15 Years of Article 19A: Right to Information Still Awaits Effective Implementation
Islamabad: April 8, 2025 marked the 15th anniversary of the National Assembly’s passage of the 18th Amendment, through which Article 19A was inserted into the Constitution, granting citizens the fundamental right of access to information in matters of public importance. Despite this historic constitutional recognition, the information commissions established under federal and provincial right to information laws remain legally and structurally weak, limiting their ability to enforce this right in an effective and meaningful manner.
The Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives (CPDI) has been consistently engaged with federal and provincial governments, as well as elected representatives, sharing exhaustive recommendations aimed at removing legal anomalies and strengthening the overall effectiveness of the information commissions.
A common issue in the laws of Sindh, Balochistan, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is the restriction that allows only retired senior government servants to be appointed as Chief Information Commissioners. This limitation excludes qualified individuals from other sectors and undermines merit-based selection. CPDI recommends revising the composition of the commissions to include individuals from the civil service, legal profession, and civil society, with one of them appointed as Chief Information Commissioner based on relevant expertise.
The Sindh law also includes a provision requiring the establishment of commission offices in each district headquarter, which is unnecessary in the current digital era and would significantly increase operational costs. CPDI recommends removing this provision and instead encouraging the use of digital platforms for hearings and communication to ensure cost-effective and efficient service delivery.
Also Read: CRTI Urges Action on Delayed Information Commission Reforms
Other major concerns include age-related restrictions that may prevent commissioners from completing their full term, and the lack of independent, impartial procedures for the removal of commissioners in KP, Sindh, and at the federal level. In all such cases, CPDI has proposed practical, cost-effective, and legally sound alternatives, such as setting a minimum age of 45 years at the time of appointment and entrusting misconduct inquiries to special parliamentary committees with equal representation from treasury and opposition benches.
At the federal level, the Right of Access to Information Act lacks clarity on how complaints against information commissioners should be handled, since the designated parliamentary committee is not a standing body. CPDI recommends that such complaints be submitted to the Speaker’s Office, which must establish the committee within 30 days of receiving a complaint to ensure timely and fair proceedings.
Mukhtar Ahmad Ali, Executive Director of CPDI, stated, “As the nation celebrates April 10 as the day when the 1973 Constitution was passed by the National Assembly, it is important to reflect on the significance of constitutional rights like Article 19A. The insertion of this article was a groundbreaking moment for transparency and accountability in Pakistan. However, without independent, functional, and well-structured information commissions, this right remains largely symbolic. There is an urgent need to remove the identified anomalies and align the laws with the constitutional spirit and international best practices.”
CPDI reaffirms its commitment to supporting reforms that will make information commissions across the country more credible, independent, and capable of protecting and promoting citizens’ constitutional right of access to information.
