by Achadu Gabriel, Kaduna
The Centre for Crisis Communication has said it is working on a comprehensive Crisis Communication Protocol that will help organisations and security agencies minimize destabilisation whenever crises occur.
Chairman of the Centre, retired Major-General Chris Olukolade, disclosed this on the sidelines of a symposium organised by the Centre in an interview.
According to him, the essence of the symposium is evident in the array of personalities lined up to make presentations, reviews and discussions, as well as goodwill messages which show it is a major need of the nation at this moment, especially as the country looks forward to general elections shortly.
He said a team of rapporteurs has been put in place to collate all outcomes of the conference, which will feed into an ongoing study at the Centre focused on drawing up the protocol.
“One of the things we expect to achieve, after this, is to have enough input into a study we are undertaking at the moment at the centre whose focus is to draw a crisis communication protocol which will be useful to all organisations in addressing any crisis.
“You know, crises are really not easily preventable. They will surely happen someday and, that means, if we have a protocol in place already, when it comes to it, the destabilisation will be minimal,” Olukolade said.
Speaking on the history of the Centre, Olukolade said it was established in 2015, shortly before he left service, with focus on promoting collaboration among security agencies, particularly in their use of information, both gathering, use and impact on public space.
He noted that, initially, the Centre’s work focused purely on the military, security and response agencies, and its activities led to the formation of the Forum of Spokespersons of Security and Response Agencies (FOSSRA), which has become a major platform for promoting cooperation among uniformed organisations.
On challenges, the retired General said operating as a non-governmental organisation has its constraints, especially funding, which depends on goodwill, and government caution in dealing with a non-official body.
“We are operating as a non-governmental organisation. We are not an official outfit of the government. We want to work; we are working and desire to keep working with agencies of government and the leadership. Funding has to be our own arrangement which we only get by goodwill,” he said.
“But, we are okay with our status as a non-governmental organization – a civil society movement, because we want a situation where we will be credible both before government and the public. If there is an indication that we rely on any particular party, our credibility before the other will be in question,” he added.
He said the Centre’s advocacy is centred on good collaboration among security agencies, stamping out misinformation and bad use of information, and continuous capacity-building in information management to prevent or ameliorate crisis.
Responding to concerns that insecurity has persisted, despite efforts at collaboration, Olukolade said forums such as the symposium are part of the Centre’s efforts which will continue, expressing optimism that agencies are gradually appreciating the patriotism behind the initiative.