NIGERIA INSTITUTE OF PUBLIC RELATIONS PRACTITIONER ACT

(1) There is hereby established a body to be known as the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (hereafter in this Act referred to as "the Institute") which shall be a body corporate under that name and be charged with the general duty of-
(a) determining what standards of knowledge and skill are to be attained by persons seeking to become registered members of the public relations profession and reviewing those standards, from time to time, as circumstances may permit ;
(b) securing, in accordance with the provisions of this Act, the establishment and maintenance of register of fellows, members and associates of the profession and of public relations practitioners and the publication, from time to time, of lists of those persons ; and
(c) performing, through the Council established under section 4 of this Act, the functions conferred on it by this Act.
(2) The Institute shall have perpetual succession and a common seal which shall be kept in such custody as the Council may, from time to time, authorise.
(3) The Institute may sue and be sued in its corporate name and may, subject to the Land Use Act 1978, hold, acquire and dispose of any property, movable or immovable

(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, members admitted to membership of the Institute shall
(a) be enrolled as public relations practitioners in the category of:-
(i) fellows ;
(ii) members ; or
(iii) associates
(b) be registered as public relations practitioners, and shall have status as registered in the Institute accordingly.
(2) Persons registered under this Act as public relations practitioners shall be entitled to be enrolled-
(a) as fellows, if they satisfy the Council that for the period of ten years immediately preceding the date of application in that behalf they have been fit persons and have, in addition to being the holders of approved academic qualifications, been in continuous active practice on their own account as public relations practitioners or in partnership with other public relations practitioners ;
(b) as members, if for the period of not less than ten years immediately preceding the date of application in that behalf (the period of membership of the Association of Public Relations, in the discretion of the Council counting in that behalf) they have been enrolled as associates, whether in active practice as public relations practitioners or not and are otherwise fit and proper persons ; and
(c) as associates, if they satisfy the Council that they have passed examinations prescribed or accepted by the Institute and are otherwise fit and proper persons to be enrolled in the register.
(3) Persons enrolled in the Institute shall be the holders of qualifications, acceptable to the Institute but not less than those prescribed in Schedule 4 to this Act.
(4) Where a person is enrolled or registered, as the case may be, in the Institute, he shall be entitled to the use of such letters after his name as may be authorised by the Council, that is to say, as a fellow, a member or an associate or as a registered public relations practitioner and shall, when enrolled or registered, as the case may be, receive a certificate in such form as the Council may approve for that purpose.
(5) The Institute may enrol-
(a) graduates ;
(b) affiliates ;
(c) students ;
for the purpose of being registered as public relations practitioners in accordance with the provisions of the Act.

(1) There shall be a president and a vice-president of the Institute who; subject to the provisions of section 21 of this Act and Schedule 3 hereto, shall be elected by the Council under this Act.
(2) The president and vice-president shall each hold office for a term of two years from the date of his election, and the president shall be chairman at meetings of the Institute, so however that, in the event of the death, incapacity or inability for any reason of the president, the vice-president shall act as president for the un-expired portion of the term of office and as chairman as the case may be, and references in this Act to the president shall be construed accordingly.
(3) The president and vice-president shall respectively be chairman and vice-chairman of the Council of the Institute under this Act,
(4) If the president or the vice-president ceases to be a member of the Institute he shall cease to hold any of the offices designated under this section.

(1) There shall be, as the governing body of the Institute, a Council which shall be charged with the administration and general management of the Institute.
(2) The Council shall consist of the president and vice-president as chairman and vice-chairman respectively, and a total of twenty other persons being fellows, members or associate members of the Institute, that is-
(a) five persons appointed by the Minister, all of whom shall be persons engaged in the practice of public relations in Nigeria ; and
(b) fifteen persons elected by the Institute annually of whom not more than eight shall be persons in active practice as public relations practitioners.
(3) The provisions of Schedule 1 to this Act shall have effect with respect to the qualifications and tenure of office of members of the Council and the other matters therein mentioned.

The Council shall have power to do anything which in its opinion is calculated to facilitate the carrying on of the activities of the Institute under this Act.

(1) The Council shall establish and maintain a fund which shall be managed and controlled by the Council and into which shall be paid all moneys received by the Council.
(2) Moneys received by the Council by way of subscriptions, fees, grants-in-aid, gift or any other money received by the Institute shall be paid into the fund established by sub-section (1) of this section
(3) There shall be paid out of the fund all expenses incurred by or on behalf of the Institute under this Act.
(4) The Council may invest moneys in the fund in any security created or issued by or on behalf of the Federal Military Government or in any other securities in Nigeria approved by the Council.
(5) The Council may, from time to time, borrow money for the purposes of the Institute and any interest payable on moneys so borrowed shall be paid out of the fund.

