AGN TASK-FORCE AT WORK IN AKWA IBOM STATE

Amb. Sony Ebong takes Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN) mantle of Leadership again in Akwa Ibom State. 

By Prince Uduak Pedro 20/7/2015

Amb. Sony Ebong, the one time State Chairman of Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN) Akwa Ibom State, was recently appointed by the Actors Guild Of Nigeria National President Emeka Ike to lead the guild again in the state. As you might recall few months ago the federal hight court of Nigeria nullified the election that produced Ibinabo Fiberesima as the President of Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN) in 2012. And restated Emeka Ike as the legitimate person to occupied the office of the AGN President.

The state Chairman Amb. Sony Ebong swing into action  yesterday 19th July 2015 leading the newly appointed AGN state task-force on their first operation. According to Amb. Ebong, leading the task-force members to their first operation was to get them acquainted with the task for which they were appointed. The task-force encountered a production team, lead by Director Ezendigbo Asaba, who came in from Asaba, Delta State to shoot in Akwa Ibom State.

NOTICE OF RESIGNATION / PERMANENT WITHDRAWAL OF MEMBERSHIP FROM ACTOR’S GUILD OF NIGERIA.

The Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN) Akwa Ibom State Chapter Chairman Comr. SONY EBONG (AmbP), openly resigned and withdrew his membership from the guild, he wrote as followed;

"Actors Guild of Nigeria, AGN has come to a crossroad where her reason for existence has been helplessly defeated by the present spate of administrative flaws and executive high-handedness by the Ibinabo Fiberesima leads national exco.
My reason for this notice is based on the following reasons:

1.     The present national exco lead by Ibinabo Fiberesima is illegitimate as the election that brought her in was done on phone instead of the usual convergence of delegates to a single congress as stipulated in the constitution of the guild. 

2.     The Ibinabo Fiberesima lead national exco performs such actions which completely suspends the existence or provisions of the constitution of the guild. These actions range from indiscriminate arrest of members without fair hearing (as stipulated in the constitution) to excessive usage of veto powers as evidenced in the random issuance of suspensions, expulsions and even dissolutions of state excos through text messages.

3.     In one of my very honest attempts to broker peace and suggest ways of curbing some of these excesses, I was told by the national secretary that the guild (AGN) belongs to someone and the owner has the right to remove anybody at anytime; a statement that brings me to my next point.

4.     The board of trustees of the organization lacks the federal character. The members of the BOT hail from just 2 geo-political zones, leaving four other zones unrepresented.

5.     It was also brought to our notice that the Ibinabo Fiberesima was charged and convicted for man-slaughter and as such does not have the right to stand for any election in the guild as stipulated in the constitution of the guild. 

6.     That upon resumption of office Ibinabo Fiberesima raised election forms for state chairmen to N150,000; N100,000 for Vice Chairmen against N10,000 and N5,000 for Vice Chairmen respectively. 

7.     The widespread chaos rocking the many AGN states today is as a result of Ibinabo Fiberesima’s unrepentant electoral prejudice which has left her with nothing but an inglorious title of a Tyrant.

To this end, I wish to state that from the day I registered as a member of this guild, I have done everything I can to contribute positively to the growth of this guild. But Today, as a responsible leader, since I have strived to help position the guild on a productive pedestal for the benefit of members nationwide without success due to the unrepentant nature of overzealous national leaders, I therefore write to formally bring to the notice of members of Actors Guild of Nigeria, AGN-Akwa Ibom State Chapter of my regrettable yet firm decision to resign from my position as the State Chairman of Actors Guild of Nigeria, AGN-Akwa Ibom State Chapter and also withdraw my membership of the guild permanently with effect from today.

