NIPR: It’s a New Song, Let’s Sing Along
The Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) having been established about sixty years ago, precisely in 1963 is a body saddled with the responsibility of regulating the practice Public Relations in Nigeria. The Institute however became Chartered in June 1990 through Decree No. 16 which has now become an Act of the National Assembly that confers it with all the extant powers and responsibility to set parameters of knowledge to acquire to qualify to practise, regulate the practice and development of the Public Relations Profession, register its practitioners as well monitor professional conducts through an established Code of Ethics, amongst others.
As illuminating as the law establishing the Institute may appear, it is important to appreciate the underlying principles which was set out to initiate the study and practice of Public Relations both as an academic discipline in the realm of the social sciences and an art on its own. Certainly, it may no longer be argued that Public Relations just like other professional practices have carved a niche for itself in the comity of other profession. We may adduce that Public Relations profession has attained 60 years of age officially in Nigeria, but its practice globally is as old as human creation in the garden of Eden. There has always been need for communication. God’s wisdom which surpasses all human understanding created Eve just so that Adam could have an interactive and relationship partner, Gen 2:21-22. And so the whole gamut of Public Relations practice is to ensure that human society thrives in harmony, love and understanding of one another. Of late, there have been wide held misconception about what Public Relations is. This notion derives from the misapplication of its concept in settling disputes. Others having seen a leeway to conjure relationship behaviour among humans and or organisations are won’t to tag Public Relations as PR to mean bribery or latent or subtle bribery. The implication of this wrong notion has equally cast a veil on the minds of prospective practioners who might have otherwise taken Public Relations as a vocation. Another implication is the commonization of the noble profession as nothing but propaganda gimmicks and what aught nought. This easily explains especially in our clime the appointment of non Professionals to man sensitive information portfolios. As long as one can speak good English albeit with sinister vulger lacking in felicity and can dress well, Public Relations faculty is complete in such individual and can be trusted with such nomenclatures as Public Affairs manager, Public Relations Director etc.
Let’s digress a little. During the just concluded 2023 NIPR AGM and Conference with the theme “Leadership, Public Relations and Value Creation”, a participant had tasked professionals themselves to start boosting the image of Public Relations for what it is and stop being unnecessarily too lazy by resorting to mention Public Relations in full rather the clip PR, since the clip word appears to denote a negative notion about the principles and concepts of the noble profession as held by the non initiates. Correct, you will say which I equally want to agree with. The belief also that no one else can tell a story about you better than you yourself have never been reinforced than the regular strategic actions and programs designed by the body of Public Relations both at global, continental,
regional or national stage to keep the steam of Public Relations practice alive.
While these regular strategic engagements have sailed over the years, it is still doubtful if the letters and principles of Public Relations have yet to be fully appreciated by even those in the profession. The reason(s) for this doubt aligns itself with perception earlier enunciated above. While the already established practioners might be calling the shots today, the upcoming ones are barely managing with little or no mentorship from the senior colleagues. While we are at this, the upcoming and prospective practioners would want to know why they should pay exorbitantly to attend organized conferences or seminars or even aspire to grow through the wrungs of membership categories. In other words, what is in there for them to be proud members of the professional Institute?. Even so, NIPR membership or being a professional does not even guarantee or confer on one a special placement in the public or private sector. These are germain issues which the recently constituted governing Council of the Institute must tackle headlong.
Perhaps, giving the Institute and by extension Public Relations practioners a pride of place in the scheme of things may have accounted for more than the hyper interest the recently 2023 national AGM and Conference which held between 24th and 25th of August at NAF Suites and Conference centre generated. A peek into the capacity cum antecedents of most of the front line contenders to the Institute’s Governing Council ensured practitioners of all hues booked their participation at the annual event. Expectations both from the contenders totalling 28 in number from which 17 electees and 5 government nominees are expected to emerge and the ever increasing professionals were reasonably high.
Never in the chequered history of the NIPR has such consciousness been awakened in the hearts and souls of both professionals and non-professionals alike. The 2023 NIPR national AGM and Conference which heralded the election of new leadership into the governing Council sure fits the bill of an Oscar in terms of the final outcome. It is no longer news that 17 out of the 28 candidates who competed for seats in the Governing Council have already coasted to victory, perhaps the icing on the cake is the final emergence of an asumming, humility personified, capacity oriented and go-getter professional in the person of a Fellow of the Institute, Ikechukwu Neliakuchukwu PhD. Fellow Ike truly embodies the new face of the Institute in our present circumstances.
Perhaps in his shoulders lies the energy to reconfigure and realign the varied concerns of not quite a few professionals. Perhaps Ike may yet represent another version of the renewed hope agenda for the Institute. The value creation which formed a sub theme in the recently concluded conference is what we all look forward to. Everything considered, practioners want strong values attached to their profession. They desire to be accorded respect and a pride of place anywhere they might be located or found.
In conclusion, I’d like to aver that with Fellow Ikechukwu Neliakuchukwu PhD in the saddle of the Governing Council of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations, we are all in for a new song in the Institute. In fact, it is a dawn of a new song, let’s sing along together. Professionals and non Professionals are welcome on board!
© Austin Okechukwu Chijioke is the immediate General Secretary of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations, FCT, Abuja Chapter and currently the Chief Public Relations Officer of the Catholic Men Organization in the Archdiocese of Abuja.
