Broadcasting
Why The World Needs Public Relations More Than Ever Right Now
By Ayeni Adekunle, Founder and CEO of BlackHouse Media
Businesses, governments, and people do themselves a huge disservice, if they continue to fail to see PR for what it is and should be: a strategic aspect of business and governance, invaluable in building relationships, preventing crises, achieving business objectives; pushing national interest, and preventing the kind of confusion that could ruin a company or lead nations to war.
Ayeni Adekunle, Founder and CEO of BlackHouse Media
Public relations hires hundreds of thousands of people around the world; working for many organizations, governments, celebrities, and causes – almost 100,000 in the UK alone, according to the PRCA’s PR and Communications Census 2020
Professionals are often graduates of colleges and tertiary institutions; certified by government chartered regulating institutes, and trained by many academies and associations around the world.
There are established ethics guiding the practice of public relations, organisational codes of conduct, principles for evaluation, and consequences for quackery.
From Nigeria, where I grew up and first established my PR practice, I could follow and participate in the activities of the Africa Public Relations Association, Public Relations and Communications Association, Chartered Institute of Public Relations, and Public Relations Association of America. In fact I participated in training, conferences, and development, from Mauritius to Finland and London.
For someone who studied Microbiology, and entered Public Relations by way of journalism, I found the barriers to entry, and standards, remarkable.
I was not admitted into the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations until I had studied and obtained a diploma; and the Public Relations Consultants Association would not admit our agency unless I was an NIPR member. Maintaining my industry credentials requires continuous professional development.
Public relations covers a wider range of markets, functions and industries, in communications, corporate services, digital affairs, community management, internal comms and more, doing the tough, often thankless, and never-ending job of helping brands, organizations, leaders, celebrities, sportspeople, and charities communicate clearly, be it to boards, consumers, investors, citizens, or shareholders.
I see them everyday. I understand what they do. I appreciate it. Many of their principals and clients do. Some of the biggest organisations and governments in the world do. Sadly, there appears to be a large number who are in between not knowing what PR is/does; and believing it only serves a publicity/media relations role. Many do not trust the profession (nearly 70 per cent of the general public, according to one PR Week survey). And of course those who blame an entire industry for the activities of hacks.
A similar PR Week survey of 1,500 people in Britain found that ‘‘Nine in ten (92 per cent) people polled claim PR is primarily used to deceive the public, while an identical proportion claim that PR professionals ‘bend the truth’. It’s the same everywhere, from South Africa to India and Belgium.
How then could we possibly get the best value out of something if we do not understand what it does, how it works, or how to use it? Imagine not understanding what doctors do, and the many ways they could help prevent illness, cure sickness, and literally save our lives? Imagine not having the privilege of understanding how science or literature or banking works? Or engineering? Music? Not being able to use them for individual or collective advantage because we don’t understand what they do; how they work?
Close your eyes and look at the picture.
Yes, it scared me too.
Actually we only understand them to the extent that we do, partly because of the work of public relations and communications people. But because PR is a behind-the-scenes profession, often seeking neither credit nor attention, but suffering reputational damage with each practitioner’s misdemeanour or quack activity, what has emerged is sadly a situation where when it comes to PR, the media are sceptical, public wary, and executives and leaders indifferent.
The late Nigerian lawyer Efere Ozako was so worried about the poor understanding of the law profession that he single-handedly drove an advocacy campaign ‘Wetin lawyers dey do sef’ (Pidgin English expression for ‘Wait, what do Lawyers actually do?’). He took the query away from the domain of sceptics and naysayers and owned it in such a way that he was able to provide information and education about the legal profession for the benefit of anyone who needed to know. It worked.
The world has now reached a point where we cannot afford to have too many people asking: ‘What do PR people actually do?’ We have reached a point where we cannot afford to not have the value that public relations brings as citizens and consumers are actively demanding companies and governments do better; and as the world comes to the understanding that there’s a desperate need to unite against poverty, global warming, crime, disease, racism, and everything else that seeks to bring humanity to its knees.
Trust, truth, integrity, honesty, positive influence, responsibility – the pillars driving Sustainable Development Goals, Environmental, Social and Governance impact, and other similar interventions are the same pillars upon which public relations is built. And it’s time for everyone to take advantage.
That’s why today, July 16, on what’s the first-ever celebration of World PR day, we’re asking everyone: student, politician, accountant, investor, journalist, lawyer, artisan, to take a simple pledge: to help build trust, and integrity, through honesty, responsibility and fairness in communities and organisations because the world needs it badly.
As we begin the work of helping everyone understand and use PR better, this pledge must guide everything we do, such that in future, journalists, academics, even clients will find it easy to identify and isolate miscreants and those behaving badly from the pack of professional, ethical practitioners, the same way they would when a rogue doctor is apprehended. And that would only be the beginning.
