Nigeria: FRANTIC DEMAND FOR PASSAGE OF INFORMATION BILL

NIGERIA MEDIA MONITOR
>
> July 7, 2002.
>
> NUJ FLAYS MEMBERS' HARASSMENT
> ABUJA: SCAVENGERS OR JOURNALISTS?
> FRANTIC DEMAND FOR THE PASSAGE OF INFORMATION
> BILL
>
>
> NUJ FLAYS MEMBERS' HARASSMENT
> The Punch, July 3, 2002
>
> The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Ondo State
> council, on Tuesday, criticised alleged harassment and
> intimidation of its members by government officials.
>
> According to a communique issued at the end of its
> meeting on Tuesday, the NUJ expressed dissatisfaction
> over the harassment of journalists in the cause of
> performing their duties.
>
> The NUJ, however, warned polticians not to undermine
> democracy in the country.
>
> ABUJA: SCAVENGERS OR JOURNALISTS?
> ThisDay July 3, 2002
>
> They are known as the Press Centre Press Corps (PCPC)
> in Abuja. They are aggressive in their approach and
> their only interest is in what they can get at the end
> of the day. You can be sure to find over 60
> journalists at any major events in Abuja, representing
> funny sounding publications you cannot find on
> newstands anywhere in the country.
>
> Some of the names could be too embarrassing to
> mention.
>
> But it is these journalists from these fairy tale
> publications that are the first to arrive venues of
> any event. They get there an hour or two ahead of
> time and they immediately begin to make a list of
> journalists in attendance. They go in search of the
> media personnel of the organisers of the event,
> usually the Chief Press Secretary, a consultant or
> Corporate Affairs Officer, and present to him/her the
> purported list of journalists present.
>
> During the question and answer session, they are the
> first to throw the shots, asking all sorts of question
> no one would expect from a journalist worth his salt.
>
> Their activities are not hidden from the Nigerian
> Union of Journalists (NUJ), Abuja Council, but little
> or nothing has been done to stop them. Talks are that
> the NUJ has refused to act because of their usefulness
> at the union's elections.
>
> A cross session of journalists from reputable media
> organisations insist that the issue of PCPC
> journalists cannot be easily erased since they
> allegedly have the backing of NUJ officials. Even
> though they pretend to be embarrassed by the
> activities of these people (PCPCs).
>
> However, the blame is not only at the door step of the
> NUJ but also press assistants and Chief Press
> Secretaries, who would rather deal with these crop of
> journalists even when they are aware of their
> non-existent media houses.
>
> The practice of journalism in Abuja today is
> disgusting. For the actions of these people, many are
> itching to quite the profession. NUJ must act now.
>
> FRANTIC DEMAND FOR THE PASSAGE OF INFORMATION BILL
> The Guardian, July 1, 2002
>
> Worried by the procrastination the Freedom of (Access
> to) Information Bill (FOIB) has suffered at the lower
> chamber of the National Assembly, stakeholders last
> week in Abuja strategised on how to urgently get the
> bill passed.
>
> But the timetable of the conference was distorted due
> to the recess embarked upon by the House of
> Representatives last Wednesday. Part of the
> activities slated for the conference was a visit to
> the National Assembly members to further sensitise
> them to the significance of passing the bill before
> politicking for re-election commences.
>
> Nonetheless, there was a consensus that members of the
> House of Representatives had a historic responsibility
> to Nigerians by passing the bill within the life span
> of the present administration.
>
> Tagged 'Freedom of Information Coalition Conference,'
> the three-day event was at the instance of the Media
> Rights Agneda (MRA) in collaboration with the
> International Human Rights Law Group.
>
> An overview by Maxwell Kadiri, MRA's legal officer, of
> the advocacy efforts since August 1999 when the bill
> was gazetted, the two reading sessions already
> conducted as well as the public hearing held nine
> months ago on the bill among other activities set the
> right tune for conference deliberation.
>
> Essentially, participants expressed concern over the
> delay, pointing out that this may as well represent
> the indispositiion of lawmakers to the anti-corruption
> campaign embarked upon by the government.
>
> It was observed that less than ten months to the end
> of the four-year tenure of the National Assembly and
> other arms of government, the anti-corruption efforts
> of the government have yieled little fruit.
>
> Part of the reason for this, the participants noted
> has been the inability of the National Assembly to
> pass complementary bills that would make the
> anti-corruption Act effective. These are the Whistle
> Blower and the Freedom of Information Bills.
>
> But to confront the culture of secrecy in public
> service, which participants believed had encouraged
> the deepening of public corruption and lack of
> accountability, government officials particularly the
> lawmakers were admonished to show high level of
> sincerity in their verbal commitment to the
> proposition of open government and accountability.
> This, it was reiterated, was contingent upon the
> passage of the FOI Bill.
>
> TO OUR DEAR READERS:
> 1. Media Monitor is designed as a dialogical project.
> We expect its contents to elicit reactions from its
> readers. And we encourage you to share your feelings
> with others on its pages. Letters not longer than 200
> words and addressed to The Editor, Media Monitor
> should be sent to: [email][email protected]
>
> 2. It is our desire that Media Monitor gets to all
> locations where people believe in the cause of free
> expression, democracy and freedom. We are working to
> extend the reach of the publication. And we implore
> you to support this endeavor. How? Simply compile and
> e-mail to us a list of persons and organizations who
> you believe would find this publication useful for
> their work. We will promptly put them on our mailing
> list.
>
> Our target audience includes media, free
> expression/human rights bodies, NGO's, journalism/mass
> communication/government/political science/Africa
> studies, and other strategic centers.
>
> MEDIA MONITOR IS PUBLISHED WEEKLY AND CIRCULATES
> WORLDWIDE BY INDEPENDENT JOURNALISM CENTRE (IJC), 27
> ACME RD., OGBA, P.O. BOX 7808, IKEJA, LAGOS, NIGERIA,
> WEST AFRICA. PHONE/FAX: 234-1-4924998; E-MAIL [email][email protected]
>
> **The information contained in this autolist item is the sole
responsibility of
> IJC**