Several right to information bills are being worked on in Kenya, including one recently announced by Attorney General Githu Muigai.
Muigai now has cleared the publication of that bill, according to an article in The Star.
“If enacted by the National Assembly and the Senate, it will bestow the Commission on Administrative Justice its oversight and enforcement functions,” according to the newspaper.
“The Bill provides for a fine not exceeding Sh500,000 [$5,700] or imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or both on individuals who alter, block or erase any part of information an applicant wants,” according to the report.
The bill was considered by the Commission on the Implementation of the Constitution and the office of the Attorney General and the Ministry of Information and Communication.
Another bill is being written by the Legal Affairs Committee of the National Assembly, building on a draft from 2012.
The committee has obtained the permission of the Speaker to bring the bill forward to the Parliament, according to a person familiar with the situation.
Efforts have been under way for four years to develop a FOI bill that would implement a 2010 constitutional provision guaranteeing access to information.
Filed under: What's New