This paper examines the freedom of information act 2011and concludes that if enforced, transparency and accountability in governance can be. In order to attain a measure of conceptual clarity. International foi laws national freedom of information. Freedom of information act 2011 laws of the federation of nigeria arrangement of sections 1. And the need for a freedom of information act is so obvious that governments and international bodies to which nigeria is signatory, like the commonwealth. It also took the bill three journeys to the national assembly. Nigeria and move it towards the part of economic and social transformation. The main objective of the law is to ensure that every person who desires to know how government operates can do so with minimum effort and diligence. The freedom of information foi act is an important piece of legislation which has been passed in many countries to promote transparency in the governments administrative process. Extension of time limit for granting or refusing application 7. Freedom of information act, 2011 arrangement of sections section. Ascertain the journalists perception of the strengths of the act in journalism practice. Virtually all government information in nigeria is classified as top secret.
Historically, the freedom of information bill in nigeria could be traced back to 1993 during the regime of general sani abacha in which transparent government was not the order of the day. Pdf freedom of information in nigeria chukwudi ezeukwu. Freedom of information act foia the freedom of information act is a legal extension of the constitutional provisions on freedom of expression designed partly to give practical expression to that provision. Evaluative study of the freedom of information act on. Edetaen ojo, executive director of media rights agenda, gave an extensive interview to the independent with emma maduabuchi, assistant features editor. Freedom of information act in the philippines soapboxie. How to make a freedom of information request in nigeria. Information without authorization and establish procedures for the achievement of those purposes and related purposes thereof, 2011 commencement be it enacted by the national assembly of the federal republic of nigeria as follows 1. Jun 07, 2018 the freedom of information foi act is an important piece of legislation which has been passed in many countries to promote transparency in the governments administrative process.
Introduction the long awaited freedom of information bill has gained approval by the national assembly and assented by mr. The twoday national conference on the theme freedom of information act 2011 and the fight against corruption and corporate fraud in governance, organized at abuja, was the institutes way of lending its voice to the federal governments fight against corruption and corporate fraud using the foi act as a point of reference. Pdf an appraisal of the freedom of information act foia. At last, jonathan signs foi bill into law vanguard news. Analysis of nigeria freedom of information act on records. I notwithstanding anything contained in any other act, law or regulation, the. Accordingly, the right of access of official information, which the bill grants will be legally enforceable. Press release the signing by nigerias president goodluck jonathan of a freedom of information foi law is a victory for democracy, transparency. Jun 01, 2011 a deputy director of information in the office of the special adviser, mr. Freedom of information or information freedom also refers to the protection of the right to freedom of expression with regard to the internet and information technology. Aug 15, 2016 the digital rights and freedom bill is a very timely intervention in nigerias digital economy and represents a bridge to nigerias prosperous digital future. Duterte signs order on freedom of information 4th update president rodrigo duterte signs an executive order mandating full public disclosure of all offices under the executive branch. Concluded that the freedom of information act has made records or.
The government of the time considered such a bill dangerous for a number of. So far, only few states in nigeria have adopted the freedom of information act at state level. Freedom of information bill 2012 article 19 free word centre, 60 farringdon rd, london ec1r 3ga. If you refuse, i will charge you to court for violating my rights. The nigerian house of representatives and senate both passed a freedom of information bill foib in august 2004 and november 2006 respectively. Aug 01, 2012 for a country like nigeria that had witnessed decades of military rule where press freedom was restricted, it came as a relief when the freedom of information bill was signed into law. Freedom of information bill passed by the national assembly, one of his major excuses was that it would undermine nigerias national security, especially in the light of the fact that a decision by the head of a public institution to deny access to information would be subject to.
The digital rights and freedom bill is a very timely intervention in nigerias digital economy and represents a bridge to nigerias prosperous digital future. Summary of kazakhstans constitutional guarntees of freedom of information extracted from the constitution. The freedom of information act 2011 foi what it means. The freedom of information amendment bill was a private members bill introduced to the house of commons of the united kingdom in 2007 which failed to become law after a sponsor for the bill could not be found in the house of lords. A deputy director of information in the office of the special adviser, mr. Edetaen ojo, head media rights agenda mra, a young organization for the defense of free expression rights, civil liberties organization clo, and the. Request the applicant to complete the form or assist. This was because the bill empowers nigerians to ask critical questions and demand critical documents or information.
Freedom of information act applicable to all state in nigeria, appeal court rules nigerian states have no powers to reject requests filed under the freedom of information act foi, the court of. It was organized by the freedom of information coalition, in collaboration with the national human rights commission nhrc, the independent corrupt practices and other related offences. I want you to include the home addresses, phone numbers and bank account numbers of all the public office holders in your possession. A twoday national summit on the freedom of information bill was held at the valencia hotel, abuja on tuesday, august 2 and wednesday, august 3, 2005. Nigeria foi was enacted in 2011, foi is an act to make public records and information more freely available, provide for public access to public records and information, protect public records and information to the extent consistent with the public interest and the protection of personal privacy, protect serving public officers from adverse consequences of disclosing certain kinds of official information without authorization and establish procedures for the achievement of those purposes.
Progress, implementation challenges and prospects funmilola olubunmi omotayo africa regional centre for information science, university of ibadan, ibadan, nigeria. The freedom of information act was designed to ensure quality of access to and participation in government. The person requesting the information does not need to show any specific interest in the information or justify hisher reasons for making the request. Challenges that are confronting the implementation of the act are. Nigeriaworld feature article freedom of information bill.
