Ameh Comrade Godwin: Muna Obiekwe – Of Ibinabo’s incompetence and AGN’s ineptitude
It was the late United States President, Abraham Lincoln that inscribed this axiom, “nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.”
This vividly captures the current situation in the country, especially in our motion picture industry, globally known as Nollywood.
Our teacher, the legendary Mike Awoyinfa once told us that, “if you are in doubt of a story, you leave it out. It is better to publish a confirmed story late than to publish a false story first”
When Nollywood actor, Muna Obiekwe breathe his last yesterday in a Festac hospital, I was among the first people who got the news, but I kept it within myself.
I was reluctant to release the story because the news of his death came as a shock to me. I might not be his fan, but the nation has no doubt lost a great talent.
When a friend of mine called to inform me about the demise of Muna, I quickly put a call across to the AGN president, Ibinabo Fiberisima to confirm the authenticity of the story, but trust our stars and their normal ‘forming’ my calls were attempt of venom on the rocks as no one was ready to pick the calls.
When she apparently became tired of your incessant calls, she handed over the phone to a nearby person and you hear a miserable and hungry voice on the other side of the telephone that tells you to call back that ‘the president is busy’.
Our woes were further compounded when another Muna Obiekwe resurrected on Twitter to refute the hearsay. Of course that was a fake Muna anyway.
For hours, Nigerians, particularly movie buffs were confused on whom to believe. The ‘New Muna’ or the bloggers.
The ‘fake’ Muna keeps telling his fans via series of tweets to disregard the rumour, while ‘authentic’ bloggers insist he’s gone to be with his other colleagues.
In the midst of this confusion, the Actors Guild of Nigeria was as still as still.
For an industry that is ranked among the best in the world, I think the media sector should be as active as the wind.
Amazingly, some of his colleagues on my BBM were even confused. When the news broke out, they used his image on their display pictures (DP) with the inscription, ‘RIPMuna’. But when he ‘resurrected’ on Twitter, they swallowed their words by saying; “Muna is alive. We can confirm that.” Nonsense!
While we waited in vain for the Actors Guild of Nigeria led by Ibinabo to come bail us out of the confusion, someone whispered to me that the former beauty queen and some of her colleagues were somewhere chasing PDP’s money by campaigning for Jonathan’s second term.
Of course, they have every right to support whom they want, but not to a point of totally abandoning your primary duty.
Ibinabo fails to realise that she’s also a president leading an entity just like Jonathan. It was a case of removing the speck in someone’s eyes while a log is floating in your own eyes.
I’m sure Ibinabo was never aware her colleague was sic; not to talk of to the point of dying. What is leadership if there’s no welfarism?
How much does she and her team know about the well-being of thief other colleagues in the industry? Who is fine and who’s not?
How long shall our so-called stars continue to live fake lives in the name of stardom?
So sad that we always blame our leaders for failing us while we can’t even take care of our home front. Leadership is not purchasable. Yesterday’s incident was a complete show of shame and gross ineptitude an failure on the side of AGN led by Ibinabo.
Ameh can be reached via comradetalents@yahoo.com
Ff@amcomrade
Treasure Orokpo
A multi-talented individual with a passion for diverse fields, Treasure Orokpo is a trained journalist, skilled cook, and AI enthusiast. When she's not uncovering the latest stories, you can find her whipping up culinary creations in the kitchen and entertainment.
