Leading public and private sector leaders have actively pledged to anchor their respective communication efforts on truth, innovation, and progress amid a reopening economy at the successfully concluded “The Tipping Point,” the 2022 National Public Relations Congress last September 1 and 2 at The Peninsula Manila, Makati City.
“Our biggest challenge today is how to turn negative communication into positive communication. Stories that are inspiring, programs and campaigns that are uplifting – these are what we need today. Fellow communicators, we can be the light when things get dark. We are integral to this tipping point,” urged Harold C. Geronimo, APR, President of the Public Relations Society of the Philippines (PRSP), speaking to nearly 300 on-site delegates and over 1,000 student delegates who joined online.
Organized by the PRSP, the PR Congress is the largest congregation of PR practitioners across industries in the public sector, civil society, and students in the Philippines.
Recognizing the vital role the public and private sectors both play in communication, Press Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles delivered the keynote message on behalf of President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr., while National Economic and Development Authority Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan shared his thoughts on how communication drives public-private partnerships in the quest for a higher growth path in the new normal.
“The government is serious about fostering a renewed sense of unity in our society. Thus, it launched the One Messaging Policy, which aims to prevent disinformation, misinformation, and malformation through close collaboration among agencies under the executive branch,” Press Secretary Cruz-Angeles said.
Meanwhile, homegrown business icons who joined the event’s high-level discussions include Manuel V. Pangilinan, Chairman and President, Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC); Kevin Tan, Chief Executive Officer, Alliance Global Group; June Chaye Cabal-Revilla, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Sustainability Officer, MPIC; and Christian Gonzalez, Executive Vice President and Chief Risk Officer, International Container Terminal Services, Inc.
“We all have to work together to fight disinformation. In this profession, we all have to communicate with integrity and a sense of responsibility,” Tan said as part of the Positive Communications in the ‘New Normal’ panel, one of the many engaging sessions during the National PR Congress.
Overseas speakers who joined the much-anticipated event were Prita Kamal Gani, President, ASEAN PR Network; Jaffri Amin Osman, Executive Member of the Global Alliance for PR and Communication Management; Fiona Cassidy, President, PR Institute of New Zealand, and Boy Kelana Soebroto, General Chair, PERHUMAS (Indonesia PR Association).
“As PR and communications professionals, it is imperative ethics underpin how we operate. Our challenge is to be nimble and adapt to our environment, not get distracted by the newest fad, and be relevant,” Cassidy remarked.