- * Abuja, Lagos NIPR Chapters In A Do-or-Die Support For Both Candidates
By Celestine Okafor, Mnipr (Editor-in-chief)
As the Thursday, August 24, 2023 Council Elections of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) draws near, top contenders in the race for the Institute's Presidency, Dr Ike Neliakuchukwu and Mrs Nkechi Ali-Balogun, are currently locked in a fierce battle over who succeeds Mallam Muktar Zubairu Sirajo, as next NIPR National President.
Dr Neliaku and Mrs Ali-Balogun are close professional buddies and Fellows of the NIPR from both the Abuja and Lagos Chapters of the Institute.
Ike Neliaku is Chairman of RIGHTANGLE PR Company based at Asokoro Extension, Abuja, while his challenger, Nkechi Ali-Balogun, a veteran Public Relations guru, just like Neliaku, is the Principal Consultant of NECCI PR CONSULTING Firm based in Gbagada Phase 2, Lagos. They have made their mark in the Public Relations sector in Nigeria and within the African continent.
Ike and Nkechi are formidable candidates who will be squaring up against each other in the rat-race for the Presidency of the NIPR Council Elections scheduled to hold during the coming Annual Conference/AGM and Council Polls in Abuja between Wednesday, August 23rd and Friday, August 25th, 2023, at the NAF Suites, Jahi, Abuja.
The Presidential flagbearers of both Chapters (Abuja and Lagos) are currently criss-crossing the various Chapters of the Institute around the country to market their programmes of action. They are presently in a frenzy to convince NIPR members to vote for them at the polls during the Thursday, August 24th Annual Confab/Annual General Meeting.
Just last week Wednesday, July 26, 2023, Mrs Nkechi Ali-Balogun stormed the nation's capital city of Abuja in her aggressive campaign drive. She impressively and articulately sold her campaign programmes to the NIPR Abuja Chapter members during their last pre-annual confab monthly conclave held at the Radio House, Area 10, Garki Abuja, Conference Centre.
The reception for Mrs Nkechi Ali-Balogun was quite good, a demonstration of the age long spirit of professionalism and camaraderie for which NIPR practitioners are renown, the world over. Even her challenger, Dr Ike Neliaku, in whose domain Nkechi dared to seek votes, exhibited commendable spirit of sportsmanship. Neliaku was downright unfazed, warm and affable, towards his Presidential opponent and even saw Nkechi off to her car, with some of his Campaign Council Team, as she departed.
However, at both Abuja and Lagos Chapters of the NIPR especially, campaign activities of Dr Ike Neliakuchukwu and Mrs Nkechi Ali-Balogun have reached feverish pitch. Executive Officers, Council Elders and rank and file members of the chapters are vigorously mobilizing strong support for their choice candidates.
Chairperson of the Abuja NIPR Chapter, delectable and brilliant Hajia Mariam Sanusi, also a Fellow of the Institute and the Public Relations Director of the Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA), has assumed the center stage of Dr Neliaku's election campaigns. She is leading her Exco team and the entire Abuja Chapter members in a determined foraging campaign into the Northern and Southern NIPR axis to garner massive support for her chapter candidate, Dr Ike Neliakuchukwu.
Hajia Mariam, in her ever humorous best and wise cracks, had assured members with her infectious aplomb, that Dr Neliaku is still the candidate to beat in the Institute's election. "Dr Ike Neliaku is already the next President of this Institute", Sanusi assured the Chapter gathering at the last week's Abuja NIPR meeting.
In Lagos, Dr Neliaku had pushed forward his campaigns earlier before the Eko Chapter of the NIPR where Mrs Nkechi Ali-Balogun remains undisputably the Queen of the Hamlet. Neliaku, while addressing the Lagos members weeks ago, had reeled out his campaign goodies. He promised the Lagos NIPR Chapter of an accountable and progressive leadership of the Institute if elected president on August 24th. Neliaku also paid a special homage to her professional friend and Presidential opponent, Mrs Nkechi Ali-Balogun, to formally intimate her of his resolve to throw his hat in the NIPR Presidential ring.
