Advertising Practitioner Council of Nigeria has said it will take necessary steps to ensure that Sterling Bank is sanctioned for its provocative Easter advert which compared Jesus Christ with Agege bread in its Easter message to customers.
The bank had on Sunday written, “Like Agege Bread, He rose. Happy Easter,” a post that infuriated Christian faithfuls.
Reacting through a statement signed by its Registrar, Dr Olalekan Fadolapo, APCON said the advert was not approved by the regulating body and promised to sanction the bank.
The statement obtained by AN24 reads, “The distasteful advertisement was neither submitted nor approved for exposure by the Advertising Standards Panel (ASP), the statutory panel charged with the responsibility of ensuring that advertisements conform with the prevailing laws of the federation as well as the code of ethics of advertising in Nigeria.
“APCON will take necessary actions to ensure that Sterling Bank is sanctioned for the exposure of such offensive advertisement according to law and that no religious belief or faith is ridiculed or any blasphemous advertisement exposed in any guise.”