(1) The Council shall keep proper accounts on behalf of the Institute in respect of each financial year and proper records in relation to those accounts ; and the Council shall cause the accounts to be audited by an auditor and, when audited, the accounts shall be submitted to the members of the Institute for approval at a meeting of the Institute.
(2) An auditor appointed for the purposes of this section shall be from the list and in accordance with the guidelines supplied by the Auditor-General of the Federation.

(1) The Council shall appoint a fit and proper person to be the Registrar for the purposes of this Act.
(2) The Council may appoint such other persons to assist the Registrar in the performance of the functions of the Institute under this Act as and when it deems necessary to make such applications.
(3) It shall be the duty of the Registrar to prepare and maintain, in accordance with rules made by the Council, a register of the names, addresses, approved qualifications, and of such other qualifications and particulars as may be specified in the rules, of all persons who are entitled in accordance with the provisions of this Act to be enrolled as fellows, members or associates, or registered as public relations practitioners and who, in the manner prescribed by such rules, apply to be so registered.
(4) The register shall consist of four parts of which-
(a) the first part shall be in respect of fellows ;
(b) the second part shall be in respect of members;
(c) the third part shall be in respect of associates; and
(d) the fourth part shall be in respect of public relations practitioners.
(5) Subject to the foregoing provisions of this section, the Council shall make rules with respect to the form and keeping of the register and the making of entries therein, and in particular-
(a) regulating the making of applications for enrolment or registration, as the case may be, and providing for the evidence to be produced in support of such applications;
(b) providing for the notification to the Registrar, by the person to whom any registered particulars relates, of any change in those particulars ;
(c) authorising an enrolled or a registered person to have any qualification which is in relation to the relevant division of the profession, either an approved qualification or an accepted qualification for the purposes of this Act, entered in relation to his name in addition to or, as he may elect, in substitution for any other qualifications so registered;
(d) specifying the fees, including any annual subscription, to be paid to the Institute in respect of the entry of names on the register, and authorising the Registrar to refuse to enter a name on the register until any fee specified for the entry has been paid;
(e) specifying anything falling to be specified under the foregoing provisions of this section, but rules made for the purposes of paragraph (d) of this subsection shall not come into force until they are confirmed at a meeting of the Institute.
(6) It shall be the duty of the Registrar
(a) to correct, in accordance with the Council's directions, any entry in the register which the Council directs him to correct as being in the Council's opinion an entry which was incorrectly made ;
(b) to make, from time to time, any necessary alteration to the registered particulars of any registered person ;
(c) to remove from the register the name of any enrolled or registered person who has died;
(d) to record the names of members of the Institute who are in default for more than four months in the payment of annual subscriptions, and to take such action in relation thereto (including removal of the names of defaulters from the register) as the Council may direct or require.
(7) If the Registrar
(a) sends by post to any registered or enrolled person a registered letter addressed to him at his address on the register enquiring whether the registered or enrolled particulars relating to him are correct and receives no reply to the letter within the period of six months from the date of posting it ; and
(b) upon the expiration of that period sends in the like manner to the person in question a second similar letter and receives no reply to that letter within three months from the date of posting it,
the Registrar may remove the particulars relating to the person in question from the register ; but the Council may direct the Registrar to restore to the appropriate part of the register any particulars removed therefrom under this subsection.

(1) It shall be the duty of the Registrar
(a) to cause the register to be printed, published and put on sale to members of the public not later than two years from the commencement of this Act;
(b) in each year after that in which the register is first published under paragraph (a) of this subsection, to cause to be printed, published and put on sale as aforesaid either a corrected edition of the register or a list of corrections made to the register since it was last printed ; and
(c) to cause a print of each edition of the register and of each list of corrections to be deposited at the principal offices of the Institute.
(2) It shall be the duty of the Council to keep the register and lists so deposited available at all reasonable times for inspection by members of the public.
(3) A document purporting to be a print of an edition of the register published under this section by authority of the Registrar, or documents purporting to be prints of an edition of the register so published and of the list of corrections to that edition so published, shall (without prejudice to any other mode of proof) be admissible in any proceedings as evidence that any person specified in the document, or the documents read together, as being registered or enrolled was so enrolled or registered at the date of the edition or of the list of corrections, as the case may be, and that any person not so specified was not so enrolled or registered.
(4) Where in accordance with subsection (3) of this section a person is, in any proceeding, shown to have been or not to have been registered or enrolled at a particular date, he shall, unless the contrary is proved, be taken for the purposes of the proceeding as having at all material times thereafter continued to be, or not to be, so enrolled or registered.

