-By Teddy Nwanunobi
On Thursday, May 20, 2021, the Group General Manager (GGM), Group Public Affairs Division of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. Kennie Obateru, was conferred the prestigious Fellowship Award by the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations, (NIPR) at its Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Bauchi.
To begin with, prior to becoming the NNPC’s GGM, Obateru was an accomplished public and media relations expert.
He joined the NNPC in 1992 as an experienced professional. He was employed as a protocol/consular officer at the NNPC’s Public Affairs Department. Since then, he has deservedly climbed the ladder to get to his current position.
A self-driven and an amiable PR practitioner, Obateru, over the years, has served in various capacities as: General Manager/Head NNPC London Office, Manager, Public Affairs, National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS), Manager, Public Affairs, Port Harcourt Refining Company (PHRC) among other positions.
Until he was elevated to the position of the Corporation’s spokesperson, the post had always been given to ‘outsiders’ who were recruited from either the public or private sector. Obateru’s appointment was a well deserved one, which underlined the confidence reposed in him to deliver the goods by his boss, Mallam Mele Kolo Kyari. Quite frankly, so far, he has not disappointed the corporation.
Obateru has paid his dues as a public and media relations expert. He rose through the ranks in the NNPC through his tenacity, brilliance, astuteness and friendliness. Reporters, who have covered and still cover the oil industry, always commend him for his friendliness and resourcefulness. Obateru is an epitome of competence and humility.
He has also held other key positions including Deputy Manager, Media Relations, GPAD, Manager, Media Relations, GPAD, Manager, Public Affairs, Port Harcourt Refinery, Manager, Public Affairs, NAPIMS-NNPC and also General Manager/Head NNPC London Office.
An alumnus of the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Ogba, Lagos, University of Ilorin and University of Stirling, Scotland, United Kingdom, Obateru also holds a certificate in news reporting, a Bachelor’s degree in Performing Arts and an M.Sc in Public Relations.
In 2012, he was awarded a doctorate in Management [Honoris Causa], by the Commonwealth University, Belize.
He is a member of the international Public Relations Association, a senior member of the Africa Public Relations Association as well as a member of both the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations and the Nigerian Institute of Management.
He has attended numerous professional courses and conferences at home and abroad which include International Public Relations Association Conferences,) World Petroleum Congresses (WPCs) and more than a dozen OPEC Ministerial Conferences among others.
Speaking virtually during the opening ceremony of the NIPR’s 2021 AGM, the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, urged Nigerians not to despair nor allow the current insecurity challenges to jeopardize the unity of the country.
Mohammed said that while he was in support of the calls by some citizens of the country for restructuring and true federalism, what is not acceptable is the calls in certain quarters for secession.
He pointed out that whatever challenges the nation was facing can be surmounted.
“The federal government has set in place the necessary machinery to tackle the challenges of insecurity, therefore, we should not allow today’s challenges whether in the area of economy or insecurity to disunite us.
“I am appealing to the NIPR, which I consider a key stakeholder on national issues to use its powerful platform to work for the unity of this country as that task has never been more urgent than now against the background of discordant voices in the country and calls for separation.
“I see NIPR as a capable partner in government efforts to douse the tension in the land and hit the drum of unity rather than the drum of war,” Mohammed said.
He also urged NIPR to raise its voice against those fanning the embers of disunity and discord in the country, noting that when a country is not peaceful and secured, there can be no development.
Earlier in his address, the NIPR National President, Mallam Mukhtar Surajo, said that the event was coming at a time that Public Relations practice is needed more than ever before to redirect the compass of the nation.
He added that in spite of the great potentials resident in Nigeria, it is still bedeviled by so many challenges ranging from insecurity and social tension occasioned by mutual mistrust and suspicion amongst others, which he noted are avoidable and unnecessary.
“The fabrics that hold the country together are unwittingly stretched to their limits and the diversity which God has endowed the country for the good of all is being misused and abused.
“This has made it imperative for us, the public relations family, to take up with more consciousness and seriousness the responsibility of managing education, building relationships and deepening corporate best practices,” Surajo said.
In his remarks, the Bauchi State Governor, Senator Bala Mohammed Abdulkadir, observed that the AGM of the institute was the first of its kind in the whole of the North-East, adding that he enjoyed the professional bond between him and the NIPR.
The Governor, who was represented by his Deputy, Senator Baba Tela, expressed appreciation over the cordial relationship existing between NIPR and his administration.
He stressed that the relationship will not be only maintained, but also strengthened.
Bala Mohammed assured that his administration will continue to engage PR practices in information and communication management in the state through synergy with the institute.