Nigerian Publishers Seek Review of Copyright Law, Donate Buses to UBEC
Gbadega Adedapo
By Kuni Tyessi
The Nigerian Publishers Association has called on the federal government to commence the crackdown on pirates and vendors of pirated books being sold in the streets across the country.
The publishers also urged the government to strengthen the copyright law in order to eradicate the menace of piracy in the country.
President of the association, Gbadega Adedapo, who made the call yesterday in Abuja while presenting three brand new Coaster buses to Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), said Nigerian authors are worried that most of the books being sold in the country were not from their original owners.
He, however, disclosed that the association was already collaborating with several organisations, including the Nigerian Copyright Commission, to ensure that books are bought from rightful owners.
Adedapo also called on the government to put in place functional book policy, noting that the issue of piracy was not something that could be taken with levity without strong legal backing.
According to him, the gesture was part of association’s social responsibility with the hope that the donation would be useful as well as contributes to the commission’s increased productivity.
“We all know how important education is to a nation, and this facilitated the need for us to support UBEC in its mandate since it’s in congruence with our goal too at our association.
“We have donated books worth over N27 million to UNICEF for onward distribution at IDP camps, and we won’t rest on our oars as we will continue to support our society,” he added.
In his response, the Executive Secretary of UBEC, Dr. Hamid Bobboyi, thanked the members of the association for their kind gesture, saying buses would be used for the coordination of basic education and staff welfare.
He expressed the commission’s readiness to collaborate with the association on book policy by engaging on the supply of quality and curriculum books for the promotion of education and literacy across the country.