Already, the Abuja NIPR Chapter is urging the Institute's practitioners to 'Go for the best' in Dr Ike Neliaku in 'the task of elevating NIPR to a position of greater relevance'.
The Chapter has equally enjoined its members to 'take an informed decision on 24th August, 2023' and 'vote for the right man for the job, to vote Dr. Ike Neliaku for the NIPR of your dream. Stand behind a bridge builder and a man of excellence that inspires and empowers'.
On the career plane, however, Dr Ike Neliaku is a well heeled resourceful PR professional, city entrepreneur and leadership strategist. He's an organic intellectual and Communication scholar. Born in Anambra State, South East, Nigeria, Dr Ike Neliaku, after his primary and college education in 1984, enrolled at the University of Jos, Plateau State, where he bagged a Bachelor of Arts degree in Theatre Arts in 1989. He also did his postgraduate studies at the University of Abuja where he bagged a Masters Degree in Political Economy and then a Doctorate Degree in Development Studies.
For his knowledge, professional, moral and leadership feats, Neliaku has be decorated and honoured with numerous awards. He received the 1990 President’s National Honours Award as an Outstanding Corp Member and the Professional Integrity Award in 2009. He has risen through the ranks in his career and has demonstrated high level patriotism leadership strength. He has participated in over 50 international delegation on behalf of the government of Nigeria between 1994 and 2015.
Dr. Neliaku has served as special assistant to five successive Ministers of Information and went on to serve in the Office of the Political Adviser to the President between 2003 and 2006. Within the same public service space, Neliaku brought his intellectual prowess to bear when he was appointed as Senior Special Assistant to President Goodluck Jonathan in 2015, a designation he judiciously utilised till 2015 upon the expiration of the government. While in government, he focused on youth empowerment and achieving the goals of sustainable developments during the course of these national assignments.
At the presidency, Dr Ike Neliaku helped refocused the Office of the Political Adviser for better efficiency and stronger relevance. His forays in the National Institute for Public Relations (NIPR), where he served in different positions of responsibilities including as Chairman of NIPR National Elections in 2007 to his later serving as FCT Chapter Chairman, is yet another stellar reflection of his uncanny leadership acumen. NIPR in Nigeria is today is repossessed with better verve with the indelible imprints of Neliaku and his likes who have committed to innovation and using pragmatic approaches to meeting modern challenges.
His public interventions have always been a subject of various interests. Neliaku has made it a point of duty to offer viable suggestions to the development trajectory of Nigeria and Africa at large. A renowned writer who has had his veritable views published in several newspapers, magazines and academic journals, he is also an author of repute, including a recent book he authored, ‘’7 Conspiracies of Power: Why Some Leaders Succeed and Others Fail.’’
A journalist and public affairs analyst, one Abonta, once wrote that in this book, Dr Neliaku has assumed a household status within the Nigerian reading public. He also wrote that Ike Neliaku embarked on comprehensive treatise of power play that applies to all periods and climes adducing with practical instances. This book promises to be a worthy read for those with interests in power relations- political science scholars, policy framers, diplomats and the likes. His prized choice of political and grammerly lexicons made the book even the more pleasurable in reading and cast the author in the light of legendary political writers like Nicolo Machiavelli of the ancient Rome.
The essential aspect of Dr. Neliaku’s character, his zeal to bring his wealth of experience to serve his community and his country is worthy of emulation and continues to serve as a viable model for leadership recruitment in Nigeria. While in the Police Community Relations Committee in Asokoro, Abuja, in 2016, Dr Neliaku in his vintage suave manner administered the committee with significant impacts.
For 67 year-old Mrs Nkechi Ali-Balogun, described as the matriarch of the Nigeria's Public Relations Community, her decision to vie for the NIPR presidency and possibly emerge as the first female president of the Institute was born out of her firsthand experience in the transformative power of effective communication and strategic public relations.
She told the Guardian newspaper recently that "I have seen the positive impact that our collective efforts can have on organisations, communities, and even society at large. It is this profound belief in the value and potential of our profession that has motivated me to aspire to this leadership position". She also quiped that running for the office of President the NIPR "is not a decision that was made lightly. It came after much reflection and consideration.
