Lai Mohammed

The Ministerial Committee aimed at fast-tracking the passage into law of the Motion Picture Practitioners Council of Nigeria (MOPPICON) Bill is to be inaugurated on Friday, 8 April  2016 at the Conference Room of the National Theatre, Iganmu, Lagos, the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, announced on Thursday.

The 17-member Committee, which will have Ms Peace Anyiam-Osigwe as Coordinator and Mr. Mahmoud Alli-Balogun as Deputy Coordinator, will review and harmonize the MOPPICON Bill ahead of its submission to the Ministry of Justice and then the National Assembly.

The membership of the Committee will include the representatives of the various guilds and associations, including the Association of Movie Producers, Director Guild of Nigeria, Motion Picture Practitioners Association of Nigeria (MOPPAN) as well as the Producers and Marketers Association of Nigeria (FVPMAN).

Other associations to be represented on the Committee are Association of Nigeria Theatre Arts Practitioners (ANTP), Nigerian Film Corporation (NFC), National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB), Federal Ministry of Information and Culture, Screen Writers Guild of Nigeria, Actors Guild of Nigeria, Movie Ambassadors of Nigeria, Niger Delta Film Forum and Female Producers of Nigeria.

Tony Anih of the Film Makers Collective will serve as the Secretary to the Committee

When established, MOPPICON will regulate, administer and control the motion picture practice in Nigeria.

The Minister had announced the plan to set up the Committee at the 2016 Kannywood Awards in Abuja on March 13th.