Page:Promotion of Access to Information Act 2000.djvu/14

14 No. 20852

Act No. 2, 2000 (2) The information officer of a public body has direction and control over every deputy information officer of that body.

(3) The information officer of a public body may delegate a power or duty conferred or imposed on that information officer by this Act to a deputy information officer of that public body

(4) In deciding whether to delegate a power or duty in terms of subsection (3), the information officer must give due consideration to the need to render the public body as accessible as reasonably possible for requesters of its records.

(5) Any power or duty delegated in terms of subsection (3) must be exercised or performed subject to such conditions as the person who made the delegation considers necessary.

(6) Any delegation in terms of subsection (3)—

must be in writing;

does not prohibit the person who made the delegation from exercising the power concerned or performing the duty concerned himself or herself; and

may at any time be withdrawn or amended in writing by that person.

(7) Any right or privilege acquired, or any obligation or liability incurred, as a result of a decision in terms of a delegation in terms of subsection (3) is not affected by any subsequent withdrawal or amendment of that decision.

Form of requests

18. (1) A request for access must be made in the prescribed form to the information officer of the public body concerned at his or her address or fax number or electronic mail address.

(2) The form for a request of access prescribed for the purposes of subsection (1) must at least require the requester concerned—

to provide sufficient particulars to enable an official of the public body concerned to identify—

the record or records requested; and

the requester;

to indicate which applicable form of access referred to in section 29(2) is required;

to state whether the record concerned is preferred in a particular language;

to specify a postal address or fax number of the requester in the Republic;

if, in addition to a written reply, the requester wishes to be informed of the decision on the request in any other manner, to state that manner and the necessary particulars to be so informed; and

if the request is made on behalf of a person, to submit proof of the capacity in which the requester is making the request, to the reasonable satisfaction of the information officer.

(3)(a) An individual who because of illiteracy or a disability is unable to make a request for access to a record of a public body in accordance with subsection (1), may make that request orally.

(b) The information officer of that body must reduce that oral request to writing in the prescribed form and provide a copy thereof to the requester.

Duty to assist requesters

19. (1) If a requester informs the information officer of—

a public body that he or she wishes to make a request for access to a record of that public body; or

a public body (other than a public body referred to in paragraph (a) or (b)(i) of the definition of “public body” in section 1 that he or she wishes to make a request for access to a record of another public body,

the information officer must render such reasonable assistance, free of charge, as is necessary to enable that requester to comply with section 18(1).

(2) If a requester has made a request for access that does not comply with section 18(1), the information officer concerned may not refuse the request because of that non-compliance unless the information officer has—

notified that requester of an intention to refuse the request and stated in the notice—

the reasons for the contemplated refusal; and