It all started with a Rag Day, followed moments of fun. For the entire week, the Mass Communication Department of the Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida University (IBBU) in Lapai, Niger State was the centre of attraction in the school. Academic activities literally gave way to a week-long carnival that got members of the school community and visitors excited.
It was the department’s Press Week and members of Mass Communication Students’ Association (MACOSA) turned out in elegant attires to mark the event, where they reveled in a road show from Kobo via Lapai town to the school’s permanent site.
Some of the students were clad in comical outfits, while others wore scary facial masks, dancing to the tunes blaring from hi-tech speakers.
The road show stopped in the evening at the f Faculty of Management and Social Sciences, where the students gathered for Bonding Night. They hugged one another, saying it was a way to strengthen affection and friendship among themselves.
An array of events marked the Press Week, a public lecture, which held at the school auditorium.
Speaking on the theme: The role of media professionals in managing public officials: Major reference to the media management of President Muhammadu Buhari, a Public Relations expert, Dr Ibrahim Dooba, said managing public relations for public officers required expertise to carry out the responsibility with sincerity, clarity of purpose, professionalism and a resolve not to twist facts.
Dooba, who is the immediate past Chief Press Secretary to Niger State Governor Abubakar Sani Bello and a columnist with the Daily Trust, flayed the “nasty” character of some media aides, who, he said, usually did shoddy job to debunk facts that bordered on gross misconducts, maladministration and ineptitude levelled against their principals.
He observed that “mischievous antics” and “bare-faced political rhetoric” uttered by politicians’ image makers flouted the principles and ethics of journalism.
He said unprofessionalism of politicians’ media handlers had succeeded in denting the reputation of several public officers.
According to Dooba, “There is a nexus between the dismal administrative failure of elected public office holders and their retinue of unprofessional media handlers. Some media aides sycophantically praise-sing the unimpressive feats recorded by their principals, while the public see things otherwise.
“The eye-service is often not fueled by a sense of objectivity, transparency, accountability and setting the records. Rather, it is inflamed by their ravenous appetite for pecuniary incentives. Many public officers have lost their values because of the unprofessional public relations.”
A veteran broadcaster with the African Independent Television (AIT), Mr Odion Bello, said despite the poor remunerations and delay in salary witnessed in many media organisations, there was no excuse for journalists to compromise their professional integrity by seeking gratification.
Bello left members of the audience in surprise when he disclosed that he regularly shunned ‘brown envelopes’ while carrying out his duty.
“There are diverse, yet legitimate means of attaining prosperity as budding media practitioners. It is possible for young journalists to set up their small-scale advertising agencies and register with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) in order to get the usual 15 per cent commission. As a journalist, I have authored several literary and academic books, which were recommended for various school levels,” Bello said.
The lecture was followed by a Cinema Night, featuring a documentary on Effective Development Communication and Journalism in the 21st Century.
MACOSA President, Leo Ogwezi, said: “There are fundamental tips required to excel in contemporary media world. Educational documentaries, such as this, have the potential to broaden upcoming journalists’ scopes. The Cinema Night needs not be entertaining, insofar as the students are well-enlightened, educated and inspired.”
Reliving fond memories of their primary and secondary school days, the Mass Communication students dramatically staged what they tagged “general assembly” in front of the faculty building.
In the comic display, the students responded to the command of a Head Boy. After the address by the headmaster, they (pupils) marched around the campus in basic school’s uniforms, bags and sandals. Those who came late to the ‘assembly ground’ were flogged by the prefects.
A 200-Level Sociology student, Zainab Abubakar, who was entertained by the ‘Old School Day’, said Mass Communication students’ hilarious display helped her to relieve stress.
She said: “Social events like this keep our mind refreshing and re-energised. Their comic displays have relieved me of academic tension.”
During the Cultural Day, guests relished tastes of local delicacies served at the event. They were also entertained by the performance of traditional songs, drama and dance.
Mrs Maimuna Babangida, a lecturer at Fati Lami Abubakar Institute of Legal and Administrative Studies (FLAILAS), and Mallam Usman Katun, a reporter with the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), were the guest speakers at the Cultural Day. They called for attitudinal change among young journalists, while urging the students to promote their cultural heritage through writing.
Khadija Ahmad, who is of Nupe ethnic group, said: “A sense of pride usually envelopes me whenever I adorn the Nupe’s Gopkara lace, complemented with decorative beads. It is interesting to learn about other ethnic groups’ distinct customs and rich traditions.”
Mass Communication Head of Department (HOD), Dr Ternenge Ende, urged the students to be law-abiding, focused and dedicated. He used the occasion to solicit financial support for the department to enable it cope with infrastructure demand. He said the department needed to be equipped in order to train media practitioners of excellence.
The event ended with an Award Night where members of the outgoing MACOSA executives and students with best Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) were honoured.