The ‘Nazaha Project’ Launched in Jordan

AMMAN ---- July 10, 2013 --- Under the patronage of HE Mr. Peter Millett, the British Ambassador to Jordan and HE Dr. Talal Abu-Ghazaleh, Chairman of Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Organization the launch of the ‘Nazaha’ project took place at Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Knowledge Forum.

The launch of the project, funded by the British government under the Arab Partnership Fund and managed and implemented by the UK–based NGO Faith Matters in partnership with the Policies Development Observatory, was carried out in the presence of representatives of public and private sectors as well as not-for-profit organisations, representatives of diplomatic missions and academic institutions concerned with transparency and anti-corruption.

British Ambassador Peter Millett said: “I am delighted to announce the launch of the ‘Nazaha’ project, a UK Arab Partnership initiative with UK-based NGO Faith Matters. The ‘Nazaha’ project will promote access to information and awareness of transparency in government. Integrity, honesty and transparency are crucial principles for the development of any country’s political, economic and social fabric. The world is a more open place. Information is widely shared.”

 Dr. Talal Abu-Ghazaleh stated that this event provides an opportunity for cooperation between civil society and the Jordanian government to increase the Jordanian citizen’s access to information. In his speech, he stressed the following key principles:

- The principles of transparency impose that all actions of the State and its officials, and all financial data such as income and spending should be available and visible not only to regulators but also to the public as well. All figures, whether small or substantial, must be available for the citizens to know, ask, and hold accountable, and to enable any citizen to resort to litigation if illegal or unreasonable practices are discovered in terms of exaggeration or wastage.

- The right of the citizen to ensure that all collected or available income of the state is deposited into the account of the Ministry of Finance and is recorded as revenues without any exception whatsoever, the citizen is also entitled to know all the expenditures of the treasury’s revenues, and to ensure that it has been dispensed under the requirements of laws and regulations and within in accordance with the requirements and in compatibility with the priorities and principles that take into consideration the circumstances of the country and its potential financial burdens.

- That the citizen has the right to know the cost of a state official; the cost of his car (if it is necessary in the first place), and its fuel, and maintenance; his amount salary, tips, allowances, traveling expenses, office furniture and any other expenses.

- The citizen has the right to know the cost of major projects and their feasibility; and when they fail, he should be entitled to hold accountable whoever is responsible for the error and failure. The citizen has to know he has to pay for the errors even if they are resulting from the goodwill or innocent bad estimation.

- Disclosure of figures and facts would preclude any official to spend irresponsibly and being immune to public scrutiny, or when his cost is concealed from the censors and people. The disclosure of detail facts constitutes in itself indirect censorship the forces the official to think twice before taking any decision that is expensive or lavish.

This level of transparency can be realised by:

- Guarantee freedom of expression - free press and fair media - and the right of access to all kinds of information, regardless of who is asking for it.

- Ensure the independence and impartiality of the judiciary system in order to protect the press and the means of expression and other media if they expose an official and protects the citizen if he resorts to the media to publish his observations and objections and his questions about suspicious practices or sources of lavish spending that does not take reality into consideration, even such spending is sometimes compliant with the applicable regulations.

- The principle applicable to the individual official should also be applicable to the ministry, department and institution and on the cost and spending of each such as buildings, cost of furnishing, maintenance, cost of lights and air conditioning, cost of cars and travel allowances of officials.

- To make it known that unnecessary waste and profligate spending, even though legitimate, is synonymous to corruption, and as dangerous as corruption.

- All types of exemptions and special benefits and awardees constitute a waste of public money and no spending, regardless of the motives and goals, may be tolerated unless it is allowable by and achieves equality amongst all citizens.

Meanwhile, Ms. Iman Abu Atta, Deputy Director of Faith Matters, clarified that this project, which lasts for one year, aims to strengthen civil society’s capacity to play a positive and responsible role in improving the implementation of Access to Information (ATI) and it also seeks to increase awareness of ATI past the level of civil society organisations on to the wider society through national campaigns.

An open discussion with the audience also took place, during which various valuable interventions and questions were raised.