The Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN) will recommit to the welfare of members to address incessant deaths among Nigerian artists, the Guild’s president, Emeka Rollas, said during the end of year get-together organised for members in Lagos on Friday.

Mr. Rollas said the association would begin this life-saving measure by organising in-house health workshops across all chapters of AGN.

He said that the measure became necessary as the increase in deaths of major practitioners, arising from sudden ailments, was alarming.

The health workshop, he said would be organised in collaboration with Elyon Synergy and would begin in the first quarter of 2021.

The workshop would be centred on the prevention of hypertension, diabetes, stress and sudden deaths.

He expressed the guild’s heartfelt sorrow on the loss of some of their prominent veterans, among whom were late Chico Ejiro and Frank Dallas.

“The news of the death of Chico Ejiro came to us as a rude shock, which many of us are yet to recover from.

“We are also yet to come to terms with the reality of his death while the demise of our National Public Relations Officer, late Frank Dallas, is still very fresh in our minds.

“We, therefore, cannot continue to watch this trend continue unabated.

“The Guild is taking a proactive move in organising an in-house health workshop for members,’’ he said.

Mr. Rollas lamented that year 2020 had been tough and most challenging, particularly amidst the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic and all the crisis passed through both at the national and state chapters.

The AGN boss noted that his administration was passionate about initiating and executing programmes that would enhance the welfare of members and uplift the status and dignity of the profession.

He also listed distribution of palliatives to some indigent members during the lockdown.

“The Health Management Scheme, where our members have access to over 600 hundred hospitals across the nation at a very affordable rate annually was launched in August,’’ he said.