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BASL calls for prompt pick of RTI Commission chairperson
View(s):The Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) has called for the immediate appointment of a new chairperson to the Right to Information Commission, warning that the prolonged vacancy is significantly undermining the commission’s ability to function.
In a letter dated August 1, BASL urged the Constitutional Council to act without delay and nominate the remaining member required to fully constitute the commission. The post has remained vacant since the resignation of retired Supreme Court Judge Upali Abeyratne on March 9.
Nearly five months on, no successor has been named. BASL, in a letter signed by President Rajeev Amarasuriya and Secretary A Galhena, described the position as “integral” to the commission’s operations and to the fulfillment of its responsibilities under the Right to Information Act No. 12 of 2016.
BASL pointed out that this was not the first time it had raised the matter. A previous letter had been sent to the Constitutional Council on May 28. However, the issue remains unresolved.
“The absence of a chairperson hampers the commission’s ability to operate efficiently and discharge its duties,” BASL said. The organisation emphasised that the commission, which is tasked with safeguarding public access to information, cannot properly fulfill its mandate while being structurally incomplete.
Describing the vacancy as both urgent and nationally important, the association urged the Constitutional Council to take “serious cognisance” of the issue. It expressed confidence that the council, aware of the public trust placed in it, would make a “most suitable and acceptable recommendation” to fill the vacancy without further delay.
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