Non-transparent, Mysterious Government Data?
จากไชต์: Office of The National Anti - Corruption Commission (ONACC)
จำนวนผู้เข้าชม: 148
A general election has passed by and many people may wonder if change will substantially occur if the political spectrum switches from one side to another.
Thus, the new government should not forget about transparency which could prompt the phenomenal creation of an Open Government after Thailand has awaited genuine transparency for a long time.
The Open Government is one which possesses morality, transparency and responsibility in the execution of the country where laws, regulations, fundamental data and performances are evidently disclosed to those who may have vested interests and to the people who may participate in the implementation of government projects.
The Open Government cannot be independent of an open bureaucratic system and open data on the basis of good governance. Open data are a significant foundation for the development of a transparent government.
Nonetheless, one would exaggerate to say Thailand is being run by the Open Government as far as many government agencies have not yet done enough though they may have been inclined to make improvements in regard to open data.
Over the last several years, Thailand has been steered in the course of open data under two relevant laws, namely the Official Information Act B.E. 2540 (1997) and the Digitalization of Public Administration and Services Delivery Act B.E. 2562 (2019). Besides, policies and regulations imposed by each government agency may have been attributed to open data on a leniency basis.
Thus, open data may be gradually developed for transparency reasons though only some parts of the government data may have been disclosed whilst others may have been hidden.
Remarkably, most of the data accessible to the people may only pertain to quantitative statistics or academic references rather than showcase the government agencies' operations, allocation and imbursement of funds or pro-transparency, anti-corruption performances.
Nonetheless, the government data pertaining to varied matters ranging from administration, management, planning, funding and operations to evaluation may only be disclosed on a restricted and limited basis.
The people would find it very difficult to access data sets pertaining to certain government units in charge of implementing any projects. For starters, the people themselves may have to locate the sources of the data for which they are searching. To see the big picture of something, one would probably need a great deal of energy to find and collect the relevant data.
The principles for open data which could be as yet complicated are compatible with the Global Open Data Index conducted by the Foundation for Open Knowledge International which indicates that Thailand's data disclosure has remained at an alarming status.
In 2015, Thailand ranked 51st on a data disclosure chart among a total of 94 countries worldwide, only accounting for 34%, compared to Taiwan which ranked on top with 90%.
That compared to Thailand ranking 77th among 140 countries worldwide in 2022 on the World Justice Project (WJP) Rule of Law and Open Government Index conducted by the World Justice Project, featuring the dissemination of laws and government data and the people's right to access the data and to participate in the implementation of government projects. Thailand's ranking in 2022 was roughly equal to 2021 but worse than 2020 where it ranked 61st on a list of 128 countries.
Many loopholes remain when it comes to the government's open data because the procedures for access to open data sets are so complicated as though one was taking a daredevil adventure to obtain them. Needless to say, government data sets are there but it could probably be such a painstaking task for the people to obtain full access to them.
One may virtually liken difficulties of accessing open data to seeing a horror movie, leaving the viewer to judge whether Thailand may potentially have an Open Government or not.
Horror 1: Delusion of Principles
Thailand may only have upheld the principles for open data without practically disclosing much of anything in spite of the relevant laws, regulations, policies and agreements purportedly provided for transparency reasons.
For starters, the laws and regulations could practically be tantamount to legal restrictions which may ultimately compromise the significance of the principles for open data.
Given so many regulations, one may often find contradictions between government agencies. For instance, some data sets could be generally disclosed under the Official Information Act but a government agency may concurrently apply the Personal Data Protection Act to overrule and deny them.
The denial could probably violate the international criteria for open data on grounds of being open by default whilst the government agency concerned should have given explanations for any exemption to the principles for open data.
Horror 2: Sacred Rituals
Government agencies may have gone through methodical procedures and regulations before any data sets may be accessible to the people. For instance, officials would need steps of approval from their superiors for data disclosure. On the positive side, it would be such a good approach to working in pecking order, following the operational procedures and conducting a repetitive internal examination of data prior to disclosure.
On the other hand, the official rituals for data disclosure could practically obstruct progress and unnecessarily render a time-consuming process so much so that by the time any data sets are accessible to the people, they would already be outdated and useless.
Thus, a timeframe and technology in the procedures for open data should be efficiently applied to provide conveniences for the people.
Horror 3: Ghost Hunts
One could not rest assured whether open data would be efficient to some extent as though one was virtually waiting to see in what sight and sound the ghost may appear. The format for some open data sets could probably be blurred and foul. In some cases, they may be contained in a print document or photo file or in handwritten text or written with a pencil. It would be very difficult to re-use such a type of open data sets because they cannot be analyzed by a basic software program.
That type of open data could by no means warrant the government's transparency. The open data should contain digital quality and precise accounts so that a computer can constantly read them. Besides, conveniences should be provided for the people's access, follow-ups, examination and uses of open data free of charge in accordance with the relevant international standards.
Final Horror: Worshipped Image
In order to find out how efficient the government's performances toward open data could be, evaluation should ultimately be conducted. When open data are requested from several government agencies, they would often cite the ITA and OIT of the Office of the National Anti-Corruption Commission, saying the established criteria are comprehensive and adequate. Besides, they would interpret an annual evaluation of their performances as a success in data disclosure.
In order to keep government agencies from being captivated by the Worshipped Image, they should see to it that their open data will be constantly available in quality and efficiency.
The people should see for themselves whether the Open Government's open data may be provided in transparency or yet shrouded in secrecy. Finally, it remains to be seen how efficient the steering of the Open Government's open data policy could be.
- Sutthirat Patcharawuthipan
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