Pacenet courts CBOs on Access to Information Law
The Pan African Civic Educators Network (Pacenet) has made an appeal to community-based organisations (CBOs) in the country to support the media in pushing for the enactment of Access to Information Bill into law.
Pacenet board chairperson Anthony Kasunda made the appeal in Chiradzulu on Tuesday when he officially opened a two-day training workshop for CBO leaders drawn from Thyolo District.
With financial assistance from Tilitonse Fund, the organisation is implementing a project that aims at enhancing citizen action for development and governance in Chiradzulu, Machinga, Thyolo and Luchenza Municipality Council.
In his remarks, Kasunda said the country cannot achieve meaningful socio-economic and democratic governance in the current environment where local people have no powers to demand access to information from duty-bearers on various developmental projects taking place in their areas.
He said apart from serving the media, the Access to Information Law aims at protecting and enhancing the rights of local people from abuse by duty-bearers.
“Today, access to information on developmental projects is at the mercy of duty-bearers because we don’t have this law in place. Even this project can’t bear the much desired results in the absence of an empowered citizenry, which can demand answers on, among others, misappropriated funds,” explained Kasunda.
He assured CBOs of Pacenet’s commitment to provide technical support to the local governance structures in various areas during and after the two years the project will be running.
