Some of Ghana’s foremost oversight and accountability institutions, including Parliament, the Judiciary, the Attorney-General’s Department, and the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), have been fined for breaching the country’s Right to Information (RTI) law, a Corruption Watch investigation has found.
The investigation highlights a paradox, institutions meant to guarantee openness are themselves resisting public scrutiny. Legal experts warn that because the fines are settled from institutional budgets, largely funded by taxpayers, officials face no personal consequences for obstructing access.
Among those fined are agencies tasked with upholding transparency and the rule of law. Parliament has paid GH₵53,785, while the Judiciary owes GH₵100,000 and the Attorney-General’s Department GH₵50,000. CHRAJ, mandated to promote human rights and accountability, has yet to pay a GH₵30,000 fine.
Other violators include the Ghana Police Service, which has paid GH₵450,357, and the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), which has settled GH₵200,000. The heaviest penalty to date was paid by the Agricultural Development Bank at GH₵1.365 million.
The review shows that as of July 2025, the RTI Commission (RTIC) had imposed penalties totaling about GH₵5.6 million on 64 institutions for refusing or failing to provide information requested by citizens. Of this, 23 institutions have paid nearly GH₵3.5 million, while 36 others still owe over GH₵2.1 million.
Under the RTI Act, passed in 2019 after decades of advocacy, citizens are entitled to request information from public bodies. The law was intended to enhance transparency, strengthen accountability, and curb corruption. Yet, Corruption Watch’s findings suggest uneven compliance, with rejection rates for requests rising from 4.6 % in 2022 to 16 % in 2023.
The RTIC insists that fines do not absolve institutions of their obligation to release information. “A fine is never a substitute for information being requested,” said Executive Secretary Genevieve Shirley Lartey.
The report, titled “Saga Over RTI: Millions Paid as Penalty”, underscores the gap between Ghana’s legal framework on transparency and the conduct of its most important governance bodies.
