ACCRA, Sept 29 (The African Portal) – Ghana’s Right to Information Commission (RTIC) has fined more than 60 state and private institutions a combined 5.6 million cedis ($430,000) for refusing to release public records, anti-graft group Corruption Watch Ghana said on Monday.
The penalties, issued between February and July this year, targeted key agencies including parliament, the judiciary, the attorney-general’s department and the police, according to a report by Corruption Watch, an initiative of the Ghana Center for Democratic Development.
The Ghana Police Service has already paid 450,357 cedis, while parliament and the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) have settled 53,785 cedis and 200,000 cedis respectively.
The judiciary, the attorney-general’s department and the Public Procurement Authority still owe fines ranging between 50,000 and 100,000 cedis, the report said.
Among private institutions, the Agricultural Development Bank faced the heaviest penalty, paying 1.36 million cedis. Other agencies penalised include the Ministry of Education, Lands Commission and Ghana Audit Service.
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“Some key governance institutions, which should promote access to information, are either refusing or failing to comply with the Right to Information law by denying access to information requested by citizens,” Corruption Watch said.
The group warned that taxpayers’ money was being used by public institutions to settle the fines, which were imposed in more than 70 rulings by the RTIC.
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The investigation was carried out in partnership with Transparency International Ghana, the Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition, the Africa Center for International Law and Accountability, and media partners Joy FM and Adom FM, with support from the European Union.
