By Yero S. Bah
The crusade to have a law that guarantees the right to “Access to Information” in the Gambia is gathering momentum as the coalition of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) continues the sensitization and advocacy regarding the draft Bill that is already before the lawmakers of the nation’s legislative Assembly in Banjul.
At a forum held on Thursday, November 26th, 2020 at Baobab Holiday Resort, Bijilo, the Secretary General (SG) of the umbrella grouping of Gambian journalists called Gambia Press Union (GPU), Mr. Saikou Jammeh, recalled that, the march to have a law on the right to access to information started four years ago. He acknowledged the significant role civil society organizations are playing, saying the whole process was handed over to Tango Office, and umbrella CSOs body did a fantastic job in coordinating the entire campaign.
“The bill of access to information is before parliament; they have gone half way,” SG Jammeh stated.
According to him, all the previous constitutions of The Gambia never actually recognized the right to access to information, saying quality decisions of people on economy, political and social lives largely depend on the quality of information they received from their government.
Chairman of TANGO, Mr. John Charles Njie, said the forum on access to information is very key and dear to his office, as he informed the audience that the entire initiative started with the GPU. He, therefore, expressed sincere gratitude to the Press Union for the foresightedness, avowing that this is the first-ever Bill, to be initiated by the CSO community in the Gambia. He believes they would make history if the said bill happens to pass into law in the country.
Njie said Gambians need to acknowledge each other’s efforts as it’s one way that they could progress rapidly, as he equally thanked the government of the Gambia for the cooperation and efforts that it has demonstrated in support of this bill since its inception.
“From initiation to drafting and tabling it before parliament, [it] just took us six months. We have made progress compared to other countries where it took them years,” remarked Chairman Njie.
Stepping in for the UNDP Country Representative Madam Aissata De, a UNDP official Mr. Almameh Camara, told the forum that, the Peacebuilding Fund is meant to strengthen the capacity of CSOs in the country to promote accountability, noting the importance of the bill “cannot be overemphasized”.
Camara, however, called for clear-cut measures that would protect whistleblowers or deal with intimidation of whistleblowers from the authorities, since the end goal of the law is to enhance public scrutiny and transparency.
The UNDP official disclosed, “The bill has been evaluated by internationally-recognized bodies and they all certified that it has met international standards in all respects.”
Also speaking was the British High Commissioner to The Gambia, H.E. David Belgrove, who informed his audience the United Kingdom (UK) passed its right to Access to Information Law in the year 2000 under the leadership of the former British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
The UK chief diplomat to Banjul charged that everyone has the right to access information or seek for public information. He further intimated that transparency is a fundamental human right that guarantees free people to access public information, thus making the bill all-important.
Meanwhile, on the fringes of the forum, the Gambia Press Union signed a 1.3 million dalasi financial support from the British High Commission to further support the campaign for the bill as well as strengthen the capacity of Gambian journalists, who will in turn, raise awareness on the bill.
