By Deborah Enwerem
The National President of the Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), Abubakar Yakubu, has urged actors to enrol in the guild’s health insurance scheme and undergo regular medical checks to prevent breakdown in health.
Yakubu made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Abuja.
He said as part of efforts by his administration to improve the welfare of actors, the scheme has enabled members to access medical care and undergo comprehensive examinations for early detection of potential health problems.
He, however, lamented that some members were unwilling to take advantage of the scheme because they believed they were healthy, while others who enrolled did not collect their insurance cards or visit hospitals for medical checks.
“To avoid imminent breakdown of their health, we are urging members to get enrolled in our HMO schemes for regular tests.
“An ordinary headache could be a symptom of a larger proportion of something in your body,” he said.
He therefore urged members not to wait until they became seriously ill before seeking medical attention.
According to him, early medical intervention can help reduce the financial burden associated with treating advanced illnesses.
He also disclosed that the guild was strengthening its welfare policies to ensure that members were adequately covered.
“Please don’t wait until it is too late. If you wait, it becomes late.
“We will begin to deregister some people if you don’t have our health insurance policy. You cannot be our member without us looking out for you to be able to manage your health as an actor,” he said.
On AGN’s presence in Abuja, Yakubu said it had improved the guild’s engagement with relevant government institutions and regulators, while also attracting more film productions to the Federal Capital Territory.
“More productions are coming now with the presence of the Actors Guild of Nigeria in Abuja,” he said.
He expressed optimism that an upcoming major film production would further promote Abuja as a filmmaking hub.
Yakubu also identified the undercutting of professional actors by producers as another challenge in the industry.
He said the guild had established a task force to address the practice and was seeking legislative backing to strengthen enforcement.
“Having to undercut an actor is a big problem. We have an effective task force now that will look into it,” he said.
Yakubu alleged that some producers engaged novices because they did not want to pay professional actors.
He said the guild was working to minimise the practice but needed appropriate legislation to prosecute offenders.
Meanwhile, Salma Aminu, Mayor of AGN Abuja Chapter, said the demanding nature of acting sometimes left practitioners exhausted, leading some to rely on intoxicating substances to relax after work.
She, however, said many actors were beginning to pay greater attention to their health, partly because of the guild’s health awarness initiatives.
“Most times actors go on set and they get exhausted, and they just need something to relax themselves. Some rely on something that can actually intoxicate them and relax their nerves,” she said.
Aminu urged actors and other industry players to prioritise healthy lifestyle to avoid imminent health breakdown, adding that the guild would continue to sensitise members on the need to take their health seriously.
According to her, the AGN has a flagship annual health walk during which participating actors were tested and given free medication.
Aminu advocated medical examinations for actors at least every six months.
She also appealed to the Federal Government to partner with AGN to improve the welfare of actors, saying government support would enable the guild to reach more practitioners.
“If the government steps in, trust me, it’s going to be a lot easier for us. We’ll be able to reach a large number of actors, we’ll be able to help them,” she said.
Aminu further called for a legislation to protect actors’ royalties and other entitlements from films in which they had featured.
According to her, some actors received relatively small payments for their roles, while producers continued to generate revenue from such productions.
“There are films that they have featured in that are making money. The producers keep making money from them, and these actors were paid meagre amounts. So they need royalties,” she said.
Aminu urged the federal government to work with the AGN to establish a legal framework that would protect actors’ rights and provide an enabling environment for them.(NAN)
Edited by Joshua Olomu