Ghana’s cabinet has approved a right to information bill and sent it to parliament, where previous bills supported by several former presidents have died in recent years.
President John Mahama has said he will sign a bill and a top minister said the president “places a premium on the expeditious passage of the bill.”
The Cabinet action on June 6 was welcomed by RTI supporters, according to media accounts. If the bill is the same one that has been pending for the past several years, activists believe it needs a lot of improvement.
Minister of Information and Media Relations Mahama Ayariga told reporters, “The president places a premium on the expeditious passage of the bill. He will give his assent to it immediately the bill is passed by parliament. We urge parliament to give priority to this piece of legislation.”
The Coalition on the Right to Information on May 24 urged the president to advance the bill. The Coalition letter concluded, “We are also hoping that since the majority of Parliamentarians belong to your party, the National Democratic Congress, you would use your influence to expedite the necessary amendments/revisions to ensure that the Bill meets international best practices and standards and its speedy passage.”
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