KARACHI: The Coalition on Right to Information (CRTI) on Wednesday urged the Sindh government to ensure the implementation of Sindh Transparency and Right to Information Act, 2016.
More than one year has elapsed yet effective measures like the designation of public information officers (PIOs) in public bodies and functionality of the Sindh Information Commission (SIC) is not guaranteed by the provincial government.
CRTI is a coalition of 55 organisations working for the protection of the right to information in Pakistan.
In a joint statement issued to the press by CRTI partners, Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives (CPDI) Programme Coordinator Moonus Kayinat and Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF) Secretary General Owais Aslam Ali demanded the designation of public information officers (PIO) in all public bodies of Sindh as well as the strengthening of the SIC through financial and administrative empowerment.
The Sindh Information Commission was notified back in May 2018, but it is not financially and administratively empowered till date. With a weak SIC and no awareness about people’s right to know, the whole process of public access to information is halted in Sindh.
Zehra said that similar to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Punjab governments, the Sindh government enacted the Sindh T&RTI Bill 2016 in March 2017. “This law is progressive and meets the international standards of an effective RTI law i.e. cost-effective access to information, maximum proactive disclosure, narrowly drawn a list of exemptions and effective complaint redressal mechanism etc. But the law still awaits implementation. There is no use of making good laws if the government is not committed to implementing them,” she added.
PPF’s secretary general said that the right to information is a fundamental human right, guaranteed under Article 19-A.
He stressed the need for taking immediate steps for the implementation of Sindh RTI law.
