Nigerian Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris has urged Public Relations professionals to uphold truth in the face of misinformation and falsehood that threaten the fabric of the society.
The Minister made the call at the NIPR colloquium with the theme: “Public Relations, Value Re-Orientation and Economic Transformation” organized to commemorate the “Diamond Anniversary” of the NIPR.
Idris, while saluting NIPR at its diamond anniversary (60 years) said the critical importance of public relations (PR) cannot be overemphasized especially as regards the government and its established organizations.
He said this is because the government and its institutions need public relations to improve and maintain a positive image.
“As public communicators, one of the first things that you should do is to ensure that whatever you are saying you are telling people the truth and nothing but the truth. People need to recognise that. We have a pillar agenda in the Ministry of Information and national orientation and the first one is that trust must be restored to the art of public communication; that is why whenever I don’t have any information about something, I there not speak, I should keep my mouth shut than to reproduce ignorant.
“I have the blessing and the approval of my principal, the President to say it the way it is but in a more polite manner. Trust must return to public communication because that’s the only way that Nigerians will come to agree with you, respect you and even listen to you,” he added.
The Information Minister added that the present administration has effectively used PR to rebuild citizens’ trust in the government in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda.
“As the Minister of Information and National Orientation, who also is the spokesperson of the federal government, I have not wavered in my bid and assiduous effort to restore hope in public communication. And this is necessary, if we must gain the trust of the Nigerian populace in helping to actualize Mr President’s Renewed Hope Agenda,” he said.
In his welcome remarks the President and Chairman of the NIPR Governing Council, Dr Ike Neliaku, explained that for Nigeria to achieve its desired transformation, it must change the narrative that the colonial masters bestowed on her as their programme for national development.
“Hope is an essential element, we must work very hard to ensure that we keep giving citizens hope because that is the responsibility of leadership.
“When your reputation is low, no one is interested in investing in your country. So primarily you have to build your reputation this is why we are emphasising reputation perception, because it has helped us to measure our reputation. If your reputation is low people will not appreciate what you are doing. And what we have done is to show leaders where they are failing so that we can help them to build upon those areas.
“As NIPT, if Nigeria was designed and programmed to fail, it is now time for Nigerians to build a new Nigeria.”
Similarly, the Liberian Former Vice President, Dr. Jewel Howard-Taylor who described PR as a double-edged sword, applauded Nigeria for playing the big brother role in uniting Africa.
“There are challenges encountered in the practice; Limited resources, changing media landscape, the cultural diversity, in a country such as Nigeria, now we add other countries in our region, infrastructure, perception challenges, scales gap. Despite these challenges, the Nigeria Institute of Public Relations and other PR professionals have overcome them through their creativity, adaptability and local knowledge to develop innovative strategies that redesign and resonate with the target audiences. PR has become a critical tool, the work that must be done by NIPR is wide and varied, but each of us must keep in mind that Africa presents several opportunities for growth, innovation and impact,” he said.
The President of the Association of PR in Africa (APRA), Arik Karani, and that of Global Alliance, Professor, Robert Green were of the view that Nigeria’s PR profession has set the bar for the world in areas of professionalism and achievements.
Another high point of the event was a Panel discussion and the honorary conferment of fellowship to distinguished Nigerians who through their platforms have positively shaped the country’s image to the rest of the world.
Lantana Nasir
