Public is as old as mankind. Public Relations affect almost everyone who has a contact with other human beings. All of us in one way or the other practice or experience public relations daily.
Public Relations are the planned and sustained effort to establish a mutual understanding between an organization and its publics.
According to British Public Relations as an art and social science analysis trend, predicting their consequence, counseling organization, leader and implement planned programme of action which will serve for both the oPrganization and its public interest, the world assemble in Mexico City in August(1987).
Public Relations consist of all form of planned communication inward and outward between organization and its publics for the purpose of achieving specific objective concerning mutual understanding.
Public relations are a strategic communication process that builds mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their publics’ (PRSA, 2012).
International Public Relations Association (1968) described public relations as management function of a continuing planned character through which public and private organizations and institution can seek to win and retain the understanding, sympathy and support of those with whom they are or may be concerned by evaluating public opinion about themselves in order to correlate, as fares possible policies and procedures to achieve, by planned and wide spread information, more productive co-operation and mere fulfillment or common interest.
Public relations are also the subject of academic research.one of the leading academics on the subject is Jacquie L’ Etang, who gives the following definition;
‘Public relation is the occupation responsible for the management of organizational relationships and reputation.it encompasses issues management, public affairs, corporate communications, stakeholder’s relations, risk communication and corporate social responsibility.
Public relations operate on behalf of many different types of organization both at governmental and corporate level, to small business and voluntary sectors.
Public relations arises at points of societal change and resistance’ (L’Etang, J. (2009)’ Radical PR- Catalyst for change or an aporia? Ethical space, 6(2), pp.13-18).
The most important and embarrassing problem facing tertiary institutions in Nigeria today is the menace and aggressiveness of cult members and cult related activities.
The term cult is a Latin word which refers to worship, religion and faith. A cult is a group of people who are adherents of a certain type of worship. In the contemporary context, it generally refers to a fraternal relationship between groups of people who are out to achieve set objectives for members, even though these objectives go against the interest and norms of the larger society (Ikudayisi, 1998).
Onyechere (1988) defines these cults as a group of people who share and propagate peculiar beliefs only to members.
The Oxford concise Dictionary of sociology (1996) gives the sociological definition of cult as a small group or religious activities whose beliefs are typically secrete, esoteric and individualistic.
Ogunbameru and Daodu (2003) defined secret cult as any form of organization whose activities are not only exclusively kept away from the knowledge of others but such activities are carried out at odd hours of the day and they often clash with the accepted norms and values of everyday life.
Odubunmi (1998) sees cultism as the information of a group of initiates or adherent around the figure of a god, a saint or even a living being.it may involve the practice of a particular doctrine within a body of religious belief.
Lexican websters dictionary defines secret cult as a group of people who share common cause and whose mode of meetings and agenda are unknown to the public and where initiation into rank and file is usually done in secret.
Ikundenyisi (1998) saw cultism as a fraternal relationship which signifies brotherhood. All over the world, fraternities among youths, especially the type encouraged in higher institutions of learning, exist to foster brotherhood, collective aspiration and pursuit of noble goals. They provide a platform for leadership capability development and a forum and opportunity for active participation in nation building, it was never intended to be an avenue for exhibiting juvenile delinquency and unrestrained, senseless, masochism, least of all and it was never intended to become an avenue to jeopardize life with impurity.
Azelama, Alude and Imhonda (2004) noted that ‘’cult’’ is an assemblage of people united by certain ideals, or symbols and whose rites and ceremonies of veneration are unique and shrouded in mysteries with a secrecy that cannot be broken.
Cultism is dated back to 1952, when Wole Soyinka winner of the 1986 Nobel Peace Prize for Literature- and a group of friends at the University of Ibadan formed the Pyrites.
In the mid- 1980s, reports had it that some of the cults have been co-opted by elements in the intelligence and security services serving the military government such that they were used as foils to the left- wing student unions which, along with university teachers, were among the only remaining bastions of opposition to military rule.
Cultism includes the activities of secret cults or societies that are very rampant in our institutions of learning today. This has not only created an atmosphere of insecurity in our campuses, it is also diverting attention from the primary purpose of the universities which is education.
Taiwo (2004) declared that’ ’What we are all witnessing today in the education sector is a sad reflection of corruption in the society and the low priority placed on standardization and improvement of the intellectual custodians of our time by those in power’’.
1.2 Statement of the problem
According to Ibe (2003:33) Statement of problem serves to elaborate on the information as contained in the situation applied in the topic or title of the study.
The basic conditions for sustained academic culture have been eroded in tertiary institution. And it has been a negative impact in tertiary institution which little attention has been given to the consequence. Sometimes students are attacked, killing with acids, charms, machetes, Knives, guns, daylight and gang rapping, loss of life, property and harassing of female students. Obada –Obieh(2002).
There is no peace in campus, series of examination malpractice, killing of lecturers. Public Relations as problem- solving communication are expected to create strategies to enlighten the students and make them aware of what is needed of in an academic community .In order to tackle this problem successfully both the students and general public and the government should take the challenges upon themselves.
1.3 Rationale Of The Study
The Research of the study is carried out due to the high rate of moral decadence among student in tertiary institution. It focuses on the relevance measures in which public relations and any external body could adopt to solve social phenomenon in tertiary institution in Nigeria.
The study tries to portray the relationship and effect between the students and the cultism in Nigeria institution.
1.4 Objectives of the Study
Ibe (2003:33) viewed objective as stating the aims of the study by highlighting what the study want to achieve.
Therefore, the objectives of this study include:
1. To examine the different causes of cultism in tertiary institution
2. To examine the role of Public Relations as strategies tool to reach the audience
3. To study the various challenges the cultists group have caused on the school activities.
4. To find out if there are any laws or policies that could restrict students from not joining cult.
5. To ascertain the extent of adequacy of mobilization and encouragement of students to supports the crusade against cultism.
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