Communiqué At the End of a 2- Day Training For Information/ Public Relations Officers Organized by the Ogun State Government (Office of the Head of Service) in Conjunction with OTTOCOM International held on Wednesday, 18th to Thursday,19th September, 2024 at the Obas Complex, Oke Mosan, Abeokuta
Theme: Upscaling Public Information Management Through Strategic Public Relations".
Key Resolutions:
- Speakers at the 2 - Day event were unanimous about the fact that training for Information/ Public Relations Officers is long overdue and non -negotiable , urging the participants to see the opportunity as another chance to bond, while thanking the Governor of Ogun State, Prince Dapo Abiodun CON for graciously granting the training even in this challenging economic period.
- Speakers were also unanimous about the fact that information is power and that the era of archaic information management is gone for good and as such , underscored the need to evolve a virile Information Management Strategy, without which it would appear like " Winking in the Dark",
- To succeed on the job, Information /Public Relations Officers must provide accurate, timely and prompt information on government policies, in addition to being well abreast of the use of Information and Communication Technology(ICT as well as understand the use and applications of the different Quotients: Emotional, Adversity, Intelligence, Social and, Spiritual in managing people and operations.
- Since perception is tantamount to reality, Information/ Public Relations Officers must engage and be in the public space almost at all times - be visible and consistent, write and let the public know what is going on in the organization he or she represents and strive to rise above the challenges of survival to ensure that the perception of the public of the government is positive. This can be better achieved through effective engagement, which invariably means that Information/ Public Relations Officers must have a complete awareness of what the government is doing.
- With good comprehension of the activities and programmes of the government, information/ Public Relations Officers will be in the best position to educate the public and let the people know that the government is constantly in tune by putting the government in the news at all times.
- Information/ Public Relations Officers must be proactive and strive towards positioning the government as a major player in the media space, hence, the need to keep engaging the public.
- As information/ Public Relations Officers , you must know that if you do not engage, you can't be considered, and when you have presence, you will dominate. To be relevant in the media space , you must dominate. If you can't dominate, you are not there and If you are not there, you are not there. Therefore, Information/ Public Relations Officers should rejig and work to ensure that government dominates national consciousness, generate new contents and dare to be different, don't be a recyclers of news. Go beyond Press Releases to provide insight and perspectives from experts and critical stockholders for a wholesome analysis and interpretation. In this context, there is a dangerous trends in News Writing called ‘’ Syndication’, It got so bad that some so called reporters are lazy to even change the headline and as such you read the same headline on different platforms and everything becomes monotonous
- The world of information for government institutions has changed. In the past, Information / Public Relations Officers have to contend with the drudgery of producing news through the old form of using fax machine, typewriter, long hands and the like, but these days, with the new media, the dynamics have changed as with the snap of a finger, news are generated. Thus, everyone with a good mobile phone can now push information. There is therefore the urgent need to retool and upscale the game.
- To succeed in life depends on three cardinal principles of ethics, including being competitive, but the ideal thing is that being competitive may not take you to the pinnacle of your career, but at some point, character, which is an ethical issue are important, which is who you really are.
- Professional Ethics is very important, but when personal ethics breaks, there is nothing for personal effectiveness to stand on. Therefore, there must be a synergy between personal ethics and professional ethics. Thus, even at the most challenging time, your actions must not contradict your decisions or personal ethics.
- Those with strong ethics are personally motivated and at a point a man of ethics works more initially in his career more than he is paid, but a time will come when he would be paid more than he works.. To build strong personal ethics, it is essential to know the seed imbued in you and track it, everyone has a seed you must find and track your own.
- As information / Public Relations Officer, you must first and foremost develop a deep affinity for the State as a brand while also having a clear understanding of the vision and mission of the government. If you do not understand Ogun State, you cannot write extensively about the state. Ogun State is a state of abundant human and material resources with the following: best manufacturing hub with the largest concentration of industries in Africa, highest number of higher institutions, the cradle of many wonderful broadcasters, the state of the great sportsmen and musicians in Nigeria and the world at large , etc.
- The present government in Ogun State is striving to create a sustainable and inclusive growth that improves the quality of life for both citizens and residents with the agenda to promote inclusivity encapsulated in the '" Ise Ya" mantra.
