ADVOKS GLOBAL · KENYA
Access to Information Act
28. Offences and penalties
Edition: 2022-12-31 · In force
28. Offences and penalties
(1)Any person who knowingly discloses exempt information in contravention of this Act commits an offence and is liable, on conviction, to a fine not exceeding one million shillings, or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years, or both.(2)It shall be a defence to a charge under subsection (1) that the exempt information disclosed was already in the public domain at the time of disclosure.(3)An information access officer who—(a)refuses to assist a requester who is unable to write to reduce the oral request to writing in the prescribed form and provide a copy to the applicant in accordance with section 8(2);(b)refuses to accept a request for information;(c)fails to respond to a request for information within the prescribed time; or(d)fails to comply with the duty to take reasonable steps to make information available in a form that is capable of being read, viewed or heard by a requester with disability in accordance with section 11(3), commits an offence and is liable, on conviction, to a fine not exceeding fifty thousand shillings, or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three months, or both.(4)Any person who—(a)charges a fee exceeding the actual costs of making copies of such information and supplying them to the applicant;(b)fails to respond to a request for information required for the exercise or protection of a right in accordance with the requirements of this Act;(c)fails to respond to a request to correct personal information; or(d)it having been ascertained that information held is out of date,inaccurate or incomplete, fails within the prescribed time, or within a reasonable time if no time is prescribed, to correct, destroy or delete the information, or to attach a statement to the information in accordance with section 13, commits an offence and is liable, on conviction, to a fine not exceeding one hundred thousand shillings, or imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or both.(5)Any person who is convicted of an offence under section 18(3) after a request has been made for disclosure of the information in question, with the intention of preventing the disclosure of that information in response to that request is liable to a fine not exceeding five hundred thousand shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years, or to both.(6)Any relevant private body that fails to make publicly available the name and contact details of its information access officer or officers commits and offence and is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding five hundred thousand shillings.(7)Any relevant private body that is convicted, or any officer of which is convicted of an offence under this Act, or which, although not convicted is in serious breach of this Act may, after a fair hearing, be debarred from entering into any future contract with government under the laws relating to matters of procurement and disposal.(8)A person who—(a)fails to attend before the Commission in accordance with any summons or order issued under subsection 23(1)(a);(b)knowingly gives any false or misleading statement of information to the Commission; or(c)causes an obstruction or disturbance in the course of any proceedings before the Commission,commits an offence and shall be liable, on conviction, to a fine not exceeding three hundred thousand shillings, or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or to both.(9)A person shall not be criminally liable for the disclosure or authorisation of the disclosure made in good faith in reliance on this Act.(10)A person to whom information is disclosed under this Act, conveys that information to others but who alters the information, or conceals part of the information or misrepresents the information, with intent to deceive, commits an offence, and is liable on conviction to fine not exceeding two hundred thousand shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year, or to both.Case law referring to this provision