I thank you for giving me the opportunity to serve you in that capacity.
Signed: Comr. SONY EBONG (AmbP)"

Comr. Sony Ebong (AmbP)

Actor's Guild of Nigeria ( Akwa Ibom state chapter)

Actors’ Guild of Nigeria (AGN) Akwa Ibom State Chapter a.k.a Ibom Nollywood, is a Trade Union established to protect the rights and privileges of all actors in Akwa Ibom State and Nigeria in general. Just as it is with her contemporaries like the Nigerian Medical Association, Nigerian Union of Journalists, and Performing Musicians Association of Nigeria PMAN to mention but a few.
The purpose of this article is to ask Nigerians, corporate affairs commission and actors and all those who care read this article a question. Is it proper for two regulatory bodies to run in the name of protecting actors in Nigeria? We are all aware that two captains can not be in a ship.
Even as this article is not in anyway tailored to put these other organisations out of existence, but it seeks to educate the general public and those running and belonging to those organisations that their operational status can not be classified to be a trade union. If at all the Nigerian corporate affairs commission has registered multiple unions to carry-out the same functions, CAC have done this in error as this will only amount to anarchy. Perhaps that is the reason actors in the Nigeria are being used and dumped all over the country.
Back in Akwa Ibom State, the situation is nothing far from a disaster. Apart from Actors’ Guild of Nigeria in existence, we have two other organisations, Akwa Cross Indigenous Movies Makers Association-ACIMMA and Ibom Actors Forum-IAF, struggling for the souls of actors in the state.
ACIMMA, according to her national president, Mr. Moses Eskor dgn is a conglomerate of all the stakeholders in the movie industry; a statement that makes the organisation more ambiguous in nature. An organisation which claims that actors have limited stake in the movie industry most definitely has no intentions of protecting actors’ rights. These two organisations share the same believes more or less. In the other hand, Ibom Actors Forum being a one man business founded and controlled by an umpire, Mr. Moses Armstrong is very busy trying to confuse our most respected Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly to promulgate a law giving him the powers to enthrone mediocrity permanently in the movie industry in Akwa Ibom State. Let us stop to ask, how was IAF registered in the CAC?
Let us give a little description of the present state of the movie industry in the state. If you come into the field, you will see how the so called indigenous movie productions are made. Their activities is characterised by sexual abuses, starvation, lack of payment of artists’ fees and outright negligence of the economic concept of division of labour and specialisation which is the main reason Akwa Ibom made movies are considered to be substandard and promoting the image of the state in a negative light. In many of our courtesy visits to captains of industries and political leaders, we AGN EXCO AKS where openly told that movies churned out of Akwa Ibom State are nothing but derogatory to the image of the state. We could not agree less as we compared productions handled and control fully by AGN compliant movie practitioners like Emem Isong and others to those one done under the auspices of ACIMMA & IAF in the state.
In the resent past one of the umpires was given the responsibility of coordinating actors for the re-election campaign of His Excellency, Chief (Dr.) Godswill Akpabio CON, at the gate, after he had cleared notable Nollywood stars he invited for the campaign, he sent back Akwa Ibom Based actors who are the main people who voted for His Excellency from the word go. Just as the Nigerian Bar Association is revered by Barristers/Lawyers and Nigerian Medical Association is respected by Doctors and trade unions give allegiance to the Nigerian Labour Congress, Actors, be it English, vernacular, French and tongs should give reverence to Actors’ Guild of Nigeria-AGN.
In America, it is known as Screen Actors Guild of America and nothing more. In my words, the concept of having indigenous movie organisation is an error that occurred when the igbos came into the movie business in 1992. They became aggressive and immediately formed an organisation which is today known as Actors Guild of Nigeria. It did not go down well with other tribes, so they decided to ceased and form tribal movie organisations. Today, we see it to be quite proper. In the bible, people did not see any wrong in turning the house God into a market place. That is why it was like a surprise of their lifetime to see Jesus Christ paranoid over their comfortable market place.
Finally, I humbly pray our digital governor and amiable actor/musician, His Excellency, Chief (Dr.) Godswill Akpabio CON and our very articulate and gentle Speaker of the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. (Elder) Sam Ikon and the general public to investigate these points raised in this article and reconsider their understanding of the workability of the movie industry in Nigeria and Akwa Ibom State. Actors’ Guild of Nigeria is the only union protecting the interest of actors in the state and in Nigeria. He who desires to lead must learn to follow and respect laid dawn rules guiding any organisation, trade or government.
Signed: Sony Ebong (Amb.) State Chairman, Actors’ Guild of Nigeria, (AGN) Akwa Ibom State Chapter. (a.k.a Ibom Nollywood) 08030403922.