Senator blames Nigerian media for delay of FOI bill

By Eromo Egbejule,

WorldNewsVine, Nigeria

The chairman, Committee on Appropriation in the Nigerian Senate, Iyiola Omisore, has blamed journalists for the delay of the passage of the Freedom of Information bill.

The senator and former Osun State deputy governor, who featured at the guest forum of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), Oyo State council, on Monday, noted that supporters of the bill were not ready to agree with the responsibilities that go with free access to information.

According to him, the nation’s legislative arm could not pass the bill after several months of its proposal because media leaders were not ready to allow inclusion of clauses for penalties for publishing inaccurate information and falsehood.

He said:

“We want freedom of information. To every freedom, there must be responsibility. What we attached to it (FoI Bill) you people do not want to take it. We invited the NUJ people to come and speak with us that if you do this, this is your penalty.

“You are free to write anything, but if you write what is not true, you go to jail. I was in detention for three years for the lies published by Tempo magazine against me. And immediately I was arrested, they folded up,” he said.

Posted by Egbejule Eromo on September 1, 2010. Filed under Africa Regional News,Headline News - Africa,Human Interest - Africa,International Criminal Justice,International News,International Politics,News - Africa,Nigeria,Politics - Africa,WorldNewsVine. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.