NOW THAT PRETTY OKAFOR HAS FALLEN, WHO WILL BE NEXT?

SATURDAY BREAKFAST with TONY OKOROJI

NOW THAT PRETTY OKAFOR HAS FALLEN, WHO WILL BE NEXT?

BY PATRICK DOYLE (GUEST COLUMNIST)

It is no longer news that Hon Justice A.A. Oyebanji of the High Court of Lagos State, Ikeja, on Thursday, June 11, 2020, restrained the make believe factional president of PMAN, Mr. Pretty Okafor from further defamation of the character of my friend, Chief Tony Okoroji.

Delivering judgment in a libel action filed on May 22, 2018 by Chief Okoroji, Justice Oyebanji also ordered Pretty Okafor to pay Chief Okoroji the sum of Two Million Naira as General Damages for the defamation of his character.

One would think that by now the Okoroji naysayers would know better than to come at Tony with lies and malice, but no, they persist to trumpet falsehood relentlessly maybe in the forlorn hope that one lie will ultimately stick.

I have continued to publicly defend Chief Okoroji because I know the man, I know his values and I know that his integrity is unimpeachable. I know that very few Nigerians work as relentlessly and give of themself so selflessly towards the progress of any national endeavour. Chief Tony Okoroji continues to succeed where others have failed woefully because unlike many other Nigerians, he is not driven by love of money but by the love of country and the wellbeing of all. With his intellect, creativity, extensive contacts and enviable work ethic, he could easily be a millionaire in any currency several times over but chooses to dedicate himself to contributing to the public good.

Look at how he took a little known PMAN and in no time, turned it into one of the nation’s most vibrant and richest associations. Everyone must ask: where is PMAN today? The agitators simply took over the association, fought over the money left by Okoroji, destroyed the association and turned it into a joke!

Just look at what Okoroji has done with COSON in about ten years. It is nothing short of a miracle. Ten years ago, no one had heard of COSON. Since then, COSON has distributed hundreds of millions of naira to musicians across the country. Have you been to the magnificent edifice called COSON House in Ikeja built by the society under Okoroji's purposeful leadership without a single naira from the government, no donor money and no debt whatsoever? Many had sworn that collective management of copyright would never work in Nigeria. Did Tony Okoroji not prove all of them wrong? Have you read Tony Okoroji’s internationally celebrated book, Copyright & the New Millionaires? The depth of the book defines the man. As incredibly busy as he is, Tony Okoroji has every single week for more than seven years written his widely read syndicated column, Saturday Breakfast. Not one week has he failed.

Tony Okoroji is an unusual Nigerian. His brilliance, personal discipline, unquenchable self-belief and never-say-die spirit can be intimidating and threatening to small people. His work ethic is such that whatever he touches seems to turn to gold and for this, many in the industry celebrate him. Fueled by greed and envy, small minded people never stop trying to cut him down. They tried to do it with THISDAY newspaper and Okoroji went to court and got a N40 million judgment against THISDAY. Charly Boy tried it and Okoroji got judgment against Charles Oputa. I was present in Okoroji’s office when Charly Boy came to plead with him. Femi Lasode got into the game, not only did Okoroji get judgment against him, Lasode’s entire possessions were confiscated by court bailiffs and his life has never been the same since. They even tried to use The Sun newspapers to damage Okoroji. When Okoroji sued The Sun, the Sun management had to settle out of court.

In an apology published in Vanguard Newspaper of November 19, 2012 and signed by the editor, the newspaper wrote, “On October 14 2011, we published an article titled “Okoroji must account for N3 million for Essien-Igbokwe Burial Funds” on our internet site, www.vanguardngr.com and on page 31 of Vanguard of the same date. We have since discovered the publication as incorrect and as such retract the said
news publication in its entirety.

“We therefore tender an unreserved apology to Chief Tony Okoroji, Chairman Copyright Society of Nigeria (COSON) and regret any injury the said publication must have caused him as we hold him in high esteem”.

The above words were published by Vanguard as part of an out of court settlement in a libel suit filed by Chief Okoroji against the newspaper with respect to false allegations made by Ms. Onyeka Onwenu against Chief Tony Okoroji and published in Vanguard shortly after the burial of late Christy Essien-Igbokwe.
Ms. Onyeka Onwenu went on to lose a libel suit brought against her by Chief Okoroji over the same issue and huge damages were awarded against her.

