Bryanston, Johannesburg, South Africa: Saturday, 13 July 2019

President Malesela Maubane passed the chain of office to Mrs. Dalien Rene Benecke (centre) – Senior Lecturer, Strategic Communication at the University of Johannesburg (UJ) and announced the President Elect – Kesagee Nayager (left) – Bombela Concession Company, Marketing and Communication Executive and Vice President Mr. Tebogo Ditshego (right) – CEO of Ditshego Media and Chairman of Read a Book SA.

The Public Relations Institute of Southern Africa (PRISA) 62^nd Annual General Meeting was held on Thursday, 11 July 2019 in Bryanston, Johannesburg, South Africa. In attendance were past presidents namely: Kate Bapela, Victor Sibeko and now CEO of PRISA, Tshepo Matsheba, president of International Consultancy Chapter (ICCO) Bridget van Holdt, Chairperson of Limpopo region – Phuti Mothapo and her delegation, PRISA Stalwarts Janis Chapman, Gillian Findlay, Chairperson of the Mr. Elvis Preslin APR, SABC anchor news and current affairs presenter and special guest speaker Regine le Roux,  

In his opening, the past president Malesela Maubane alluded to Charles Dickson quote “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.”

” The Public Relations Institute of Southern Africa (PRISA) was kept alive by nothing else but hope. I express my most heartfelt gratitude for all the hard work by both the Board and National Office staff for keeping PRISA afloat despite all the challenges. ” – Malesela Maubane

PRISA CEO – Victor Sibeko presented the 2018-2019 Annual Report, providing an overview of the challenges PRISA went through. He further shared key focus areas, activities and initiatives conducted in 2018-2019 financial year.

Achievement highlights and future plans included what Sibeko so passionately call Project RE:  Revive the Institute, Rebuild the PRISA brand, Restore the integrity, Reposition the profession, Realign our strategic objectives accordingly, etc.

Achievement highlights and future plans include what Sibeko so passionately call Project RE:  

• Revive the Institute
• Rebuild the PRISA brand
• Restore PRISA’s integrity
• Reposition the profession
• Realign our strategic objectives accordingly
• Most importantly be Relevant.

“PRISA is a membership based organization; as such its survival depends on subscription fees. We have to look beyond just membership but offer service, development, opportunities most importantly that much needed networking and relationships.

Best performing regions were acknowledged namely: Namibia led by Ms. Liz Tashiya and Limpopo led Phuti Mothapo who came all the way to attend the AGM.  Plans were said to be underway to revive all the dormant regional chapters.

Tabling the 2017-2018 financials, Mrs. Helena Minnie – PRISA’s Accountant commended PRISA for an amazing turn-around and indicated a need to hold steadfast and spend wisely under the recovery circumstances.

Talking about spending wisely, Sibeko said attracting membership and building partnerships with strategic contacts was and continues to be a focus area. So far partnerships has been forged with the Brand Summit, Services SETA, Eskom Academy of Learning, 1MSG – Mr. Lance Claasen, x-Kaya FM Current Affairs producer, Okuhle Projects – Ms. Ingrid Skhosana, Performance by Design South Africa – Mrs. Brenda Archdeacon, Little Tuscany Boutique Hotel, etc.

In her acceptance speech the new President, Dalien Rene Benecke, hit the ground running and delivered her maiden speech she thanked everyone for attending the AGM and was delighted to serve PRISA as president. She congratulated new office bearers – President Elect Kesagee Nayager and Vice President Tebogo Ditshego.

“I believe Public Relations have a key role to play in shaping society, transforming it into a socially just community for all. Poor decisions taken by a small number of individuals affected some of us sitting here tonight. Renewed commitment by many PRISA members and continued support for the bigger ideals of the organization introduced a renew-ed; refresh-ed; reclaim-ed; research-ed and reconnect-ed PRISA.” Said President Benecke. “To enable this to happen I plan to focus on two areas during this year, namely research and networks.” Added President Benecke.

In closing she said “We have a strong, committed and professional board ready to transform PRISA into an organization our members can be proud of and keen to join. Thanks to our CEO, Victor Sibeko and the National Office team viz. Louise Struwig, Leonie Rousseau, Claudia Brittoe, Lindiwe Majola and Annah Jordan for all your hard work and ensuring that we have a professional body capable of withstanding challenges, growing stronger and more resilient.”

She concluded by saying “I am looking forward to a year with many successes and memories to share with many more Public Relations generations.” Concluded President Benecke.