How Celebrities Misused Their Positions In Government
Some
years ago, it was unthinkable that a Nigerian artiste would be given
the opportunity to serve in any official capacity in government. In
those days, it did not matter if an artiste had a good educational
background or not. As long as he had chosen to earn his living as
musician or actor over ‘real’ professions, he was regarded as no better
than a dreg of the human society and treated as such.
But over the years, the artist managed to win some respect from the
same people that had despised and treated him like an outcast. Nowadays,
he is at times not only seen as a role model, he is also accepted as an
important member of the society.
Some popular actors and actresses, as well as music stars, have been
privileged to strut the corridors of power with a pronounced swagger.
Within the last few years, a few artistes have been appointed to
strategic positions in government, with most of them coming from
Nollywood.
For some of these people, all that matters is the opportunity to
serve their country or respective states in a different capacity, while
the lure of power and a rare opportunity to line their pockets with
stolen funds might be the driving factor for the others.
But the compelling question is: how well have these ‘privileged’
movie and music stars fared in their appointments? How much have they
impacted on the lives of the same that they have set out to serve?
Perhaps a glance at the profiles of a few, such as Sam Dede, Hilda
Dokubo, Richard Mofe-Damijo, Nkiru Sylvanus, Ejike Asiegbu and Tony
Muonagor, aka Tony One-Week, will provide the answers.
Sam Dede
Sometime in May, 2012, when he was appointed Director General of the
Rivers State Tourism Development Agency, the news was well received
among his numerous fans across the country. Uncle Sam’s colleagues at
the University of Port Hacourt, where he has taught drama for many years
and raised many fellow Thespians to stardom, and the ones in Nollywood
had rejoiced with him. At the time, the general feeling was that the
appointment was well earned.
In an interview published in a national newspaper (not PUNCH), Dede
himself had speedily declared his ‘manifesto’. Among other things, he
had pledged to bring the tourism potentials of Rivers State to
limelight.
The actor had given the assurance that within a few months of his
appointment, there would be changes. Perhaps to prove that he was not
mincing words, he chose the annual carnival, which is a major cultural
and tourism event in the state, as a referent point and promised the
people that the next edition of the event would be an “experience of a
lifetime”.
So far, some observers have expressed the opinion that the seasoned
actor has not done badly in his new appointment, though it might take a
while to fully realise his goals for tourism in Rivers. But there is
still this fear that the trappings of power may lure him to embrace
politics fully. Only time will tell.
Hilda Dokubo
Apart from being a pioneer of what is now
known as the Nigerian movie industry, Hilda Dokubo’s fierce advocacy for
the less privileged and her penchant to stand up against social
injustice is well known among her fans. So when she was named as a
Special Adviser on Youth Matters to former Governor Peter Odili a few
years ago, many people were not surprised.
The job had expectedly taken away the Nollywood diva from her fans
for a while. But within that period, she worked hard to make a
difference in the lives of the youths of the state. One of her notable
achievements was the extension of the perks of the Niger Delta Amnesty
Programme to about 50 women whom she identified as ex-militants.
With support from the Special Adviser to the President on Amnesty
Programme, Kingsley Kuku, the women were made to undergo a 12-month
training and skills acquisition programme at the Centre for Creativity
Arts Education in Port Harcourt. Dokubo is the Director of the Centre.
Richard Mofe-Damijo
Popularly known as RMD, Mofe-Damijo’s
appointment, first as a Special Adviser on Culture and Tourism to
Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State, and later, as Commissioner
for Culture and Tourism, did not come as a surprise to stakeholders in
that sector. Many of them actually felt the appointments were overdue at
the time because he had already distinguished himself as an A-list
actor and an activist committed to the development of the arts, culture
and tourism sector in the state.
One of RMD’s contributions to this sector, even before his admission
to Government House in Asaba, was his brave effort to draw attention to
the flourishing comedy industry in the state. Of course, only a few
people will forget ‘Warri go bow’, an annual carnival-like comedy event
that featured performances by both established and aspiring stand-up
comedians of Delta origin drawn from different parts of the country.
But the actor’s image suffered a serious dent, not too long ago, when
a report published online by a popular Internet portal allegedly named
him as an accomplice in a N50m fraud discovered in the ministry headed
by him.
The allegation went viral on the Internet and an additional rumour
that he was wanted by the EFCC circulated widely. After a long silence.
The actor, however, declared the allegation was untrue.
Nkiru Sylvanus
Ever since Governor Rochas Okorocha
appointed her his Special Adviser on Public Affairs, this pretty and
soft-spoken Nollywood actress seems to have been busy jumping from one
trouble to another. First, shortly after she had settled to her new job,
she was kidnapped and kept incommunicado for a while until she regained
her freedom.
Next, after she was released by the kidnappers, it was rumoured that
she secretly married one Umar Sani, alleged to be an aide to Vice
President Namadi Sambo. But both of them separately denied the rumour.
Since both events have served as distractions to the actress, it is
doubtful if she has had a chance to make any impact in the lives of the
people.
Ejike Asiegbu
Ejike Asiegbu was appointed Special
Assistant on Entertainment to Governor Theodore Orji of Abia State. For
the actor, who had previously served as the President of the Actors
Guild of Nigeria, it was a welcome diversion. With a successful career
that spanned more than two decades, the appointment was seen at the time
as deserving, too.
However, it is not known if his tenure yielded any notable results in
terms of the development of the Abia entertainment industry.
And now, legendary American Hip-Hop group, Salt-N-Pepa are one of them.
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