NASS Radio, TV stations coming

The National Assembly will soon launch radio and television stations dedicated to projecting the image of the legislature.
This was disclosed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, in Abuja.
He spoke at the Assembly Complex while receiving the head of the African Commission on Human and People’s Right, Mrs. Tlakula Pansy, and the Director-General of the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (NIALS), Prof Adedeji Adekunle.
He also lamented that Nigerians have not been able to utilise the Freedom of Information Act since it was passed into law four years ago.
On the radio and television stations, Dogara said the establishment was necessary “because public media has become too restricted and expensive for the parliament”.
The Speaker regretted that four years since the FOI was enacted, Nigerians were yet to apply it to push for open governance.
Dogara maintained that the responsibility of creating awareness on laws passed by the parliament lies with governments, civil societies and citizens alike.
The Speaker decried the fact that Nigerians are not fully engaged to studying their laws and called for advocacy so people can know and then be able to enforce their rights.
He reiterated the commitment of the 8th Assembly to openness in governance as part of social contract between the government and the governed.
The Speaker promised that the House Committee on Human Rights will work closely with such bodies to ensure that all areas not covered in the existing laws are addressed.
However, Dogara argued that while Nigeria was addressing the concern by the international community on the human rights of those caught in conflict in the North-East, the right to life should not be sacrificed on the altar of human rights.
“In democracy, even freedom has to be constrained to ensure they do not hinder the freedom of others,” he stated.
Mrs. Pansy said they visited the Speaker to further push for the freedom of expression and rights of human beings the world over.
She said there was jubilation when Nigeria adopted the Freedom of Information Act and hopes the implementation of the Act doesn’t pose a daunting challenge.
“There has to be a paradigm shift from the culture of secrecy in governance to one of truth and openness because it is the public trust and information held by the government for the people as well as to ensure that public Institutions comply with the FOI,” she said.
According to her, there was the need to embark on advocacy for the repeal of some laws inherited from the colonialists as they do not conform to the African charter for the benefit of the people of the continent.