This commission is of the view that a citizen has the right of access to certified copy of his or her own application/complaint filed with a federal public body. It is reasonable to expect from public bodies to maintain proper record of applications filed by citizens for redressal of their grievances.
This commission is of the view that citizens have the right of access to information pertaining to actions taken on their complaints/applications by federal public bodies and paper-trail generated thereof. In fact, had the Respondent kept apprised the Appellant about the steps taken on his application, he would not have filed request for information in the first place. Furthermore, access to information about the steps taken by the Respondent on the application of the Appellant would reveal whether the Respondent had initiated action on the application when it was earlier received by the Respondent or after the request for information filed by the Appellant.