Index termsfreedom, information, records, office security management. The freedom of information office, in discharging its duties, shall, at all times, collaborate with legal services department and other business units in addressing requests and ensure that the laid down procedures are followed at all times as indicated below. Freedom of information bill frequently asked questions subject to the provisions of this act but notwithstanding anything contained in any other act, law or regulation, every citizen of the federal republic of nigeria, has a legally enforceable right to, and shall, on application be given access to any record under the control of a. A consolidation process largely expected as a formality to finalise the. This study appraises the freedom of information act in nigeria. The freedom of information act provides that individuals have a right to request any recorded information held by a public authority.
The government of the united kingdom has theorised it as being an extension of freedom of speech, and a fundamental human right. Freedom of information bill in nigeria for over eight years, the protagonists of the freedom of information bill have been toiling to get it passed at the national assembly. Oct 12, 2011 the twoday national conference on the theme freedom of information act 2011 and the fight against corruption and corporate fraud in governance, organized at abuja, was the institutes way of lending its voice to the federal governments fight against corruption and corporate fraud using the foi act as a point of reference. It took well over ten years to pass the freedom of information bill into law in nigeria. Prospects and challenges preye kuro inokoba department of political science niger delta university, p.
Right to freedom of expression the right to freedom of expression is guaranteed and protected in section 39 of the 1999 constitution of nigeria in the following terms. Going by the foi act, i am entitled to the information and i demand it as my right. Malgwi2, bulama kagu3 and ibrahim danjuma4 1 department of business management, university of maiduguri nigeria 2 bursary department, university of maiduguri, 3department of education, university of maiduguri, 4faculty of. N 4 nnamdi azikiwe library university of nigeria nsukka. Nigeria freedom of information act 2011 and its implication for records and office security management ayuba a. This bill may be cited as the freedom of information bill, 2011. The right to know and the implementation of freedom of. Every person shall be entitled to freedom of expression, including freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart ideas and information without interference. Freedom of information act and democratic consolidation in nigeria.
Determine the level of awareness of the provisions of the freedom of information act among journalists in nigeria 2. Abstract freedom of information foi refers to the right which citizens in a society are expected to have. The nigerian freedom of information bill was along awaited bill which was finally signed into law. The freedom of information foi act signed into law on may 28, 2011 is an act that gives every nigerian a legal right of access to information, records, and documents held by government bodies and private bodies carrying out public functions. Abstract freedom of information foi refers to the right which citizens in a society are expected to have to access information held by government institutions and officials. With the coming into force of the act, every person now has a legal right of. Freedom of information bill frequently asked questions subject to the provisions of this act but notwithstanding anything contained in any other act, law or regulation, every citizen of the. Enacted by the national assembly of the federal republic of nigeria 1.
Freedom of information may also concern censorship in an information technology context, i. Freedom of information is freedom of a person or people to publish and consume information. The researcher consulted secondary sources such as books, journals, and magazines for the collection of data. The question still is how free is the freedom of information act 2011 and what are its. It also mandates organizations to preserve its information in such manner that will enhance access to it. The freedom of information foi act signed into law on may 28, 2011 is an act that gives every nigerian a legal right of access to information, records, and documents held by government. Progress, implementation challenges and prospects article pdf available in library philosophy and practice 20151 january 2015 with 554 reads. It is related to freedom of expression, which can apply to any medium, be it oral, writing, print, electronic, or.
Extension oftime limit for granting or refusing application. Freedom of information act applicable to all state in nigeria. Apr, 2018 freedom of information act applicable to all state in nigeria, appeal court rules nigerian states have no powers to reject requests filed under the freedom of information act foi, the court of. It is an act for accessing public information to service the peoples right to know. Freedom of information act and democratic consolidation in. The expressions, freedom of information, right to information or right to know are mostly used interchangeably to mean the right of individuals to access information held by public institutions and in certain specific cases information held by private institution performing public functions or where such information is required for the enforcement of a fundamental right. A human rights court ordered the government here on wednesday to. The freedom of information bill that finally emerged in nigeria is one of the best in the world, according to a key figure in the successful campaign for a foi law in nigeria. A landmark ruling secured by a citizens coalition could pave way for the passage of the right to information roi law in ghana.
Against this backdrop, the need for a nigeria freedom of information act foia had been emphasized by many media scholars. Nigeria freedom of information act 2011 and its implication. Freedom of information act, 2011 explanatory memorandum this act makes public records and information more freely available, provide for. It also mandates organizations to preserve its information in such manner that will. Analysis of nigeria freedom of information act on records and. Challenges that are confronting the implementation of the. The nigerian freedom of information bill was along awaited bill which was finally signed. With this act, citizens are empowered to make a formal request to get information which is held by the government, barring certain sensitive and important data. Tony anyanwu and nduka irabor for the first time and abike dabiri for the second time ojebode, 2011. Justus abuah, in a statement, in abuja, yesterday, said, president jonathan has signed the freedom of information bill. The bill is to ensure free flow of information and to protect public officers for giving out information in their possession. Governmental organs, social associations, officials, and mass media are obligated to provide every citizen with the opportunity to become acquainted with documents, decisions, and sources of information affecting her or his rights.
The bill was presented to the national assembly two times by journalists. The bill was presented initially in 1999 when the return to democratic governance heightened the expectation that there will be increased disposition towards freer. Department of mass communication delta state university, abraka, nigeria abstract this paper takes another look at the state of press freedom in nigeria, given fifteen years of uninterrupted democracy in the country. For the enactment of new tcpdf encoding freedom of information act. The paper revealed the genesis of freedom of information foi bill in nigeria and the organizations instrumental to its enactment.