Penang FOI Committee Chairman P Ramasamy said the state executive council decided to loosen the rules pertaining to the disclosure of documents from the FOI after deliberating on the matter at a meeting today.
However, he said sworn statements were still required upon receipt of documents obtained from the FOI to ensure applicants do not misuse them or use them for commercial gain.
“Statutory declarations (SD) are only for documents which are declassified. They can apply for these materials, but they have to sign the SD that they won’t be used for commercial purposes.
“On a query if these documents can be used in press conferences… yes, we have decided to allow it based on an agreement reached at the state executive council today,” Ramasamy said.
Recently, a Gerakan leader claimed that his application for documents pertaining to the Penang undersea tunnel and three paired roads project under the FOI was fraught with problems as there were too many restrictions.
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