Independent body to administer Right to Information Bill advocated

Participants at a day’s forum on the Right to Information (RTI) Bill in Tamale have recommended the establishment of an independent constitutional body to administer the Bill after it had been passed.

They were of the opinion that if the Attorney-General was made responsible for the administration of the Bill as envisaged in its current form; there might be conflict of interest.

These suggestions were made when the Parliamentary Select Committee on Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs organized a forum in Tamale on Monday to solicit ideas and suggestions to be factored into the final RTI Bill.

They said for example the Act could be administered by the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) since according to them (participants) the RTI is a human right issue.

The participants were also not happy with the numerous exemptions in the draft bill, which they said could provide a cover for government and public officers to withhold information.

Participants also suggested that the Bill should cover private companies, especially the mining companies since their activities were impacting negatively on the environment.

They also called for a definite time frame within which the Bill should be passed into law.

Majority of the participants, however, expressed their displeasure about the low publicity given to the event, which made it to attract low patronage.

In his introductory remarks, Mr Twumasi Appiah, Chairman of the Communications Committee of Parliament, said the Bill was to provide the people with accurate information as required in a democratic and free society and also help to reduce corruption.

He urged the participants to give constructive ideas and suggestions so that they could be embodied in the final Bill to make it stand the test of time.

Source: GNA