TODAY, MY BABY SAYS, “I DO” WITHOUT ME!

See how this Coronavirus or Covid 19 has just messed up a year we ushered in with a lot of hope and promise!

I still do not believe that it is actually happening but see what the world has become. When the 1^st of August 2020 was fixed for the wedding of my youngest daughter, Stephanie Chinenye Okoroji to her sweetheart, Samuel Egiafameh in Glenn Dale, a suburb of Maryland, USA, it was meant to be a day like no other. I was practically counting the days, the hours and the minutes.

Madam, the fashionista that she is, raided Balogun market in Lagos to get the best fabrics on show to create for me some eye splitting agbada for the occasion. Ordinarily, I am not an agbada person but the 1^st of August 2020 was scheduled to be a day like no other, a day to dress to finish and I was ready.

As the coronavirus reared its ugly head earlier in the year, we all thought that after a few weeks or at the worst a couple of months, the madness would go away. After all, did Ebola not go away? Did SARS not go away?

Who would have thought that instead of the virus going away, the year 2020 would be washed away? For many months, the Premiership, the NBA, the NFL, the MLS disappeared. Even the Olympic Games, the world's greatest spectacle with billions of dollars invested, was scrapped. Yes, they have recently tried to concoct what looks like the EPL and the NFL to come back. The truth is that I have not been watching. What kind of Premiership is it with no yelling fans in the stadium? It is like tea without sugar, tasteless!

I was so sure that before the 1^st of August, I would find a way to get to America and walk my baby down the aisle in my flowing agbada and do that which every father is proud to do. Those familiar with this column may recall that when Stephanie graduated from the University of Maryland, two years ago, I flew round the world to arrive at her graduation event as it was taking place. She had no idea that I was in the auditorium watching the proceedings until the event ended. When she saw me, it was with disbelief that she screamed, "Daddy!" Oh my God, I was happy.

Who would have thought that the ever busy Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos could be shut down month after month and all the airplanes that fly people from country to country, morning, afternoon and night, would be parked? Who would have believed that those with American passports, the most respected passport in the world, would be banned from entering Europe? How come none of the big prophets and seers that harass all of us on TV saw that the world would be turned upside down in 2020?

I have struggled to make sense out of what is happening. I am stuck in Lagos while my baby girl is taking one of the biggest steps in her life today. I may be lucky to see the event streamed on some video monitor. I have asked my brother Iyke, who lives in Baltimore, to stand in for me.

I guess this is one of those times when you just take whatever life serves you. Please join me in whishing Stephanie and Sam happy wedlock today in Maryland.

See you next week.

THE VANITY OF POWER

On Monday, July 6 2020, Ibrahim Magu woke up, took his bath, knotted one of his many fancy ties and dressed up in his usual western suit and set out on the streets of Abuja, the capital city of Nigeria. If anyone had told him as he was leaving home that someone born of a woman would have the audacity to block his convoy and order him to change his direction, I am almost certain that Ibrahim Magu would have laughed in the person's face and probably told the person that he was drinking a very bad variant of 'ogogoro'.

When Magu woke up that Monday morning, he was one of the most powerful men in Nigeria. Everyone, big or small, trembled at the mention of his name. He could order the arrest of anyone, detain anyone and using the enormous instruments under his control, send anyone to jail. After all, he was the Czar of President Buhari's anti-corruption fight, the fulcrum of Buhari's presidency.

Ibrahim Magu was powerful, so powerful. The Nigerian senate which has the constitutional powers to confirm or reject his appointment as Chairman of EFCC, twice refused to confirm him but it did not matter. Magu became bigger than the constitution and for five years, based on some twisted logic, bestrode the nation as "Acting Chairman" of the EFCC!

On July 6, in a commando style, Ibrahim Magu was waylaid on his way from the EFCC Formella Street office in Abuja, and forced to go to Aso Rock Villa, to face a previously unknown presidential panel set up to investigate Magu's tenure and an alleged massive 'magu-magu' in the EFCC. In a twist of fate, the hunter became the hunted.

Magu who is reported to live in luxury in a house rented in the incredible sum of N40m and furnished with N43m is said to have spent the night of his arrest sleeping on bare chairs at the Louis Edet Police Headquarters in Abuja.   

In the morning of July 6, Magu was a powerful man. In the evening, he was a powerless man. Those who gave Magu the power have taken it.

At the beginning of June 2020, Adams Oshiomhole was one of the most powerful political players in the land. The former governor of Edo State and former President of the Nigerian Labour Congress wielded power with no apologies to anyone. Upon his election as Chairman of the ruling APC, Oshiomhole was reported to have warned a minister of the Federal Republic that if President Buhari will tolerate the minister's indiscretion, he, Adams Oshiomhole will not take the nonsense.  For most people in the APC, the fear of Oshiomhole was the beginning of wisdom.

Uche Nwosu, son-in-law of former governor of Imo State, Rochas Okorocha, will not forget Adams Oshiomhole in a hurry. Together, they danced and made merry at Dan Anyiam Stadium Owerri when Oshiomhole visited Imo State. Nwosu was the crown prince of the Okorocha dynasty, waiting to take over as Governor of Imo State. When push came to shove, Oshiomhole out flanked him, pulled the carpet under his feet and the rest, as they say, is now history.

Adams coordinated the plot that brought Buhari back as President at a time when Atiku Abubakar was seriously flexing his muscles. On every APC campaign stage across Nigeria, Oshiomhole, not the tallest of men, jumped higher than everyone else and spoke louder than everyone else.

In the normal order of things, Adams Oshiomhole, National Chairman of APC would never have considered Stephen Oshawo, Chairman of the APC Etsako Ward 10 in Edo State as a powerful man. But when it was time to cut Adams Oshiomhole to size, the real powers that be did not go to the Supreme Court, they went to Oshiomhole's ward and got his ward Chairman to suspend him.

