Information Commissioner Ahmed Ahid Rasheed has said that a formal investigation will be launched in connection to the President's Office's violation of the Right to Information (RTI) Act and action will be taken against those responsible.
Ahid announced this during a hearing held today over the President's Office's failure to provide a response to Adhadhu when queries were submitted via the Mahoali portal to find details of President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu's official visit to Turkey.
He said that the legal team of the President's Office has informed the Information Commissioner's Office that they cannot attend today's hearing as well. He noted that the President’s Office had requested to postpone all three previous hearings.
After delivering his decision and ordering the President's Office to provide the information within three days, Ahid said the Information Commissioner's Office would look into the issue of the President's Office not complying with the RTI Act.
“I would like to announce publicly that the Office of the Information Commissioner will continue with these developments in this matter to investigate why the President's Office is not implementing this law and who is responsible for it,” he said.
If anyone is responsible, action will be taken, he added.
“And I inform the authority [President's Office] that if action is required against those who are negligent or responsible, we will go ahead,” Ahid said.
Many RTI requests submitted to the President's Office have gone unanswered since President Muizzu assumed office in November. Meanwhile, President's Office officials have repeatedly failed to attend hearings at the Information Commissioner's Office.
“The President’s Office is the highest government agency, and to see the President’s Office ignoring this, it could actually weaken this right [Right to Information] altogether,” Ahid told Adhadhu earlier.
