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MRA inducts BPE into FoI ‘hall of shame’

By Silver Nwokoro
04 December 2017   |   12:59 am
Media Rights Agenda (MRA) has inducted the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) into its Freedom of Information (FOI) Hall of Shame. It cited BPE’s violation of various provisions of the FoI Act, 2011, including its failure....

Media Rights Agenda (MRA) has inducted the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) into its Freedom of Information (FOI) Hall of Shame.
It cited BPE’s violation of various provisions of the FoI Act, 2011, including its failure to submit annual report of its implementation of the Act to the Attorney General of the Federation in the last six years.
  
In a statement by it programme officer, John Gbadamosi, it said although the BPE published its responsibilities and details of the programmes and functions on it website, it failed to publish 15 other information required to proactively disclosed by section 2(3) (b-f) of the FOI Act.
  
He said there was no indication whatsoever that the Bureau provided the appropriate training for its officials on the right of access to information or records by Nigerians.

Gbadamosi also doubted if the Bureau trained its officials to effectively implement the Act, as it was required to do in section 13 of the FoI Act.

He further added that the Bureau has consistently failed to proactively disclose information on its receipts or expenditure of public or other funds, as stated in section 2 (3) (d) (v) of the Act.
   
He noted that BPE also failed to disclose other records under its control in sufficient detail to facilitate the exercise of the right to information under the Act, as well as the manuals used by its employees in carrying out any of its programmes in accordance with section 2(3) (b) of the FOI Act.

“One of the functions of the Bureau, as stated by section 13(i) of the Public Enterprises (Privatisation and Commercialisation) Act, is to ensure the success of the privatisation exercise taking into account the need for balance and participation by Nigerians and foreigners in accordance with relevant laws of the country,” he added.

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