Popular actor, Dele Odule has passionately appealed to all concerned in the recent trial and conviction of talented actress, Funke Akindele over her disregard to ‘social distancing’ laws in Lagos State to please obliterate all the records.
Odule made the special appeal while featuring on a radio magazine programme, Parrot Xtra Hour on Space FM, Ibadan on Tuesday.
According to the veteran actor, “I am not out here to defend what Akindele did right or wrong, I am just begging all those involved in her much reported conviction to please forgive, erase and forget about her conviction. They should think about her career and the good deeds she had done before now.”
Odule, who is the immediate past President of the Theatre, Arts and Motion Pictures Association of Nigeria (TAMPAN), also enjoined governments at all levels to co-opt artistes into their activities in order to influence and promote their projects and activities.
The Ijebu-born actor submitted that the movie industry has so much to offer when governments at all levels wish to educate and inform the general public on policies and strategies especially in these days of COVID-19 pandemic.
The experienced actor who is a graduate of Mass communication from the Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ogun State, stated that there is no reason why artistes should not be carried along in government activities, emphasizing that it is not during elections alone that artistes should be used as ‘megaphones’.
He continued “I won’t say I am a tribalistic but cherish my tribe, Yoruba so much that I put it forward in anything I do. So, if anything is coming out of Yoruba nation, artistes’ groups should be carried along because we are powerful medium to disseminate information. What I am trying to say is that you want to do a project as gigantic as the Western Nigeria Security Network called Amotekun, you want to discuss coronavirus and you want to explain to someone who doesn’t understand, you can use artistes to achieve that.
“It is our job to educate, inform and entertain the people, government should co-opt us into their activities if they really want the public to know very quickly, because we can influence very fast,” Odule said.
While speaking on the issue of fees charging allegation leveled against some members of TAMPAN for charging for auditioning by Ibadan Film Circle (IFC), Mr. Odule disclosed that it is only quacks, who do not understand the ethics guiding the acting profession that will do that.
According to him, “like I said earlier, that is where regards for standards and rules comes in. If there is a standard, someone who is a core professional will never charge for auditioning, it is not right, a core professional will not do it. If they know what auditioning is all about, they won’t say you should bring money, it is because the person that was charging them did not know the meaning.
The actor noted that the leadership of the association has taken necessary steps to stop the act that he described as a way of exploiting the innocent.
Speaking about his career, he said “the environment I was brought up actually influenced my artistic career. When I was much younger, I discovered I could drum, sing, and dance. People would come around when I was in modern school to act and I realized I could do all that they were doing. That was how I started. It was not by accident, that I am an actor today is purely by choice,” Odule concluded.
Packaged by Olayinka Agboola, Kunle Gazali and Olawale Awe
