Comrade Michael Ikeogwu, the Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Delta State Council, has advocated the need for full implementation of the Freedom of Information (FoI) Act, passed into law since 2011 to strengthen responsive and accountable governance in the country.
Comrade Ikeogwu made the call when he granted audience to the Acting Director of the National Orientation Agency (NOA) in the state, Mr. Chris Anyabuine, at the temporary Press Centre of the NUJ in Asaba, said that the principle behind the act was laudable .
He lamented that its implementation had thrown some doubt on the sincerity of those who were to make information available for the benefit of the public, adding that the high level of insecurity in the country today could be traceable to lack of strategic information.
He explained that full implementation of the act would afford journalists the access to requisite information to educate the public on the policy thrust of government at all levels in the country, adding that it runs against the grains of proper reasoning for government at the federal level to be claiming to support free access to information while also appearing to gag the citizenry from speaking up their minds on issues bordering on good governance.
