Ranmilowo Ojalumo
Two book piracy suspects, Mrs Anakwue Josehpine and Mrs Alheri Abba have been arrested by operatives of Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC)
They were arrested during an anti-piracy operation carried out by the commission at the Government Secondary School, Pasali in the Kuje Area Council of Abuja, FCT.
Accrding to a press release issued by Vincent A. Oyefeso, on behalf of the NCC DG and obtained by The Factual, Eighty-three (83) copies of suspected pirated works entitled “The Hollow godsend”, authored by Babatunde B. Suleiman, were confiscated during the raid executed on 9th February 2021.
The antipiracy operation, led by Mr. ChukwuemekaNgene, of the Commission’s Operations Department, was carried out by a combined team of copyright and police operatives, following a complaint lodged by the Daughters Place Publishers.
The suspects, upon arrest, were interrogated and profiled at the Commission’s Headquarters in Abuja. Both suspects have since been granted administrative bail, having made useful statements to aid further investigation.
In his remarks, the Commissions Director of Operations, Mr. Obi Ezeilo reiterated the Commission’s commitment to regular and sustained proactive enforcement of the criminal provisions of the Copyright Act. He assured that this year, the Commission would focus on intensifying its anti-piracy operations across the country with a view to ensuring that right owners were guaranteed return on their investments to strengthen the creative industries as a major sector of the nation’s economy.
The Director cautioned school proprietors and heads of schools on the need to always patronise only legitimate outlets to avoid criminal liability. He also called on publishers and authors to be vigilant and promptly report any suspected case of infraction to the nearest office of the Commission.
The Director commended the publishers of the pirated book for lodging the report and promised that the matter would be diligently investigated and anyone found culpable prosecuted.He urged stakeholders to continue to support the Commission and its renewed antipiracy campaign across the country.
