A pie in the sky
Freedom of Information Act delayed further The Act to impact on other laws An Authority to be established for administration
Afurther delay in the promulgation of the Freedom of Information Act ( FOI) is expected as government wants a holistic review of what it requires to be effective.
There have been calls for the enactment of the FOI for many years. Ahead of the 2019 general election, President Mokgweetsi Masisi promised that it would be one of the legislations that his administration would prioritise.
Minister for Presidential Affairs, Governance and Public Administration, Kabo Morwaeng revealed this week that the Ministry has started consultations on the drafting of a Freedom of Information law.
“From the consultations, it was noted that such legislation would have a direct bearing on other legislations such as Data Protection Act and National Archives and Record Services Act, which relate to access of information held by public authorities to the public.
“Therefore, a holistic review of what needs to be done to have an effective freedom of information law had to be conducted,” Morwaeng said.
He said it is worth noting that such a law would generally provide for the classification of information, access to information, and information that the public is exempted from access.
According to the Minister, from the consultation, they noted that exemptions would include information relating to national security, international relations, the prevention, investigation, detection, and prosecution of offenses and or breaches of ethics of regulated professions, taxation matters, regulatory functions, private advice given in confidence and such other information as may be deemed prejudicial to the protection of society and the rights and freedoms of others, or the disclosure of information which is otherwise prohibited by law.
In addition, there would be a need for an authority that would regulate and administer the functions prescribed by the law.
Morwaeng told Parliament that it is against this background, that his Ministry has started the process of drafting instructions and sharing with all concerned stakeholders, as such envisaged law will necessitate consequential amendments on some legislation to make it effective and not in conflict with any other laws.
The Minister reassured the Parliament of the Government’s high regard for transparency, as a component of enhancing good governance and the rule of law.
“Indeed, a Freedom of Information Bill could contribute to the upholding of this ideal. Such a Bill should nevertheless, be prepared with regard for all other existing legislative instruments.
“For this reason, we did not, and still do not, want to take a piecemeal or rushed approach to this very important piece of legislation.
“Note, however, that we have made worthy strides pertaining to the Data Protection Act which is itself, yet to commence, and work is ongoing to ensure that it commences.
“We will table the Freedom of Information Bill once all the aforementioned prerequisites have been aligned,” Morwaeng promised.
The Minister was responding to a question from Leader of Opposition Dumelang Saleshando who had asked him when he plans to table the Freedom of Information Bill and if the government would allow for it to be tabled by an MP as a Private Member’s Bill.
Morwaeng said at this stage they believe the government should be allowed to bring the Bill to Parliament after all the necessary steps and engagements with stakeholders have been done.