The preferred endpoint? That would, in my view, be a time when we can comfortably say we – citizens, governments, and organizations – are successfully using the understanding and application of public relations and communications to build a world that protects the most vulnerable, prioritises environmental, social and governance matters, accelerates sustainable development; you know, a far better world than we have today. Not the so-called utopia, but closer to what everyone considers ideal.
It always looks impossible until it’s done.
Luft Pay TV has officially launched in Nigeria’s Pay TV landscape, bringing a fresh perspective to home entertainment.
Officials of Luft Pay TV at the launch
The brand’s dynamic debut in Lagos recenlty, drew media executives, content creators, industry stakeholders, and entertainment enthusiasts.
Yemi Adebowale, head of Corporate Communications and Media at Luft Pay TV, emphasised the brand’s mission to simplify entertainment and provide real value. “Luft Pay TV is more than just another player in the market.
He said, “We’re here to simplify entertainment, eliminate confusion around billing, and provide real value with high-definition content that reflects both global quality and local identity.
Luft Pay TV’s standout feature is its all-in-one subscription model, offering over 35 premium channels for ₦7,500 per month.
The channel lineup includes Sports, Live sports action, Movies: Nollywood and Hollywood films as well as Kids’ Programming, Documentaries, Music and Lifestyle content.
“Decoder and STB Kit Prices: Decoder: ₦25,000 – Complete STB kit with accessories: ₦35,000. As a proudly Nigerian brand, Luft Pay TV is committed to promoting local storytelling through partnerships with indigenous content creators.
“This initiative aims to project African stories globally and provide an inclusive, affordable, and proudly African entertainment experience to Nigerians everywhere.”
Luft Pay TV has commenced nationwide installations across the six geopolitical zones, supported by a growing distribution network and robust customer service infrastructure.
This ensures a seamless user experience for subscribers
With its innovative approach and commitment to Nigerian talent, Luft Pay TV is poised to revolutionise the television experience in Nigeria.
By Aniekan Ezekiel
What happens when legacy meets preparedness? What results from such a combination? Let us not be in a hurry to put forward any answers yet. Instead, let us consider first the opposite situation: When legacy meets unpreparedness.
The world abounds in examples of this distressing situation. A dynasty that has built wealth from generation to generation, with its illustrious heirs providing generational leadership, finds itself in a strange phase where an ill-prepared heir takes over the reins and in that same generation, not the next, wipes out the entire family fortune built over several generations.
We see the same thing with nations. History is replete with examples of great nations built by great leaders, which slid into oblivion when they were hit by arguably the greatest misfortune that ever befalls humanity – bad leadership. It is the reason American author and leadership expert John Maxwell asserts, “Everything rises and falls with leadership.”
As with nations, so with organisations. We see organisations that have thrived for decades and over several generations, get a new leader who is not prepared for such leadership, and the leader pushes the organisation to the brink of collapse.
Contrast this picture with the situation at Nigeria’s most enduring corporate organisation with the most amazing legacies of firsts, First Bank of Nigeria Limited, which witnessed a leadership transition about a year ago. Faced with a number of quality options in and outside the then management team, the decision-makers at the bank and its parent company FBNHoldings, now First HoldCo Plc, had to be clear-minded about who could become the new Chief Executive Officer of FirstBank Group.
Equally important as the need for continuity was the non-negotiable requirement for capacity to manage the ship of the 130-years-plus institution to sustain its enviable legacies and consolidate the gains made in recent years. The search was for someone with a steady head and hands (talk of risk control and mitigation), in addition to an excellent track record of sterling performance and achievements.
Fortunately, fate was on their side. They did not have to look outside. Right there before them was someone who understood all kinds of risks and how to control and mitigate them. He had been with FirstBank since 2016 when he joined as Group Executive / Chief Risk Officer. Then in January 2022 he was elevated to Executive Director / Chief Risk Officer and Executive Compliance Officer.
This man has given nearly three decades of his working life to the banking and financial services industry. He has under his belt a rich tapestry of cross-functional experience in credit risk management, financial planning and control, credit and marketing, and trade. His cross-functional exposure also includes corporate and commercial banking, agriculture financing, oil and gas, transportation, including aviation and shipping, and project financing
Meet Olusegun Alebiosu, the man history had prepared and the one decision-makers chose among the quality options. He was appointed substantive Chief Executive Officer of FirstBank Group in June 2024, having acted in that capacity since April 2024 when the former CEO left.
Determined to build on the bank’s legacies while navigating the ever-changing landscape of the financial services industry, Alebiosu has shown unwavering commitment to lead the bank through a transformative period that places emphasis on strategic consolidation, technological advancement and market expansion.
Alebiosu’s approach to sustaining the legacies of firsts at FirstBank, which has been at the vanguard of accelerating Nigeria’s digital payments as the first bank to issue over 13 million cards to customers, draws from his vast professional experience which began with Oceanic Bank Plc, now Ecobank Plc, in 1991. Between then and joining FirstBank in 2016, he had worked at Coronation Merchant Bank as Chief Risk Officer, at African Development Bank Group as Chief Credit Risk Officer and at United Bank for Africa as Group Head, Credit Policy and Deputy Chief Credit Risk Officer.
