Supported by some high table dignitaries, the Deputy Governor of Akwa Ibom State and pioneer DG NCC, Mr. Moses Ekpo unveils a new NCC publication, “Learning Kit on Copyright for School Children” during the Media briefing.
Henceforth children across the country will be made to have the knowledge and understanding of the meaning of copyright, the Director General of the Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC), Mr. John Ohi Asein, said in Lagos on Monday, August 19, 2019.
Asein spoke at the flagging off of series of events lined up for the Commission’s 30th Anniversary held at Omenka Art Gallery in Ikoyi, pointing out that in the next one year,”we should be able to make the children understand the meaning of copyright”.
In furtherance of the Commission’s stance on availing children of a better understanding of the subject matter, a learning kit on copyright for children epitomized by a book entitled “What Is Copyright?” was unveiled at the occasion which had in attendance a large number of dignitaries and players in the creative sector.
The NCC DG also informed those present that the 30th Anniversary was about regaining as well as repositioning of the creative industry such that it would chart the way forward for economic growth and outlive the oil wells, adding that it would make the creative personalities more aware of the importance of creativity.
Above all, Asein said, the three-month celebration would as well include anti-piracy moves to make it clear that piracy should not have any hold on our society.
Making his remarks, chairman of the occasion, Senator Michael Opeyemi Bamidele postulated that Nigeria has some of the most creative communities, stressing that 30 years of NCC was worthy of commemoration.
Said Bamidele: I will use the instrumentality of the legislature to the creative community to be able to tap into the wealth of the industry for comfort and well-being of their families”.
Unveiling the Anniversary logo, the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Justice and Solicitor General, Mr. Tayo Apata, represented by Mr. Ofulue, congratulated NCC and the creative community for the milestone achievement, maintaining that the Commission had demonstrated a significant commitment to creating a conducive environment for creativity to thrive whilst providing jobs for a good number of our youths who would have been jobless.
In his goodwill message, the Deputy Governor of Akwa-Ibom State and the founding DG of NCC, Mr. Moses Ekpo, while going down memory lane on laying the building blocks for the Commission 30 years ago, expressed worry that in spite of the fact that the Commission’s mandate had been enlarged in the last three decades from being a mere administrative agency to a regulatory cum enforcement outfit with the additional responsibility to prosecute copyright offenders, its funding profile has not improved.
He therefore called on the Federal Government to “to complement its positive gesture Mr. Asein’s appointment by matching words with action in the area of getting the Commission adequately funded for its onerous responsibility”.
