STAFF REPORTER
PESHAWAR : The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Information Commission (KPIC) has heard 49 complaints against various public bodies this week, directing concerned departments to provide information to citizens under the Right to Information (RTI) law.
Chief Information Commissioner Syed Nazar Hussain Shah and Information Commissioner Arshad Ahmad conducted the hearings, during which public bodies furnished the requested information in 31 cases, leading to their disposal.
The departments and offices that provided information included the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Public Service Commission, Elementary & Secondary Education Department, District Health Office (DHO) Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Higher Education Academy of Research, Employees’ Social Security Institution (ESSI) Peshawar, Tehsil Municipal Administration (TMA) Mardan, and the District Health Offices of Peshawar and Charsadda.
The information provided covered several matters of public interest, including the merit and zonal quota policy for the recruitment of Pakistan Studies lecturers, the recruitment process and merit list for CT (IT) teachers, minutes of Promotion Committee and Departmental Promotion Committee (DPC) meetings, interview attendance records and merit lists for Computer and AutoCAD Operator posts.
Citizens also received details of bus stops and public washrooms constructed in Mardan, as well as lists of housing societies holding valid No-Objection Certificates (NOCs).
In the remaining cases, the Commission directed the Central Police Office, Peshawar; District Police Officer (DPO), Charsadda; TMA Rustam; and the University of Peshawar to provide the requested information to the complainants within one week.
The Commission also expressed serious concern over delays by certain public officials in providing information within the timeframe prescribed under the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Right to Information Act, 2013.
Taking notice of the delays, the KPIC summoned the DSP of the Capital City Police Office, Peshawar, and the Section Officer (Universities) of the Higher Education Department to appear personally at the next hearing and explain the reasons for failing to provide the information on time.
The Commission reiterated that public bodies are legally bound to respond to citizens’ information requests within the prescribed period and warned officials against unnecessary delays in implementing the RTI law.
