‘All Eyes on The Judiciary’: Stakeholders Fume As Advert Agency Apologises To Federal Govt

Stakeholders in the marketing industry have expressed their misgivings over the controversial ‘All Eyes on The Judiciary’ ad exposure, wondering how such content went public without proper regulatory approval.

This is even as the advert agency, Intercontinental Marketing & Comm. Consortium Limited, responsible for allegedly deploying the controversial ‘All Eyes on The Judiciary’ ad exposure tendered an official apology to the federal government through the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON).

In a circulated letter signed by its managing director, Stephen Ogboko, dated 17th August 2023 and addressed to the chairman of the Advertising Standard Panel (ASP), the agency acknowledged its breach of Article 24(a) of the Nigeria Advertising Practice code. This article stipulates that all advertising, marketing communications, and related materials must undergo ARCON’s vetting process and secure the approval certificate of the Standards Panel prior to public exposure.

‘We sincerely apologise for this and state that our action was not intentional,’ the agency wrote. Explaining its side of the story, the agency explained that it went ahead with the Ad  after the board got verbal approval from a certain Mr. Markus Inji Lukman, who was said to be an ARCON liaison officer.

“We are deeply disappointed that this happened and are awfully sorry for any inconvenience it has caused. 

We would never knowingly do anything to violate the law or the regulations guiding advertising practice, jeopardise our practice licence, or bring disaffection to our dear country’s judiciary.

“We have already taken steps to ensure that this does not repeat itself. We will be requiring all future advertisements to be vetted from the ARCON Lagos office through our staff in Lagos. Once again, we apologise and hope that you will consider our explanation. We are committed to working with you to ensure that this does not happen again.” the company added.

While the industry responds to this development, some experts, such as Obiechefu Emmanuel, a marketing professional with expertise in media buying, have raised concerns about the agency’s actions.

He said:“I have been buying media in this market for over a decade and I can tell you authoritatively that you do not deploy ad materials without an approval certificate from the ASP. How do you go ahead to deploy because someone somewhere in the ARCON office gave you verbal approval? Why the hurry in the first place? I don’t think even the director general can ask you to go ahead and deploy without an approval certificate.”

Olusegun Sasegbon, who also plays in the space, suspects there is something more: “As a professional and as an agency, we all know that verbal approval by anybody in ARCON setting does not translate to an approval certificate. I think it is part of the law that an approval certificate must be obtained before the exposure of material. It is just like saying that you can go ahead and take a trip to the United States because someone in their embassy has given you assurances that your visa application has been granted and your passport will be sent to you after your trip. This could be a form of compromise between the agency and the ARCON staff. In this country, nothing is impossible,” he pointed out.

Likewise, another expert, Ibezim Okpala presents an alternative perspective, suggesting that the agency’s swift action may have been driven by an understanding that the campaign might not receive ARCON’s approval. He highlights the extensive social media traction garnered by the campaign, emphasising the apparent success of its intended impact. “I am sure the agency is aware its ad material will not scale through the vetting process, hence, it quickly deployed, achieved what it intended and waited for the consequence of their action.

“You only need to go on social media to see the millions of impressions images of the messages on boards and the buzz it generated to understand that the intent by those behind the message has been achieved. I believe the apology shared by the agency is just a mere formality,” he said.

Meanwhile, Emmanuel observed that the implications of this situation extend beyond mere unauthorised edits, transcending into questions of integrity, accountability, and adherence to established protocols, the very foundation of the approval process for such critical and influential communications rests upon a delicate balance of trust, transparency, and adherence to established guidelines.

Betty Eromosele, another expert in the industry wrote: “All Eyes Are Now on ARCON” to see how it will handle all the issues arising from the All Eyes on the Judiciary saga.”