Necessary modifications: ‘Changes in RTI law key for effective implementation’

CGPA says law among best in the world but needs fresh amendments


Our Correspondent January 13, 2016
PHOTO: FILE

PESHAWAR: Centre for Governance and Public Accountability (CGPA) demanded the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government amend the Right to Information (RTI) Act 2013 to make it more effective.

Appealing decisions

The centre suggested the Peshawar High Court be included in the ambit of the law, a handout stated.

Another suggestion included making the high court the forum for appealing decisions taken by the the K-P Information Commission.

The information commission has to register decisions on penalties imposed by public information officers with the district and sessions courts. CGPA demanded decisions of the information commission only be challenged through writ petitions at the Peshawar High Court as the RTI is a fundamental right under the Constitution of Pakistan.

It asked for the mandatory appointment of information commissioners once an incumbent official of the same rank retires or resigns. Lastly, it urged the empowerment of the information commission to ensure proactive disclosure by public bodies.

CGPA, in a press statement, noted the K-P Right to Information legislation was one of a kind and stood among the best laws in the world. However, recent amendments made it less effective, the centre contended.

CGPA said the law should also provide for the implementation of the information commission’s decisions. There are many cases in which the information commission fined violators, but methods to collect the fine remained unclear. More importantly, the law should also provide space to take action against those failing to comply with the commission’s orders even after been penalised for the first time.

The CGPA demanded a time-bound mechanism for appointments of new information commissioners. The law, in its current form, does not bind the government to appoint a new information commissioner within a specified period after the exit of the last office holder.

Extending to PATA

The centre demanded the law be extended to the Provincially Administered Tribal Areas (Pata). A request to this effect, sent by the K-P Home and Tribal Affairs department, has been awaiting the president’s approval for more than one year. “It is tantamount to the violation of fundamental rights of citizens in Pata,” the handout stressed.

It also asked rules of business for the law be immediately notified. The CGPA emphasised it was necessary to handle information requests in a proper and timely manner.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 13th, 2016.

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