The Road to Freedom of Information is long and
Rocky
Abdul R Thomas
Editor - The Sierra Leone Telegraph
10 March 2010
The idea that citizens have a right to know what
their elected government and their departments are
up to is one that many overzealous and unscrupulous
officials in government sometimes find unsettling.
They would do whatever it takes to prevent people
from exercising what the rest of society would say,
is a fundamental human right.
But the irony, very often, is that it is the
politicians in opposition desperate to gain power
that would strongly champion the cause of citizens’
rights, pointing out the excesses of the party in
power, until they too take control of the corridors
of government. Promises of good governance made
while in opposition, are no longer worth the paper
on which they were written.
President Koroma’s ascendancy to power was staged on
massive popular campaign rhetoric, designed to bring
good governance to Sierra Leone, through an open
form of government that is fully transparent,
accountable and liberal. He promised free access to
government information and the enactment of
legislation guaranteeing the right of citizens to
see and probe government’s decisions and actions.
After almost three years in power, access to
government information is as restricted, if not
tighter than it ever was, as ministers and heads of
departments work frantically to cover their tracks,
rather than showcase their achievements for all to
see.
No one argues that freedom does not come with
responsibilities. The ever present risk of the
possible misuse of government information by the
media and citizens must not be accepted as
justification for withholding free access; except
where it is judged that to reveal information would
lead to the miscarriage of justice or threat to
state security.
With media frenzy, claims and counterclaims of
corruption, graft and gerrymandering spreading like
wild fire, the government could do itself a great
favour by opening up access to the truth for all to
see. A Freedom of Information Bill could be in the
statute books in time for the celebrations of
independence, on 27 April 2010.
Despite persistent demands from civil society groups
and the media for the speeding up of the process
leading to the Parliamentary approval of a draft
Freedom of Information Act, the wheels of State
House continue to turn painfully slow – almost
grinding to a halt some would say.
This slow pace of expediting the process has nothing
to do with bureaucracy, but a sheer determination to
deny citizens and the media, the right to scrutinize
the decisions of government, thus making it
extremely difficult to hold state officials
accountable.
What is really surprising is that neither Tony Blair’s
Africa Governance Initiative nor the international
aid donors have made the enactment of a Freedom of
Information Bill, a condition for the continuation
of support. Are they really serious about good
governance?
But perhaps with a stronger, vibrant and dynamic
parliamentary democracy, the desperate cry for a
Freedom of Information Act would not have been as
loud as it is today. The government of President
Koroma is enjoying an overwhelming majority in
Parliament, thanks to the marriage of convenience
entered into with the opposition Peoples Democratic
Party (PMDC), at the 2007 general elections.
It was on the 15 January 2009, that Sierra Leone’s
Society for Democratic Initiatives, a civil society
advocacy group leading the campaign for freedom of
information, presented the draft copy of the Freedom
of Information Bill to President Koroma. Fourteen
months on, the proposed Bill is yet to see the light
of day, with growing suspicion of government
intention to kill or dilute the draft Bill.
Optimists had believed that the draft Bill would have
received Parliamentary approval and found its way
into the country’s law books, by January 2010. But
it is now obvious their confidence was misplaced and
premature. Promises by the government to be
transparent and open, have all been broken, leaving
behind a long paper trail of excuses and cover ups.
Speaking at the recent Media Awards Ceremony in
Freetown, organised by the Independent Media
Commission, the Minister of Information and
Communications said that, the Freedom of Information
Bill will soon be discussed in Cabinet and that SLAJ
would be co-opted into the cabinet sub-committee to
discuss the draft Bill.
This latest twist would not only come as a shock to
the civil society movement, but will most certainly
be regarded as an attempt to establish a divide and
rule approach to placating those with the capacity
to shout loudest. Will the Society for Democratic
Initiatives and other voluntary civil society
groups, also be co-opted into the cabinet committee?
It would appear to anyone listening to the minster’s
speech at the media ceremony, linking the promise of
government land and payment of overdue subvention to
SLAJ, with the request for SLAJ to join the cabinet
committee that will approve the draft Bill, as a
blatant attempt to bribe and win the support of
SLAJ.
SLAJ must avoid being seen as selling out on such a
noble cause as the fight for an effective
legislation that will guarantee citizens, free
access to government information.
It may also be recalled that in January 2009, at the
handing over of the draft Bill by the civil society
groups, Umaru Fofana did appeal to the President to
look at the possibility of providing them with land,
which was one of President Koroma’s campaign
promises in 2007 - to relocate the SLAJ secretariat
from its present unsuitable offices.
While there is nothing wrong with the President’s
offer of government land to any of its social
partners, however, care must be taken to avoid
conflict of interest and suspicion of bribery.
In receiving the draft Freedom of Information Bill on
the 15 January 2009, President Koroma said that, “as
a government and a party, we are committed to
enacting the Freedom of Information Bill into Law,
as we have always remained committed to the concept
of Freedom of Information”. Is the President now
prepared to back up his words with real action after
fourteen months of dithering?
The President said also that; “just as we promised to
give strength to the ACC Act when we were in
opposition, we have done that, and we will also
enact the Freedom of Information Bill into law.” But
when - Mr. President?
If the government was hoping that by launching and
taking its ‘Open Government initiative’ to various
parts of the country, with regular live radio
broadcasts, it would weaken civil society’s demand
for a Freedom of Information Bill, it was mistaken.
While government propaganda road shows have their
place in the country’s fledgling democratic
experiment, no one should deny the importance of
empowering citizens, by opening up the corridors and
filing cabinets of government departments to free
public access.
Such access should also make it unnecessary for
citizens constantly having to grease the palms of
crooked officials, each time they want to interact
with government services, which very often depends
on the size of their wallet.
The Freedom of Information Bill must make provision
for the establishment of an Information
Commissioner's Office (ICO) that will administer and
regulate the provisions of the Act. It should be an
independent body responsible directly to Parliament.
The role of the Information Commissioner should
include; dealing judiciously with all applications
for information access; upholding of information
rights in the public interest; promoting openness
across all government ministries, departments and
agencies; and the protection of data privacy for
ordinary citizens.
The demand for free access to government information,
transparency, probity and openness is growing
louder. A government that prides itself on its
democratic values has nothing to fear, by granting
citizens the right to access government information.
This surely, is the kind of freedom and independence
that the people of Sierra Leone prayed for when they
gained their independence on 27 April 1961. Will
President Koroma be unveiling the Freedom of
Information Act, on the day of Sierra Leone’s 49th
Independence celebrations?
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