NUJ Commends Jonathan for Signing FOI Bill Into Law

FOROYAA Newspaper (Serrekunda)

1 June 2011

The NUJ commends President Goodluck Jonathan for signing into law, the Freedom of Information Bill on Saturday, May 28, 2011, in Abuja. We appreciate this development which clearly shows that the President is not only a man of his words, but also a focused leader who has a vision for this country.

The struggle for this law which spanned the greater part of a decade, will certainly give adequate attention to openness in governance, remove unnecessary bureaucracy and encourage fight against corruption.

The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) therefore extends its appreciation to the outgoing National Assembly members, Civil Society groups, clerics, labour leaders, UNESCO and all those whose relentless efforts made the passage of the bill and its signing into law a reality.

We urge all journalists to note that this freedom goes with responsibility and therefore in the exercise of this freedom, adequate attention and strict adherence to the Ethics of the profession must be observed. This is the only way the media can earn the confidence of the people.

The journey to have the law began in 1993 when three organizations, Media Rights Agenda (MRA) Civil Liberties Organization (CLO) and the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) started a campaign for the enactment of a Freedom of Information Act, and in 1994, the group released the Draft of the bill entitled “Draft Access to Public Records and Official Information Bill”.

In 1999 the FOI bill was presented to select members of the House of Representatives for sponsorship in the National Assembly while on August 25, 1999 the first draft of the bill reached both chambers of the National Assembly.

There were public hearings on the FOI Bill in the House of Representatives while on August 25 2004 the Bill was passed into law by the House after five years of foot-dragging while the Senate followed suit in November 2006.

The then conference committee of the last National Assembly hormonised the bill on February 14, 2007, sent the bill to the then President Olusegun Obasanjo for assent in March 2007, but the then President declined assent to the Bill on April 27, 2007.

On April 28, 2008, the FOI Bill was again re-introduced to the House of Representatives, which threw it out and on August 11, 2010, then Minister of State for Information and Communications Mr. Labaran Maku with other stakeholders began a subtle appeal to the National Assembly to have a positive rethink on the bill.

Senate President David Mark on December 8, 2010 gave his words that the National Assembly would pass the Bill after certain modifications, subsequently the House passed the Bill on February 24, 2011. The Senate followed suit in March 2011 while in May the harmonized bill was passed by both chambers.

Shu’aibu Usman Leman National Secretary

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