A Mexican deputy has introduced a constitutional initiative to eliminate the President of the Republic’s authority to object to the appointments of INAI commissioners made by the Senate. The aim is to safeguard the autonomy of this oversight body, whose operations have been severely hampered by presidential objections, preventing the completion of the necessary staffing levels to achieve quorum and address the growing demand for public information. The proposal argues that presidential objections constitute a violation of legislative sovereignty, as they allow a single individual to block decisions reached with broad consensus in Congress. By restricting the executive branch’s ability to veto these appointments, the initiative seeks to ensure institutional independence and prevent the administrative paralysis that has triggered an operational crisis, leaving thousands of review requests unresolved due to the lack of active members in the agency. This reform is significant for the open data movement because it ensures the stability and effectiveness of Mexico’s primary mechanism for oversight and access to information. An autonomous and fully operational INAI is essential to maintain government transparency, enable accountability, and guarantee that citizens can exercise their right to access information on public management without arbitrary political interference.
Source:Published on 2023-08-08