In the normal order of things, if Adams Oshiomhole was looking behind for who would pull the carpet off his feet, he may have worried about the APC Deputy Chairmen or the Vice Chairman. I doubt that it would have occurred to him that it would be Victor Giadom, an Assistant Secretary of his party that would be used to mess him up so badly.

In the normal order of things, Adams Oshiomhole, the sharp player on the political chess board would never have envisioned that the rules enshrined in the APC constitution would be so badly thrown to the dogs and that an APC National Executive Council Meeting would be held with two days notice at the Aso Rock Villa at the instance of the said Assistant Secretary and the very powerful Adams Oshiomhole would be so emasculated in the public glare. Today, there is no normal order of things in Nigeria. Those who gave Oshiomhole the power, have taken it.

As you read this, Oshiomhole's once political godson, Godwin Obaseki, continues to bestride Edo State as governor and with sharp political horse trading is campaigning as the PDP candidate in the forthcoming governorship election. What platform does the once very powerful Adams Oshiomhole have? I do not know. All I know is that Adams has to warn his driver to make sure that he does not drive on the wrong side of the road in Edo State or run a traffic light in Benin. Things are no longer the same. Adams who used to be the emperor of Edo politics may now be arrested for a simple traffic offence in Benin.

What has happened to the two men mentioned here can happen to any of us whether in the church, the mosque, the market group, a social club, a professional association or even in the family setting. Power is ephemeral and transient. It can disappear in a twinkle of an eye.

In my time, I have met a lot of small men intoxicated by power. They think that the power they wield belongs to them without realizing that the power belongs to the office they occupy, the uniform they wear or the chair they sit on. Many understand power to mean the ability to punish or subjugate others rather than the ability to uplift and put a smile on the faces of as many of God's children as possible. Will we ever understand the vanity of power?

See you next week.

NCC DG, JOHN ASEIN SHOULD ANSWER HIS QUESTIONS AND LEAVE ME ALONE.

Let me make it clear that I do not celebrate the misfortune of anyone. I indeed pray for the success of everyone I know. If I believe that a person is engaged in an enterprise that is to the glory of the Almighty and the service of God's children, he will receive my 100% support. On the other hand, I also believe that it is the sacred duty of every child of God not to let the manifestation of evil triumph even if that evil is not targeted at us directly.

I have been told that Mr. John Asein, the Director-General of the Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) who is currently being investigated with respect to allegations of corruption, conflict of interest and abuse of power, is telling everybody he knows that Chief Tony Okoroji is responsible for his travails and that I have always tried to bring down every DG of the NCC.

Mr. Asein is wrong, very wrong. He knows that I am not responsible for the scandal surrounding him. If he looks in the mirror, he will see the guy responsible. He brought whatever is happening to him to himself. If he is certain that he has done nothing wrong, he should not lose any sleep. He should just answer the questions asked him truthfully and go back to do his work.

Mr. Asein is very wrong to say that I have tried to bring down every DG of the NCC. The boundless Moses Ekpo who is today the Deputy Governor of Akwa Ibom State was the first DG of the NCC. Over the years, I have maintained the warmest of relationships with Mr. Moses Ekpo. I have written in this column how the Deputy Governor once threw protocol to the winds and paid me a surprise visit in the modest hotel I once stayed in Uyo.  On learning that I was visiting his state, he came to visit without any warning. I have maintained a good relationship with Ekpo because as DG, he was creative, energetic and was committed to building a great NCC. Who did we invite to commission the COSON House in 2017? It was the same former DG of the NCC, Moses Frank Ekpo.

Moses Ekpo was succeeded as DG by Dr. Shola Williams who passed on while in office. I maintained a very good relationship with S.O. Williams till his death. After his passing, I developed and promoted the "S.O. Williams Memorial Lecture" series which was held annually to honour the memory of the late NCC DG. The series was held without any cost to the NCC or the Williams family.

S.O. Williams was succeeded for a short while by Mrs. Loretta Njoku who acted in an interim capacity. Mrs. Njoku called me just a few days ago and we chatted about this and that as we do quite often. She has visited me repeatedly at COSON House and we continue to have the warmest of relationships.

Professor Eyinna Nwauche took over as DG of NCC. The down to earth Eyinna Nwauche remains my friend. Presently in South Africa, I speak with him when I can.

I campaigned vigorously for the establishment of the organization called the NCC. To get the government to set up the NCC, I carried placards and led dangerous demonstrations in which I could have lost my life. I was in the committee that drafted the law setting up the important national institution. Our vision was to have a vibrant organization that fights the infringement of the works of Nigeria's musicians, film makers, authors, publishers, content producers, broadcasters, computer programmers, architects, photographers and other creative minds. The NCC was set up to help in launching Nigeria into the mainstream of the world creative and knowledge economy.

I served twice as a member of the Governing Board of the Nigerian Copyright Council (NCC) renamed the Nigerian Copyright Commission. I am presently Chairman of Copyright Society of Nigeria (COSON), the biggest copyright organization in the country. If the NCC does well, the thousands of members of COSON will earn a decent livelihood. If the NCC is badly led, my members pay a heavy price. I am therefore a stakeholder and not a meddlesome interloper in the affairs of the NCC.

I had before seen John Asein as a brilliant Nigerian. When as a young officer at the NCC, he was prematurely retired from service about 14 years ago, I believed that he was treated unjustly and I came fully to his defence. I travelled to Abuja several times at no cost to him to plead his case until the sanctions against him were lifted and he was reabsorbed into the service. When he was appointed DG, I was very happy and congratulated him and prayed for his success.

Unfortunately, one by one, the scandals began to emerge and the great hope I had in the reinvigoration of the NCC simply collapsed.

