Outdoor Ad: Will the mutual distrust continue in 2022?

ONE of the most popular sectors in the nation’s integrated marketing communications industry is the out- of- home advertising. But, despite its huge potential and popularity, the sector is still seen by many  as less on achievements. And a lot of factors have been adduced.

One of such factors is the huge mutual distrust between practitioners and agencies of the state saddled with the responsibility of regulating the sector.

Right from the inception of the Lagos State Signage and Advertisement Agency (LASAA),  established by the Lagos State Structures for Signage and Advertisement Agency Law, in Lagos, in 2006, there has been no love lost between operators and regulators in the state.

The first ‘onslaught’, against operators, was led by Mr. Makanjuola Alabi, the pioneer chief executive of the agency, under the ‘cleaning up’ the cityscape, and the effects were devastating. It resulted in vast tombstones of signages and outdoor advertising firms,  in the state, then.  Not a few also believe that the former LASAA boss had, with that singular action, unwittingly sown the seed of discord and mutual distrust, between the agency and outdoor practitioners in the state.

Though Makanjuola had hinged his action on the need to keep the cityscape clean, industry watchers had queried the decision by the former LASAA’s helmsman to bring down every signage in the state instead of limiting the exercise to those  that contravened the law.

They also accuse the former LASAA boss of  deviating from that ‘noble’ path,  especially when the agency, under his watch, began to act as an operator in a space it was supposed to regulate. Not only that, there were accusations that  some outdoor firms, without the necessary clearance, by the appropriate agencies, were being ‘licensed’ by LASAA to practise.

Interestingly, the exit of Makanjuola never brought the much-needed succour stakeholders had hoped for. Successive administrations, only succeeded in building on those not-too-popular ‘legacy’, thereby sowing that seed of mutual distrust, which has continued to germinate till date.

For instance, immediately after the  2015 general elections,  there was an uproar, among practitioners in Lagos that the ruling party in the state, the All Progressives Congress (APC), through the agency, had refused to pay them for some electioneering campaign jobs, running into millions of naira.

The practitioners, mainly members of the Outdoor Advertisers Association of Nigeria (OAAN), had accused another former chief executive of the agency, Mr. George Noah, of engaging some of the operators, using their channels for the APC presidential and gubernatorial campaigns, without being duly compensated as agreed.

Till date, it is on record that the dusts thrown up by the issue are yet to fully settle.

But, while some of these developments may have begun to fade  in the memories of stakeholders in the industry, one thing that is perhaps rather disturbing is the fact that other fresh controversies have been not in short supply.

For instance, in the past few years, practitioners had continued to appeal to LASAA not to be a cog in the industry’s wheel of progress. They would want to be spared the extra-burden of paying for vacant billboards on Lagos roads.

According to them,  it is against the law of natural justice for the state outdoor regulatory agency to continue to ask them to pay for billboards that have not been bringing  them revenue.

But the agency would have none of that. Practitioners would continue to pay, even if it is going to be at a discounted price, the agency insisted. The issue has remained knotty and has continued to generate bad blood in the sector.

The issue of concession of some roads in the state to some select outdoor firms has also not sat well with many practitioners.

Concession of roads, they condend, should not be encouraged; since it creates an undulating playing field in the sector,  thereby giving the ‘favoured’ practitioners an undue advantage.

The practitioners believe that besides creating  animosity within the sector, such concession would also lead to unemployment; since majority of the outdoor firms, with little or no connection, in the state’s corridors of power, would have to shut down.

“We were all living witnesses to the number of practitioners, forced to close shop, during Makanjuola’s reforms. Any action, in that mould today, would, without doubt, aggravate the already bad situation in the sector,” argued a practitioner, who would not want his name in print.

Though the agency had denied, several, such concession plans, practitioners are however taking such denials with a pint of salt.

Interestingly, the ‘cold war’ became so glaring at the last exhibition organised by LASAA in Lagos, last year. OAAN, an association of outdoor ad members, which, ordinarily, should have been a major stakeholder at the event, was glaringly absent at the opening ceremony of the one-week event.

Though reasons were given, from both sides for the absence, yet they were not convincing. According to a very reliable source, the outdoor ad practitioners were almost staying away, because they were only informed of the event at the eleventh hour.

“We had already fixed our Emergency General Meeting, which clashed with the opening ceremony of the first day and there was no way we could shift the programme. To make matters worse, we were only briefed at the eleventh hour,” the source, a member of the OAAN executive had told Brands & Marketing.

 

Any hope for a better working relationship in Year 2022?

Not a few believe this is possible. But the two parties would have to agree on some terms of engagement, stakeholders said. Another practitioner, who would not want his name mentioned due to the sensitivity of the issue, is of the view that the rough patches can be smoothened.

According to him, building a smoother working relationship between the two would require the Lagos outdoor ad regulatory agency to come down from its high horse while dealing with practitioners. Practitioners, too,  should endeavour to give the agency some benefits of the doubt, regarding its policies, he counselled.

He believes if such  harmonious relationship can be achieved in Ogun, Oyo and some other states in the federation, Lagos should not be an exemption.