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- As new exco vows to send quacks packing
- Promises to work with FG to rebrand Nigeria with new ideas
From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
Dr Ike Neliaku and Prof. Emmanuel Dandaura have emerged as President and Vice President of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations, respectively.
Neliaku was elected unopposed by the 17 newly elected members of council of the institute.
The council members themselves were elected following a keenly contested election by members of the institute at the 2023 annual general meeting (AGM) which was held at NAF suites in Abuja.
The 17 elected council members of the institute are; Dr Ike Neliaku, Prof Emmanuel Dandaura, Dr Sule Yau Sule, Ini Ememobong Essien, Bashir Adamu Chedi, Dr Adewale Oladipo Oyekanmi, Okoh Thelma Chika, Kabir Ali Kobi, and Adaramola Temitope.
Others are Prof. Kate Azuka Omenugha, Dr. Saidat Salah Abdulnaqi, Prof Sarah Benjamin Luwahas, Ford Ozumba, Paulinus Eyinda Nsirim, Olubunmi Adedoyin Badejo, Akin Agbejule and Bajulaye Adetokunbo.
Neliaku vowed that under his watch, the Institute would put an end to quackery in the public relations profession.
He stated that the profession has taken a new dimension and will begin to do things differently, requiring sending quacks home.
The new NIPR President emphasised that compliance and enforcement would be taken seriously, and the issue of reinventing the reputation of the profession would be addressed.
Neliaku expressed his intention to work with the Minister of Information, Mohammed Malagi, who is a member of the institute, to ensure that he succeeds, and generate ideas from the team to rebrand Nigeria.
Neliaku, a veteran public relations practitioner, public affairs consultant and the Managing Director of Right Angle PR, also thanked his predecessor, President Murktar Surajo, and stated that they would work together with former Presidents, elders, and stakeholders that have offered the institution their time to recreate, rethink, reinvent, review, and rewrite the public relations profession in the country.
Neliaku emphasised that it is a collective responsibility and by the grace of God, they will use the mandate to serve humanity and serve God.
The President of NIPR said: “It is my pleasure to confirm to you that this is a new dawn and we must make sure that there will be no morning like this again. Because, indeed this is just 6:38 am a new dawn at a new dawn. It is a new beginning but I cannot do this alone, we are going to do this together. It is a collective responsibility and by the grace of God, we will take this mandate and serve you, and serve humanity and serve God.
“Our profession has taken a new dimension, our profession will begin to do things differently. It will require sending quacks home. Those who have no business with public relations and are using our profession, your time is up. Because, henceforth it is PR for PR. We are no longer going to loose our breakfast to those who are not trained to our work.
“So we will take the issue of compliance and enforcement seriously. We are going to reinvent the reputation of our profession but more importantly, we will use it for the nation. Because, if we don’t add value to Nigeria then that means the content of what we offer is of no benefit. Therefore, we will use this platform to reinvent Nigeria and we can do it.
“Nations that understand the importance of public relations excel because branding is a product, therefore, we are going to rebrand Nigeria. We thank God that he has given us a minister of information who is our brother, our colleague, and a core professional. We will work together with him to ensure that he succeeds and we will generate ideas from this team. I am blessed because I have the best team that will serve this institute for this dawn, I could t have asked for a better team.
“I would like to thank my brother, President Murktar Surajo, a fellow of the institute, who today has given me the opportunity to succeed him, just like he succeeded the IPP. Together, he will not be allowed to go home, because we still need him. We are going to make use of former Presidents, elders, and stakeholders that have offered this institution their time, we are going to work with them, we are not sending them home, we are not retiring them, we reinventing them to come back so that together, we can recreate, we can rethink, we can reinvent, we can review, we can rewrite public relations profession in this country.”
The Vice President of NIPR is also the Executive Director of the Institute of Strategic and Development Communication (ISDEVCOM), at Nasarawa State University, Keffi. The NIPR also conducted an induction for fellows of the Institute. Notable among the inductees were the Vice Chancellor of Benue State University, Prof. Tor Joe Iorapuu and Senator Osita Izunaso, representing Imo West Senatorial District.
The AGM had featured conference and meeting proper, climaxing with the election of council members to pilot the affairs of the institute for the next 2 years. The elections and vote counting lasted into the early morning of Friday, 25th August, 2023. The Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) uses American-style electoral college during its elections. Members elect the council members who in turn elect the President and Vice President. Both serve as the Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Governing Council of the Institute, which is run by a 22-member Governing Council made up of 17 elected members and 5 nominees of the Federal Government of Nigeria.