 

The tragedy in what is happening at the NCC is that while Nigeria's great creative minds are suffering, rather than fight the piracy of Nigeria's creative works for which the organization has been set up, the NCC is embroiled in scandals and lies with a serious leadership vacuum.

Since January 2020 when Mr. Asein was confronted with the serial corrupt activities he is alleged to be involved in, rather than come clean and answer the questions, he has been running around trying to manufacture evidence to cover up his wrong doings. Maybe he does not know that until the questions are satisfactorily answered, they will not go away.

One of the many questions he must answer is this: Did he continue to collect salaries from the Federal Government several months into 2016 after retiring as staff of the NCC on December 31, 2015? If he did, it is bare faced stealing, a criminal offence for which he ought to go to jail. I know that some people will say that the money involved is not in billions. Many Nigerians are presently in jail for much less.

Another question is this: Did he continue to act on behalf of REPRONIG, the CMO for Nigerian authors and publishers and act as sole signatory to the REPRONIG bank account long after assuming office as NCC DG? Has he signed REPRONIG funds in dollars to himself? If he did, it is a bewildering example of conflict of interest and fraud with extensive consequences which might lead to jail time. It is my humble opinion that Mr. Asein's recent claims that he worked for REPRONIG 'pro -bono' is hogwash and his claims raise many new questions.

Mr. Asein has a lot of questions to answer on the controversial NCC/AFD/PUNUKA/KPMG deal on the so-called Diagnostic Study of Collective Management System In Nigeria which questions we have asked repeatedly with no answer. He needs to answer questions on his directorship of a company called Books & Gavel Ltd. He also needs to answer questions on whether he has contravened the Code of Conduct for Public Officers.

Let me repeat that I am not responsible for John Asein's travails. Somebody should tell Mr. Asein that he is not above the law. Like every other public officer, he must be accountable. He should answer his questions and leave me alone.

See you next week.

I DRIVE ON A FULL TANK OF FAITH AND LOVE IS MY ENGINE OIL

I know that during the recent disagreement in COSON of which I am Chairman, some people were sure that their pay day had finally come. "Yes! This man that behaves as if he is beyond destruction has been squashed at last! Let's celebrate!"

As their big guns targeted at COSON and this writer boomed, all the smaller people with one issue or another lined up to fire their own pot shots.

The laughable thing is that a good number of the people who talk about me and beat their chests with so much certainty do not know me. They probably have never spoken to me and know nothing about the issues for which they are losing so much sleep.

They have just inherited other people's hatred, covetousness, jealousy or envy. If their guy does not like me, then, they too must not like me. It does not matter if their guy has told them a big lie. They will join a fight they do not understand and break a head that has done nothing to them Afterall, how do they prove to their guy that they are loyal?

Those who do not know my values talk as if I were them and would think like them or act like them. That's how they justify what they do.

I know one young lady who I truly like because I have always thought she is brilliant and ought to be part of Nigeria's future. A few months ago, she was all over Twitter and Instagram heaping insults on me and telling so many half truths about me. I understand her.

About a year ago, I went to court against her principal who had published blatant lies against me. I went to court because I want her principal to come to court with his facts and establish the truth for the benefit of the young people whom we lead and whom we must not mislead. I understand that she is doing what she is doing in what she considers loyalty to her principal. If I was her principal, she would be saying exactly the opposite of what she is saying now.

In fact, I worked very closely with her principal for over seven and half years and for much of that period, I was a very good man. Now, I disagree with her principal and overnight I have become evil. The truth is that I neither hate her nor her principal. They are just behaving like average Nigerians.

Not long ago, I was asked by a lady journalist what my reaction was to the relentless attack on me. The lady seemed shocked when I said that my real focus is on the work we must do for the progress of the Nigerian creative community.

I have learnt that hatred of anyone is like the coronavirus. It can easily kill! If you hate someone, you will probably find it difficult to breath well, eat well or sleep well at night so I wear a mask against hatred and socially distance myself from anyone whom I suspect will transmit the hatred virus to me. As you nurse the virus called hate, unknown to you, the object of your hate may indeed be snoozing away and living a good life. Who is the loser?

I have trained myself to stay away from hating anyone. We carry too much burden as it is; why do I want to add another heavy burden on my shoulders? There are some of my friends who think that I am too tolerant of people they think have openly betrayed me. I tolerate them because I do not want to hate them. I am not perfect, so rather than hate a man for what he has done, I give him another chance to redeem himself.

When you think of it, a lot of people should be pitied and not hated. When you analyse them, they are driven by ignorance or fear of some sort, lack of self-esteem; religious or tribal bigotry; mental poverty, jealousy or envy, etc.

Because of the passion I express for what I do, I have found myself being the victim of hate by some people who really do not know me. I am aware that there are those who pray all the time that I fail in what I do. The fact that the Almighty has not allowed me to fail drives them even more mad and makes them to even hate the more.

I have met many in Nigeria who are driven by love and the desire to do good for the greatest number. The problem is that some people believe that everyone is like them. They cannot understand how someone can sit down and think of how to better the lives of people he does not know. They believe that when we announce that COSON is distributing millions of naira to thousands of musicians, it is a scam. In their heads, they cannot imagine how anyone can give away millions of naira to people who were not there when the money was made. 'How can someone give away that much money without pocketing some?', they ask.

I find that with such people, no explanation is good enough. No evidence will satisfy them. Crooked people believe that everyone else is crooked. The fact that you are driven by other values than lust for money makes no sense to them. They shoot at you from every corner expecting you to crumble. When you don't crumble, they conclude that you must have a very strong juju man working 24 hours a day for you.

When you are driven by hate, you can never experience true happiness because there is always something new to hate. Every day, I try to create some new and beautiful purpose to keep me busy. I make sure that love and the good of the greatest number are central to what I do each day of my life.

