Bame Piet
18 July 2008
Gaborone North Member of Parliament (MP) Keletso Rakhudu says he intends to table a motion requesting government to establish the Freedom of Information Act during the forthcoming parliamentary session due to start in the next two weeks.
Rakhudu said his recent experiences when he was an election observer in Zimbabwe, where the government has banned the private and international press, would also assist his presentation. In an interview with Mmegi yesterday, Rakhudu said that it is difficult for them as MPs to get information from government because the state regards all information as classified. He cited a recent incident in his constituency when he was asking for the number of destitute persons so that he could donate some blankets to them.
"The response I got from social workers was that they needed to get permission from their seniors before sharing it with me," he said. That shocked him. He said that in the absence of appropriate legislation, government can withhold information from MPs, the Press and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) when it feels that such information can disadvantage it. "With the Freedom of Information Act in place, one just needs to register with the information bureau what kind of information he/she is looking for. You don't need to explain what you need that information for, and in addition, government will be obliged to release it," he said. The MP is of the view that the advantages that will come with the Act include reduction in bureaucracy and increase transparency that Botswana aspires to attain under Vision 2016.
During the four-week session, government plans to bring 10 new bills, among them the Media Practitioners' Bill. Although he was yet to study the Bill, Rakhudu is of the feeling that such measures normally hinder freedom of expression and encourage secrecy.
Others are the University of Botswana Bill, Civil Aviation Bill, and two bills on the Sir Seretse Khama International Airport Upgrading and Expansion Project. Through the SSKI Bills, the House will debate loans from the OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID) (Loan Ratification). Another loan ratification bill on SSKI from the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA) will be debated.
During the meeting it is expected to feature the 22 motions that were to be tabled during the Budget session. MPs have already noticed 25 questions and majority of them are from the previous meeting. Among the possible changes are that MPs might find themselves sitting in the House even on Friday afternoons, which was halted over five years ago. The halt has resulted in some MPs failing to form a quorum in the House on Friday mornings.
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