Role of Public Authority& Political Leadership

in Successful Implementationof RTI

October 13th, 2009

Jagadananda State Information Commissioner, Orissa

sic@ori.nic.in

Political Leadership

“I believe that the passage of this Bill will see the dawn of a

new era in our processes of governance, an era of performance

and efficiency, an era which will ensure that benefits of growth

flow to all sections of our people, an era which will eliminate

the scourge of corruption, an era which will bring the common

man’s concern to the heart of all processes of governance, an

era which will truly fulfill the hopes of the founding fathers of

our Republic.”

Dr. Manmohan SinghPrime Minister of IndiaSpeech in Parliament on May 11, 2005.

Political Will

Political Will

“Access to Information as a tool to tackle corruption would form one of the priority items on my agenda.”

Vincente FoxPresident of Mexico2000

“A democracy requires accountability, and accountability requires transparency. The Freedom of Information Act should be administered with a clear presumption: In the face of doubt, openness prevails.”

Barack ObamaPresident of USA and Nobel Laureate2009

Right message

And timeless. . .

“The real Swaraj will come not by the acquisition of authority by a The real Swaraj will come not by the acquisition of authority by a few but by the acquisition of capacity by all to resist authority few but by the acquisition of capacity by all to resist authority

when abused.when abused.”

Mahatma Gandhi

Role of Political Leaders

Implementing a successful information regime demands leadership, resources and political will for transparency and accountability.

It needs political role models who are:– convinced that the Right to Information is a human

right– desire to rebuild citizens’ trust– committed to improving efficiency and modernization

of the systems

Role of Political Leaders

• Opinion makers: political leaders are ‘mass mobilisers’ and can promote RTI as a tool that brings tangible results on the ground

• Legislative overview: e.g. leveraging legislative forums and lobbying for implementation of RTI in its true spirit

• Role models: demonstrating transparency through inviting

social audit of use of MPLAD and MLALAD funds

Public Authority

Transform the relationship with the public

Public Information

Officers

Members of the public

Emerging relationship

Public Authority

Public Authority

Current relationship

Members of the public

Comply with proactive disclosure

• Information belongs to the public, not to the Government or any public institutions

• Informing citizens increases their trust and helps strengthen partnership with the people

• Open information regime enables nimble and local vigilance systems

Setting PA to succeed…

“Equally important [to enacting a law] is to establish an institutional framework and developing public administration capacity to manage and provide information”Atlanta Declaration, April 2008, Carter Center

To increase efficiency and reduce pressure on PA requires:

– Additional resources– Norms and standards reviewed and revised– Training and sensitization– IT enabled databases, and e-governance– Streamlined procedures and clear guidelines/templates– Balance incentives and penalties

Who is accountable?Sharing responsibilities

“Demand” side

• Activecivic engagement

• Use of Act forpublic interest for greater accountability

“Supply” side

• Self-disclosure

• Information management

• Timely response

• Independent adjudicatory role

Realities on the groundand opportunities

We have an opportunity to alleviate poverty and reduce

corruption through empowering the citizen to become active:

– Set up RTI ‘clinics’ and leverage local volunteers

– Citizens Assistance Centres, with special features for disabled

– Organisation of information fairs

– Education material in local language disseminated via local communication vehicles (posters, wall paintings, folk art, radio…)

– Collaborate with CBOs/NGOs, RTI activists, relevant CSR initiatives to provide hands-on support

THANK YOU!