Yes, I drive on a full tank of faith and love is my engine oil.

See you next week.

 

 

WHO IS THIS GODFATHER THAT IS SHIELDING THE NCC DG, JOHN ASEIN, FROM JUSTICE?

I have been reliably informed that Mr. John Ohireime Asein who was appointed Director – General of the Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) in January, 2019 has been openly boasting in Abuja that nobody can touch him despite the well known acts of unmitigated corruption and abuse of office he is alleged to be embroiled in. I am told that he is telling anyone who cares to listen, to forget the rule of law as he has a "solid" godfather who will make sure nothing happens to him!  Who is this almighty godfather who keeps John Asein above the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria?

Like the typical Nigerian public officer caught with both hands in the cookie jar, I know that Mr. Asein may have told his godfathers, friends and family that some people who are jealous of him are after him, maybe because of his good looks, the office he occupies, the state he comes from or his religious affiliation. I have also heard that he has told everyone he meets that Tony Okoroji is determined to take over his office. Believe me, I do not want Asein's job.

I am one of the most defamed Nigerian citizens. I understand the huge pain and consequences of defamation of character. I have had to go to court over and over again to clear my name. I will not write this piece to tarnish the name of an innocent man without evidence and without giving the man a chance to defend himself.

I gave John Asein a chance to defend himself. The fact is that in January this year, I received information that a civil society and anti-corruption group, Peace & Development for Africa Initiative was set to give Mr. Asien an ultimatum to resign his position or face prosecution for corruption and abuse of power. I was surprised because the development was in tandem with independent information which I had.  On January 30, 2020, I went to Abuja where I met Dr. Tonye Clinton Jaja, the Chairman of the NCC Governing Board. I showed Dr Jaja a document with very detailed and disturbing information about the conduct of Mr. Asein, his DG. After reading the document, Dr. Jaja was clearly very worried. He then placed a call inviting his DG to his office. In my presence, the document was handed over to Mr. Asein. As Mr. Asein read the document, I watched him. His hands were shaking. He was stammering. He presented no defence or explanation whatsoever for what he had been accused of.

I told the DG how terribly disappointed I was with him. I had before seen John Asein as a brilliant Nigerian. When as a young officer at the NCC, he was sanctioned in a way I believed was unjust, I came fully to his defence. I travelled to Abuja several times at no cost to him to plead his case until the sanctions against him were lifted. When he was made the NCC DG, I celebrated. I even met with him in Abuja and wished him well.

On January 30, Mr. Asein came to see me in my hotel room at Reiz Continental Abuja, on the evening of the same day we both met his Chairman. I did not see a man repentant or apologetic about what he had done. To me, his main concern was that he had been caught. He did not want the information to become public. He asked what I could do to save him.

Why is the conduct of the NCC DG important to me? Apart from being a Nigerian who wants our nation to work, I was one of the people who campaigned vigorously for the establishment of the NCC. To get the government to set up the institution, I carried placards and led dangerous demonstrations. I was in the committee that drafted the law setting up this important national institution. Our vision was to have a vibrant organization that fights the infringement of Nigeria's creative works and launches the nation into the mainstream of the world creative and knowledge economy.

Unfortunately, the NCC has been inflicted with bad leadership. While Nigeria's great creative minds are suffering, rather than fight the piracy of Nigeria's creative works and other types of copyright infringement for which the organization has been set up, the NCC may have become a den of thieves and the crucible of scams. The interest of the NCC leadership appears to be to grab all "grabbable". What is going on is costing the creative industry and our nation dearly in billions of dollars in lost revenue.

Mr. Asien should stop running around complaining about those he thinks want to take his job. He should stop leaning on his so-called godfathers to save him. He should come clean, face the issues and answer the many questions he has been avoiding.

Did John Ohireime Asein with IPPIS No 101108 continue to collect salaries from the Nigerian Copyright Commission several months into 2016 after retiring as staff of the commission on December 31, 2015? If he did, it is stealing, a criminal offence for which he ought to go to jail. A simple inquiry at the Federal government's Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) should establish whether this allegation is true or made up.

From January 10, 2017 to January 8, 2019, John Asein held the fulltime position of Executive Director of REPRONIG, a CMO for Nigerian authors and publishers regulated by the NCC. Did he continue to act on behalf of REPRONIG and as sole signatory to the REPRONIG UBA account No 2004467988, long after assuming office as NCC DG? Has he signed REPRONIG funds in dollars to himself? If he did, it is a bewildering example of conflict of interest and fraud with extensive consequences which might lead to jail time. Again, a simple review of the bank accounts of REPRONIG should establish whether this allegation is true or fiction.

How much is involved in the controversial deal between the Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC), Agency Francaise De Development (AFD), Punuka Attorneys and KPMG brokered by Mr. John Asein? Who received what in the contentious deal? Which other person in the NCC management or governing board is aware of the details of this transaction?

As a public officer, is John Asein at the same time Director of a private company known as Books & Gavel Ltd contrary to Article 030424 of the Public Service Rules? A check at the CAC can determine that.

There is also the question of whether John Asein has contravened Section 4(1) of the Code of Conduct for Public Officers. Has he been receiving pension as a retired public officer and at the same time receiving remuneration as a serving public officer? Did he declare his assets upon his appointment as DG?

These are just some of the many questions to which clear answers can be provided by Mr. Asein. His staff understand what is going on. Does John Asein have the moral standing to lead his staff or caution them when they do wrong? I am afraid that the NCC today lies comatose.

Asein obviously believes that with his godfather, he does not need to answer the questions begging for him to address. He may be correct to believe that with his godfather he is above the law because details of the alleged transgressions of Mr. Asein have for some time been with some government agencies whose hands appear to have been tied, making them unable to do what they ought to do. Who is tying the hands of these agencies?

