The Minister for Information, Hon. Kojo Oppong Nkrumah has charged the newly recruited Right to Information (RTI) officers to at all times exhibit a high level of integrity and professionalism in the discharge of their duties.
He advised the officers to approach their job with a sense of integrity and reminded them that there was absolutely no difference between them and others who work in any other institution locally, internationally, public or private service.
“Many of us have been complaining over the years about the levels of unprofessionalism and corruption in our public service. You have an opportunity to make a difference where you are going. So don’t become the old story that we always talk about. Be the change that we are looking for,” He said.
He gave the charge at an orientation and training programme for the officers in Accra on Wednesday, October 26, 2022.
The three-day programme was to equip the newly requited officers with the requisite skills in facilitating access to information in the various Government institutions. The officers, numbering 250 are the second batch of Information Officers recruited into Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) across the country following the recruitment of a first batch of 99 officers in 2020 when the RTI bill was passed into law in 2019.
Hon. Oppong Nkrumah tasked the RTI officers to work assiduously and proactively to complement efforts in making access to information particularly in government institutions easy.
The Chief Information Officer of the Information Services Department (ISD), Mr David Owusu-Amoah, urged the officers to abreast themselves with the duties and requirements of the RTI law and ensure that no person or persons are denied access to information since the implications of such willful denials are consequential.
He also urged the general public to engage RTI officers on a professional basis devoid of ulterior motives in their pursuit of information.
He commended the Minister for his untiring efforts in assisting to project the image of the Department and putting in place the right system to ensure that it serves the interest of the Government and the citizenry.
On her part, the Head of the Access to Information Division of the ISD, Dr. Winifred Nafisa Mahama tasked the new RTI officers to abide by the ethics binding their work, entreating them to discharge their duties as prescribed by the law.
“I urge you all to discharge your duties as RTI officers by serving applicants with diligence and timeliness as required by the Access to Information Law,” she said.
She expressed hope that the recruits would undertake their duties in a manner that met the expectations of the Ministry of Information, the Department, and the country as a whole.
Present at the ceremony were the Chief Director of the Ministry of Information, Mamle Andrews, Executive Secretary of the RTI Commission, Yaw Sarpong Boateng and other well-known dignitaries.
Source: MOI (PR Unit)