(1) Subject to section 11 of this Act, and to rules made under section 8 of this Act, a person shall be entitled to be registered as a public relations practitioner if-
(a) he passes the qualifying examination accepted by the Institute under this Act and completes the practical training prescribed by the Council, from time to time ; or
(b) he holds a qualification granted outside Nigeria and for the time being accepted by the Institute and is by law entitled to practice for all purposes as a public relations practitioner in the country in which the qualification was granted and, if the Council so requires, he satisfies the Council that he has had sufficient experience as a public relations practitioner; or
(c) he holds at least one of the qualifications prescribed in Schedule 4 to this Act for the purpose of registration on the register and has complied with the other requirements prescribed under section 8 (4) of this Act.
(2) Subject to section 11 of this Act and to rules made under section 8 of this Act, a person shall also be entitled to be registered as a public relations practitioner, if he satisfies the Council that immediately before the commencement of this Act, he had had not less than five years' experience as a public relations executive of a company registered under the Companies Act 1968.
(3) An applicant for registration shall, in addition to evidence of qualification, satisfy the Council that he
(a) is of good character ;
(b) has attained the age of twenty-one years; and
(c) has not been convicted in Nigeria or elsewhere of an offence involving fraud or dishonesty.
(4) The Council may in its sole discretion provisionally accept a qualification produced in respect of an application for registration under this section, or direct that the application be renewed within such period as may be specified in the direction.
(5) Any entry directed to be made in the register under subsection (4) of this section shall show that registration is provisional and no entry so made shall be converted to full registration without the consent of the Council signified in writing in that behalf.
(6) Subject to Schedule 4 to this Act, the Council shall, from time to time, publish in the Gazette particulars of other qualifications accepted by the Council for registration as a public relations practitioner under this section.

(1) The Council may approve any institution for the purposes of this Act and may for those purposes approve-
(a) any course of training at any approved institution which is intended for persons seeking to become or are already public relations practitioners and which the Council considers is designed to confer on persons completing it sufficient knowledge and skill for admission to the Institute;
(b) any qualification which, as a result of an examination taken in conjunction with a course of training approved by the Council under this section, is granted to candidates reaching a standard at the examination indicating in the opinion of the Council that the candidates have sufficient knowledge and skill to practise public relations.
(2) The Council may, if it thinks fit, withdraw any approval given under this section in respect of any course, qualification or institution ; but before withdrawing such an approval the Council shall-
(a) give notice that it proposes to do so to each person in Nigeria appearing to the Council to be a person by whom the course is conducted or the qualification is granted or the institution is controlled, as the case may be ;
(b) afford each such person an opportunity of making to the Council representations with regard to the proposal; and
(c) take into consideration any representations made as respects the proposal in pursuance of paragraph (b) of this subsection.
(3) A course, qualification or institution shall not be treated as approved during any period the approval is withdrawn under subsection (2) of this section.
(4) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (3) of this section, the withdrawal of an approval under subsection (2) of this section shall not prejudice the registration or eligibility for registration of any person who by virtue of the approval was registered or was eligible for registration (either unconditionally or subject to his obtaining a certificate of experience) immediately before the approval was withdrawn.
(5) The giving or withdrawal of an approval under this section shall have effect from such date, whether before or after the execution of the instrument signifying the giving or withdrawal of the approval, as the Council may specify in the instrument ; and the Council shall-
(a) as soon as may be, publish a copy of every such instrument in the Gazette ; and
(b) not later than seven days before its publication as aforesaid, send a copy of the instrument to the Minister.

(1) It shall be the duty of the members of the Council to keep themselves informed of the nature of-
(a) the instruction given at approved institutions to persons attending approved course of training; and
(b) the examinations as a result of which approved qualifications are granted, and for the purposes of performing that duty the Council may appoint, either from among its own members or otherwise, persons to visit approved institutions, or attend such examinations.
(2) It shall be the duty of a person appointed under subsection (1) of this section to report to the Council on-
(a) the adequacy of the instruction given to persons attending approved courses of training at institutions visited by him
(b) the adequacy of the examinations attended by him; and
(c) any other matters relating to the institutions or examinations on which the Council may, either generally or in a particular case, request him to report, but no such person shall interfere with the giving of any instruction or the holding of any examination.
(3) On receiving a report made in pursuance of this section, the Council may, if it thinks fit, and shall, if so required by the Institute, send a copy of the report to the person appearing to the Council to be in charge of the institution or responsible for the examinations to which the report relates, requesting that person to make observations on the report to the Council within such period as may be specified in the request, not being less than one month beginning with the date of the request.

