The recent news that the All Progressives Congress (APC) appointed a public relations firm based in the United States, AKPD, to manage its communications in the 2015 elections took the Nigerian marketing communication industry by surprise. Senior Correspondent GODDIE OFOSE examines the impact on the Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria (APCON) local content pursuit.
In 2013, the Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria (APCON) introduced its fifth advertising practice reform as part of efforts to reverse the loss of advertising contracts to foreign advertising agencies.
The guidelines streamlined the work of foreign agencies in Nigeria.
The segments in the integrated marketing communication (IMC) sector left out were public relations and experiential marketers. Both are not represented at the APCON council.
Lolu Akinwunmi, APCON Chairman
Presenting the guidelines, APCON Chairman Lolu Akinwunmi argued that foreign agencies and practitioners must be properly certified and regulated the same way as Nigerians.
“This would present a level playing field and also ensure that Nigeria is not turned into a dumping ground for all manner of unqualified practitioners,” he said.
The reform states that no foreigner or foreign group would own a majority stake in any component of the advertising industry and a percentage of their staff must be Nigerians.
APCON cited the security implications of allowing foreigners to own controlling interests in the companies that engage in advertising and communication, broadcasting and print media.
The announcement in February this year by interim APC National Publicity Secretary, Lai Muhammed, that the party had appointed AKPD to handle its communications implied that no local firm can do the job.
It has attracted mixed reactions from stakeholders both in advertising and public relations, who say it negates the APCON pursuit of local content guideline.
Public Relations Consultants Association of Nigeria (PRCAN) President, Chido Nwakanma, said all Nigerians received the report with consternation. He expressed concern for the future of the country.
He said it is dumbfounding that a political party which positions itself as progressive and desires to reposition Nigeria would prefer foreign professionals to tried and tested practitioners at home, increasing unemployment.
According to Nwakanma, political communication is country specific and follows from the dictum that all politics is local.
He said local issues will determine how the pendulum swings in the next elections, and local professionals who live and do business in Nigeria are in the best position to understand the issues, including the nuances and peculiarities of the media.
PRCAN Publicity Secretary, Israel Opayemi, condemned the decision by the APC to overlook local agencies saying, “Nigerian law is very clear. Only persons certified by the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) can practise public relations in Nigeria.
“Only persons certified by the Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria can similarly offer advertising counsel. The NIPR Act 16 of 1990 further requires certification for consulting firms that wish to offer public relations service in the country.
“Beyond law, Nigerian communication agencies have successfully managed political communication in elections over the years.
“It is heart rending that the APC would throw away a rich history of political communication strategy and messaging in Nigeria for the quixotic notion of being associated with the strategists of U.S. President Barack Obama.”
Opayemi said PRCAN is shocked that the APC ignored the law on professional practice.
He wondered: “What message is this political party sending to Nigerians? Is this foreign-is-better mentality what it will bring to governance? Will it also hire American lawyers or Queen’s Counsel from England to handle pre- or post-election petitions?”
In an open letter to Mohammed, Absolute PR Managing Director, Akonte Ekine, reminded him of the RACE principle in public relations, which stands for Research, Analysis, Communications and Evaluation.
This process, according to him, entails using research to define the problem or situation, develop objectives and strategies that address the situation, implement strategies and measure the results.
He insisted that Muhammed’s position that the APC has not engaged a foreign PR firm or media consultant is not tenable.
“It is evident that the services described by you, for which an international political communications consultant has been retained by the APC, are essentially public relations services.
“By the way, a visit to the AKPD website www.akpdmedia.com shows clearly that it is a public relations firm specialising in political campaigns, amongst others,” Ekine said.
Muhammed countered that the “APC did not hire a foreign media consultant or a foreign PR consultant. We engaged the services of an international political consulting firm. We make bold to say there are no experts in this field in Nigeria today.
“Our consultants, AKPD Media Messages, conducts credible surveys which they translate to political strategies which they finally turn to messages for the party to use as it may deem fit.
“In Nigeria today, you cannot find any one company that renders seamlessly these three services.
“For your information, Nick Klegg, the leader of the Liberal Democrats in the U.K., hired Californian based political consultants to boost his party’s electoral fortunes in the U.K. 2010 general elections. There is therefore no basis for the allegation that we are not patriotic.”
According to Muhammed, the second allegation premised on the first automatically falls with the first one.
However, other stakeholders argued that the action may further undermine the local content guidelines just taking root in the system.
So far, the APCON reform has prevented foreign agencies from snatchig local jobs.
Advertisers Association of Nigeria (ADVAN) President, Kole Oyeyemi, reiterated at a recent marketing directors’ meeting that the position of ADVAN is very clear on the issue and urged other sectoral bodies to support the regulator to sanitise the industry.
“As I have mentioned at different fora, ADVAN is fully in support of the review of the APCON code of practice because we believe it will enhance the practice and ensure that local players embrace global standards, and the entire industry will benefit from it,” he said.