DEAR EDITOR – Recently the Prime Minister reportedly boasted in the media about the hard work done by his government especially the number of laws they have passed to date.
No doubt, compared to other governments in the past, the CNURA regime has certainly worked really hard. If credit ought to be given, then PM Sikua and team deserve some credit.
Apart from all the laws that this present government has enacted, I dare them to pass an Official Information Act (OIA).
An OIA could possibly achieve two things. Firstly, it would contribute towards transparency within a government that is premised upon democratic principles and committed to democratic rule.
Secondly, it could be a catalyst for good governance.
By and large having an OIA would contribute greatly to the development of our fledgling democracy.
If we have an OIA, our people could access official government records from time to time.
Upon accessing such records, our people will be able to see and know who made what decisions, when, why and how such decisions are made.
Obviously an OIA will not ensue a free-for-all. There will still be certain restrictions to enable the smooth operation of government balanced with public interest considerations.
In terms of decisions made by MPs, an OIA could enable our people to access official records then rationalize the wisdom or folly of their MPs’ decisions.
Our people could also see for themselves whether their MPs actively participated in the decision making process on vital issues or simply sleep for the 4 years they are in office.
Thereupon, people would be able to consider and decide for themselves the competency of their MPs and whether they deserve to continually hold elected office on their behalf.
We cannot simply assume that every decision made by government or public officials from time to time is for our good or the good of our country.
Government officials are human just like the rest of us. They are prone to error, bias, inducements and mistake.
Sometimes a decision made by a government body may be contrary to the public interest.
A good example of this is the controversial decision last year of the Parliamentary Entitlements Committee to award exorbitant entitlements to the MPs.
Since Independence in 1978, it appeared that this country has been governed in secret. Successive governments have run this country just like the criminal underworld or Mafioso.
Apart from Parliament which produces Hansard records of its meetings, over the years vital decisions on how national resources are distributed or decisions affecting the lives of our people have been made under the cloak of secrecy.
Records of official government meetings or decisions are normally kept confidential or accorded the label “classified top secret.”
Over the years we have read media reports about huge amounts of public funds that have been squandered on ghost projects.
Yet we have not been able to find out about those officials who made the initial decisions to squander those public funds nor the beneficiaries of the funds.
Regrettably we have not been able to know whether or not those responsible for such squander have been brought to account.
In recent times we have heard about the MPs paying themselves all kinds of lavish perks and benefits for their “work”.
Yet many of our people continue to struggle daily to just put food on the table.
Our government is desperate for money to fund educational scholarships for some of our students.
Yet they seem to find enough money to pay each MP a housing allowance that makes the housing allowance of an average public servant look like peanuts.
This country desperately needs an Official Information Act. This law could be a vehicle for our people to confront some of the abuses and excesses that go unchecked in the corridors of power.
The development of our country and democracy needs such a law to be enacted. Otherwise we will continue to be governed by people behaving like mobsters.
Information is power. Our people need to be empowered in the 21st century to guide against “democratic” dictators or despots.
I dare PM Sikua and his CNURA mob to consider moving with the times. Otherwise your boasting will be nothing more than shallow rhetoric.
Gary Fa’aitoa
Central Honiara
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