impact than any other medium such as print or electronic media. Therefore, information meant for the public needs to be authentic because any information that goes into the air is hard to retrieve, whether it is correct or wrong. The film industry, being a department of the screen medium, had been effectively used by the United States of America through Hollywood to more or less colonise the world politically, economically, socially and otherwise. Through their films, America’s flag has become a demi-god, a symbol of loyalty, commitment, patriotism, and unity, revered and feared. Films produced in Hollywood are, more often than not, authoritative on whatever issue with authentic facts. This is only achievable because there is freedom of information that is in fact a tradition in that country.
In Nigeria, films that are 100 per cent Nigerian in production started with the advent of the "home-video" in 1993. Before then, however, we had film through the celluloid format. When home-videos started, the reception was unprecedented in our homes. Consequently, it became a popular trend that blossomed into "Nollywood", which is today rated as the world’s third largest film producer after Hollywood (USA) and "Bollywood" (India). While the movie industry in Nigeria was busy making waves and affecting the country and beyond, the government of Nigeria hardly took notice of its impact socially, politically, and economically. It took the visit of one of our Ministers of Information and Orientation to know the popularity and power Nigerian films carry. He was first bombarded with questions on how the movie stars were doing back home. They did not even ask him of Mr. President. Then he had the task of defending Nigeria; that we are not all about rituals and advanced fee fraud (419) as has been portrayed by our films.
Back home, he then made the Government to know how powerful films can be in the image laundering efforts of Nigeria and to also foster proper orientation locally. Although the Government has since seen the need to partner with movie practitioners to properly enhance and harness the dividends, it has so far remained lip-service. Be that as it may, the Government cannot expect to see our stories carry or convey authentic information about government and officials when we cannot get co-operation from government workers when we go to verify stories or get statistics and facts on issues. On the other hand, we also have a situation where government departments and agencies are not well-informed as to the level of co-operation they owe film makers to use government facilities due to oaths of secrecy they have subscribed to. At the end of the day, we are forced to imagine things and export stories based on half-truths, imagination and rumours.
Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), Lagos, is therefore of the opinion that a Freedom of Information Act will help the Government to achieve a more effective image laundering and the fight against corruption. This is a passionate plea from AGN Lagos to our honourable members of the National Assembly to put aside their perceived personal fears of the FOI Bill and consider the general national interest, bearing in mind that a democracy without access to information for the citizens is counterfeit democracy. Nigeria should not be a giant and leader of Africa on paper or by size when countries like South Africa, Uganda, Angola and Zimbabwe already have Freedom of Information laws in place.
• Onoyemu is Secretary-General,
Actors Guild of Nigeria,
Lagos State Chapter
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