Popular OAP Ifedayo Olarinde aka Freeze in a recent post urged Nigerians to shun pirated products. He further said using ‘counterfeit products don’t make you look rich, they make you look ridiculous’
I watched the other night, with an immense sense of pride, the spectacularly creative piece of artwork, that has accumulated an assemblage of accolades, titled October 1 by Kunle Afolayan. I was utterly devastated that this same masterpiece suffered tremendously in the hands of pirates.
The same goes for one of Nigeria’s finest comedian, Ayo Makun whose movie ‘30days in Atlanta‘ suffered a similar fate! How do we destroy the venom of piracy that has slowly and steadily eaten deep into the fiber of of our creative industry?! I would like to seize this medium, to implore each and every Nigerian, to get up and burn all pirated/counterfeit products in their custody.
Let’s make a huge bonfire with all pirated products and I will provide entertainment and refreshments on this anti-piracy bonfire night! Don’t say “I’m not an artiste so this is not for me”. I have a friend whose yoghurt production business was ruined because her bottles were pirated! I remember a concert promoter that lost his life savings because tickets to his event with Dru Hill were pirated and sold at a fraction of the price. Baba Sala back in the day almost went bankrupt when his movie ‘Orun Mooru‘ was pirated. Louis Vouitton, Rolex, Franck Muller, Patek and many others are also at the mercy of these wicked pirates.
How do you come in? Well there cannot be teachers without students or pastors without congregations or parents without children. Meaning that COUNTERFEITERS CANNOT THRIVE IF YOU DO NOT PATRONIZE THEM!!! So take the stance today, don’t buy that fake Louis Vuitton bag or that fake Rolex! Don’t buy that movie in traffic no matter how tempting it seems. Also, to send a clearer message, burn every counterfeit product in your possession!!!! Counterfeit products don’t make you look rich, they make you look ridiculous!