The New Nation - Internet Edition

PERHAPS the members of the incumbent interim government who have been responsible for the final draft of an important ordinance that would have far reaching impacts on good governance and democracy, did not think that they won't be able craft this piece of legislation with the stakeholders--specially the media-not taken into confidence. The members of the media have been very quick to reject wholesale the draft. Representatives of the media also minced no words in criticising the final draft and expressed indignation for the manner in which they were treated.

The media gave a set of proposals for incorporation in the final draft that would end the culture of secrecy and immunity of officialdom and require government offices to be obligated to divulge information to people in the latter's rightful interests. But hardly any of these suggestions from the media were found included in the final draft which means a complete snub for the media and an attempt to superimpose a legislation on people.

As has been explained by a leading journalist of the country, the proposed draft of the Right to Information Act (RIA), if it is allowed to be enacted, will only mean a sort of reappearance of the prevailing Official Secrets Act by reintroducing it in disguise when the objective of the RIA ought to be ending secrecy ad empowering the people with the right to know about many things done by the government-- veiled from their eyes-- and not in the real public interest. The media underlined how it fell far short of similar acts in neighbouring India, Pakistan and Nepal. The RIA in these countries expanded media's opportunities, rights and freedoms to investigate into almost anything. Thus, nothing short of substantial redrafting of this RIA will do, as has been emphasised by the journalists.