PESHAWAR, July 24: Coalition on Right to Information (CRI), a network of 20 civil society organisations, on Wednesday rejected the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government`s draft Right to Information Ordinance, 2013 declaring it weak and faulty, and demanded its review.The representatives of Center for Peace and Development Initiatives, a partner of CRI, told a news conference at Peshawar Press Club that the draft was riddled with weaknesses and faults and would not facilitate the people`s access to information.

`Despite making tall claims about good governance and transparency, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has introduced a highly ineffective draft (right to information) ordinance, which cannot serve the purpose,` said CRI coordinator Zahid Abdullah.

Mr Abdullah said it was very unfortunate that PTI wanted to promulgate an ordinance on right to information instead of legislating on it in the provincial assembly.

He warned that if the bill was promulgated in its current form, it would end up curtailing rather than protecting and promoting the people`s right to information.

The CRI coordinator said the draft law envisaged the establishment of one-member information commission, just like ombudsman that had been a failed model in the country.

He said the information commission had no powers to direct the government or semi-government departments or agencies for proactive disclosure of information and could not penalise the officials denying the people`s access to information requested under the law.

Mr Abdullah said the list of the exempted information was drawn in a manner that most of the information would be denied if the draft ordinance was promulgated.

He said all exempted information was not subject to harm test which defeated the purpose of right to information law.

The CRI coordinator said the law didn`t provide time limit for publishing the exempted information.

`A good law on right to information has the provision under which even exempted information is made available to public after lapse of a certain period of time,` he said.

Rejecting the draft, Mr Abdullah urged the KPK government to review the proposed right to information law in line with the best regional and international practices.

He offered help to the provincial government in drafting the law. -Bureau Report