By Anthony Adongo Apubeo
Bolgatanga, Aug. 9, GNA – The Right to Information Commission (RTIC) has held a sensitisation programme for staff of the Information Services Department (ISD) drawn from the 15 Municipal and District Assemblies (MDAs) in the Upper East Region.
The training, held in Bolgatanga, primarily targeted Public Relations Officers (PROs) from the MDAs and participants were educated on the provisions of the Right to Information (RTI) Act, 2019 (Act 989), to empower them to support public sensitisation and help institutions effectively implement the law.
Addressing the session, Mr Richard Antwi Boasiako, the Regional Manager of the RTIC, emphasized that all public institutions were mandated by law to submit annual reports to the Commission.
“These reports must include the number of information requests received, those granted, those denied, and the reasons for any denials,” he stated.
“There are administrative penalties for institutions that fail to comply, and I urge all public institutions to adhere to this requirement to avoid sanctions”, he emphasised.
Mr Boasiako further noted that every public institution was required to designate a Public Relations Officer to handle information requests, adding that in cases where institutions lack such personnel, the RTIC was collaborating with the ISD to bridge the gap.
“The ISD remains a key implementing partner of the RTI law,” he said adding, “We’ve partnered with the ISD Directorate to ensure that in districts without PROs, ISD staff are assigned to fulfil that role.”
Mr Joshua Effah Osei, the Assistant Regional Manager of the Commission, commended ISD personnel who had taken on the PRO role in MDAs where such officers were absent.
He explained that the RTIC was established under Section 40 of the RTI Act, 2019 (Act 989), with a mandate to promote, monitor, protect, and enforce the constitutional right to information guaranteed under the 1992 Constitution of Ghana.
Mr Osei, however, cautioned the public that not all information could be accessed under the law.
“There are certain classified and sensitive categories of information that cannot be disclosed, and we appeal to the public to remain understanding and avoid confrontations when such requests are denied,” he advised.
Mr Yussif Bennin Duori, the Regional Director of ISD, in a brief remark, pledged the ISD’s continued support to the RTIC and called on all ISD staff in the various MDAs to actively contribute to the implementation of the RTI law.
He underscored the need for more of such programmes to be organised in the region targeting more institution and gave the assurance that he would galvanise his support to partner the Commission achieve that result.
Senior officers from the Commission who facilitated the programme included Mr Prince Adofo, Mr Fred Agyemang, and Ms Abigail Bima Acheampong who took the participants through key areas such as the right to access information, the provisions of the RTI Act, procedures for requesting information, and categories of exempt information.
GNA
Edited by Caesar Abagali /Kenneth Odeng Adade