#UnitedWeStand: Tara Fela-Durotoye, Oke Maduewesi, Others take a Stand Against Piracy in Nigeria

L-R: Oke Maduewesi, CEO Zaron Cosmetics; Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Aisha Abubakar; Tara Fela-Durotoye, CEO House of Tara International; Obi Asika

Beauty expert and Chief Executive Officer, House of Tara International, Tara Fela-Durotoye, on Friday urged the Federal Government to put strong policies in place, to protect the intellectual properties of locally made brands.

Tara Fela-Durotoye spoke on the sideline of the campaign against piracy, intellectual property theft and counterfeiting in Lagos with the theme: “United We Stand’’.

I was shocked that somebody called all the way from China to say her product was seen and it was fake.

People have been calling me in Nigeria here that my products are all over the market but they are counterfeit ones.

It is very painful that you spend your time, money, energy, invest all you have to create a brand and it is gone just like that.

I have to use my money to repair potholes on the roads leading to my office, I run on generator; I provide my own water and others and people fake them.

After all that, somebody would just come to pirate what you have slaved for, it is so sad,’’ she said.

She then explained that was why she decided not to sit back again and watch, adding that something must be done to make government do the needful.

“We cannot create brands and they go down the drain just like that,’’ she said.

Earlier, Oke Maduewesi, Chief Executive Officer of Zaron Cosmetics described piracy, counterfeiting, and intellectual properties as evil.

“If anybody steals what someone else slaved for and sells to make money, it is robbery.

They kill brands and government is campaigning for Small and Medium Enterprises (SME’s) in the country; war against corruption and still no strong policy for piracy,’’ she said.