PETALING JAYA: The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), which will allow the public to see how the government spends their taxes, could be a reality by the end of next year.
A civil society group that has been working with the government’s legal affairs division (BHEUU) on the FOIA, says that the Bill could be ready for tabling in the Dewan Rakyat by October 2024.
Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ) executive director Wathshlah G. Naidu said this was based on the extensive research and consultation that BHEUU had done with the Centre since 2019 on the FOIA, including its challenges and the best practices of other countries.
This included meetings with stakeholders and interviewing experts from countries that have right-to-information (RTI) laws, such as Australia, Sri Lanka, Indonesia and New Zealand.
“Our engagements were part of the government’s own capacity-building efforts because there were concerns that the government would lose its powers under the OSA (Official Secrets Act 1972),” Wathshlah told The Star.
“CIJ also spearheaded research into RTI laws and amending the OSA, and how the RTI laws worked in six countries.”
Then in September, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim approved the drafting of the law, but its parameters had yet to be tabled before the Cabinet, she said.
“But once that is done and there is Cabinet approval, it does not take long for the Bill to be drafted.
“The target is to have the Bill completed in time for tabling in October 2024,” she said.
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said had said on Nov 9 that the FOIA was currently being drafted and that the OSA would be amended.
Azalina told the Dewan Rakyat that the proposed Act would ensure that information was disclosed for the public’s benefit and individuals would be able to apply for information from any ministry, department or agency through an official request.
Wathshlah said that one of the main hurdles to ensuring that the FOIA had bite was making sure that the OSA aligned with it instead of the other way around.
“If you don’t amend the OSA, then the FOIA will be ineffective.
“So in reality, it is the OSA that should be aligned to the FOIA.
“The FOIA must also align with the Whistleblower’s Act and the Personal Data Protection Act,” she said.
The best approach would be to repeal the OSA and include exemptions to freedom of information requests, such as military and national security secrets, in the FOIA itself, she said.
Another legal alignment that needs to be considered is between the Act, which is a federal law, and state enactments that cover areas where states have control, such as land, forest, mineral resources and water.
“What happens when someone wants to file a freedom of information request on a piece of state land?
“Could the FOIA cut through a state enactment?” asked Wathshlah, citing a potential conflict that must be resolved.
The government must also ensure that the FOIA’s oversight body is truly free of government control in order for it to be effective, she said.
“It cannot be under the government because the tendency is for the government to protect itself.
“Currently, the proposal is to put it under an ombudsman body which is also being developed.”
But Wathshlah feels that it should not be under the ombudsman either because the former’s conciliatory approach in dealing with public complaints is different from how an FOIA oversight body should function.
“If the FOIA can resolve these three hurdles well, then the substance of the law will be good,” she said.
