Fear Of Betrayal, Competition Makes Some Igbos Shun Mentorship — Zubby Michael

Nollywood actor Zubby Michael has said some industry executives, including Igbos, are reluctant to support or mentor fellow Igbos for fear that their protégés may eventually outshine or compete with them.

The actor remarked while speaking on Broadway TV in an interview that began gaining attention online on Sunday, where he discussed the reluctance of some established players to mentor emerging Igbo talents.

According to Michael, the concern stems from how quickly some Igbo talents acquire skills and build independent careers after receiving mentorship.

He explained that an executive could spend years mastering a particular skill, only for a protégé to acquire the same knowledge within a much shorter period and eventually establish a competing business.

“Igbo people are fast learners and they are capable of making it big with just a little. You might decide to mentor an Igbo person and what took you ten years to learn, he will learn it in one year and six months.

“And if you don’t treat him well, he will leave you and start doing the same business you taught him and become your competition. So, people are scared of that,” Michael said.

Michael’s comments come at a time when questions about the visibility of Igbo talents, stories and investments in Nigeria’s entertainment industry are generating renewed debate.

Just days before Michael’s interview surfaced, veteran actor Francis Duru had called for greater investment in Igbo filmmaking and a more deliberate effort to promote the region’s cultural stories.

Duru, speaking in an interview on YouTube channel on Friday, urged Igbo filmmakers and investors to take a cue from the Yoruba film industry, which he said had been more deliberate in promoting and preserving its cultural identity.

The actor was responding to questions about the apparent dominance of Yoruba productions in major cinema release windows and on global streaming platforms such as Netflix.

He attributed the gap partly to Igbo filmmakers’ failure to adapt and invest strategically in their own stories.

“When they say charity begins at home, that’s what has happened to the Yorubas. We need to learn from them. If you don’t protect your own, if you don’t project your own, you know, who will do it?” Duru said.