By Anwar Usman
Prof. Mustapha Nasir Malam, a senior lecturer in the Department of Mass Communication at Bayero University, Kano, spoke about the importance of leadership and reputation management, especially during challenging periods.
He explained this during a quarterly professional development lecture organised by the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations, Kano State Chapter.
He explained how quality leadership plays a significant role in shaping an organisation and society. He noted that “good leadership enables a leader to build a good reputation and earns the respect of his subordinates”.
Malam described the qualities of a leader as self-confident, innovative, and having any other attributes that may give the leader an added advantage.
He further asserts that reputation management is crucial and takes a long time to build, citing some countries that excel in it. He also used the #EndBadGovernance, the SAMOA deal agreement, and the recent controversy between the Nigerian junta and Nigeria to highlight how these incidents negatively affected Nigeria’s reputation.
Dr Sule Y. Sule, a program discussant and lecturer in the Department of Mass Communication at Bayero University, has explained how improper reputation management strategies have affected the Nigerian government’s reputation and will take a long time to fix.
He called on the government to strengthen its communication capabilities by employing strategic communication strategies to maintain the country’s reputation and image.
Various lecturers from the Department of Mass Communication, the national spokesperson of the Nigeria Customs Service, public relations practitioners, the publisher of PR Nigeria, students, and media personalities attended.