Emeka Ike

The last seems not to have been heard of the AGN crises, if information at our disposal is anything to go by weeks back, the Board of Trustees of the guild reached a conclusion to find a lasting solution to the lingering crisis that is gradually crippling the industry.

Prince Ifeanyi Dike, the chairman BOT in a statement to us confirmed that the leadership of the BOT has decided to form a government of National Unity in which all the warring factors in the guild will be brought together under the same umbrella.
In his words “I am glad to tell you all factions have come together to form a government of national unity… we have people from both factions serving in this executive, we believe it is time to make some peace reign in the guild as the members of the board… the government covers all geo-political zones… Emeka Ike is the Vice President, Sough East, Mr. Steve Ebo, North Central and other zones as well have their own vice presidents too… it cannot be said that the guild is an Ibo thing now as everybody is involved”.

Prince Ifeanyi Dike also informed that the decision was taken in conjunctions with the state chairmen of the guild, who petitioned the BOT to settle the crisis. The present government according to him will be there for two years by which time everything would have been put in place.

However, in another twist to the issue, Emeka Ike recently rubbished the government of National Unity, he said Segun Arinze and the BOT are jokers, insisting AGN election will hold come 7, December. He also claimed that all 30 state chairmen are fully behind the election, challenging Segun Arinze to produce his certificate to recently show he’s fit to contest the election. At the same time stating that the constitution cannot be set beside.
Though Kanayo O. Kanayo could not be reached as he’s at the moment writing his masters degree exams, there seems to still be more than enough to the crisis facing the guilty

THE RE-BRAND NIGERIA PROJECT WAS MEANT TO FAIL
This smooth actor is the chairman of Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), Lagos State chapter; he’s an actor who has for sometime now been into producing and directing. Ernest Obi, in this interview spoke about the AGN, his career and the impact of government on the movie industry. Excerpts…

You have not been regular in movie for sometime now, what have you been doing?
For like 10 years, I’ve been fully into producing and directing. And when necessary, I act, that is when I see very good script that is challenging. I am not keen on playing the lead character; it may just be four to five scenes. For two years now I have been engrossed with the job of running the Actors Guilds of Nigeria, the Lagos State Chapter. I still find time to direct and produce.

What is your take on the Government of national Unity formed by the BOT of AGN to the crisis?
Let me start by saying there is no association or guild or body that has not passed through a period like this, nobody is perfect. The council of chairman sat some weeks ago, that is the chairman of the state chapters of the guild, we had about 20 in attendance and we reached an agreement that the crisis all this while should go. I believed that is what gave birth to their government of national unity. As at today, I still spoke with members of the BOT, and I know they are still working on things.

One of the supposed members of the government that is being proposed by the BOT, Emeka Ike, insisted that the KOK election that is scheduled for December 7, 2009 will still hold, what will you say about this development?
Firstly, we should realize that what we say or do might affect anyone positively or negatively. Based on the resolution of the council of chairmen given to the board of trustees, a conclusive solution is to be footed among all the aggrieved parties.

Let’s talk about what you’re doing now, which job up till date is the most taxing that you have done?
All my jobs are taxing, because it is not just about shooting a movie, it is not about producing or directing a movie, it is about my name. I have been able to carve a niche for myself. I have been around for over 15 years in the movie sure I don’t have a bad movie, and that is why I use the same power into any job I do.

How would you rate the movie industry?
We are doing the impossibilities and it’s even getting worse, because there’s no money. This no money song has been going on for sometime now and it’s not going to stop. I can tell you that the budget of movie 10 years ago was N2million depending on the film. I know some people who budget N15million and that is with the backing of people like Charles Nsiegbe, a budget of a movie I shot recently in Port Harcourt, now a former commissioner because he was assassinated weeks back. Thanks to people like this who believe in the industry not because of how much they want to make, but because they want to make a difference.

What would you say to the issue of cable stations showing movies without paying the actors?
Blame the government who fails to come up with an enabling law that will protect people’s intellectual properties. Just because somebody paid me to feature in a movie that does not give him right to do whatever he likes with the movie without recourse to the person who put in the contest, and he feels like years later you can cut the film and use it for anything you like without reaching me. And for this same reason, one producer could be approached and because they gave him a 1,000 dollars, he can do and undo with the movie and the right of the problem of the cable company; they are business men and are there to make money. There must be a “mugun” for scam to take place, that only means fraud and our government is not helping us, it means that there must an enabling law.

Prof. Dora Akunyill criticized the industry for not supporting the Nigeria rebirth stuff, what is your take on this?
Let me use this word, I love her, but that does not mean I should agree with everything she says. I totally disagree with her. With the last dinner or lunch which we had with her, we were told categorically that N100 million was set aside for the project, I beg to be corrected if I must quote her. The N100 million for re-branding Nigeria was the reason I said that the re-branding Nigeria Project was a project that was designed to fail. N100 million is not even enough for film makers to shoot films to re-brand Nigeria. Take America for example, it is either you see an American sticker, flag or somebody will mention the country in the movie, but why would I want to mention Nigeria. There are so many things going wrong; if I’m not terrorized by armed robbers, it will be area-boys and the rest, so why would I say the government is doing well? I shoot my movie with no assistance and somebody at the censorship board that knows nothing about movies will sit down and tell me, I don’t like this, expunge, expunge, expunge and after all, people will be unable to watch it because there is not light and because they can’t afford to fuel their generators because they have no money. Tell me, how do you help professor to brand this Nigeria? We just believe Nigeria exists, the country exists in the minds of the people not in the physical, so they have give up on Nigeria. I will not re-brand Nigeria with my money.

If you have five minutes more to live, what will you do?
I will take my woman, lock myself and her up in the room and tell her how much I love her, and I am sure she will tell the whole world about me because I don’t want the mistake I’ve made to supersede good things I have done, I don’t want to be forgotten.

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