THOUSANDS of allegedly unclassified movies have been forcefully ejected from the shelves of erring marketers. The National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB), who carried out the raid in various parts of Lagos were on hand with members of the Nigeria Police Force. The raids which were meant to enforce the Board’s classification decisions took the group to areas such as Obalende, Lekki, Victoria Island, Marina, Oke Aarin, Broad Street, Ikoyi, TBS, Oke-Sunna, Adeniji and Ebute Ero.
Movies seized and confiscated were mainly multiple-in-one local and foreign titles which were neither censored nor classified by the Board before being sold by the filmmakers. Most of them were found to be pornographic and indecent exposure films. Some of the titles include: Calabar Girl, Calabar Connection, Club Girls Parts 1 & 2, Woman to Woman Parts 1&2, Thanks for Coming Parts 1&2, Efia, The School Girl 1&2, College Girl 1&2, Girls on Fire 1&2.
Investigations carried out by the Board’s surveillance team trace the major source of the unclassified and uncensored pornographic films to the popular Alaba International Market. Some of the sellers arrested confessed that the producers of some of the movies have their offices within Alaba market.
NFVCB’s Head of Operations for South West Zone, Mrs. Bola Athar, who led the team, noted that there is no hiding place for those engaged in selling of unclassified and pornographic movies, as the Board is out to get rid of them. According to her, the Acting Director General, Ms. Patricia Bala has zero-tolerance for illegal movies, and she has pledged to rid the market of them all. Bala, it would be recalled recently visited the censorship agency and other authorities in Ghana on the need to rid both countries of unauthorized movies.
