THERE was a violent confrontation between members of the Right to Information (RTI) Coalition Ghana and policemen at the precincts of Parliament House in Accra yesterday when security personnel prevented the members from entering the forecourt of Parliament to picket in demand for the passage of the bill.
The members of the coalition, numbering about 200 and drawn from various human rights institutions and non-governmental organisations (NGOs), massed up on the road in front of Parliament House carrying placards and demanding entry to the premises of Parliament to picket.
The institutions include the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI), the Human Rights Advocacy Centre (HRAC), the Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII), the Ghana Trades Union Congress (GTUC), the Islamic Council for Development and the Office of the National Chief Imam, with Nana Oye Lithur and Prof Kwame Karikari as leading advocates of the bill.
When the members reached the gate of Parliament wielding their placards, some of which read, “Freedom of Information is the touchstone of all freedoms”, “No information, no life”, “RTI will stimulate social development and enhance good governance”, “RTI must be effective” and “RTI will promote accountability”, security men refused them entry.
The arrival of Nana Lithur, the Executive Director of the HRAC, at the scene revived the spirit of the rest of the members who had by then almost lost hope and, together with Nana Lithur, they attempted to force their way into Parliament House but they faced resistance when the police charged on them by pushing them away.
The police succeeded in sealing off the main gate to the coalition in an attempt to prevent a repeat of the altercation which had resulted in some of the coalition members sustaining injuries in the process.
To the amazement of members of the coalition, some of the security men were heard saying that their refusal to grant the members of the coalition entry was an “order from above”.
The members thus became infuriated and accused the police of infringing on their constitutional rights, since, according to them, Parliament was a public place where the rights of individuals to express themselves within the limits of the law was guaranteed.
Nana Lithur told the Daily Graphic in an interview that the picketing was intended to remind legislators of their promise to pass the RTI Bill and that the four main political parties had put in their 2008 manifestos their commitment to pass the bill if elected.
“The NDC manifesto specifically highlighted on page 24 that a new NDC government shall enact into law the Freedom of Information Bill to facilitate access to official information,” she said, adding that the bill, when passed, was a prerequisite to good governance and the realisation of all other human rights.
She was of the conviction that the bill was the foundation on which to build good governance, transparency and accountability, as well as eliminate corruption, stressing, “It is, therefore, surprising that the RTI Bill, since it was first drafted in 2002, has not been passed into law.”
Nana Lithur said it was one year now since the RTI Bill was mentioned in Parliament but it appeared no commitments had been made to implement it and expressed the resolve of the coalition to make the picketing a monthly affair until the bill was passed.
Earlier, the Majority Leader in Parliament, Mr Cletus Avoka, had communicated with Nana Lithur via telephone, explaining that the posture of the coalition appeared as though it was violently demonstrating against Parliament, hence the refusal of the police to allow its members entry.
The members of the coalition, numbering about 200 and drawn from various human rights institutions and non-governmental organisations (NGOs), massed up on the road in front of Parliament House carrying placards and demanding entry to the premises of Parliament to picket.
The institutions include the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI), the Human Rights Advocacy Centre (HRAC), the Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII), the Ghana Trades Union Congress (GTUC), the Islamic Council for Development and the Office of the National Chief Imam, with Nana Oye Lithur and Prof Kwame Karikari as leading advocates of the bill.
When the members reached the gate of Parliament wielding their placards, some of which read, “Freedom of Information is the touchstone of all freedoms”, “No information, no life”, “RTI will stimulate social development and enhance good governance”, “RTI must be effective” and “RTI will promote accountability”, security men refused them entry.
The arrival of Nana Lithur, the Executive Director of the HRAC, at the scene revived the spirit of the rest of the members who had by then almost lost hope and, together with Nana Lithur, they attempted to force their way into Parliament House but they faced resistance when the police charged on them by pushing them away.
The police succeeded in sealing off the main gate to the coalition in an attempt to prevent a repeat of the altercation which had resulted in some of the coalition members sustaining injuries in the process.
To the amazement of members of the coalition, some of the security men were heard saying that their refusal to grant the members of the coalition entry was an “order from above”.
The members thus became infuriated and accused the police of infringing on their constitutional rights, since, according to them, Parliament was a public place where the rights of individuals to express themselves within the limits of the law was guaranteed.
Nana Lithur told the Daily Graphic in an interview that the picketing was intended to remind legislators of their promise to pass the RTI Bill and that the four main political parties had put in their 2008 manifestos their commitment to pass the bill if elected.
“The NDC manifesto specifically highlighted on page 24 that a new NDC government shall enact into law the Freedom of Information Bill to facilitate access to official information,” she said, adding that the bill, when passed, was a prerequisite to good governance and the realisation of all other human rights.
She was of the conviction that the bill was the foundation on which to build good governance, transparency and accountability, as well as eliminate corruption, stressing, “It is, therefore, surprising that the RTI Bill, since it was first drafted in 2002, has not been passed into law.”
Nana Lithur said it was one year now since the RTI Bill was mentioned in Parliament but it appeared no commitments had been made to implement it and expressed the resolve of the coalition to make the picketing a monthly affair until the bill was passed.
Earlier, the Majority Leader in Parliament, Mr Cletus Avoka, had communicated with Nana Lithur via telephone, explaining that the posture of the coalition appeared as though it was violently demonstrating against Parliament, hence the refusal of the police to allow its members entry.
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