The Kwara State Commissioner for Information,  Mr. Tunji Moronfoye, has said that the  state governor, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed, has not banned commissioners in the state from granting interviews on issues pertaining to their individual ministries.

He stated that the administration believed in compliance with Freedom of Information Act.

He said the government  was media-friendly and so would not impede free flow of information. He added that free flow of information was capable of boosting democracy and good governance.

He spoke during a post-executive council media briefing in Ilorin on Thursday.

“All commissioners in Kwara State are capable of defending  whatever policies are on ground in their ministries because that is their job. The commissioners have the core competences when it comes to their ministries. There is no instruction that commissioners should not speak to journalists.

“What the Ministry of Information has asked for is that we should be carried along. I find it hard to believe that somebody will wake up in the morning and open government accounts without consultation with the Accountant-General or the Ministry of Finance. Ministry of Information is the final place when it comes to information dissemination. So, obviously, it is natural that we should remind ourselves time and time again, that the Ministry of Information must be carried along,” Moronfoye said.

He said the government would not tolerate any act capable of endangering security of lives and property in the state. He warned those wanting to foment trouble or violence to desist from such, adding that the state government would ensure that culprits were prosecuted.

“The government of Ahmed would not tolerate any infringement on the law no matter how small. At the same time, we intend to keep Kwara the ‘state of harmony’ it has always been. The government will not sit by and allow people taking laws into their own hands.

He stated that as a measure to avoid clashes between herdsmen and farmers, the state government would provide grazing reserves in many areas in the state. He added that the government would also establish stock routes.