By Patricia Uyeh

Nollywood comic actor and Ex-Chairman of Lagos Chapter of the Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), Victor Osuagwu, in a recent chat, revealed how he fought the growing menace of sexual harassment in the movie industry.

According to him, the fight to end the ugly trend requires a tough hand. He said:

“It has been my nature to see challenges as entertainment. If you face it the hard way, you will not succeed. That was the way I handled some of the sexual harassment cases we had.

”This is sounding a note of warning, we will get you wherever you are and deal with you. What this set of people do is to organize ‘auditions’ and at the end of the day mess up girls.”

On the state of Nollywood, he continued: “These days, before you are auditioned, you pay money, before you act, you pay money, to see yourself on screen, you pay money and that is why we are having wishy-washy production all over. This is not the AGN we are looking for.

“Sometimes you also blame up and coming ones. When they tell you that they are ready to do anything, what do you do? A gullible producer, director, production assistant, personal assistant will rip you off because you can do anything.

”People are even buying laptops and expensive gifts just to be on posters but when you check their act in the whole film, it is just one scene.

“And do you know one funny thing; this attitude has encouraged some green horns to buy their way into acting. They are not really actors.

”I remember in those days, once you are auditioned and you pass, you go through rehearsals but these days it doesn’t happen anymore.”

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