manager; for a national department it would be the
Director General; for a body such as the South African
Human Rights Commission it would be the CEO.
The Deputy Information Officer (sometimes referred to
as DIO) is the person designated by the Information
Officer of a public body to assist the requester in their
information request.
PAIA does not provide for private bodies to designate a
Deputy Information Officer, however it is recommended
by the South African Human Rights Commission that
they do so for efficiency and convenience.
(For more information on the roles of Information
Officers see Section 3 of this Guide).
Internal Appeal (Form B)
Requesters would use PAIA Form B to appeal a decision
made only by the national, provincial or municipal
spheres of government regarding access to information.
(For further information on internal appeals see Section
3 of this Guide).
Juristic person
A company or body which is recognized by law as a
single entity or ‘person’ having rights and duties.
Minister
References to the Minister are in relation to the
Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development.
Natural person
A real person, as opposed to a legal or juristic person
such as a corporation (see juristic person above).
Private body
(Also referred to as a private company, institution, or
body), this is a natural or juristic person or partnership
who is involved or has been involved in any trade,
business or profession and only in that capacity.
Public body
(Also referred to as a public institution, department, or
body), this is any department or institution of the
national, provincial and local spheres of government. It
also includes any institution that is performing a
function or duty of the state at the time at which the
record in question was created.
South African Human Rights Commission
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