FOI Bill will Help Combat Corruption, Allow Citizens Participate Meaningfully in Governance      -  FOI Advocates

Advocates and stakeholders in the Freedom of Information (FOI) Bill have unanimously called on the Senate to pass the Bill as it will help combat Nigeria’s endemic corruption and allow citizens to meaningfully engage all tiers of government on modules of governance.

These were the general submissions of participants to the Senate Public Hearing on the FOI Bill held at the Senate Hearing Room One in the National Assembly complex in Abuja on June 2, 2008.

Chief Ajibola Ogunshola, Chairman of Punch Nigeria Limited and President of the Newspapers Proprietors’ Association of Nigeria (NPAN) in his contribution noted that the devastating effect of corruption drastically reversed the initial movement toward economic take-off witnessed during the two decades that followed the attainment of independence

He stated that: ”The ongoing probe of the power sector expenditure under the previous administration has shown that we must look for a more effective way of fighting corruption. I am convinced the probe of other sectors will equally reveal abysmal lack of integrity in public procurement system.

”While I commend the effort of the National Assembly for initiating the current probes, and urge that its findings should be used to bring culprits to justice, I must add that it is far more cost-effective to prevent corruption than conduct probes after the damage has been done.”

He was represented by Mr. Adebolu Arowolo, Chairman of the Punch‘s Editorial Board.

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in calling for the passage of the Bill said it will allow Nigerians to meaningfully engage all tiers of government on modules of governance adding that the high level of corruption in the government was made possible by the severe lack of openness.

The NLC, through its Assistant General Secretary, Mr. Olaitan Oyerinde, observed that the veil of secrecy that covers government-held information was a carry-over of colonial and military rule mentality and this has the public the necessary information that should enable them engage government at all levels.

The NLC said: "Given the hostility to openness which characterised colonial and military governance, Nigeria has been saddled with a general veil of secrecy over information about government and its agencies. Much of this information is generally classified as top secret. This has affected the media in several ways. It has also denied the public information that is reasonably required to effectively engage government and its agencies at all levels. Until recently, even subventions to some MDAs were hardly accessible,"

It vowed to mount continuous pressure on relevant government apparatus until the Bill is passed into law.

Mr. John Odey, the Minister of Information and Communications pledged that President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua would assent to the bill as soon as the National Assembly passed it adding that the ministry was fully in support of the bill because it would promote the rule of law, one of the core policies of the Yar'Adua administration.

The Nigerian Armed Forces also declared its readiness to abide by the provisions of the Bill passed into law

The Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Andrew Owoye Azazi represented by Navy Captain Sinebi Ngi Apopo while declaring support for the bill pledged that the armed forces would not shy away from compliance with relevant provisions if called to do so.

He however noted that the provisions of the proposed law exempt information about the security of the nation from the general rule of disclosure adding the Army was working with mature and experienced journalists who understood what type of information not to put in the public domain..

The President of the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE), Halilu Baba Dantiye, lamented that nine years after it after it was initially presented to the National Asssembly, the FOI Bill has not been passed into law adding that the practice of investigative journalism had been made more difficult.

Dantiye said the passage of the bill would enable good governance and accountability on the part of government with better public participation in the affairs of the state.

Expressing legislators’ fears and reasons why the Bill has passed through nine tortuous years without being passed into law yet, Senator Ayogu Eze, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Information and Media said: “The widely-held view is that government (National Assembly inclusive) is wary of enacting a law that may turn out to be its nemesis and a handy weapon in the arsenal of its enemy ."

"Our challenge today is to overlook those presumptions and work with an open mind with all stakeholders to see that this Bill finally becomes law. Our task has been made easy for the simple reason that a lot of work has already been done on this Bill over the tenure of the past Senate. Fortunately, this work was done in active partnership and collaboration with all of you present today". 

He added, "What this means is that we may, in fact, end up with a review, a kind of crossing of Ts and dotting of Is rather than an entirely fresh exercise. This does not in any way indicate that we are going to close our doors on fresh ideas that will help enrich the form and content of this Bill."

Speaking on the assumption that the FOI Bill is a media bill and that it will give journalists unchecked powers to abuse and misuse information that comes into their hands, the Senate President, Senator David Mark told advocates of the FOI not to expect absolute freedom when the Bill is eventually passed. He argued that freedom is not absolute but that it has limits.  He spoke while declaring open, the Public Hearing on the bill.

Senator Mark said: “There is no privilege without responsibility. We must get that right and there is no absolute freedom. Freedom has a limit, if you are asking for a particular privilege; you must accept the responsibilities that go along with it.

“To me, it is a two-way traffic as long as both parties are prepared to honour this freedom of Information Bill.

”There is no where in the world where you just give out every information those in the advanced countries who always strain to give an impression that the developing countries are the only countries where you cannot get any information you want, also protect their national interest. And when you go there and ask for information that borders on their national interest, they will not give it to you.”

He called for criminalization of libel in order to protect public office holders against publication of false reports. He said: "My fear really and where my own problem is that once you get your information and you go and publish it, you must make sure that you publish facts and where I have always concentrated is if we allow freedom of information, let everybody go and get as much information as he wants and if he decides to misuse it, that misuse, if in the process you libel anybody, it should be criminal."

Senior government officials, senators, media owners, and the civil society attended the Public Hearing including Senator Ike Ekweremadu, Deputy Senate President; Senator Teslim Folarin, Senate Leader; Alhaji Ibrahim Nakede, Minister of State for Information and Communication; Mrs Oluremi Oyo, Managing Director of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN); Mr John Momoh, Chairman of Channels Television; and Mr. Ndagene Aku, national President of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ).

Also present were Dr. Timi Agarey, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Information and Communications; Mallam Halilu Baba Dantiye, President of the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE); and Mr. Ladi Lawal, Managing Director of Africa Independent Television (AIT) among others.

Hundreds of supporters of the Bill stormed the National Assembly wearing white T-shirts displaying inscriptions declaring their support for the Bill and calling for its passage by the National Assembly. They also carried megaphones with which they chanted their stance on the proposed law.