Under one year of his appointment as substantive CEO of FirstBank, Alebiosu’s strategic consolidation efforts have demonstrated that he is a worthy successor, not an ill-prepared or unprepared one, proving the decision-makers right. Understanding the critical role of its human capital in sustaining the bank’s legacies, Alebiosu has invested himself and the bank’s resources in promoting staff welfare.
A comprehensive review of the bank’s compensation structure was undertaken to position it within the 75th percentile of the industry, making the bank more retentive of, and attractive to, the best talents. The highest number of staff promotions across various grades in the last five years has happened under Alebiosu’s watch, with 1,654 employees being elevated in one single promotion cycle.
Under his leadership, over 2,186 new hires have been recruited across key functions and subsidiaries, with a large number of them deployed to the sales function to ensure that retail customers are adequately served. Staff are now more engaged based on the high employee engagement score of 86% achieved in the April 2025 WorkBuzz survey, indicating remarkable progress in the bank’s multi-pronged efforts to promote a positive and inclusive workplace culture.
This drive to reinforce a culture of inclusion and recognition has been accentuated by the launch of a group-wide culture transformation initiative with the goal of embedding the core values of integrity, excellence and innovation. It has also been strengthened by a renewed focus on inclusion, collaboration and high performance. Also contributing was the staging of a FirstBank Employee Appreciation Day 2025 featuring, among others, a personalised appreciation video message from the CEO to all employees across the group throughout Africa and beyond. The inclusion message is further boosted by the launch of the inaugural edition of the bank’s pioneering initiative, Mandarin Language School, to bolster the bank’s expansion in the Asian market.
Expansion is a critical plank in FirstBank’s new strategic planning horizon, under Alebiosu’s leadership. Taking off this 2025, the plan seeks to reinforce the bank’s market dominance across all operational regions and it includes deliberate expansion into new markets within and outside Africa.
Beyond geographical and horizontal expansion, Alebiosu’s plan has also targeted a skyward expansion. Or how else does one describe the groundbreaking ceremony in March 2025 for the bank’s new green-certified, 44-storey iconic head office building in Eko Atlantic City, Lagos State?
Alebiosu is also prioritising the acceleration of process automation in recognition of the importance of digital transformation. It is a massive push for technological advancement that includes adopting robotics technology and artificial intelligence at scale, to give the bank an unassailable competitive advantage among its peers in the industry.
The bank has deployed digital tools to enhance seamless account opening and optimised backend systems and customer service delivery. Two additional Digital Experience Centres (DXCs) have been launched – one at Lekki Admiralty Way, Lagos State and the other at its UNN branch, Nsukka, Enugu State. Also, the bank’s agent network has expanded to over 280,000, a 50,000 increase from the 230,000 agents it had in 2023.
As expected, shareholders, among other stakeholders, have been observing the strides the bank has been making under Alebiosu’s leadership, with a keen eye on the numbers. Fortunately, again, the bank’s results for the financial year ended December 2024 speak volumes, with after-tax profit of its parent company rising to the highest point it has reached in the last 12 years, according to the company’s latest financial statement.
In recognition of his achievements within such a short period and his exemplary leadership, Alebiosu was honoured at the World Business Outlook Awards as “Banking CEO of the Year – Nigeria 2025”. He has also been honoured with the “Special African Banking Leadership Award” by African Leadership Magazine. This was in 2024.
The story of Alebiosu’s leadership at FirstBank has clearly been one of preparedness meeting legacy. Working with the board and management team, he has consistently sustained the bank’s legacies and also consolidated its recent gains in ways that will ensure the gains keep compounding. FirstBank, more than ever before, is poised for greater intra- and intercontinental growth and impact in the years ahead.
South Africa’s competition authority announced Wednesday it had approved the buyout of Africa’s largest pay TV enterprise MultiChoice by France’s Canal+, which wants to expand its footprint on the continent.
The merger, which has been in the works for nearly a year, needs the final go-ahead from the commission’s Competition Tribunal, it said in a statement.
Canal+ holds around 45 percent of MultiChoice’s shares and offered last year to acquire the remainder for 125 rand (6.16 euro) per share.
Canal+ is present in 25 African countries through 16 subsidiaries and has eight million subscribers, according to the French group.
MultiChoice operates in 50 countries across sub-Saharan Africa and has 19.3 million subscribers, it said.
It includes Africa’s premier sports broadcaster, SuperSport, and the DStv satellite television service.
“This is a major step forward in our ambition to create a global media and entertainment company with Africa at its heart,” Canal+ CEO Maxime Saada said in a statement.
The commission said its approval of the merger was subject to public-interest conditions worth about 26 billion rand over three years, including increasing the shareholding of people disadvantaged under South Africa’s white-minority apartheid regime.
It will also maintain the MultiChoice headquarters in South Africa.
A date for the Tribunal’s decision on the merger has not been announced but Canal+ said it was aiming for the deal to be completed by early October.
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