QUESTIONS are being asked about Government’s commitment to the Freedom of Information Act as moves continue to quietly downsize the Freedom of Information Division which now falls under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Communications.
Questioned on the matter at Thursday’s Post-Cabinet Media Conference, Foreign Affairs and Communications Minister Suruj Rambachan would only state that the Unit was still in operation and that he would make another statement at a later date.
The Division acts as a secretariat for co-ordination among ministries and to provide training and information to Government agencies and the public. It has a Cabinet approved structure for five persons but it is now down to just one employee, a business operations assistant, as the Ministry failed to renew the contracts of Rishi Maharaj the last Senior Freedom of Information Officer and head of the Unit and Andrea Julien who was a Freedom of Information Officer attached to the Ministry.
“It is strange how this government which got into power by using the FOIA to access information is now trying to stop the process by restricting access to information,” said one official familiar with the operations of the Ministry.
Public officials say the downsizing of the Unit is deliberate as the Ministry is intent on restricting access to information. A check of the website by the TnT Mirror on Friday shows the Unit still advertised as falling under the Office of the Prime Minister in Nicholas Towers, Port of Spain and Maharaj and Julien are still advertised as holding their positions although the only person employed there is a relatively junior Business Operations Assistant, Joanne Balgobin.
http://www.tntmirror.com/2012/02/12/government-downsizing-foia
