My early weeks in Miri City Council

Hello! I am Agnes Nyelang currently doing internship at Miri City Council, its a government organization which based on public services.

Looking for Public Relations internship in Miri is tough, let alone the Public Relations job, because in Malaysia, the Public Relations has not yet blooming like in the other countries such as U.S and Australia. Thank goodness, I managed to get internship in Miri City Council.


Before I start with my experiences while intern for MCC, I will first give you the basic information on the organization's vision and mission.

The vision is 'To make Miri A sustainable Resort City'

The mission is 'To manage the transformation of Miri City into a most preferred resort destination'

Now I will explain on the Public Relations structure. However it is quite different from what I learned from the PR units I've taken. However, it depends on the organization.
In Miri City Council, Public Relations department or in malay it is 'Seksyen Perhubungan Awam'.

They have four main functions:-

1. Handling the public requsts and compaints
2. Act as secretariat for the Executive meetings.
3. Provide publicity for Miri City Council.
4. Act as the information center for Miri City Council.

Here we go,
During my first week, there's not much things to do, but I was introduced with the staffs in the Public Relations department. I'm not alone doing the internship, but there are other interns as well, but they're interning for the Engineering Department. The staffs are friendly. Adding up, most of them worked in MCC for at least 10 years! My supervisor, Mr Tay, alone has been working in MCC for 20 years...! I feel so honoured to work with experienced supervisor. Personally, its even more better than my 3 years taking Pr units... ah... the beauty of experiences. No theories can beat them. Mr Tay is a friendly middle aged man, and busy person. This shows how a good Public Relations should be. Almost everyone in the Curtin Campus Miri knew Mr Tay. This shows Mr Tay has a strong network.
Observing what Mr Tay does, has been given me the best examples of a dedicated Public Relations.

Other than that, as I observed how the other Public Relations staff handles the requests (complaints), I see they're calm, patients, and friendly when handling the public.

Right now, I'm in my second week, there's no coming events yet. But I'll update you guys soon. Although I wish I can contribute more to the Public Relations department where I do my intern.

Good luck everyone!


Regards, Agnes Nyelang