Guilds in Nollywood have urged the Nigerian Federal Government to retain the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) amid plans to reduce government agencies per the Oronsaye Report.
This call comes after the Secretary to the Government of the Federation directed the immediate dissolution of the NFVCB, aiming to subsume it into a larger ministry without following the legal process required to repeal the law establishing the agency.
The directive has sparked significant reactions from industry stakeholders. The Nigerian Senate has also requested a halt to the board’s dissolution, citing legal breaches.
Nollywood guilds argue that any move to merge, subsume, or scrap the NFVCB would hinder the progress the film industry has made over the past three decades.
Victor Okhai, national president of the Directors Guild of Nigeria and chairman of the Federation of Nollywood Guilds and Associations, emphasized that subsuming the NFVCB into its supervising ministry would be counterproductive, potentially weakening the regulatory framework vital for the industry.
He noted that President Bola Tinubu’s creation of the Ministry of Arts, Culture, and Creative Economy was a positive step, but dismantling the NFVCB would undermine this progress.
Okhai highlighted that the NFVCB’s presence in nearly all states is crucial for filmmakers who need to classify their films without traveling to Abuja.
He argued that the agency’s dissolution would flood the Nigerian market with illicit films and disrupt the current regulatory system.
Blessing Ebigieson, national president of the Association of Movie Producers, supported maintaining a stand-alone film classification agency, noting its alignment with global best practices.
She warned that scrapping or subsuming the NFVCB would impede the film industry’s contribution to the national economy and bring politics into filmmaking.
Ebigieson stressed that the NFVCB plays a vital role in protecting the industry and ensuring that producers do not create illicit movies detrimental to the country’s children.
Both leaders argued that dissolving the NFVCB would jeopardize the regulatory momentum needed for Nigeria’s film industry and disrupt the lives of over 400 staff members.
They called on the government to support the industry by maintaining the regulatory agency, which ensures the sanity and growth of Nollywood.