Very few Nigerians have been attacked with falsehood like Chief Tony Okoroji. No Nigerian, living or dead has won more defamation cases than Tony Okoroji. No serious person can tell you that this great Nigerian is ineffective. This is the man whose efforts contributed immensely to make both the Copyright Act and the Nigerian Copyright Commission possible. This is the same man that created and produced the iconic and breath taking Nigerian Music Awards that brought the nation’s president and his wife, state governors, ambassadors from diverse countries and stars from all over the world to rub shoulders with Nigerian artistes at an entertainment event. It was Okoroji’s NMA that began the entertainment award culture in Nigeria.

They cannot match Tony Okoroji so they try to destroy him with blatant falsehood and multiple defamation. Tony Okoroji is Nigeria’s No. 1 expert in the intricate subject of copyright, a subject which he continues to work on with so much passion. Please ask anyone who has worked with him about this man’s incredible work ethic and ability to bring diverse people together for the public good and to constantly create something out of nothing. His work is very important for the future of a lot of young Nigerians and indeed the country.

On Thursday, Tony Okoroji won yet another libel suit, this time against Pretty Okafor. The loquacious Pretty Okafor who calls himself President of PMAN seems to have been obsessed by an insatiable desire to destroy Okoroji. It appears that he joined the gang that waited for Okoroji to build COSON House, make COSON an international brand with hundreds of millions of Naira in the bank. Then, they conspired and struck to chase Okoroji out of COSON and to feast on what he has built. When their coup failed, they decided to destroy Okoroji and COSON.

O la-la, the chicken has come home to roost and the boastful Pretty Okafor has fallen yakata. Nigerians will recall that I told everyone how this will end.

Who will be next?

- Patrick Harry Doyle

Vanguard News is a daily News publication In Nigeria covering Latest news, Breaking News, Politics, Relationships, Entertaiment and Sports

FLAGS FLY AT HALF MAST AT COSON HOUSE FOR MAJEK FASHEK

FLAGS FLY AT HALF MAST AT COSON HOUSE IN CELEBRATION OF THE LIFE OF ICONIC MUSIC STAR MAJEK FASHEK WHO JUST PASSED ON IN NEW YORK

All flags at COSON House in Ikeja, the headquarters of Copyright Society of Nigeria (COSON), are now flying at half mast in celebration of the life of Nigeria’s iconic reggae singer and frontline member of COSON, Majek Fashek, who passed on in New York in the evening of the 1st of June.

A condolence register has also been opened at the reception of COSON House for all those who want to pay tribute to the memory of this unique Nigerian artiste to do so. Also, videos of the remarkable performances of Majek Fashek are playing on the various video screens at COSON House.

Speaking on the passing of the reggae legend, COSON Chairman, Chief Tony Okoroji said, “In various ways, we will celebrate the life of this incredibly talented Nigerian. I hope that before the day is over, I will speak with Randy, his son who lives in New York. We have to deal with the time difference between Lagos and New York and we will make the necessary announcements.

“Everyone knows that Majek Fashek was not just my colleague. He was my friend. He stood by my side and supported me from head to toe over many years. We have shared many memorable moments together. His passing on tears at my heart but I am consoled by the fact that there is no need to immortalize Majek Fashek. He has immortalized himself through his unforgettable songs and lyrics. We will celebrate Majek Fashek to inspire the young people in the creative family”

“There is almost nothing that COSON has done that Majek Fashek did not fully participate in. He was 100% dedicated to the COSON cause. Majek was not just a COSON member by name. He was a COSON member in his heart and indeed. All COSON members across Nigeria and all of our staff at COSON House which he visited regularly, will greatly miss this Nigerian of incomparable talent, the great “rain maker”. Since yesterday, it has been raining across the nation. It has to as the great Rainmaker transits. It is said that Rastas never die. I take it that my brother, friend and colleague, the iconic Majek Fashek has not died, He has travelled and one day, we will join and make music together”.

PM Walker

for TOPS Ltd Ng

PLEASE DON’T SET UP A CMO! Tony Okoroji warns

SATURDAY BREAKFAST with TONY OKOROJI

YOU WANT TO BE RICH? PLEASE DON’T SET UP A CMO! Chief Tony Okoroji Warns those who wants to get rich by any means.

