NIGERIA’S image in recent times has become a major concern for many of its citizens both at home and in the Diaspora. No doubt, the obvious plummeting of Nigeria’s internal and international image in spite of the huge human and natural potential will continue to elicit intellectual discourse from communication practitioners. With the ever growing spate of insecurity, religious violence, fraud, corruption, electoral irregularities, unemployment and the like, the perceptual value of the average Nigerian which has been tactically re-engineered through several rebranding projects in a bid to upgrade the battered image of the country has been largely futile over the years.

Therefore, the topical issue of managing Nigeria’s image was again on the front burner at a colloquium recently organised in honour of Yomi Badejo Okusanya to mark his 50th birthday. The event, which attracted political elites and eminent personalities, was indicative of Okusanya’s arresting profile as an accomplished Public Relations consultant, two-time chairman of Lagos chapter of Nigeria Institute of Public Relations (NIPR), current Secretary-General of the African Public Relations Association (APRA) and Managing Director of CMC Connect (Perception Managers).

Former Military Governor of Imo State and erstwhile Minister of Foreign Affairs, Major General Ike Omar Sanda Nwachukwu (rtd), former Minister of Information and Communication, Prof. Dora Nkem Akunyili, former President of Association of Advertising Agencies of Nigeria, Mr. Akinlolu Ademola Akinwunmi, Minister of Information, Mr. Labaran Maku, Chairperson of Wimbiz, Mrs. Adeola Azeez and others spoke extensively on the country’s image problem at the colloquium tagged, ‘Managing Nigeria’s Image; Whose Responsibility?’

Delivering his paper, which served as the template for the discourse, Gen. Nwachukwu gave a comprehensive and thorough historical trajectory of Nigeria’s embattled image. He chronicled the conscious and unconscious monogenesis of Nigeria’s image management challenge. According to him, ‘‘the central argument is: did the political actions of the government have negative impacts on the image of the country?”

He argued that the late Alhaji Abubakar Tafawa Belewa’s impute in shoring up the image of Nigeria was checkmated during the cold war of the post-independence era. “However, the first six years of the post-independence rule built a positive image for the country,” he stated.

He delved further into how other successive military regimes contributed, in no small measure, to the political and psychological branding of the country that was once branded the ‘giant of Africa’.

“Even the perception of the global community of its leaders assumed a humorous twist at different fora. The leadership group of the country suffered from accumulative and acquisitive tendencies, several military excesses crippled the image of the country especially the annulment of the June 12, 1993, presidential election that was adjudged as the freest and fairest election in the history of the nation. Also, the current wave of insecurity, kidnapping, bombing and other negative vices have further dampened the already bad image of Nigeria as a nation’’.

His strategy for managing the image of Nigeria was largely hinged on the plea that the Nigerian media should avoid negative reporting of the country. He said: “The Nigerian media should review its strategy of laundering the image of Nigeria. It is pertinent that the media avoid painting the country bad; they should try to strike a balance in their duty of reporting the country. I encourage you to condemn bad and ugly developments but also eulogise millions who are of exemplary character in the society.”

Answering the question on whose responsibility it is to manage Nigeria’s image, Nwachukwu unequivocally stated that ‘‘government alone should not be saddled with the responsibility of managing the image of Nigeria; everyone must ensure that the image of the country is upheld. Having examined the historical records, it is clear that image management, as far as Nigeria is concerned, rests on its leaders, but should not be left to them only.”

Prof. Akunyili in her speech bemoaned the self-destructive tendencies of some Nigerians who have unwittingly cast aspersions at her effort to rebrand Nigeria during her tenure as the Minister for Information and Communication.

“Nigeria’s greatest challenge is its image. I embarked on the ‘good people, great nation’ rebranding campaign in order to fast track an acceptable image for the country. Today, we have great icons that can be a selling point to the outside world. It is sad that the Nigerian media has not helped in this regard. The media is awash with negative reportage, which has never helped to build the image of the country. All civilised countries have their challenges and their media down plays them. The Nigerian media can help a great deal in reporting positive events in Nigeria. We should learn to tell our own story to avoid distortions and misrepresentations from foreign media,” she urged.

