About two weeks ago the parallel chairman of the Copyright Organisation of Nigeria (COSON), Efe Omoregbe was arrested and charged to court by the police. He was arrested alongside one Joel Ajayi, but both have since been granted bail. In the early hours of today, 2baba, wrote a petition to the Nigerian Copyright Council (NCC) over the incident.
According to a letter signed by the legendary singer and which was exclusive to LIB, the call for accountability and transparency in the organisation led to its present crisis.
2baba said members of the body are being harassed and intimidated by the police because of their effort to hold the leaders of COSON accountable.
“It is quite unfortunate and disheartening that a simple call for accountability and transparency has degenerated into relentless media attack, harassment and intimidation of the group of people who made the call.”
2baba further stated that the interest of the general members of the body should come before personal interests.
He urged the director-general of the NCC to intervene in the crisis to stop the harassment of Efe Omoregbe and Joel Ajayi.
“I will like to implore you to use your good office to engage the Inspector General of Police with a view to setting the records straight and reversing the embarrassing and dangerous scenario where Mr Efe Omorogbe and Mr Joel Ajayi, chairman and members of the commission-recognised board acting well under the directive of the regulator, are now being harassed, intimidated, demonised and prosecuted by a sister government agency – The Nigerian Police Force.”
Efe Omoregbe is 2baba’s manager and was appointed COSON chairman in December, 2017 after Tony Okoroji was asked to step down. The decision was eventually reversed by the body’s stakeholders leading to a prolonged internal crisis.