We have come to the time when as a nation we must decide whether to fight corruption or to keep our mouths shut. Is President Buhari's anti-corruption war just a talking point? Who is this big godfather of John Ohireimi Asien that has made him above the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria?

See you next week.

THANK YOU UBI FRANKLIN

Last Tuesday, I got a call from Ubi Franklin who runs the record label, Made Men Music Group and is now an Adviser on Tourism to the Cross River State Governor. I am always happy to share time with anyone connected with the music industry. Besides, I am a great fan of Iyanya whom Ubi had worked with to achieve considerable success. I had some banter on the phone with Ubi.

The very sweet talking Ubi Franklin invited me to participate in his Music Business Conversation on Instagram Live holding the following day, Wednesday.

Ubi made very good effort to wear a face mask on his invitation. He probably did not know that I was laughing because I immediately recognized the ploy. I knew the first minute that the invitation was another gimmick orchestrated by the same group who three years ago failed very woefully in the execution of their coup plot to hijack COSON House and to turn COSON into their private ATM machine. COSON is the great national institution we have built to protect the interest of thousands of people from every nook and cranny of Nigeria who have invested their talents and resources in the Nigerian music industry. I am proud of COSON.

Last year, a similar stunt was rolled out before me. I was invited to a program hosted by my good friend, Soni Irabor on LTV. Meanwhile, the head coup plotter had been planted to ambush me with some 'embarrassing' questions. It was utterly hilarious!

As soon as Ubi dropped, I called my good friend and lawyer, Mr. James Ononiwu. I told him what had happened and he would not stop laughing. I assured him that I was going to join Ubi on Instagram Live and enjoy their game. We both agreed that Ubi would have been fed with every question which my adversaries believe would 'trap' me and that the head coup plotter, desperate as he is, would once again be hiding somewhere in the wings to coordinate the lynching,  

I have absolutely nothing to hide and so I was ready for the guys and their hired gangs who for close to three years have manufactured, concocted, cooked up and  spread every kind of fiction and falsehood to smear me, lynch my reputation and drive me away from COSON which they believe they can take over for themselves; an organization we built for all.

Anyone who watched Ubi's show on Wednesday evening would give him great credit for playing the very difficult role assigned to him. Despite his almost virtuoso performance, it was clear that the screen play was very badly put together. A lot of the "facts' fed to Ubi was trash which could easily have been checked out. On Ubi's show it was easy to understand the wrong foundations of the misadventure of the COSON coupists.

The biggest mistake very clear in Ubi's narrative is that a few people living in Lagos have misled themselves into believing that they own the Nigerian music industry! When they get together, share a drink and say anything, they believe that it must become law. This group has very deep contempt for democracy and the thousands of Nigerians in the music industry across the country. They clearly do not understand the rule of law.

Ubi wrongly assumed that I became PMAN President at 24 and remained PMAN President for a period of more than 20 years. The fact is that I became PMAN President in 1987 at the age of 29. I was President of PMAN until 1993. I served in the position for a period of six years.

Ubi does not think much of the COSON Board elected by the members of COSON. He thinks that we are digital illiterates. I am not sure that Ubi does more Instagram Live than Koffi Idowu Nuel who is a key member of the COSON Board.

I don't know why Ubi would think that COSON lied that we distributed millions of naira to cushion the suffering of musicians during the coronavirus lockdown.  The fact is that the money was not paid to anyone in cash but through bank transfers. There is a record of the thousands of musicians in practically every state in Nigeria who received the COSON anti coronavirus distribution.

Those who have no honour believe that no one has any honour. Those who never tell the truth believe that everyone is a liar. The habitual fraudsters will tell you that everyone is a fraudster. They are wrong.

In the building of the copyright system in Nigeria, I have never told anybody a lie. I have carried placards many times and led very risky demonstrations many-many times against many powerful people. In the defence and promotion of the music industry in Nigeria, I have been to courts across the country more times than many litigation lawyers and witnessed against top corporations, governments and individuals time and time again. I have gone many-many days without sleep, travelled lonely roads at dangerous hours, written opinion articles, delivered lectures, organized myriad conferences, seminars and workshops. Anyone who thinks that I have risked my life these many times because of money must be mad.

Over and over again, people have gathered to hatch all kinds of conspiracies against me. Each of them has failed. They have lied and lied about me and have begun to believe their lies. They have shot at me with every weapon they can find. When in 2017, the coup at COSON House, was hatched against me, I had come the day before from Cross Rivers State, Ubi Franklin's home state, where I had gone and won damages to the tune of half a billion naira for the music industry. The coup was executed in broad daylight. Twelve days later, the coup failed in broad daylight.

They have reported me to the EFCC for something that has absolutely nothing to do with me. After a few months, the matter died like over ripe dodo. Men of SARS armed to the teeth were organized to come from Abuja to over-run COSON House and hand over the magnificent building to them. In less than an hour, the good Lord dispersed the SARS team and they went back to Abuja.

Last year, the Police CID in Abuja was programmed to arrest me and parade me as a common criminal for stealing the huge amount of N60 Million! The senior police officer who called to summon me to Abuja later called to apologize to me and reported that an attempt had been made to use them to do injustice.

The same group conspired and ensured that criminal charges were filed against me so that I would be sent to jail. They announced it on radio and TV. A good judge saw through the gambit and I was never even docked.

They have hired people who do nothing else but publish inciting and defamatory matters against me every day. The guy who leads this onslaught purports to sit on a pedestal which I worked hard to make famous. Practically every power of a government agency which I helped to found has been thrown at me as they misinterpret laws which I helped to write.

They connived and shut down the bank accounts of COSON believing that such would grind us to a halt. When their gambit failed, they composed a new song called "Forensic Audit" which they sing all over the place to tarnish our image.

