Govt agrees to enact Freedom of Information Act

The Special Cabinet Committee on National Governance has agreed in principle to enact a Freedom of Information Act, said the Prime Minister’s Office.

According to the PMO, this would include creating “clear parameters and guidelines” for the public to access information from the government and public agencies.

“In line with this decision, the Official Secrets Act 1972 will be amended accordingly,” it added in a statement this evening.

The PMO said this step is taken to ensure that public service can be improved and to encourage public participation in the process of crafting national policies.

On the same note, expressing the government’s concern over leakages, the PMO said the committee also agreed to draft a Government Procurement Bill to strengthen the procurement process from a legal standpoint and to ensure that those involved are more responsible.

“The meeting also agreed that transparency must be taken into account in drafting the bill by establishing a mechanism for complaints and objections which meets international standards,” it added.

Apart from this, the PMO said the meeting also took cognisance of the 18 resolutions from the two national research conferences in 2022 and 2023.

This is in relation to the recommendations put forth to improve good governance, integrity, and anti-corruption from the legal and policy aspects. 

“The resolutions will be scrutinised (in order) to become part of the input for the development of the new National Anti-Corruption Strategy,” it added.

Meanwhile, the PMO said to ensure that the subsidiaries of statutory bodies are administered in a more professional manner based on the principles of good governance, the aspect of monitoring must be given attention.

“The (special committee) meeting agreed that the existing and new legal frameworks will be scrutinised towards good governance among entities with government interests,” it added.

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim chaired the special cabinet committee meeting. 

In a Facebook post this evening, Anwar said his administration would continue its efforts towards good governance.

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