Akunyili enjoined Nigerians to show relentless love for the country, saying the responsibility of image management is the duty of all Nigerians. “While it is the job of the Federal Government to drive the process of managing the country’s image, all Nigerians have a strategic role to play in the process. We can play this role by engaging in conducts that would promote rather than denigrate Nigeria’s image; and by speaking well of Nigeria rather than condemning and wishing the country evil because there is power in the tongue,” she added.

The negative perception about Nigeria, Akunyili noted, has gone unchallenged for so long that it is beginning to stick in the consciousness of most people around the world that most Nigerians are criminals or fraudsters, and that Nigeria is a country where nothing palatable happens.

Mr. Akinwunmi, who was the Chief Strategist and Chief Executive of the rebranding campaign during Akunyili’s tenure, posited that the achievements of Nigerians in academics, science, entertainment, and others can be improved to enhance the image of Nigeria. He, however, stated that vices such as smuggling, fraud, kidnapping, electoral irregularities, poor infrastructure and the like have seriously brought the country into disrepute.

On how to bolster the image of the country, Akinwunmi said: “It is important that government driven campaigns should not be deployed to patronise the global community. Also, the obvious disconnect between what is being said and actual experience must be resolved. Nigerians still need to do more internally before deploying its tourist potentials effectively.”

He also pointed out the several image management agenda by different administrations have not helped matters. This, according to him, has not allowed the image of Nigeria to blossom. “The challenge of these inadequate image management campaigns did not allow the rebranding efforts to grow,’’ he submitted.

However, a member of the House of Representatives from Lagos State, Hon. Gbajabiamila faulted Akunyili’s rebranding campaign. According to him, “the rebranding campaign of the former Minister of Information and Communication was fundamentally flawed because the rebranding effort was basically ‘bottom-up and not top-down’.

Publisher of The Guardian, Mrs. Maiden Ibru, spoke extensively on the role of the media, what it represents and some of the misconception people have. She said: “There is no newspaper house in Nigeria that I know that is set up to malign any government or individual. We must note that the media has a goal primarily to protect the people’s interests. So, castigating the media for Nigeria’s bettered image is greatly misplaced.”

Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Lagos Chapter, Barr. M.O. Ubani Esq in his comments hinged the restoration of the country’s image on good governance.

“Government officials here today have harped on the need for the citizens to do more. But I tell you the greatest image launderer is what the government does with the environment. If the environment is conducive, the people will be speaking positively about the nation. You don’t have to spend millions on CNN to project the image of the country. As long as the country is safe, bustling with infrastructure like good roads, portable water, safe aviation, and stable electrical power supply, I assure you that investors and tourists will be coming in droves. The major priority around the world is good governance and people-centred government. Other flourishing nations enhance infrastructure and human capacity in a bid to optimise happiness in their country,” he noted.

On the alleged insensitivity of the Nigerian press to the image of the country in their reportage of issues, Ubani said:

“I must say that the Nigerian press is soft and timid in its journalistic duties. They have not really highlighted the level of corruption, indiscipline, unemployment, and social vices in Nigeria. The criticism against developed countries is very strong and their respective press often champion it. They hold the government accountable and the system allows it. The Nigerian press is not doing enough because it is afraid and intimidated with threats from government personalities. The press should criticise as well as praise the government when issues arise.”

Also speaking on the issue, former president of Public Relations Consultancy Association of Nigeria, Mr. Emeka Maduagbuna said: “I think there is an unnecessary focus on the media because the media is a channel in capturing events in the society. However, the challenge is that Nigeria’s reputation has not been professionally managed. So, there is the need to get experts to do the job. Apart from the negative issues in the country, there are also positives that can be projected in laundering the image of the country. One of the major deficiencies in managing Nigeria’s image is that professionals are not at the forefront of the move. The way forward is that professional competence should be the hallmark of managing the embattled image of Nigeria. Even the campaign of changing attitudinal ways of Nigerians can be done professionally. We need a more professional approach in managing the image of Nigeria.”