A Federal High Court in Abuja today ordered the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), to pay Media Rights Agenda (MRA), N1 million as damages for wrongful denial of access to information.
The court also directed the apex bank to also make available to MRA all the information it requested in its May 22, 2020 letter regarding the bank’s data protection policies and practices.
The order came from Justice Donatus Uwaezuoke Okorowo, while delivering judgment today in a suit instituted by MRA against the CBN, the CBN Governor and the Attorney General of the Federation, MRA said in a statement.
The Judge held that the failure of the CBN to disclose or make available to MRA the information it requested in the letter amounts to a violation of its right of access to information established and guaranteed by Sections 1(1) and 4 of the Freedom of Information Act, 2011, and also constituted a wrongful denial of access to information under section 7(5) of the Act.
MRA filed the suit on June 15, 2020, through its lawyer, Mr. Darlington Onyekwere, challenging the CBN’s refusal to disclose the information it applied for and asking the Court to compel the bank and its Governor to make available the information as requested in the letter.
The failure of the CBN to disclose or make available to MRA the information it requested in the letter amounts to a violation of its right of access to information established and guaranteed by Sections 1(1) and 4 of the Freedom of Information Act, 2011.
MRA also requested “among other things, for copies of all the CBN’s data protection policies issued in conformity with the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR), 2019; the name and contact details of the CBN’s Data Protection Officer, designated in accordance with the NDPR and its relevant data privacy instruments and data protection directives.”
It also asked for details of all capacity building training or other capacity building activities undertaken for the Data Protection Officer and other CBN personnel involved in any form of data processing since the issuance of the NDPR.
It further sought to know the number of persons or individuals whose personal data it processes on an annual basis; and a report from a detailed audit it conducted of its privacy and data protection practices in accordance with the NDPR;
Ruling in favour of MRA, Justice Okorowo accordingly issued an order compelling the CBN to make all the information requested by MRA available to the organization.
The judge also ruled that MRA was entitled to damages for the unlawful violation of its right of access to information and granted the organization’s claim of N1 million as damages.
He however refused MRA’s request for an order directing the Attorney-General of the Federation to initiate criminal proceedings against the CBN for the offence of wrongful denial of access to information under Section 7(5) of the FOI Act.
