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Vice President of IMANI Centre for Policy and Education has touted a high court ruling ordering the government to make public contract documents of a controversial bus branding deal as good for professional conduct in the public sector.
Kofi Benti believes the ruling is also an encouragement for the unsung public officials who stick to proper documentation of official deals.
“This ruling tells you if you are public official that whatever you are doing document it and document it well because somebody will ask for it tomorrow and you will be required to produce it.
“It is also a shot in the arm for those who are doing their work, that after time their good work will be revealed,” he said.
The legal practitioner was speaking Wednesday on news analysis programme PM Express that airs on the Joy News channel on Multi TV.
The Human Rights Court on Wednesday, April 13 ruled in favour of an application by pressure group, Citizen Ghana Movement, seeking disclosure of documents of a controversial contract between government and Smarttys Production.
The deal made the headlines after it was revealed that the contract to brand some 116 Metro Mass Transit buses with photos of the current and past Presidents had been bloated by about 1.6 million Ghana cedis.
Presiding Judge at the Human Rights Court, Justice Anthony Yeboah, noted during his judgment that Ghanaians are entitled to access information from the government.
He said the bus branding is a matter of public interest and members of the public have every right to request for information.
Justice Yeboah ordered the Attorney-General, Marrieta Brew Appiah-Oppong, who was the respondent in the case to release all the documents on the bus branding deal except documents regarding trade secrets, and national defense to the group.
Kofi Bentil said on PM Express that the ruling “is in the interest of people who are doing their job and doing it well,” as it means public documents can now be requested for and obtained by ordinary citizens with ease.
Mr Bentil also lauded the Judge for what he says was a spellbounding and scholarly ruling.
By the ruling the Attorney General has 14 days to release the contract documents.
Source: Myjoyonline.com
