The Public Information Officer is directed to provide the requested information about gifts received by the Prime Minister Imran Khan from foreign head of state, head of the government & other foreign dignitaries from 18 August 2018 to 31 October 2020, description/specification of each gift, information about the gifts retained by the Prime Minister and the Rules under which gifts thus received are retained by the recipients.
To the question as to “How many gifts did the Prime Minister Imran Khan receive from foreign head of state, head of the government & other foreign dignitaries from 18 August 2018 to 31 October 2020”, the Respondent maintained that the requested information was “Classified matter vides section-7(f) & clause 16(ii) of Right of access to Information Act”. In fact, the Respondent has denied access to each item of the requested information by citing “section-7(f) & clause 16(ii) of Right of access to Information Act”. Even the requested item of information about the rules under which gifts received from the foreign dignities are retained by the Prime Minister has been exempted under these sections. As such, the powers vested in the Officer have not been exercised “reasonably, fairly, justly, and for the advancement of the purposes of the enactment” as required under Section24A (1) of the General Clauses Act 1897.
It is not certified information but absence of certified information that contributes to ‘media hype’ and resulted in ‘unwarranted stories’, creating trust-deficit between citizens and public institutions. Certified requested information will dispel rumours about the reporting of the gifts to ‘Tosha ‘Khana’ by the public officials and their retention price and which elected representative or public official retained which gift at what price.
When certified information about these gifts will be made available in the public domain for everyone to see, citizen of Pakistan will know that the gifts received on their behalf are being properly managed. Availability of the certified information about the gifts deposited in ‘Tosha Khana’ in public domain will not only make the entire process about the management of these gifts open and transparent, it will contribute to reducing trust-deficit between citizens and public institutions contributed by opacity and secretive ways of functioning of public institutions. Even citizens of the states on whose behalf gifts are received by our elected representatives and public officials will come to know that their gifts are properly managed, resultantly strengthening people-to-people and inter-state relations.
Certified requested information will dispel rumours about the reporting of the gifts to ‘Tosha ‘Khana’ by the public officials and their retention price and which elected representative or public official retained which gift at what price.
This commission is of the view that public interest in terms of promoting transparency and accountability through the disclosure of requested information far outweighs any likely harm, if at all, to inter-state relations. In fact, such a disclosure is likely to strengthen inter-state relations.