Akoto Ampaw cautions gov't against filling RTI Secretariat with party boys

September 29, 2019 6:19 AM

Private legal practitioner, Akoto Ampaw, has cautioned government against filling the Right to Information Secretariat with party loyalists.

Akoto Ampaw

Speaking at a forum organised by the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) and the Right to Information Coalition in Accra last Tuesday, Mr Ampaw appealed directly to the president to appoint people who have the interest of the nation at heart.

He said the first membership of the commission is key since they will ensure the secretariat has proper foundation or not.

He said: "Membership of that commission is key, especially because the first members of the commission will be those who would ensure whether the institution has a proper foundation or not.

"If we have people appointed by the President who are there simply to do the bidding of the President or the party in office, or even worse still people who are there to promote their private or sectarian or their party interest, then we have a huge problem.”

He continued: “Appointment of the first members of the commission should not be based on ‘Job for the boys or girls’. It should be based on a commitment to the long-term interest of this country in building a democratic society.”

Ghana’s parliament passed the RTI bill in March 2019 after about two decades of advocacy for the law.

The RTI Bill was first drafted in 1999, reviewed in 2003, 2005 and 2007 but was only presented to Parliament in 2010 and was not passed by that Parliament that ended on January 6, 2013, and the subsequent one from January 7, 2013, to January 6, 2017.

The bill was however relaid in Parliament in 2018 and was subsequently passed in March 2019.

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo appended his signature to the Right to Information Bill (RTI) to make it a law in May.

However, the bill will start operating in January 2020.

The president said that he was hopeful that the law will enhance good governance.