Reaction trails Kano censorship board’s re-enforced regulations

Hausa movie industry is said to have plunged into quandary ever since the news of adhe ence to some rules and regulations were said to have been enforced on practitioners by the leadership of Kano state censorship board. The rules were said to have been based on codes of conducts binding movie productions in the […]

Hausa movie industry is said to have plunged into quandary ever since the news of adhe ence to some rules and regulations were said to have been enforced on practitioners by the leadership of Kano state censorship board.
The rules were said to have been based on codes of conducts binding movie productions in the industry.
Practitioners in the industry have found the new rules as being very rigid and lack consideration to reality. The said new rules according to some of the practitioners would only bring the booming industry down instead of elevating it, adding that leadership of the board needs to revisit these rules and reverse some of its content for effective adherence by practicing members.
It could be recalled that the state censorship board after a meeting with key stakeholders in the screen business came up with some rules and regulations that necessitate submission script to the board of every intended movie for censoring. The rules also said every practitioners should engage the services of a consultant that would guide every movie production as applicable in all other movie industry across the world.
There is also the issue of dressing code which stated that the board would not take it lightly with any form of nudity even if it is an undue exposure of a lady’s hair involved in. Also, the regulations stated that every for  every production, a producer must seek for shooting permit before going out to locations among other issues.
A prominent practitioner who pleaded for anonymity told Kano Chronicle reporter that, they won’t take it lightly with these rules that were solely aimed at crippling the industry. He said: “Who will read all the scripts that will be presented to them and how long will it take them to finish reading or censoring a script? It is not possible if we most tell ourselves the truth, it is just a way of crippling the industry. And they said that hair exposure by women in movies is nudity; now tell me how would you show a wayward woman’s attitude or a woman who in the story is not a Hausa or a Muslim? The authorities should consider these issues or we will be forced to go back to the era of ‘cocaine’ that is we will prepare making our movies outside Kano and who ever bring it into Kano does that on his or her own risk,” he said.
National Chairman of Arewa Film Makers Association of Nigeria (AFMAN), Abdullahi Sani Abdullahi popularly known as Baba Karami stated that members of Kannywood were law abiding people and always willing to comply with every aspect of constituted regulations. Baba Karami added that, where they felt the regulations were so harsh on them they would seek redress to look at possibilities of softening it.
“We are law abiding citizens of this country and whatever is said to be constituted regulations we are more than willing to abide by it.
However, we will not conform to any verbal rules of whatsoever magnitude. When we felt a certain regulation is harsh on us we will politely seek for a redress on a possible review of such regulations,” Baba Karami said.
Executive Secretary of the Kano state Censorship Board Malam Isma’ila Na’abbah Afakallah stated that the board did not enforced any new regulations rather it only strengthens the 2001 act that establishes the state censorship board.
 “The censorship board is not just there to generate money to the state government; we are here to see that we protect our religious and traditional values as well as protect the profession of movie making.
What we are doing presently is in favour of the practitioners as it will reduce their expenditures as well as reduces wastage in production. It is usual for some people to misunderstand some basic concepts of development and that will not make us relent on.