News:
June 1, 2015
The Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Committee of Parliament has expressed concern about the excessively wide range of exemption provisions on information not to be disclosed under the Right to Information Bill.
It noted that the purpose of the Bill is to allow for transparency and accountability in governance; hence too many exemptions would erode whatever benefits the law intends to achieve.
The Right to Information Bill is intended to give substance to Article 21(1) (f) of the constitution by providing for the access to official information held by government agencies and private entity performing public function; and the qualification and conditions under which the access would be obtained.
Civil Society Organizations have raised concerns severally over the delay in amending the Bill and passing it into law after it was drafted in 2002 and laid before parliament in 2013, describing the process of laying the Bill as one that has been shrouded in secrecy.
However, Parliament has initiated steps to have the Bill passed, hence the committee deliberation on the Bill.
The Committee furthermore in its report observed that the Bill is applicable to only information held by government agencies. It sees it to be too restrictive and therefore the coverage must be widened to cover to private bodies that perform public functions with public funds.
“The Committee is therefore of the view that the public should be able to have the right of access to information in the custody of private bodies or agencies especially if the disclosure is in the public interest. It is therefore important to widen the scope to cover private bodies which perform public functions with public funds” the report noted.
Consequently the committee proposed that the term “government body” running through the Bill be deleted and the words “public institution “inserted.
This according to the report is applicable to both South Africa and Liberia, where in both jurisdictions the right to private entities that receive public resources and benefits or engage in public functions or provides public services, particularly in respect of information relating to the public resources, benefits or services.
In addition, the Committee has proposed the establishment of an independent commission which will have oversight responsibility for the implementation of the law.
GhanaMPs.gov.gh