I have gone to court and ed that they bring evidence and call witnesses to substantiate their weird accusations. Lo and behold, they have no defence! They have been blowing hot air all the time.

Atiku Abubakar contested the Nigerian presidency last year. It was declared that he lost. He disagreed and went to court and tried his best to wrestle with Buhari. After spending several billions of Naira, he has allowed the matter to rest. For my guys, three years after, they remain desperate to get control of COSON or they would destroy it and bury Okoroji. With tears in my eyes I promised members of COSON that no one will be allowed to hijack COSON. My promise is a covenant.

I have no doubt that any time from now the greed that drives these guys will catch up with them. They will all lose and lose badly. Thank you, Ubi Franklin for exposing them. I enjoyed the treat on Wednesday.

See you next week.

DOES ANYBODY HAVE THE COURAGE TO DO WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE AT THE NDDC?!

With the brouhaha going on in Minneapolis and the riots across America over the shocking murder of a black man named George Floyd by some rogue white police officers, it is so easy not to focus on what is happening at home.  Or is it that nothing shocks us anymore?

I have been incredibly traumatized at the crazy news coming out during the week from the NDDC. It is most frightening. There are now allegations that a very senior official of the commission may have been murdered to cover up the stench and sleaze in the place. How can?

The voraciousness of the greed that seems to have gripped our countrymen cannot be explained. Everybody knows that there is serious corruption in Nigeria but this is no longer corruption. This is brazen daylight robbery never seen anywhere before. The schemes involved! The amount being revealed, in the midst of so much poverty?! I am dazed at the extent to which some people have taken the worship of money and I ask: What do these people need all this money for? Do they expect to live forever?

For the Nigerian nation to have any chance of survival, the NDDC matter must be dealt with in a different manner. The interests and money involved are so much that the usual processes will not do. Does anybody have the courage to do what needs to be done?

See you next week.

YOU WANT TO BE RICH? PLEASE DON’T SET UP A CMO!

This week, on the 20^th of May 2020, we celebrated the 10^th anniversary of the official take-off of the operations of COSON which has become Nigeria's must successful and most admired copyright Collective Management Organization (CMO).

On the same 20^th of May, we marked the 3^rd anniversary of the commissioning of the COSON House in Ikeja which continues to sparkle and which my communications team does not talk about without prefixing with the adjective, "magnificent".

Yes, we always wish to remind everyone that there is not one Naira of government money in the acquisition and construction of the "magnificent COSON House", no donor dollar or pound came from anywhere and that we acquired, built and equipped COSON House with no bank loan and no debt of any type. The sparkling national green colour of COSON House tends to suggest to some people that it is federal government property. No! COSON has never received any type of money from the government.

Fired up by our exhilarating slogan, "let the music pay!", COSON has in its ten years of operation, distributed hundreds of millions of Naira as royalties to its members and affiliates. Just recently in April 2020, even with the major bank accounts of COSON frozen and the issues in court, COSON in a responsive and responsible manner reacted to the suffering of its thousands of members across the country under the pressure of the COVID 19 lockdown. The society became the first Nigerian institution to provide anti Coronavirus palliatives to its members at a time of great need. At first, =N=50 million was approved by the COSON Board for this purpose. An additional =N=22.5 million was later approved. The distribution has been done in a very structured, professional and transparent manner which has been widely celebrated by members of COSON and others.

You know what? Now, everybody wants to set up a CMO! In the typical Nigerian fashion, all the people who want to make quick money think that they can replicate COSON. They want to turn the very complex system of collective management of copyright into their new "pure water" business in which everyone has his own cheap cellophane designs littering the streets.

Not too long ago, I was President of PMAN. With a driven team, clear vision and never-say-die passion, I worked 25 hours every day, eight days a week, to make PMAN a glorious national brand. Everyone across the world, from the President of the Federal Republic, governors, ambassadors and stars of all colours wanted to associate and rub shoulders with PMAN. PMAN became a much-admired name and the toast of the nation. And the dam broke!

Every musician in Nigeria who could afford a tokunbo SUV began to see himself as President of PMAN. To be PMAN President became the burning ambition of a lot. At some point, there were four people simultaneously calling themselves PMAN President! With all due respect, none of them understood the vision or the mission. PMAN is a registered trade union but none of the 'Presidents' had ever read the Trade Union Act or even the PMAN constitution. We all can see where it has led PMAN.

In my service to the creative industry in our nation, I have always been driven by those almost forgotten words, "together we stand, divided we fall". The strength of PMAN came from the bringing together of diverse people across Nigeria to share in one vision. I toured nearly every nook and cranny of Nigeria to make that possible. It required an incredible amount of work, loads and loads of battles and heaps and heaps of personal sacrifice. Everywhere, I had to know what I was talking about. So, I had to study everyday and study very hard. Take it from me, there is nothing worse than an ignorant leader.

Either as President of PMAN or Chairman of COSON, I have never gone into a meeting or discussions without first getting a good grasp of the relevant laws, the rules, the issues, the statistics or the trends. I believe that every great leader must remain a student through his tenure with the appetite to learn as much as possible. I wish to repeat that there is nothing worse than an ignorant leader.

I have repeatedly told people that you can never become rich by doing the kind of work that I do. What drives you must be the genuine love of people and not the love of self. You can never build a great trade union or an outstanding CMO if you are driven by self interest or the interest of you and your handful of friends. When you lead a CMO, you work for others and not for self.

I see all the people positioning themselves to launch new CMOs in Nigeria and ask myself whether they truly understand what it takes to make a CMO work. Do they know how many years of study, work and patience it has taken COSON to be where it is? Do they have the requisite technical knowledge? Do they know how many court cases that litter the road COSON has had to travel? Do they think that there is anyone out there with bags of money waiting to give to them just upon their asking? Do they think that there would be no new arguments, quarrels or disagreements within whatever contraptions they have in mind?

