Over failure to provide information about electricity inputs installation during last three years in District Tank, Pakistan Information Commission (PIC) has imposed penalty of fine equivalent to salary of 15 days on Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Peshawar Electric Supply Company (PESCO).
A citizen, Wasim Mehsud, has sought information from PESCO regarding list of transformers, HT and LT poles, and different wires installed in District Tank for the past three years. The information seeker Mehsud also requested the PESCO to provide details relating to location of these installations, the type of equipment used, and any maintenance or repair work conducted during this period. Additionally, he requested details about officials responsible for collecting money on illegal connections, along with any inquiry conducted regarding this practice.
Despite multiple hearing notices issued to PESCO, no representative appeared before the Commission. Consequently, the Commission proceeded with ex-parte proceedings and directed PESCO to share the requested information within 10 days, excluding the location of installations due to security concerns.
Taking up the appeal, a two-member panel of the PIC comprising Chief Information Commissioner Shoaib Ahmed Siddiqui and Information Commissioner Ijaz Hassan Awan find that CEO of the PESCO failed to comply with the PIC’s order as he neither submitted response nor appeared before the Commission even after a show cause notice was served to him.
Exercising its jurisdiction under Section 20(f) of the Right of Access to Information Act 2017 the Panel imposed a fine on the CEO and issued directives to Secretary, Ministry of Energy (Power Division) to recover the penalty from the CEO’s salary and submit compliance report. Besides, the Commission reiterated its previous order requiring the PESCO to share the requested information without laps of time to the information seeker.
