By Samuel Ugbaja
The age long saying that “Gold fish has no hiding place” reverberated weekend in far-away Uyo, capital city of Akwa Ibom State, during the just concluded Directors’ Conference, organized by the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR).
A resource person, Mohammed Haruna, singled out the Delta State Commissioner for Information, Charles Aniagwu for commendation, saying the commissioner had handled his duty as the spokesperson for the state each time he appeared on national televisions professional.
Mr Haruna stated that the commissioner exhibited dexterity on issues concerning the Delta State Government, describing Mr Aniagwu as very professional and authentic in delivery facts.
He charged public relations persons in public and private establishments to take a cue from professionals like Charles Aniagwu, urging employers to hire those that had been professionally trained.
According to him, the management of information was meant to attract goodwill, and cement relationship with the target audience
Speaking on the topic “The Changing Dynamics of Governance and Engagements” the scholar called on those charged with the management of Information not to rely on old systems of communication especially with the advent of new media such as Facebook, Instagram, Whatsapp and YouTube.
He observed that since the introduction of the new media, anybody that had a smart phone automatically became a reporter and information officer.
He said that in the recent times, the damaging effect of misinformation and disinformation had been felt in the polity, especially with the recent EndSars protests that rocked the nation and the COVID-19 pandemic.
The public relation guru, therefore charged practitioners be professional in the discharge of their assignments by observing certain principles ranging from the kind of audience, to what was being giving out and how would people react, adding that organization must have functional websites, among others.