The Nigerian Copyright Commission, after undergoing a search raid on several bookshops in different locations of Ajegunle Boundary area of Lagos State, seized pirated copies of books worth the total of N20 million.
The raid operation which took place today, Friday, November 1st 2024, led by the Deputy Director and Head of Operations at the Lagos Office, Mr Charles Amudipe, included a team of copyright officers supported by security agencies.
While speaking, the Director of the Lagos Office, Mrs Lynda Alphaeus, who represented the NCC’s Director-General, Dr John Asein, mentioned that the operation was part of the Commission’s ongoing efforts and project to combat book piracy across the nation.
In her words she said, "This raid is part of the Director-General’s mission to cleanse the market and rid the entire country of pirated books".
“Piracy has been a major issue affecting publishers, authors, and the economy, and the Commission has a zero-tolerance policy towards all forms of copyright infringement".
She revealed that, five suspected outlets located on Ojora Lane and Calabar Road in the Ajegunle area of Lagos were targeted.
“During the operation, we inspected several bookshops and storage warehouses suspected of housing pirated books around the Ajegunle market. Items identified as pirated materials were seized,” she said.
She further stated that some shop owners who attempted to resist the NCC officials, were intercepted by the help of security personnel who came in to manage the situation amicably and peacefully.
She stated that this allowed the team to complete the operation without other major disruptions.
Booksellers, schools, and printers were sternly warned against any involvement in book piracy across the nation.
