ELS-7
Artifacts
By Vezi Isike
Lagos, Nov. 2, 2016 (NAN) Azubike Okoronkwo, the Chief Executive Officer, Royal Roots Promotion International (RRPI), on Wednesday called for an urgent inventory of national and local museums’ pieces to curb theft.
Okoronkwo told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that this was because of the alleged theft and secret sales of the nation’s cultural treasures to the rest of the world.
He also called on government to further protect the artifacts by enacting laws that would punish offenders.
The government should also upgrade the sector to discourage perceived illegal exportation of the antiquities, he said.
“Stakeholders should be enlightened on the need to sanction those who indulged in stealing museum assets as this will ensure restrictions on sales and trafficking of these treasured assets to foreigners.
“It is bad to learn that some of our forefathers exchanged our traditional ways of life with the white man’s religion which is currently disintegrating and causing serious rift between our people.
“These foreigners came to show us the best way to live by their own standard only to engage in the trafficking of our artifacts out of our borders, “he said.
Okoronkwo commended the Archaeological Association of Nigeria (AAN) in its fight against the vice and urged for more efforts.
He alleged that museums in other parts of the world had continued to be part of the illicit trade of our artifacts because our museums were not properly fortified.
“If the theft of our cultural heritage continues few decades from now, we will be left with nothing to portray our culture,” he said.
Okoronkwo also called on government to relocate artifacts from less secured museums to national museums for safekeeping.(NAN)
VOI/DUA/PAD
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Edited by Dada Ahmed, controlled by Peter Dada
Culture promoter wants theft of artifacts curbed
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