KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 8 — Bersih 2.0 wants Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad to publicly disclose the reports and findings of the Council of Eminent Persons (CEP) and the Institutional Reform Committee (IRC).
Bersih’s Steering Committee said Dr Mahathir should also reveal the actions that have been taken by the government on the reports’ recommendations.
“A lack of transparency and accountability undermines public trust and erodes the goodwill garnered by the Pakatan Harapan government after the 14th general election,” the committee said in a statement.
It added that one of the reasons Pakatan Harapan (PH) was voted in was due to its promise of higher transparency and integrity than its predecessor, and that it should not repeat Barisan Nasional’s (BN) past mistakes.
“The right to information is essential in accountable and corruption (controlled) governance.
There is a pressing need for the reports to be made public either as green or white papers so the people can review its recommendations and spur public discussions.
“If there are sensitive parts of the reports that can threaten public order or national security, these can be redacted, but this alone should not be the reason for holding back its release,” they said.
Noting the CEP interviewed over 350 people from 300 organisations, the committee also said the IRC reviewed over 1,000 written submissions from the public and stakeholders, as well as held meetings with civil society organisations.
“When they were invited to make submissions, the public expected their views and proposals to be considered during the recommendations’ formulating process. Yet, how would they know if it and their views are being taken seriously without the reports’ public disclosure?
“We reiterate our call for the introduction of comprehensive national right to information law to ensure transparency and accountability. PH’s manifesto promise to enact a Freedom of Information Act as part of its fight against corruption is commendable and should be fulfilled without delay,” they said.
