Okusanya calls for PR image revitalization
By Oghale Mafuru
Amid seeming decline in public awareness of the significance and impact of harnessing the potentials of Public Relations experts for brand building, the Group Managing Director of CMC Connect and President of the African Public Relations Association, Mr. Yomi Badejo-Okusanya has called for concerted efforts by all stakeholders in rebuilding the perception of the profession.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with MARKETING EDGE on TV, the seasoned PR professional stated that PR in Nigeria has been adversely affected by the influx of untrained practitioners and professionals from other disciplines within the Integrated Marketing Communications Industry. He stressed the need for self-evaluation and assessment in value delivery in order to reassert its position in the brand management spectrum.
“This is something that I have been trying to promote for a while, which is affirmative Public Relations. It is to serve Public Relation, make it a front burner issue, and sell the value it brings to the table. Unfortunately, as practitioners, we have been unable to sell our values to the rest of the business world. We have not done enough in selling ourselves, it is a case of ‘physician, heal thyself’. We are able to do it for our clients but we are very poor at doing it for ourselves. We have not sufficiently sold our relevance to the government and private sector”.
The CMC Connect boss who decried the engagement of non-professionals by organisations stressed the need for training and capacity building for effective perception management.
“I do not have a problem with a journalist transiting to become a public relation practitioner but please go for the training, please go for the knowledge enhancement” he said.
“Let us look at the big players in the industry like the banks. In those days, consulting firms managed the reputation of banks. Now many of the big players have in-house communication teams that prosecute their work. This leaves us out in the cold.
“We have also been plagued by the activities of the interlopers. Those are people who are not trained to do the profession but they found themselves in the profession one way or the other. So, all of this has eroded the quantum of what we, as public relation practitioners, can deliver”, he added.
According to him, the laws regulating Public Relations in Nigeria should be reviewed and enforced to ensure strict compliance.
“For us to be serious, we need to enforce regulations. The regulations are weak. Let us review and see what can give some teeth to the law that establishes Nigeria Institute of Public Relation”.
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