I look around and I see all the people who not long ago thought they would become super rich by becoming PMAN President and I ask, "how did it pan out guys?"

That is why I say that setting up a CMO is not pure water business. If you want to be rich?... Please, don't set up a CMO!

See you next week.

MY FRIEND, PROF EGERTON UVIEGHARA IS 84!

Professor Egerton Uvieghara, outstanding intellectual, retired erudite Professor of Law at the University of Lagos, former Chairman of the Governing Board of the Nigerian Copyright Commission, former Commissioner at the Nigerian Law Reform Commission, detribalized Nigerian and man of great character and unquestionable integrity, celebrates his 84^th birthday today.

In January 2020, I made a promise to Prof Uvieghara who played a frontline role at the commissioning of what is now referred to as the "magnificent" COSON House in Ikeja. I told him that on the 9^th day of May 2020, which is today, I would host a significant red-carpet birthday bash in his honour at COSON House to thank him for his indelible gift to the Nigerian creative community.

I had started conceptualizing the event. I had started making plans for what I had hoped would be a talk-of-the city occasion. OMG! COVID 19 came from wherever to scatter the world and make nonsense of our plans.   

If you know Professor Egerton Uvieghara well, you might be offended and ask who gave me the audacity to refer to him as my friend. I will not be surprised if somebody even accuses me of name dropping.

Before you get angry, let me say that I did not on my own decide to call this extra-ordinary Nigerian my friend. His repeated and consistent behavior towards me which has lasted decades assures me that Prof will take no offence with my reference to him as my friend.

Prof Uvieghara is one Nigerian who has fully supported the work that I do and understands my dream for the Nigerian creative family and shares the value of giving one's all to what one believes in.

When I became President of PMAN at the age of 29, I had announced that the struggle for a more meaningful copyright regime in Nigeria would be the work of my life and so began a campaign driven by all the passion I could muster.

I had just turned thirty when I met Professor Uvieghara at what used to be called Durbar Hotel in Lagos during a massive copyright seminar floated by the Federal Government following the agitation which I led. Prof Uvieghara was a key resource person at the seminar at which I presented a paper. After the seminar, a committee was set up to draft a new copyright law for the country. Prof Uvieghara was chairman of the committee in which I served with the late great Professor Vincent Chukwuemeka Ike as rapporteur. For weeks, we were locked down at Durbar Hotel as we argued about every 'is' and 'was' and crafted what ultimately became the Nigerian Copyright Law. During that lock down, a relationship developed.

When the Nigerian Copyright Council, as it then was called, was set up, Prof Uvieghara was appointed first Chairman of the Governing Board. I was also appointed to the board as was the late Prof. Chukwuemeka Ike.  It was decided that a first amendment needed to be made to the Copyright Law, Prof Uvieghara and myself were given the marching order by the NCC Board to draft the amendment. Once again, we were locked down, this time at Gateway Hotel Otta with one Bayo Ayegbusi, a member of staff of the commission as our secretary. As we argued and worked on the document, what once was admiration became a friendship. The story of how I ended up as Prof. Uvieghara's student at the University of Lagos is one I will tell some other day.

When I finished the manuscript of my book, "Copyright & the New Millionaires", I took it to Prof Uvieghara to edit. After several weeks, he told me that he had read the manuscript several times over and did not find the need to add a coma or a full stop. Prof. Uvieghara wrote an exhilarating forward to the book.

Two weeks ago, in Saturday Breakfast, I wrote that Nigeria's Foreign Affairs Minister, Geoffrey Onyeama is in the list of my ten favorite Nigerians. Prof Egerton E. Uvieghara who has positively touched the lives of so many Nigerians, is firmly in that list.

I recall when I hosted the Hon. Minister of Information & Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed at the "magnificent" COSON House in 2017. Prof Uvieghara also arrived for the reception in honour of the minister. I then sought to introduce the Prof to the Minister and the Minister rebuked me with the words, "the gentleman you are trying to introduce to me was my teacher at the University of Lagos" At the event, I found out that Prof Uvieghara also taught Prof Yemi Osinbajo, Nigeria's Vice President, at the University of Lagos. This incredibly unassuming Nigerian has taught many senior advocates, many professors, many judges of courts across the country including judges of the Supreme Court. Some of his students include the late Supreme Court Justice Niki Tobi and Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun currently at the Supreme Court. In fact, if you are an outstanding Nigerian lawyer, chances are that you have been taught by Prof. Egerton Uvieghara or by someone taught by Prof. Uvieghara.

Prof. Egerton Uvieghara is not just the nation's foremost expert in Copyright Law, he is the doyen of Labour law in Nigeria. In fact, he is the author of the book titled "Labour Law in Nigeria" which has been read by every serious legal professional, academic and law student in Nigeria and which book defines the sensitive relationships between employers, employees and trade union officials. It is also safe to say that a lot of statutes in Nigeria will not be what they are today without the special imprint of the great Egerton Uvieghara.

At 84 years old this unmatched Nigerian still drives himself in the mad traffic of Lagos, still goes to the market and cooks his meals. If you think that is because he cannot afford a driver or a cook, you are wrong. Maybe, he is too frugal? There also you are wrong because Prof. Uvieghara remains a jolly good fellow who loves the good life and his glass of wine and a lot of laughter. His lifestyle defines the simplicity of a completely satisfied man who does not envy anyone and wants nothing from anyone and does not need any attachment to impress anyone or to make him feel like a big man as defined by many Nigerians. While I pop a pill now and again, I have never heard 'Prof' complain of any kind of illness. Every day I learn something new from this extra-ordinary Nigerian who continues to be my teacher.  

