The Federal Government has made a significant move to clean up the Nigerian film industry by approving the prohibition of money rituals and the glamorization of it’s vices in films.
This decision, announced by Shaibu Husseini, the Executive Director/CEO of the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB), during a National Stakeholders Engagement on Smoke-Free Nollywood in Enugu, is aimed at stopping the glorification of crimes and enhancing industry standards.
Husseini emphasized the urgency of the situation, calling for Swift actions from parents, guardians, and stakeholders.
He highlighted that the initiative stemmed from a previous proposal to the former Minister of Information, Alhaji Lai Muhammed, to regulate the display of smoking in Nigerian movies, which led to the inclusion of prohibitions on money rituals and ritual killings, among others, to promote a cleaner industry.
The approval by the Minister of Arts, Culture, and the Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa, marks a significant step in this direction, as the regulations aim to ban the portrayal of money rituals, ritual killings, tobacco, tobacco products, nicotine product promotion, and encouragement of crimes in movies, musical videos, and skits. The regulations have been sent to the Federal Ministry of Justice for Gazette.
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He said, “As you all know, the film industry occupies a central position in the entertainment and creative sector, and it is imperative that we continue to place the highest premium on the progress of the film industry. The NFVCB supports smoke-free movies and supports smoke-free Nollywood, and we therefore seek your collaboration to develop creative content that discourages smoking and promotes positive health messages.
After series of engagements, the NFVCB in collaboration with the CAPPA decided to do a ‘subsidiary regulations’ to cater for smoking in movies since this aspect was not expressly spelt out in the extant Law.
The NFVCB is well prepared to take leadership in this regard and has planned and began implementing innovative ways to achieve its mandate.”
Husseini highlighted the negative impact of encouraging
smoking in films, especially on teenagers and young adults, who form the largest segment of Nigerian movie viewers.To address this, the NFVCB plans toconduct extensive awareness programs in schools, communities, faith groups, and other institutions to educate the public about the dangers of such portrayals.
He also emphasized the importance of collaboration to develop creative content that discourages smoking and promotes positive health messages.
The NFVCB, in collaboration with the CAPPA, has initiated subsidiary regulations to regulate smoking in movies, complementing existing laws.
In conclusion, the NFVCB is committed to leading the industry toward a more responsible and health-conscious direction, and it has begun implementing innovative strategies to achieve this goal.
