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Democracy activist in love with Nigerian movies
Ugonoh... democracy activist in love with Nigerian movies
Project
By Justin Akpovi-Esade
THE dark handsome man, in his early thirties, looked cool as he welcomed the guest that mid morning at his Maryland, Lagos home.
Dressed in a pair of jean trousers, Mr. Saidu Nda Ugonoh did not cut a picture of someone who may want to have anything to do with the Nigerian home video sector. But the mission of the democracy activist and president of Freedom And Democracy In Nigeria, (FADIN) a Non Governmental Organisation (NGO) in the United States of America, in Nigeria recently, among others was to explore an avenue for collaboration between his organisation and the sector, that will help move it forward.
What aroused Ugonohs interest are the abundant talents that abound in the industry. He is particularly interested in star actress Genevieve Nnaji. "With her talents, her versatility and all, she belongs to Hollywood where things are happening," he submitted.
So, the long wait for Genevieve did not bother Ugonoh who was supposed to travel back to the States that day (Friday, February 20). It did bother the visitor anyway. "She (Genevieve) just called, she said she is on her way to Lagos from Enugu. She has been on location shooting a movie in Enugu. I guess we have to wait for her a little," the Etsako, Edo State native with a noticeable American accent announced to the now tired visitor.
The long wait for the actress lasted for about five hours. Finally, at Genevieves office at Ikoyi, Ugonoh met for the first time the "actress I have been seeing on screen for a long time."
"My intention here today is genuine, it is borne out of the desire to help you get to Hollywood, help the film industry in Nigeria grow, that is why I came in the first place. I have been in the country for three weeks now."
Why Genevieve? "I have read about her background, seen how talented she is and I want to see that she makes it to Hollywood. At FADIN, we recognise talents and support them in anyway possible. I am based in the States and I see people from other countries, artistes I mean, that are not as talented as Nigerian artistes, making a hit in Hollywood. They come from everywhere, Mexico, Japan, Indian, China, small actors and actresses, and they make it in Hollywood. But our Nigerian artistes that are so talented, so gifted are not seen in Hollywood. So, I am going to use my contacts in Hollywood to see that she (Genevieve) features in Hollywood movies and from there we will fashion ways to assist the movie industry to drop the home video idea and work on cine medium."
Unlike most Nigerians, especially from outside the country, that would always see a fault in local movies, Ugonoh said Nigerian movies are "excellent. I am proud of them. There has been an improvement as against the last 15 years that I was resident here. It is very popular among Nigerians in the U S. I am really proud. They (movies) are telling our own stories. This is the right time for government, corporate organisations and individuals to invest in the industry because our films are doing a whole lot of good for our image abroad. I watch Nigerian movies a lot in the U. S., that is how I get closer to home. Now that we can get Africa Independent Television (AIT) signals in U S, we enjoy our films on regular basis. Also, I have over 150 copies of Nigerian movies."
He named Genevieves movies such as Ijele, Private Sin, Sharon in Abuja, Blood Sister and Last Weekend as among the ones he has in his collection. "She is a wonderful actress that nobody can ignore, not even in the U S. the way she interprets her lines, her carriage, everything about her is just wonderful. She will not disappoint in Hollywood if she eventually gets there," adding that he would likely invest in the sector called Nollywood.
One of the areas that would be an investors delight according to Ugonoh, is a "Nigerian theatre. We have Mexican, Japanese, Indian, Chinese theatres in U S. If a Nigerian theatre, where our movies would be screened on regular basis is established, it would not lack patrons because our films are very popular.
Ugonoh however, lamented the poor remuneration of artistes in the movie industry. "Producers should endeavour to pay actors and actresses well, they are the vein of these films we get to see," he submitted.
He presented gift items to the actress with some documents. The letter signed by the chief executive/chairman of FADIN read "... I wish to commend you on your professional acting. I encourage you to keep up the good work in the movie industry and wish you great success. I look forward to working closely with you both at home and abroad."
In her response, Genevieve expressed gratitude to the democracy activist for the interest he has shown on her. "I am happy that somebody is taking notice of what I do here in Nigeria. That is enough encouragement for me to continue to excel in my chosen career. I am really happy."
Saidu Ugonoh left the shores of the country in 1989 to India for further studies. He relocated to the U S in 1990 where he formed his NGO, FADIN in April 1993. This was during the era of the late military leader, Gen. Sanni Abacha. "Since then, FADIN has been in the limelight, championing the cause of democracy in the world especially in Nigeria."
The democracy advocacy group was very active as international observers during the general elections in 1999 that saw Chief Olusegun Obasanjo emerging as president. "I came with human rights activist Jesse Jackson, former U S president Jimmy Carter, Colin Powell among others as international observers in 1999. I was also here in 2003 elections and I have received commendations from the U.N for the effort of FADIN during the time of military rule in Nigeria." The body according to Ugonoh sometimes gets funding from USAID and support from individuals. Aside running the NGO, Ugonoh is currently working with United Airlines in Aircraft Support and Customer Relations section. He has since returned to his base in the U S.
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