MEDIA Rights Agenda (MRA) has condemned a call by the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) for amendments to the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act (2011) to include punitive measures for what NEITI described as the ‘misuse’ of the law by ‘fake CSOs.’
In a statement on Friday, June 6, MRA described the proposal as ‘ill-conceived’ and a threat to democratic accountability, warning that it could reverse years of advocacy for transparency in governance.
The FOI Act, enacted in 2011, affirms the right of every Nigerian to access records in the custody of public officials, agencies or institutions. Section 1 (1) of the law guarantees access, while Section 2 (4) mandates that such information be made readily available through various media and at offices of public institutions.
However, NEITI claimed that some individuals were disguising as civil society organisations (CSOs) to blackmail government institutions through FOI requests.
Speaking in Abuja at a roundtable event earlier this week, the Executive Secretary of NEITI, Ogbonnaya Orji, described the trend as a dangerous weaponisation of a democratic law to blackmail, harass, and extort public officials and government institutions.
Reacting to this, MRA’s Programme Officer, Ayomide Eweje, faulted the NEITI for the development, saying the proposed amendment would undermine the essence of the FOI Act, which she described as a vital tool for open governance, citizen engagement, and the fight against corruption.
“We reject any narrative that seeks to criminalise the exercise of a fundamental right under the guise of protecting public institutions. The appropriate response to concerns about abuse of the FOI Act, even if such concerns are legitimate, is institutional transparency, including routine compliance with the Act by all public institutions to ensure its effective implementation and rigorous enforcement of the current mechanisms for ensuring compliance so that no public institution or official is put in a vulnerable position where they can be blackmailed.”
Eweje noted that the FOI Act was enacted to empower citizens, promote transparency, and fight corruption.
The organisation further warned that amending the FOI Act to include penalties based on vague claims of misuse could create dangerous loopholes that might be exploited to silence journalists, activists, researchers, and other citizens seeking transparency.
Existing laws already cover blackmail, MRA says
The organisation also reiterated to public officials that blackmail and extortion are already punishable under existing federal and state criminal laws across Nigeria, insisting that any genuine cases of abuse could be prosecuted without altering the FOI framework.
She urged that NEITI and other public institutions should commit to full compliance with their disclosure obligations under the Act instead of seeking to discredit the FOI Act or weaken it.
She also called on the institutions to build internal capacity to manage FOI requests efficiently and speedily, and promote a culture of openness as a tool for building public confidence in public institutions and government in general.
The statement was coming barely a week after the FOI Act marked its 14th anniversary on May 28, when MRA criticised public institutions for widespread non-compliance.
According to the 2024 National FOI Rankings—conducted by The ICIR, MRA, BudgIT, and other civic groups—over 72 per cent of Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) failed to respond to FOI requests within the required 14-day period.
Only 1.22 per cent of MDAs were found to be proactively disclosing information as required by law, with nearly 85 per cent failing outright to provide requested information.
In the statement marking the Act’s 14th anniversary, MRA’s Deputy Executive Director, Ayode Longe, called for greater enforcement of compliance and the protection of those using the Act to demand accountability.
Mustapha Usman is an investigative journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: musman@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M