A leading activist for freedom of information in Zambia has said he remains optimistic that the Patriotic Front (PF) Government will propose a promised FOI bill.
Media Institute of Southern Africa (Zambia) Chapter acting chairperson Nalumino Nalumino made his comment in an interview Oct. 26 with the Times of Zambia. Nalumino was speaking during the launch of the State of Media in Zambia Report for the third quarter of the year.
“We are happy that the Minister of Information apologised during the opening of this session in Parliament that it was unable to table the Bill,” he was quoted as saying. “Besides there are a lot of issues such as the Budget to be debated and it will be illogical to demand that the Bill be tabled,” he said. Promised media law reforms also have not materialized.
Looking forward, Nalumino said, “If the minister gives another excuse to table the Bill which is being referred to as the Access to Information Bill, then we will have every reason to react.”
The Zambia government on June 25 postponed a planned June 26 unveiling of a bill, according to media reports and emails to FreedomInfo.org. (See previous FreedomInfo.org report.)
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