Kogi state government has been called upon to sign-up to the Open Government Partnership (OGP) as a matter of urgency to promote transparency, accountability and good governance.
The call was made at a 1-day stakeholders strategic meeting on open government partnership (OGP) in Kogi state organized by Conscience for Human Rights and Conflict Resolution (CHRCR) in partnership with African Centre for Leadership Strategies and Development (Centre LSD) in Lokoja on Monday.
Stakeholders drawn from civil society organisations (CSOs), media, youth groups and committee clerks from the State House of Assembly urged Kogi government to key into the OGP as one of the ways of entrenching transparency in public service, reducing all forms of secrecy in governance.
They challenged multi-lateral financial institutions, particularly the World Bank, to hold Kogi state government accountable by verifying implementations of projects and polices on ground before rating the state on any of its financed projects.
In his speech, the Executive Director of CHRCR, Comrade Idris Miliki said Open Government Partnership is becoming the order of the day world over, adding that Kogi State cannot be left behind in ensuring transparency, participation and transparency in governance.
The Executive Director, African Centre for Leadership, Strategy and Development (Centre LSD), Mr. Monday Osasah, stated that Open Government Partnership allows for governance to truly serve and empower citizens.
Represented by Itia Otabor, the executive director of Centre LSD explained that the OGP stakeholders meeting is to evolve mechanism that will institutionalise good governance, transparency and accountability in the state through an effective and result oriented strategy that will spur Kogi government to key into the fold of Open Government Partnership states in Nigeria.
He described OGP as a global coalition of reformers from government and civil societies working to make governance systems all over the world transparent, participatory and accountable to citizens.
He urged the Kogi state government to leverage on the benefits of the OGP by signing the document to show that the state is actually committed to fighting corruption in all its ramifications.
”As at today, 15 states in Nigeria have signed up and domesticated the OGP with Centre LSD involved in the process in majority of the states.
”Our experience has also shown that some of the major reasons why some states are reluctant in signing up to the document may be their lack of full grasp of the essence of the OGP,” he said.
The Executive Director of SERDEC, Tijani Abdulkareem listed mistrust, misconception and sometimes irrational resistance from government functionaries as some of the factors militating against sign up of the document by some governors.
He called on government officials to be in the forefront of mobilizing strategic support for open government partnership which he said is a tool to be used in judging government performance in relation to openness, transparency and accountability to the citizenry.
He urged stakeholders to look at the objectives, and peculiarity of the prevailing environmental forces impacting towards achieving the desired results.
He commended the doggedness and commitment of the convener of the meeting, Comrade Idris Miliki, whose collaborative relationship and partnership with Centre LSD has been a mutual fulfillment and convergence of interests and aspirations.
Nigeria joined OGP in 2017 as its 70th member-nation.
