By Princewill Ekwujuru
A new twist has emerged in the just concluded Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) election held in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State as aggrieved members of the institute may be heading to the court for proper interpretation of the body’s  constitution.

The grudge of the aggrieved party  is based on the conduct of the election,  while the group cited cheating,, haphazardness of the conduct of the election, underhand dealing, and the fragrant dis-regard for the NIPR constitution.

There are also indications  that some aggrieved members may drop their fellowship of the institute if due processes are not followed in conduct of the institute’s proceedings regarding the election.

According to  Mr. Yusuf  Muhammed, Leader of the aggrieved party, however, the group argued that provisions of Section 4, subsection 1 (a) of the NIPR constitution stipulates that five of the 22 Council members of NIPR shall be appointed by the Minister of Information while 17 would be elected, including the President and Vice-President.

“The constitution clearly says that the president and his vice shall be elected when all the 22 council members sit in a meeting and go through an Electoral College system.

But in this case, only the 17 elected members elected the president. The simple implication is that the council that participated in the election of December 2 were not properly constituted, so the results can only be null and void and not binding on members of the institute,” the group argued.

Continuing, they said, even worse, is the fact that two members of the group that held the Institute down for 10 years led by a former  president of the institute and a member of the immediate past council cooked up a list of the 17 persons they wanted elected into the council and forced it on members of the state chapters that attended the AGL.

He noted that the “group used this same trick two years ago at the AGM cum elections held in Lafia, Nasarawa State and repeated it in Yenogoa, Bayelsa State on December 2. This  president had the temerity to sit in the council to say “we wanted the Vice president, we have succeeded and there is nothing anyone can do about it.”

He noted that another disregard of the NIPR constitution is also evident in Section 8, sub-section 3. This section, he said  provides that a register of the names, addresses and approved qualifications of all persons registered as PR practitioners be kept at the Institute.

While he stressed that the constitution  also provides that the register should be printed and published and put on sale to members of the public. “These two important provisions have not been respected in the last 10 years and no person registered as PR practitioner has seen any register.”

Section 18 (a) of the same constitution also provides that the institute shall maintain a library for the advancement of knowledge of public relations. But in the past 10 years, no such library has existed in the Institute, he pointed out.

Similarly, section 4 (1) provides that the NIPR council shall convene the AGM of the institute on 30th of April each year or any such other day… but should not exceed 15 months after the previous AGM. But since 2000, the AGM has held in November instead of 30th April as the constitution provides. The 30th of April date has been conveniently sidetracked to help the cabal achieve its aim of destabilizing the institute, Muhammad stated.

Mr. Yomi Badejo, a member of the newly constituted council had argued that what Muhammed stated were frivorities and holds no water, while he stated that Muhammed was a beneficiary of the system where he was appointed into the council without the process contained in Section 4, subsection 1 (a) of the institute’s constitution
Badejo queried, saying, When the system benefitted Muhammed, why didn’t he query the system, and why is it now that the system does not favour him that he is raising dust?, he said.

Stating further, Badejo said that  Muhammed Abdullahi, a former Commission for Information in Bauchi State who emerged President of the institute was a full fledged member of the institute, arguing on the premise that Yusuf Muhammed was wrong  in saying that Abdullahi was some few months old in the institute before contesting for the position of the President of the institute.

When contacted on the issue, Stephen Adebayo, NIPR registrar, collaborating the statement of Badejo said that Muhammed was a beneficiary of the system in Lafia in 2007, but pleaded that he  should not begin to raise dust,  as he did not win this time around.

He note that there were 27 contestants for the position of the president, “why is it that others are protesting the result, and  why is it that Muhammed is crying wolf, when the system benefitted him in Lafia. Why now?, he queried.

“We should think of how to move ahead, the minister has inaugurated the new executives, the report of thr election has been submitted to the ministry, and the five persons  expected to be in the council has been appointed by the minister, this is a sign that there is no misgivings in the institute.