(1) There shall be a tribunal to be known as the Public Relations Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal (hereafter in this Act referred to as "the disciplinary tribunal") which shall be charged with the duty of considering and determining any case referred to it by the investigating panel established by subsection (3) of this section, and any other case of which the disciplinary tribunal has cognisance under the following provisions of this Act.
(2) The disciplinary tribunal shall consist of the chairman of the Council and six other members of the Council appointed by the Council.
(3) There shall be a body to be known as the Public Relations Practitioners Investigating Panel (hereafter in this Act referred to as "the investigating panel") which shall be charged with the duty of-
(a) conducting a preliminary investigation into any case where It is alleged that a member has misbehaved in his capacity as a public relations practitioner or should for any other reason be the subject of proceedings before the disciplinary tribunal ; and
(b) deciding whether the case should be referred to the disciplinary tribunal.
(4) The investigating panel shall be appointed by the Council and shall consist of four members of the Council and one public relations practitioner who is not a member of the Council.
(5) The provisions of Schedule 2 to this Act shall, so far as applicable to the disciplinary tribunal and investigating panel respectively, have effect with respect to those bodies.
(6) The Council may make rules not inconsistent with this Act as to acts which constitute professional misconduct.

(1) Where-
(a) a person is judged by the disciplinary tribunal to be guilty of infamous conduct in any professional respect ; or
(b) a person is convicted, by any court or tribunal in Nigeria or elsewhere having power to award imprisonment, of an offence (whether or not punishable with imprisonment) which in the opinion of the disciplinary tribunal is incompatible with the status of a public relations practitioner; or
(c) the disciplinary tribunal is satisfied that the name of any person has been fraudulently enrolled or registered, the disciplinary tribunal may, if it thinks fit, give a direction reprimanding that person or ordering the Registrar to strike his name off the relevant part of the register.
(2) The disciplinary tribunal may, if it thinks fit, defer or further defer its decision as to the giving of a direction under subsection (1) of this section until a subsequent meeting of the tribunal ; but-
(a) no decision shall be deferred under this subsection for periods exceeding two years in the aggregate ; and
(b) no person shall be a member of the disciplinary tribunal for the purposes of reaching a decision which has been deferred or further deferred unless he was present as a member of the disciplinary tribunal when the decision was deferred.
(3) For the purposes of subsection (1) (b) of this section, a person shall not be treated as convicted as therein mentioned unless the conviction stands at a time when no appeal or further appeal is pending or may (without extension of time) be brought in connection with the conviction.
(4) When the disciplinary tribunal gives a direction under subsection (1) of this section, the disciplinary tribunal shall cause notice of the direction to be served on the person to whom it relates.
(5) The person to whom a direction relates may, at any time within twenty-eight days from the date of service on him of notice of the direction, appeal against the direction to the Court of Appeal and the disciplinary tribunal may appear as respondent to the appeal and, for the purpose of enabling directions to be given as to the costs of the appeal and of proceedings before the Court of Appeal, the disciplinary tribunal shall be deemed to be a party thereto, whether or not it appears on the hearing of the appeal.
(6) A direction of the disciplinary tribunal under subsection (1) of this section shall take effect where
(a) no appeal under this section is brought against the direction within the time limited for such an appeal, on the expiration of that time ;
(b) such an appeal is brought and is withdrawn or struck out for want of prosecution, on the withdrawal or striking out of the appeal;
(c) any such appeal is brought and is not withdrawn or struck out as aforesaid, if and when the appeal is dismissed.
(7) A person whose name is struck off the register in pursuance of a direction of the disciplinary tribunal under this section shall not be entitled to be enrolled or registered again except in pursuance of a direction in that behalf; and a direction under this section for the striking off of a person's name from the register may prohibit an application under this subsection by that person until the expiration of such period from the date of the direction (and where he has duly made such an application, from the date of his last application) as may be specified in the direction.

Any person who is not a member of the Association of Public Relations (hereafter in this Act referred to as "the Association") who, but for this Act, would have been qualified to apply for and obtain membership of the Association may, within the period of three months beginning from the day this Act comes into force, apply for membership of the Institute in such manner as may be prescribed by rules made by the Council; and if approved, he shall be enrolled or registered, as the case may be, according to his qualification.

A person shall be deemed to practice as a public relations practitioner if, in consideration of remuneration received or to be received, and whether by himself or in partnership with any other person, he-(a) engages himself in the practice of public relations or holds himself out to the public as a public relations practitioner; or
(b) renders professional service or assistance in or about matters of public relation;
(c) renders any other service which may, by regulations be made by the Council.