- An ideal Information/ Public Relations Officer must be committed to self-motivation and personal development through training. He/She must understand his or her peculiar work environment and act within that confine; know what you can do and what you cannot do.
- As an ideal Information/ Public Relations Officer, your role is to develop content for government- gather , process and communicate government activities, policies, programmes and intentions to target publics with a view to achieve set goals. He / She must see himself/ herself more as a Public Relations personnel than a Journalist and this must reflect in his or her writings and work ethics.
- Above all, Information / Public Relations Officer must be proactive, have an analytical mind for environmental scanning, situation and trends analysis and knowing how to predict their consequences and know how to advice management appropriately to take the right decisions.
- An, ideal information/ Public Relations Officer must also be a competent speech writer, master the use of Information tools as well as master the art of public speaking. He must know that different publics require different messages and different channels to reach them.
-As information/Public Relation officers, you must learn how to structure messages to achieve desired objectives; hence we must report the most important aspect of what are superiors told us.
-IPRs must be a sterling brand in order to couch a persuasive report, hence you are expected to be able to do things by yourself. You must be able to multitask.
-Public Relations is a leadership function which makes IPR problem solvers, and anyone who wish to achieve success must be an avid reader who knows a little about everything and everything about something
-As Information and Public Relations professional, we must develop a positive attitude to our role and responsibilities as this determines how far we achieve our individual and collective objectives.
-As professionals, IPR officers cannot afford to be careless because you can’t afford to embarrass your principals, therefore you must do your research well before you publicize any activity.
-Build a ring of protection the government and your organization, by having zero tolerance for negative report. You can achieve this by being close to Journalist and build good relationship with them.
-To be abreast, you must keep learning and be politically aware.
-Familiarize with your beats and always dig deep and get the news behind by getting beyond the foam of events.
-Be proficient in languages of Communication. Do not underrate syntax and spellings. Be friendly with Metaphors.
-Play scrabble and chess to creatively engage your minds
- It was observed that government information is not being managed properly because information managers still make use of the old structure used in colonial and military era. The times have changed but we have not, hence the need to evolve with modern trends in information management.
- Data gathering is key in information management.
-It was observed that there is a challenge of access to information even by Information/Public Relations Officers and the gathering called for efforts to address the issue.
- Information officers were enjoined not to see themselves as journalists but as public relations officers so that they would not be seen as threats when seeking for information.
- Information/ Public Relations officers were exposed to the various tools and opportunities available in IT to manage public information effectively. This include the use of content management tools such as Word Press and Jumia; data storage and retrieval tools and information tracking tools, as well as SM platforms like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn etc
- participants were also enlightened on the benefits of engaging the use of IT to promote government information to include wide reach, crisis management and accurate information dissemination etc.
- Our duty is to demonstrate through our story how government actions and pronouncements is connected to development that eventually improve the quality of life.
- IPRO should engage in the Breaking of government policies and programmes down in measurable quotes in such a way that the audience are better informed.
Recommendations:
- There is a need for government and principal officers to equip their information and Public Relations officers with working tools to enhance their operations, especially with digital gadgets in tune with the trends of the time.
- Public Relations is a management function. Thus, for IPR Officers to be able to analyze trend, predict their consequences and advice management/ government appropriately, there is a need for the different Ministries, Departments and Agencies to accommodate them in the management meeting to be able to advise appropriately.
- In addition to this is the need to create a directorate of Information in all MDAs for the cadre to function effectively.
- To ensure data accuracy and transparency, it is recommended that government create a central information management unit in all Ministries and Agencies where information managers can access data when needed and this should be communicated to all Ministries and Parastatals Heads, without delay.
- Also, government should allocate budget for effective implementation and monitoring of media activities.
- Information and Public Relations officers should synergize with ICT professionals for seamless information management.
- Information/ Public Relations Officers need to showcase and project the honest and modest efforts of respective administration, because they are an extension of the government. This should be done, by embracing skillful and methodical use of evidential data to enrich PR narrative to make the public aware, understand and convinced about government’s plans and programmes.
E- Signed
Waheed Ogunjobi, Chairman Comminique committee (OGBC)
Committee Members.
Yemisi Fashola - Ministry of Information and Stategy,Ogun State.
James Yansunu - OGTV
Somide Olatunji - Water Corporation Usman Mariam - OGTV
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