Onyeka shuns COSON appointment, calls elections a coup

Few weeks ago, Nigerian singer Onyeka Onwenu was appointed as a member of the newly inaugurated Copyright Society of Nigeria (COSON) advisory board. We’ve now been told the singer turned politician has openly rejected the appointment.

The veteran musician was appointed alongside with Sir Victor Uwaifo, Dan Maraya Jos, Onyeka Onwenu, Laolu Akins, Sunny Neji, Toju Ejueyitchie, Ben Ofoeze, Ossy Affason and Dayo Ogunyemi, at the second annual general meeting of the association held on Tuesday, May 8, 2012, at Eko FM hall, Agidingbi, Lagos. 

According to her, ‘I received with consternation the news that I have been appointed as a member of COSON Advisory Board. I was never contacted or informed by COSON directly until this appointment was announced on the pages of newspapers’.

She also added, ‘The idea of an Advisory Council is that of Tony Okoroji.  He raised it at the last COSON General Meeting, right before the pre-determined election of a new board. It was not a decision of the old board and certainly not the new one which is made up of people who will rubber stamp his decision’.

‘Ordinarily, if properly canvassed with a sincere purpose, an Advisory Council for COSON would not be a bad idea’, Onyeka said, according to The Vanguard.

She continues ‘As it is, the move was made to ameliorate the impact of the coup, the schemes and shenanigans that characterised the last board elections; where people like Chief Ebenezer Obey, Laolu Akins, Toju Ejueyitchie, Charlimo, Sikiru Agbola and myself, all who are on the board as sticklers for due process, were schemed out by a well selected list of voters, most of whom had proxies.  Well, we are not fooled, I hereby reject my appointment’, she concluded.