(1) The Council may make rules for-
(a) the training in public relations of suitable persons in public relations methods and practice ; and
(b) the supervision and regulation of the engagement, training and transfer of such persons
(2) The Council may also make rules-
(a) prescribing the amount and date due for payment of the annual subscription and for such purpose different amounts may be prescribed by the rules according to whether the person is enrolled as a fellow, a member or an associate or is a registered public relations practitioner ;
(b) prescribing the form of licence to practice to be issued annually or, if the Council thinks fit, by endorsement on an existing licence; and
(c) restricting the right to practice as a public relations practitioner in default of payment of the amount of the annual subscription where the default continues for longer than such period as may be prescribed by the rules.
(3) Rules made under this section shall be published in the Gazette after such rules have been confirmed by the Institute in accordance with the provisions of subsection (2) of section 20 of this Act.

The Institute shall-(a) provide and maintain a library comprising books and publications for the advancement of knowledge of public relations, and such other books and publications as the Council may think necessary for the purpose;
(b) encourage research into public relations and public relations methods and allied subjects to the extent that the Council may, from time to time, consider necessary.

(1) If any person, for the purpose of procuring the registration of any name, qualification or other matter-
(a) recklessly makes a statement which is false in a material particular; or
(b) makes a statement which he knows to be false in a material particular; he shall be guilty of an offence.
(2) If, on or after the relevant date, any person who is not a member of the Institute practices or holds himself out to practice as a public relations practitioner for or in expectation of reward, or takes or uses any name, title, addition or description implying that he is in practice as a public relations practitioner, he shall be guilty of an offence; provided that, in the case of a person falling within section 15 of this Act-
(a) this subsection shall not apply in respect of anything done by him, during the period of three months mentioned in that section ; or
(b) if within that period he duly applies for membership of the Institute, then, unless within that period he is notified that his application has not been approved, this subsection shall not apply in respect of anything done by him between the end of that period and the date on which he is enrolled or registered or is notified as aforesaid.
(3) If the Registrar or any other person employed by or on behalf of the Institute wilfully makes any falsification in any matter relating to the register, he shall be guilty of an offence
(4) A person guilty of an offence under this section shall be liable-
(a) on summary conviction, to a fine of an amount not exceeding N100 ;
(b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine of an amount not exceeding N1,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years, or to both such fine and imprisonment.
(5) Where an offence under this section which has been committed by a body corporate is proved to have been committed with the consent or connivance of or to be attributable to any neglect on the part of any director, manager, secretary or other similar officer of the body corporate or any person purporting to act in any such capacity, he, as well as the body corporate, shall be deemed to be guilty of that offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly.
(6) In this section, "the relevant date" means the third anniversary of the coming into force of this Act or such earlier date as may be prescribed for the purposes of this section by order of the Minister published in the- Gazette.

(1) Any regulations made under this Act shall be published in the Gazette as soon as may be after they are made ; and a copy of any such regulations shall be sent to the Minister not later than 7 days before they are so published.
(2) Rules made for the purposes of this Act shall be subject to confirmation by the Institute at its meeting and if then annulled, shall cease to have effect on the day after the date of annulment, but without prejudice to anything done in pursuance or intended pursuance of any such rules.

(1) The Association of Public Relations is hereby dissolved and all the property held by or on behalf of the Association shall, by virtue of this section and without further assurance, vest in the Institute and be held by it for the purposes of the Institute.
(2) The provisions of Schedule 3 to this Act shall have effect with respect to matters arising from the transfer by this section to the Institute of the property of the Association and with respect to the other matters mentioned in that Schedule.

In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires-
"Association" means the Association of Public Relations incorporated under the Companies Act 1968 ;
"Council" means the Council established as the governing body of the Institute under section 4 of this Act ;
"disciplinary tribunal" means the Public Relations Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal established under section 13 of this Act ;
"enrolled" in relation to a fellow, member or an associate means registered in the part of the register relating to fellows, members or associates, as the case may be ;
"fees" includes annual subscription
"Institute" means the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations established under section 1 of this Act ;
"investigating panel" means the Public Relations Practitioners Investigating Panel established under section 13 of this Act;
"member of the Institute" means an enrolled fellow, member or associate, or a registered public relations practitioner of the Institute and
"membership of the Institute" shall be construed, accordingly ;
"Minister" means the Minister charged with the responsibility for matters relating to information;
"president" and "vice-president" mean respectively the office-holders under those names in the Institute;
"profession" means the profession of public relations ;
"register" means the register maintained in pursuance of section 8 of this Act ;
"registered public relations practitioner" means a member, of the Institute who is not a fellow, member or an associate.

This Act may be cited as the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations Practitioners Decree 1990.