Show Us Sense of Belonging in Your Govt – Anambra Actors Tell Soludo
The Actors Guild of Nigeria, Anambra State Chapter, have appealed to the State Governor, Prof Chukwuma Soludo, to include them in the scheme of affairs, for them to be part of what his government is doing.
The State Chairman of the Guild, Lady Esther Anyaegbunam, made the appeal on Thursday, June 26, while speaking with newsmen during an event to mark her 365 days in office.
The Chairman expressed satisfaction with the achievements of her administration, which, she noted, had restored peace, and making effort to secure a permanent office accommodation for the Guild.
‘The first challenge I encountered was not having an office to operate from, but to the glory of God, we were able to secure an office, and our letter is still on the table of Mr Governor.
‘We’re asking the state government to give us land, a befitting permanent office structure, where we’re going to operate from.
‘We’re also begging them to include us in their programmes so that we’ll be part of what they’re doing,’ she said.
Lady Anyaegbunam however commended Governor Soludo on his achievements, particularly the establishment of Agunechemba Security Outfit, urging investors in the film industry to come back to the state.
‘Anambra is our home; movie production in Eastern Nigeria started here in Anambra.
‘The film productions that are going on in Asaba were started here in Anambra.
‘Come home, brothers and sisters; we’re safe, there is adequate security here now,’ Anyaegbunam urged.
Emphasizing that Anambra had everything it took to produce enticing movies, she argued that the state was not yet explored, particularly in the area of good locations.
According to her, ‘There are other remote villages where we have beautiful edifices apart from Onitsha, Awka and Nkwere.
‘Our storylines can’t be finished, we have so much of them embedded in Igbo culture that the world has not yet seen. Very soon, we’re bringing them to the limelight,’ the AGN boss added.
She charged the movie actors in Anambra to rise up and reclaim their pride of place, reminding them that movie production in Eastern Nigeria started in the state.
‘So we should be ahead of other states; our fathers have laid the foundation for us,’ Lady Anyaegbunam said.
For her 365 days in office, which she described as divinely orchestrated, the AGN boss gave all the glory to God, recalling the achievements she had made.
‘Before this time, you couldn’t see this kind of crowd in Anambra AGN.
‘If you call for a meeting or an event, it would be very scanty – a lot of people wouldn’t show up. But now, we’re able to bring members together.
‘We embarked on peace talk to various zones, and to the glory of God, a lot of satellite light stations are here.
‘We give members those things they were clamouring for,’ she said, expressing appreciation to the entire members of the Guild, especially her predecessors, whom, she said, established the platform she stood on.
Anyaegbunam, who expressed her resolve to make Anambra a sought-after in the movie industry, disclosed that the Guild’s taskforce was working hard to close down all illegal movie production camps in the state.
She told newsmen that her administration had come up with an entrepreneurship programme to help the actors have multiple streams of income so that as they engaged in their film-making career, they would have other financial sources to fall back on.
She advised married couples among them to put on virtues of sacrifice, tolerance, patience, among others, to enable them to live peacefully with their spouses.
‘We don’t want a broken home; it doesn’t tell well of us. The Bible says, ”women, you should submit to your husbands, and husbands, you should love your wives”.
‘This is what we’re telling our members to do so that they will set good examples to the next generation,’ the Chairman said.
In separate interviews with newsmen, the Chairman, Board of Trustees, AGN, Mr Emma Ogugua, and the National Vice President, AGN South East Zone, Comrade Clement Chukwudike Anigbo, expressed satisfaction with Anyaegbunam’s leadership, saying she had fulfilled over 80% of her campaign promises.
Ogugua and Anigbo extolled the level of cooperation and peace that currently existed in the AGN, Anambra State Chapter.
While emphasizing the importance of the movie industry to society, they also appealed to the Anambra State Government to give more support to the Guild to enable it to realize its potential.
The event, which took place at Nobles Hotels, Awka, and chaired by Bishop Prof Emeka Nwankpa, was graced by a number of veteran actors, who included Chief Stephen Alaejemba; Ambassador Lawrence Uche; among others.