This week, on the 20th of May 2020, we celebrated the 10th anniversary of the official take-off of the operations of COSON which has become Nigeria’s must successful and most admired copyright Collective Management Organization (CMO).

On the same 20th of May, we marked the 3rd anniversary of the commissioning of the COSON House in Ikeja which continues to sparkle and which my communications team does not talk about without prefixing with the adjective, “magnificent”.

Yes, we always wish to remind everyone that there is not one Naira of government money in the acquisition and construction of the “magnificent COSON House”, no donor dollar or pound came from anywhere and that we acquired, built and equipped COSON House with no bank loan and no debt of any type. The sparkling national green colour of COSON House tends to suggest to some people that it is federal government property. No! COSON has never received any type of money from the government.

Fired up by our exhilarating slogan, “let the music pay!”, COSON has in its ten years of operation, distributed hundreds of millions of Naira as royalties to its members and affiliates. Just recently in April 2020, even with the major bank accounts of COSON frozen and the issues in court, COSON in a responsive and responsible manner reacted to the suffering of its thousands of members across the country under the pressure of the COVID 19 lockdown. The society became the first Nigerian institution to provide anti Coronavirus palliatives to its members at a time of great need. At first, =N=50 million was approved by the COSON Board for this purpose. An additional =N=22.5 million was later approved. The distribution has been done in a very structured, professional and transparent manner which has been widely celebrated by members of COSON and others.

You know what? Now, everybody wants to set up a CMO! In the typical Nigerian fashion, all the people who want to make quick money think that they can replicate COSON. They want to turn the very complex system of collective management of copyright into their new “pure water” business in which everyone has his own cheap cellophane designs littering the streets.

Not too long ago, I was President of PMAN. With a driven team, clear vision and never-say-die passion, I worked 25 hours every day, eight days a week, to make PMAN a glorious national brand. Everyone across the world, from the President of the Federal Republic, governors, ambassadors and stars of all colours wanted to associate and rub shoulders with PMAN. PMAN became a much-admired name and the toast of the nation. And the dam broke!

Every musician in Nigeria who could afford a tokunbo SUV began to see himself as President of PMAN. To be PMAN President became the burning ambition of a lot. At some point, there were four people simultaneously calling themselves PMAN President! With all due respect, none of them understood the vision or the mission. PMAN is a registered trade union but none of the ‘Presidents’ had ever read the Trade Union Act or even the PMAN constitution. We all can see where it has led PMAN.

In my service to the creative industry in our nation, I have always been driven by those almost forgotten words, “together we stand, divided we fall”. The strength of PMAN came from the bringing together of diverse people across Nigeria to share in one vision. I toured nearly every nook and cranny of Nigeria to make that possible. It required an incredible amount of work, loads and loads of battles and heaps and heaps of personal sacrifice. Everywhere, I had to know what I was talking about. So, I had to study everyday and study very hard. Take it from me, there is nothing worse than an ignorant leader.

Either as President of PMAN or Chairman of COSON, I have never gone into a meeting or discussions without first getting a good grasp of the relevant laws, the rules, the issues, the statistics or the trends. I believe that every great leader must remain a student through his tenure with the appetite to learn as much as possible. I wish to repeat that there is nothing worse than an ignorant leader.

I have repeatedly told people that you can never become rich by doing the kind of work that I do. What drives you must be the genuine love of people and not the love of self. You can never build a great trade union or an outstanding CMO if you are driven by self interest or the interest of you and your handful of friends. When you lead a CMO, you work for others and not for self.

I see all the people positioning themselves to launch new CMOs in Nigeria and ask myself whether they truly understand what it takes to make a CMO work. Do they know how many years of study, work and patience it has taken COSON to be where it is? Do they have the requisite technical knowledge? Do they know how many court cases that litter the road COSON has had to travel? Do they think that there is anyone out there with bags of money waiting to give to them just upon their asking? Do they think that there would be no new arguments, quarrels or disagreements within whatever contraptions they have in mind?

I look around and I see all the people who not long ago thought they would become super rich by becoming PMAN President and I ask, “how did it pan out guys?”

That is why I say that setting up a CMO is not pure water business. If you want to be rich?... Please, don’t set up a CMO!