'Right of Access to Information Act': Citizens can get information from government for free

"Right of Access to Information Act" provides opportunities to the citizens to get information from the government without any cost. Under this act citizens can submit an application to get information from public bodies/government departments even on a plain paper and the government officials are bound to provide the information within 10 working days, stated Mohammad Azam, the Chief Information Commissioner, Pakistan Information Commission while addressing at a press conference at Karachi Press Club.

He said that in case the citizens are unable to get the requested information they can file an appeal to the Pakistan Information Commission. He said that the present PTI government has formed this commission as one of the major achievements of the first 100 hundred days.

The three-member commission was notified in November 2018 and it started working immediately and has received more than 240 appeals and in more than 100 cases the citizens have been provided requisite information due to the Information Commissions intervention.

Explaining further, Mohammad Azam said that the citizens can ask the government how public sector development funds are utilised for the welfare of the people. They can also ask questions about the standards of the development projects in case they have doubts about the quality of work, he pointed out.

Zahid Abdullah and Fawad Malik, the commissioners of the Pakistan Information Commission explained that "Right of Access to Information Act" was passed by the parliament as a legal requirement of Article 19-A of the constitution of Pakistan.