Half of information complaints are about local bodies

Kathmandu, Mar. 26

More than half of the complaints received by the National Information Commission are related to the local levels.

It received 1,013 complaints in the fiscal year 2019/20, of which 52.4 per cent are related to the local governments, the NIC mentioned in its annual report of the last fiscal submitted to Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli on Friday.

According to the information body, 9.3 per cent compliants were about education, health and sports, 5.5 per cent about economic sectors and 5.5 per cent about law, justice and administration.

The commission said that it had addressed and resolved all the complaints.

In an effort to empower people with information and protect their right to information, the NIC had issued a 16-point direction to the federal, provincial and local governments to regularly publish the expenditures they made to control the coronavirus pandemic.

In February 2020, it had directed the secretary of the Ministry of Health and Population to run awareness generating campaign on coronavirus safety and protection, and maintain individual privacy while publishing the details of the people affected or died of COVID-19.

Likewise, it had issued an order to the secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development to inform the farmers about the location, time and process for obtaining fertilisers, seeds, pesticides and medicines during the lockdown last year.

The report includes direction issued by the commission to various agencies to publish or give information which the latter denied to publish. As per the Right to Information Act, 2007, any Nepali citizen can ask for the information, other than the classified by the law, from any government and public institution. If the organisations denied giving it, people can appeal to the NIC and the latter issues directions to the respective agencies to give the demanded information.

The commission had conducted a web-based monitor of 120 agencies of which only 91 had designated information officer and only 30 agencies published the information on their own.

It has recommended to establish a separate information unit in the offices that have 50 employees or annual budget above Rs. 200 million.

"To facilitate people demanding information from the agencies inside the Singha Durbar, there should be a Right to Information Desk to register the complaints and provide the information sought," read the report.

The commission also suggested  formulating a law to protect the whistleblower who could play an important role in controlling corruption.

The NIC said in a statement that the report also includes the policy and implementation steps to be taken in the days to come.

Chief Information Commissioner Mahendra Man Gurung handed over the report to the Prime Minister.

 Commissioners Kamala Oli Thapa and Ratna Prasad Mainali, and Secretary of the NIC Dr. Mukunda Prasad Poudel were present on the occasion.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 27 March 2021.