Ignorance of a nation the abuse of the right to information in Uganda and its possible solutions

Abstract

Uganda is party to many international treaties that aim at fighting for human rights. It has even taken the initiative to draft laws in accordance with those treaties and also establish platforms where people can access government information. However, all this is on paper as the government continues to greatly abuse the rights of its citizens. Two of the ways the right to access information has been abused is evidenced by police brutality towards journalists and the announcement of H.E Yoweri Kaguta Museveni as president in 2016 following unaccounted for information of votes during the 2016 Presidential Election. Without proper access to information, the populace is left ignorant of their rights, something which aids abuse of the other rights given that the right to information is a foundational right. In return, this greatly hinders economic growth and development as it denies the citizens a democratic government which allows them to take part in decision making as well as holding their leaders accountable. This therefore calls for novel measures to ensure that the right to information is achieved. The police force should put emphasis on integrity during training. The judiciary should establish a functioning body aimed at checking the integrity of the judges and magistrates. The judiciary should also welcome the idea of information sharing on the existing international platforms in order to break free from negative traditions. Greater penalties should be employed on the culprits. Government officers should be financially empowered by the government. An independent body should be created to oversee the realisation of the right in question