The Panamanian Office of the Administrative Attorney recommends postponing the debate on new transparency legislation until the next constitutional term. This recommendation is based on the existence of an existing law that already recognizes and protects the fundamental right to access public information. Consequently, there is no immediate need to replace the current framework with a new one that would regulate the same subject matter, as doing so could introduce unnecessary disruption rather than progress. The core concern is not a dismissal of the Assembly’s democratic legitimacy, but a strategic prioritization of implementation over legislation. The official stance emphasizes that the current priority should be ensuring strict compliance with existing transparency laws by public officials. Rather than drafting new regulations, the focus must shift to enforcing current standards, ensuring that political power is adequately scrutinized by citizens through the mechanisms already established. This position is highly relevant to open data advocates because it highlights a critical gap between legal frameworks and practical execution. In open data initiatives, robust laws are ineffective if not actively enforced and accessible to the public. By arguing for better application of current rights rather than new statutes, the article underscores that immediate data accessibility depends on institutional compliance and citizen engagement, not just legislative renewal.
Source:Published on 2023-09-07
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