The Freedom of Information Act which was signed into law in 2020 gives citizens a chance to track what is going on within government, exposing corruption and mismanagement and power to question development programmes or services from public entities or private ones.
It is also a tool for seeking access to justice, getting to police and seeking reforms while upholding the right to fair trial as well as acceptable levels of violence from security agencies.
However, the myfreedomofinformation campaign launch revealed that many people are either not aware of the law or understand how effective it can be in addressing some of the issues which affect them directly. The fear among ordinary civilians to actually approach entities and quest for relevant information is also a major setback.
Citizens may not be aware of their legal right to information, or, in some cases may be reluctant to assert it, either because of fear of a repressive regime, or a prevailing culture of not questioning authority. In other cases, there are structural barriers to poor people accessing and using information.
Speaking to Identities Media, Zimbabwe Media Commission (ZMC) Secretariat and board member, Linnet Shuro, said more still needs to be done to educate both the public and company entities about the Act so as to promote access to information without fear or favor.
“Writing a letter to seek information is just a start, a lot more is required hence the Freedom of Information Act cannot stand alone. There are other good provisions in the constitution which can work with it”, she said.
“We need to sensitise the public to seek information from relevant bodies on their own volition, many things are happening in the country but citizens are unaware and it is upon us to make them aware. It is up to us to ensure that people have knowledge so that they can be able to demand their rights”.
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