The Nigerian Institute of Public Relations has revealed that it has suspended all its programmes scheduled to hold between March and April 2020 after efforts by the Federal Government to tackle the Coronavirus pandemic in Nigeria.

In a recent statement in Abuja, President and Chairman of the Governing Council of the NIPR, Mr. Mukhtar Sirajo hailed the Federal Government and other state governments for their efforts in tackling the deadly virus in our nation.

According to him, the new strategy of the government in providing periodic updates will also help to get rid of rumours and fears among Nigerians.

He added that even if the NIPR calendar for the year is filled with several crowd-pulling activities, they have all been pushed forward to protect the health of potential attendees.

His words, “We observe that the quest for a solution to this problem should go beyond saddling political office holders, rather than professional and technical hands, with the responsibility of driving the process, even as we suggest that the strategic communication and information management aspect of the process, should also be improved upon.

“The health challenge that the entire world has been forced to grapple with is by the day becoming a reality beyond denial. The rate at which the COVID-19 (Corona Virus) is spreading around the world is alarming, more so now that the number of those infected in Nigeria seems to be steadily rising.

“The NIPR calendar for the year is replete with many crowd-pulling activities. The most major of which is the Annual General Meeting (AGM) slated for Bauchi in the middle of April. However, given the reality on ground as well as measures being taken by various governments across the globe (ncluding Nigeria) to arrest the spread of the disease as well as safeguard the wellbeing of their various peoples.

“The Institute, bearing in mind the need to be proactive and refrain from taking any step(s) that would not only put the welfare of our colleagues in jeopardy, but also portray us as being out of sync, with reality, has decided to put on hold, for the time being, all public programmes.

“This, therefore, means that the Annual General Meeting slated for Bauchi on the 15th of April will no longer hold as scheduled. This also applies to the Induction Programme slated for Abuja on the 27th of March; the Sam Epelle Memorial lecture scheduled for Port Harcourt on the 7th of April; the MasterClass programme also slated for Port Harcourt from 6th to 8th of April as well as all Mandatory Continuing Professional Development Programmes (MCPD).

“State Chapters are also advised to key into this by suspending similar activities at their level, including monthly general meetings. As we remain hopeful of the containment of the scourge, we will continue to monitor developments with a view to fixing new dates for the programmes as soon as situation permits.”