Professor Egerton Uvieghara read law at the London School of Economics (LSE) and was called to the Bar in 1964. Two years later, he joined the University of Lagos as a law teacher specializing in Labour Law, Commercial Transactions and Copyright.

Do me a favour everyone. Let's shame coronavirus. Wherever you are, please raise a toast today to this truly outstanding Nigerian, my teacher and my friend, the great Professor Egerton Uvieghara. As you do so, may God bless you with old age and good health as he has blessed Prof. Egerton Uvieghara.

See you next week.

THANK YOU, FATHER FOR PUTTING ME TO WORK

I am an unbelievably lucky guy and I thank the Almighty for the incredible protection he has given me in many trying circumstances and under conditions that would have broken many men. For a guy who goes to church only once in a while, it is in every way a miracle!

Believe me, I have repeatedly seen the treachery and betrayal of men and how people rationalize the nonsense they do. If you are not careful, you will tend to believe that there is no good man left in the world anymore and there is no reason to do good to anyone.

Then you have the experience I have had in this most trying period of the coronavirus pandemic and you realize how wrong you are.

I have written before that I was a key founding father of PMRS, the major organization that gave birth to COSON. I did much of the technical work at PMRS and could easily have become the first Chairman of PMRS if I wanted to. The first Chairperson of PMRS was not Tony Okoroji but Erelu Keji Okunowo, a beautiful lady who used to be MD of Sony Music in Nigeria. I supported her the best I could. I did not become Chairman after Okunowo. The late Christy Essien Igbokwe took over from Chief Okunowo. I also supported Christy the best I could.

When I succeeded Mrs. Igbokwe, it was clear to me that there was just too much talk in PMRS and too little action; too much planning and too little execution. In many creative industry organizations in Africa, people just squabble and squabble without producing any enduring results. I concluded that if we were to build a copyright organization that will be exemplary and stand the text of time, the driving force would be execution.

There are people who complain that I am 'Executive Chairman' at COSON. The truth is that when everyone else leaves the boardroom, I stay back to intensely review with management the decisions made by the board and determine how to give them feet to walk and wings to fly. I simply do not believe in talk without action. People often ask me: what is the secret of the success of COSON? If I had to answer in one word, the word would be 'execution'.

I do not consider my position as Chairman to be to sit and beautify a chair or to wear 'agbada' at big occasions and make meaningless speeches. I am the team leader. My job is to make sure that work is going on and we are executing to the benefit of our members. I am the general in front of the army and not behind. I do not ask others to work while I drink pepper soup. If need be, I get the work done. I go to court almost every other day to defend the interest of the members of COSON.

Take it from me: most people do not say what they mean. You have to read their lips. Some will tell you that Okoroji is "Executive Chairman" and is doing everything himself. Next minute, the same people will tell you that Okoroji did nothing, "we are the ones who did all the work"!

I have seen people sit in the boardroom of the beautiful COSON House with the cool air conditioner blowing them from above and a choice of tea, coffee or some other drink available to them and beat their chests at what COSON has achieved and in the same vain complain about me. They will tell you that they don't like the style that led to the achievement of the success they celebrate. You then ask yourself, "what do they really want: process or product, style or success?" 

In the last six weeks it has been reconfirmed to me that real people want products and not process. I was given reasons upon reasons why the Anti-Coronavirus relief royalty distribution undertaken by COSON could not be done. I was told to ignore the intense suffering of members of COSON across Nigeria until after the lockdown because the banks were not fully working and that the distribution could not take place. I was told to be a hostage to process even if some COSON members ended up dying of starvation. I said "No!"

One afternoon, during the lockdown, without notice, I arrived at the home of a senior official of the bank that eventually helped us set up the distribution portal through which we have been able to send money to thousands of COSON members across the country to cushion the COVID 19 hardship. The bank official was surprised and nearly refused to come to the gate to see me. I made it clear to him that many of my members were going through hell and that I would not leave the gate of his residence until he came down to attend to me. He eventually came down. I explained the situation to him and persuaded him to join me in the car and together we drove to a branch of his bank that was not attending to the public but at which we obtained the paperwork without which we could not have set up the platform.

I hope that one day I will be able to tell the full story of the many obstacles and resistance I encountered on the way to making COSON members receive the "half bread" that may have helped many manage what was an unmanageable situation. I have been informed that a few other institutions have been inspired by what has happened at COSON and have adopted the COSON model.   

My understanding of leadership is the ability to make a positive difference in the lives of the people you lead. Everything else is a scam. Leadership is not about the titles you adorn. It is not about the car you drive or the privileges you claim. Leadership is not a risk-free undertaking. It is about giving and not taking.

During the lockdown, I did several things that may be considered very risky or even suicidal. My take is that if you call yourself a leader and you are not willing to sacrifice yourself for the people you say you lead, then you are a joke. The job of a leader is to do good to as many people as possible. He always looks for a way to make the impossible possible and turn a No into a Yes.

I thank the members of the COSON Board who have the power and could easily have banged the door on my 'crazy' ideas. I thank Sir Shina Peters, Honourable John Udegbunam, Bright Chimezie, Maureen Ejezie,, Eng Sharon Esco Wilson, Richard Cole, Uche Emeka Paul  Koffi Idowu Nuel and Kenny Saint Brown. Maybe you folks do not know it but you just redefined leadership in the Nigerian creative industry. You have made history.

During the lockdown, I spoke with hundreds of COSON members on the phone. There was the serious money problem but there was also the problem of hopes dashed, plans scuttled, projections destroyed and a future blowing in the wind. In most cases, it became my duty to lift the spirit of many a downcast family. Sometimes, we prayed together on the phone, sang together or joked together but I never left anyone without a feeling that they were lifted.

Once, with tears in my eyes, I pledged to COSON members that I will never let them down. Thank you, Father, for putting me to work. Hallowed be Thy name!

See you next week.