MOSES VARFEE KOWO
Source: FrontPage Africa
Monrovia -
Members of the House of Representatives have voted to pass the Freedom of Information Act that has been before that body for the past two years.
House decision followed the submission of a report by its committee on Information and Broadcasting calling on the full plenary of the House of Representative to give a yes vote on the Freedom of Information Act.
The Act is now on its way to the Liberian Senate for concurrence intends to provide journalists ample opportunity to press for greater access to information from public official that are tied to the interest of the general public.
Members of the press have persistently complained that access to information in Liberia is grossly limited as government officials deliberately hide information from the media that are mostly needed for the survival of the country.
Eyes are now turning to the Liberian Senate to see whether it will act on the decision from its colleagues in the House of Representatives.
Press Union of Liberia President Peter Quaqua in a statement to mark the passage of the Act in the House of Representatives said the journalists parent body received the news of the passage of the Freedom of Information Act with excitement and relief.
Quaqua continued his post Freedom of Information Passage statement by saying: “the union is humbled by the overwhelming vote taken on Thursday by Representatives to enact a law that will enhance greater openness and awareness in Liberia.”
“While congratulating the House and the Liberian People for this achievement, the union says the passage of the bill on the eve of the country’s Independence Day July 26, symbolizes to the true independence and freedom of the Liberian nation state.”
In a brief statement after the passage of the Act, the Head of the Media Law Policy Working Group, Malcolm Joseph said the process is not over, but said the passage in the House represented a milestone in getting the entire Freedom of Information process implemented in Liberia.
Joseph said he was not disappointed that the Act stay two years in the Legislature because according to him, other countries too have had difficult times in passing the act citing the Nigerian example in which the act rested in the Nigerian Legislature for ten years.
