The Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF) is facing growing scrutiny after failing to respond to two separate Right to Information (RTI) requests submitted by a former member of its Board of Directors, raising concerns over transparency and compliance with statutory obligations.
The former board member filed the requests on 26 September 2025 and 14 October 2025, seeking detailed records on MIIF’s financial performance, audited accounts, and adherence to reporting requirements under the Minerals Income Investment Fund Act, 2018 (Act 978).
Both requests centred on whether MIIF had complied with Section 38 of Act 978, which mandates the Fund to prepare and submit an annual report to the Minister for Finance within one month of receiving its audit report.
Despite the clarity of the law, MIIF did not issue any response within the timeframe required under the Right to Information Act, 2019 (Act 989), which obliges public institutions to determine and communicate a decision on RTI applications within fourteen days. The statutory deadlines—10 October and 28 October 2025—passed without any determination from MIIF.
By operation of law, both applications are now deemed to have been refused.
The silence from MIIF is particularly striking because the requester served on the Board during the period to which the information relates.
The requests sought disclosure of MIIF’s audited financial statements for the 2024 financial year, details of revenue inflows, and confirmation of whether the Fund had met its statutory reporting duties.
To date, MIIF has neither provided the information nor issued lawful reasons for its failure to comply. No exemptions under the RTI Act have been invoked, and no notices of extension or clarification have been communicated.
Governance and legal experts have described the Fund’s non-response as a serious violation of its transparency obligations under both Act 989 and Act 978.
They note that Act 989 imposes strict obligations on public institutions to promote openness, provide timely responses, and justify any refusal in accordance with the exemptions outlined in the law.
Equally, sections 36(3) and 36(4) of the MIIF Act place explicit responsibilities on the Fund to uphold accountability and ensure public access to information.
The Act requires MIIF’s annual reports to be “readily available to the public” and directs the Minister, Board, and Advisory Committee to entrench transparency in all dealings of the institution.
The failure to respond to the RTI requests has therefore heightened concerns about governance practices at MIIF and its commitment to statutory transparency requirements.
