KATHMANDU: The National Information Commission (NIC) has advised the government to form a high-level mechanism for implementing the Right to Information (RTI) Act effectively.
Submitting its annual report for the fiscal year 2019/20, the NIC has suggested the government formation of a coordination committee headed by the Prime Minister or a senior minister for coordinating the RTI enforcement. Similarly, the NIC has said it would be appropriate to constitute a coordination committee headed by the province chief minister for better implementation of the RTI Act in public bodies at the province and local levels.
The government has been advised for making provisions for the appointment of information officer (one post junior to the chief) in every public offices and establishing a RTI desk at the entrance to Singha Durbar for the swift dissemination of information from ministries and offices inside the Singha Durbar.
Stating that the constitution has recognized all the mother tongues of Nepal, the Commission wanted the dissemination of public information in local languages as well. The status of RTI implementation should be a tool of assessment to reach a higher public post, it suggests.
Besides, the government has been advised to ensure provisions requiring discussion on its annual report in the Legislature-Parliament or the related parliamentary committee, Province Assembly (PA) or PA thematic committees and the local level or local level thematic committees.
Though the Right to Information Act (2007) requires the commission to submit its annual report of its activities to the Legislature-Parliament through Prime Minister, the report is not discussed either in the parliament or in the related committee so far.
The commission handed the report to Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli on Friday.
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