NCCE holds a training session for the Akuapem North Municipal Command of the Ghana Fire Service

A team from the Akuapem North Municipal office of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), led by the Municipal Director, Ms. Benedicta Duvor, has engaged the Municipal Command of the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) on the Right to Information (RTI) at a training session. This engagement, she said was in line with the Commission’s mandate to create citizens’ awareness to uphold and sustain Ghana’s constitutional democracy.

Speaking on the Right to Information Act 2019 (Act 989), Ms. Duvor stated that the act is an act of parliament that provides for the implementation of the constitutional right of persons to access official information held by public institutions (and relevant private institutions that receive public resources or perform public functions), subject to the exemptions that are necessary and consistent with the protection of public interest in Ghana.

She said the importance of the RTI was to encourage participation in democratic decisions by all citizens and non-citizens alike, to ensure transparent, accountable, and open governance as well as to ensure integrity in governance and to check corruption.

Ms. Duvor sensitized the officers on the procedures pertaining to how information can be accessed as mandated by the Act. The caveat was for Personnel to assimilate the kind of information that can be disclosed and those deemed confidential under the Act inclusive of its associated ramifications.

She mentioned that the establishment of the Right to Information Commission, which core mandate was to enforce, regulate and monitor Act 989 (2019) implementation, its order of hierarchy and terms of service. She iterated the offences under the Act, Act 989 (2019), and its associated penalties: jail term and penalty units one may be liable to when found culpable.