She continued: "Over the years, I have had the privilege of working alongside many of my colleagues at several levels of the Institute. I have been a fellow of the institute since 2013, served as chapter chairman of one of the most vibrant chapters of the NIPR, which is Lagos and I have served and still serve on several committees and boards... Having actively participated in the association for several years, I have gained a deep understanding of its mission, objectives, and challenges.
"I have also had the opportunity to collaborate with many of my colleagues on various projects and initiatives, which has further strengthened my commitment to our shared goals. It is my firm belief that by leading the association, I can contribute significantly to advancing our profession and fostering a vibrant and collaborative community. If elected as the leader of our association, I will dedicate my time, energy, and expertise to championing the interests of our members", Nkechi stated.
She reveals that, "as NIPR President, my vision for the Institute will be centred on fostering professional growth, knowledge-sharing, and continuous learning. I will be committed to promoting ethical practices, driving innovation, and addressing the evolving needs of our industry in an ever-changing media landscape. I firmly believe that the time to collectively shape the future of public relations and establish the institute as a trailblazer in the field is now".
Professionally and leadership wise, Nkechi is a gifted strategist with intuitive creative acumen. She was once described in a Thisday newspaper close-up as "always an in-demand industry facilitator, motivational speaker, and mentor in her career".
Mrs Nkechi Ali-Balogun is coming into the NIPR Presidential race with an impressive academic background. She is a graduate of the University of Lagos. She also holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Marketing from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) and an MBA in Management from the same Premier University. Nkechi has equally attended Public Relations Management courses in Frank Jefkins School of Public Relations, London and in the prestigious Lagos Business School.
This PR heroine has in her kitty, several awards and honours. She is the first female to win the Most Outstanding Public Relations Practitioner (Female) from the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations, Lagos. She has a Master class in Mass Communication at the University of Lagos. An indigene of Enugu state, Nkechi Ali-Balogun was a former chairperson of the Lagos Chapter of the NIPR.
She has had an illustrious work career spanning the banking sector and top multi-national corporate concerns as a Public Relations manager/Director before resigning her job at the age of 39 to set up her current PR Company known as NECCI PR Consulting. He ingenuity and creativity enabled her to head top Public Relations departments in two reputable banks - the Nigerian Export-Import Bank ( NEXIM) and that of the Equatorial Trust Bank ( ETB).
Nkechi had also spent five successful years working with the largest Television Network in Africa, the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) as a producer, Script Writer and Consultant. She has attended a number of courses abroad and within Nigeria and Africa in her quest to further horn her professional skill and improve her career. They include the Public Relations Management Course organised by Frank Jcfkins School of Public Relations, London; NIPR POTOMAC and the one organised by the Lagos Business School in Nigeria.
Mrs Nkechi Ali-Balogun is a member of many committees in the Lagos Chapter of NIPR. She was a member of the AGM Committee in 2003 as its Committee Chairman. She was the Vice Chairman, Manpower and Training Committee. Member, AGM Committee in 2004. All these had given her the existential experience of the internal dynamics of the Institute.
Nkechi has accumulated enormous experience and practical knowledge of the procedures and techniques of Manpower Development Strategies, Staffing and Strategic Management. She belongs to membership of many Professional Organisations and Social Groups. She is a Member of the Nigeria-British Association; Soroptimist International, Ikeja, Lagos and the Music Society of Nigeria (MUSON). Nkechi spends time on Voluntary Services which are not known to many people.
She prefers to do her Charity Work unnoticed. For instance, she is a Special Marshall of the Federal Road Safety Corp (FRSC) and an active member of Women in Peace Building Network (WIPNET), an NGO affiliated to the United Nations for Peace Building and Promoting Initiatives in War-ravaged West African countries. Nkechi Ali-Balogun is responsible for the establishment, development and funding of another Non-Profit Organisation known as Rights Initiatives for Rural Dwellers which has done a lot in elevating the lives of poverty-stricken peasants in the rural areas. NNL.
