National Telescope national telescope newspaper
Minister of Information and National Orientation Alhaji Mohammed Idris Malagi has said the era of propaganda in the dissemination of information about government policies and programmes in Nigeria is over.
He said the Renewed Hope agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu shall be anchored on transparent and accountable information dissemination to Nigerians.
Malagi stated this Thursday at the Annual General Meeting of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) in Abuja.
“You are aware that the focus of government is to restore the confidence of the governed in the government and its institutions. This time around, the process of restoring popular confidence and trust in the government and its policies will not rely on propaganda. In other words, the era of reliance on propaganda is over,” he said.
Malagi reiterated his commitment to providing credible information to Nigerians at all times, promising to own up where mistakes are made.
This, he said, would engender trust and mutual respect between government and the citizens.
“As I noted during my first meeting with the management staff of the ministry shortly after I took over, we have to serve with unique vigour to provide credible information to Nigerians at all times which of course involves boldly and humbly acknowledging mistakes where such are made.
“This in my opinion is important in reducing apathy and engendering trust between government and the citizens. We will engender a new approach based on truth, mutual respect and empathy which is needed to open conversations between the government and the people,” he added.
The minister charged public relations practitioners across the country to go about the practice of their profession with high ethical standards and commitment to truth.
He said: “As public relations practitioners, you are aware of the vantage and strategic intervention that the communication spectrum can assist in making the profession more relevant and more focused to achieve national expectations.
“In this age of information saturation, where everything adds to the noise, the role of public relations has never been more pivotal. We are the storytellers, the bridge builders and custodians of reputation.
“Our work shapes perceptions, guides decisions, it fosters relationships and it stretches far beyond the boardroom. As guardians of reputation therefore, we must learn quickly to navigate uncharted waters with ethical responsibility and commitment to truth. Ethics indeed lies at the heart of our profession.
“In an era where truth can be altered with a single misleading tweet, our integrity must remain unshakable.”
NIPR nat’l chair remarks
Earlier in his remarks, NIPR President Malam Mukhtar Zubairu Sirajo lamented the impact of fuel subsidy removal on the citizens, calling on governments at all levels to ensure fair distribution of palliatives to ordinary Nigerians.
“There are some concerns expressed about the consequences of some recent policies of the government, especially the controversial removal of subsidy, which has resulted in an increase in the prices of goods and services in the market. The citizens and corporate organisations are struggling to cope with the negative impact of the policy.
“The subsidy removal may have been a well-intended decision of the government to ensure financial prudence and efficiency in the system, however, experience of the majority of Nigerians across the land clearly shows that the policy is having a negative toll on them.
“It is therefore our hope that all necessary measures to ameliorate the negative impact of policy be put in place so that citizens can heave a sigh of relief. The recent release of funds and other relief materials by the federal government to states to provide some palliatives to the citizens is commendable.
“However, efforts should also be made to ensure that there is transparency, accountability, fairness and equity in the distribution of these relief materials.”
Sirajo also decried the rising cases of coup in the West Africa sub region, demanding for the return of power to civilian administration.
He said: “The political situation in the West Africa sub region has also given us cause for concern, especially the rise in military coup which has led to truncating of democratic institutions in the affected nation.
“We condemn in its totality the truncation of democratically elected people in the Republic of Niger and join all forces of reason to demand the return of democracy to that country now.”
He however, added that NIPR is not in support of military action to restore power in Niger republic.
“NIPR will like to lend its voice to the call for peaceful diplomatic resolution of the crises as a way out”, he said.
(Blueprint)
