Once again, our government has quietly modified the systems, we use to ensure accountability, without consultation.
The already painfully slow Access to Information process was revamped to now include a requirement for legal identification to be submitted along with the request. The Treasury Board’s Regulatory Impact Analysis Statement has outlined the need for this requirement to “ensure an individual making a request under the Act has the right to do so” but did not elaborate as to what might have prompted the sudden need for change. Further clarification was offered by Mona Fortier, saying this is to “ensure the requester is a Canadian citizen, permanent resident or person present in Canada”. Previous submissions required an individual to attest to their Canadian citizenship.
Prior to the change, the process was already notoriously burdened with red tape. Many requests take years, with hundreds going unanswered completely. This new requirement will only exacerbate an all but broken system.
In response to the question of how long has his longest wait time been for a request, retired Canadian Press reporter, Dean Beeby, summed it up perfectly: “It would be in the order of 10 years,” adding that wait times are “terrible and getting worse” as the government “realizes they face much bigger blowback from releasing information than from withholding”.
How many crimes against the Canadian people might we uncover if we only know what information to request? It is doubtful we will ever know the full extent, but we must continue to chip away no matter how many hurdles they throw up in front of us. We must demand transparency and accountability! These are the only conditions that can bring Canadians back to a position of trust, and it is sadly obvious that we will likely never see this from our current leadership.
We stand with all who fight for a free country where our government works for us, with respect for our citizens, honesty, and transparency. Nothing less will do.
To read the auricle written by Anthony Murdoch of Life Site News, click here
Can we have a website, that people can contact others with what they are requesting. Maybe two people want the same documents, they can work together. Or drum up support. If they get 100s of signature, maybe things will move along faster.