FREEDOM OF INFORMATION BILL

New Nigerian Newspaper Editorial, December 5, 2006.

THE Freedom of Information Bill, which was initiated in 1999, has passed through the legislative mill but it is yet to be passed into law. The Senate passed the bill on November 15, several months after the House of Representatives had done so. What remains is the harmonization of positions between both chambers of the National Assembly before the bill will be passed for President Olusegun Obasanjo’s assent. Thereafter, it will become a law.

The bill, the brainchild of some civil society groups, was first introduced jointly by a group of legislative activists, but it became stillborn in the federal legislature. However, it was re-introduced in 2004 and last year, the lower house, after due deliberations, passed it. The Senate procrastinated it until last month before passing the Freedom of Information Bill. Nonetheless, we commend the National Assembly for passing, even if belatedly, this all-important piece of legislation.

Broadly, the general objective of the law, when it gets presidential assent, will be to give Nigerians the right to access public records and information. This access, it is hoped, will not only enhance the war on corruption, but also promote accountability. In addition, it will entrench democracy because informed debates will help in sound policy formulation. Similarly, journalists will be better informed to enlighten the public on government’s policies after constructive criticisms. Armchair speculations, we hope, will pave the way for factual reporting.

However, much as it takes a presidential seal to make it a law, it takes a change of attitude for government officials to embrace the new dawn, which the Freedom of Information Law will bring. For several years, government officials have been hiding under all kinds of laws — like the Official Secrets Acts — to deny public access to the most mundane information. This attitude will not change overnight in spite of the three-year maximum jail term that awaits defaulters of the Freedom of Information Law. Officials, going by precedents, are wont to use all manner of subterfuge, like the claim that the officer-in-charge is unavailable, to frustrate the spirit of quick and easy access to information.

Although details of the bill are still sketchy, we hope that the National Assembly envisaged these potential obstacles and took steps to clear them. Significantly, New Nigerian believes that the proposed Freedom of Information Law will not give unfettered access to information that borders on national security. Such information is sensitive and all over the world they are restricted. However, this should not be used as an excuse to brand every innocuous piece of information as secret so as to circumvent the law.

Having said that, the National Assembly Joint Harmonization Committee should expedite action on the final passage of the bill. We are quite optimistic that if the bill comes to President Obasanjo, he will not hesitate to append his signature on it. More so, the proposed Freedom of Information Law will give leverage to his fight against corruption, which is one of the cornerstones of this administration.