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ARCON to carry out enforcement on political campaign adverts…DG 

ARCON to carry out enforcement on political campaign adverts…DG 

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All political campaign adverts that do not get the approval of the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria, ARCON will be pull down, NewsSpecng has learnt.

The Director General of ARCON, Dr. Olalekan Fadolapo said the body will commence enforcement from 5th December.

Fadolapo spoke on Wednesday in Abuja at the National Advertising Conference 2022.

He said, ‘‘By 5th of December, 2022, we are starting enforcement on all political advertisement campaigns in Nigeria.  Any campaign in Nigeria that is not approved will be brought down; they must comply with the extant laws guiding the industry. And all stakeholders involved in the production and publication will be prosecuted.’’

He also noted that the new law regulating the industry will help boost the sector and reverse decline witnessed in the industry.

He said that in the new industry law, the Advertising Practitioners Act, recently repealed by the National Assembly, which established the advertising practitioners Council of Nigeria  (APCON) and the enactment of the  Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON) Act No. 23 of 2022 was not just a name change but an improvement on the duties, mandates and responsibility of the regulatory agency.

‘‘The National Assembly enacted the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria and also signed into law by the president. That has given us the kind of so much support in terms of remit, regulation space as well as coverage.’’

He further noted that ARCON, in collaboration with all stakeholders ARCON   has taken  up the responsibility for interrogating  the body of knowledge , engaged advertisers, as well as  improving  the business framework and standards.

‘‘One of the things that needs to be done is local content policy, this policy is to give Nigerians and the economy an opportunity to benefit from the advertising industry, e.g. local government requirements from advertisement, foreign model and voice over. These policies are aimed at growing the industry.

‘‘We also introduced the Advertising Industry Standard of Nigeria in line with what is obtainable in other markets, to ensure stakeholders in the industry commit to commercial time that is not injurious to any party. So, promoting equity and fairness within the ecosystem.’’

On this year’s theme: The Marketing Communication Industry in Nigeria, Fadolapo said it could not have come at a better time than now when the industry’s existence is heavily threatened  due to  economic factors inherent in the country.

He implored participants to be frank in their contributions to be able to reach meaningful decisions that will move the sector forward. 

The Chairman, House Committee on Information, Hon Olusegun Odebunmi expressed optimism that the  new ARCON law would go a long way in refining the trajectory of the  organization.

‘‘The leadership and stakeholders in the industry came together to be able to get an amendment of their law and that gives them the right to do the right thing for Nigerians and practice their trade in Nigeria.

‘‘With the look of things, people will see ARCON ready to perform its function accordingly. When you are jealously protecting your industry, you do everything to protect it. For the coming generation, the industry should be sanitized to serve the common good of all.’’

In his submission, one of the panelist, and an Independent Consultant, Ademola Adigun, blamed low advertising patronage on the low purchasing power of the country and low production capacity.

He said, ‘‘the market thrives on products and advertisement is the budget. If you do not produce enough, and you did not sell enough, where will the advertisement come from?  When your market is affected by purchasing power, the average advertising will be low.’’

On the way forward, Adigun said, ‘‘unless we create a production economy the Nigerian advert industry will continue to nosedive. And we cannot talk about production without infrastructure, power and enabling environment. All these must be fixed for the industry to thrive. We also need to grow the domestic market.

 ‘‘Regulation can be incentive and stifling. Regulators should not think of themselves being limiting factors alone but should think of enhancing businesses. Legislation is the problem in the country, but market incentives, opportunities.’’

The two day conference is expected to provide opportunity to discuss the current and future needs and challenges of the industry.

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