Pakistan's information watchdogs left without a public voice for years: Report

Pakistan’s Right to Information Commissions have operated for years without civil society members, undermining the constitutional right to know. This vacancy removes a crucial balance within the commissions, preventing the resolution of disputes between official members and diluting the public’s voice in oversight bodies designed to ensure transparency. Consequently, the institutions meant to enforce openness are failing to function as intended, leaving citizens without effective representation. Furthermore, proposed legislative amendments in provinces like Punjab threaten to create additional bureaucratic hurdles rather than facilitating access. By introducing broader exemptions and extending decision-making timelines, these changes risk making information requests more difficult for the public. Activists report that bureaucratic resistance and institutional barriers routinely obstruct citizens from exercising their rights, resulting in poor compliance rates and significant delays in receiving information. This situation highlights a critical failure in Pakistan’s open data and governance framework. The report emphasizes that transparency cannot be effectively enforced by institutions that are themselves opaque and unaccountable. When the bodies created to open government doors become barriers themselves, it signals a systemic breakdown in rule of law and democratic accountability, necessitating urgent reforms to restore trust and accessibility.

Source: ianslive.in
Published on 2026-10-05

Pakistan's information watchdogs left without a public voice for years: Report

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