Remarks by Chair - Second Colloquium

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REMARKS BY COMMISSIONER (DR) OTIENDE AMOLLO

DURING THE OPENING OF THE SECOND REGIONAL

COLLOQUIUM OF AFRICAN OMBUDSMAN AT THE SAFARI

PARK HOTEL ON 19TH FEBRUARY 2015

1.Hon. Anne Waiguru, Cabinet Secretary for Devolution and Planning, Kenya,

2.Hon. Justice Dr. Emmanuel Ugirashebuja, President of EACJ

3.Hon. Prof. Githu Muigai, Attorney General of the Republic of Kenya,

4.H.E. Nardos Bekele-Thomas, Resident Co-ordinator of the United Nations &

Resident Representative of UNDP,

5.Hon. Adv. John Walters, President of IOI & Ombudsman of Namibia,

6.Hon. Dr. Fozia Amin, President of AOMA & Ombudsman of Ethiopia,

7.Hon. Dr. Paulo Tjipilika, Immediate Former President of AOMA &

Ombudsman of Angola

8.Hon. Adv. Thuli Madonsela, Immediate Former Executive Secretary of AOMA

& the Public Protector of South Africa

9.Hon. Elisabet Fura, Chief Parliamentary Ombudsman of Sweden

10.Hon. Deborah Alima Traore Diallo, Ombudsman of Burkina Faso

11.Hon. Dr. Mohammed Rukara, 2nd Vice-President of AOMA & Ombudsman of

Burundi

12.Hon. Patricia Myriam Isimat-Mirin, Special Advisor, Office of theOmbudsman of Cote D’Ivoire

13.Hon. Alfred Kaweza, Deputy Ombudsman of Zambia

14.Hon. Justice Tujilane Chizumila (Rtd), Ombudsman of Malawi

15.Hon. Edmond Kadoni Cowan, Ombudsman of Sierra Leone

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16.Hon. Adv. Ahmed Eltigani Algaali, Ombudsman of Sudan

17.Hon. Arlene Brock, Former Ombudsman of Bermuda

18.Hon. Jose Abudo, Ombudsman of Mozambique

19.Hon. Souleiman Miyir Ali, Ombudsman of Djibouti

20.Hon. Festina Bakwena, Ombudsman of Botswana

21.Hon. Ousman Nyang’, Deputy Ombudsman of the Gambia

22.Hon. Sabelo Masuku, Acting Commissioner, Swaziland Human Rights

Commission

23.Hon. Mohammed Essebar, Secretary General of the Moroccan NHRI

24.Hon. Barr Bala, Director of Investigations, Public Complaints Commission of

Nigeria

25.H.E. Ambassador of Finland to Kenya…

26.Chairpersons and Members of Constitutional Commissions and Holders of

Independent Offices in Kenya

27.Distinguished Delegates,

Ladies and Gentlemen:

On behalf of the Commission on Administrative Justice, I am pleased to welcomeyou to the Second Regional Colloquium for African Ombudsman Institutions. As

the Kenyan Office of the Ombudsman, we are particularly honoured by your

presence and support for the Colloquium. Looking across this Conference Hall, I

can see a constellation of distinguished guests and scholars from various parts of

Africa and beyond who have gathered to enrich the practice of ombudsmanship,

particularly on the continent. To say that we are honoured would be an

understatement. Your response and support have been overwhelming. This is

indeed a testament of your commitment to good administration and good

governance in Africa to propel the continent to her rightful place at the table of

nations. The wide representation at this Colloquium will undoubtedly make the

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discussions not only exhilarating, but also proffer invaluable insights on best

practices on ombudsmanship.

Allow me to thank everybody for the support and co-operation in the

organization of this event. In particular, I wish to thank the Government of

Kenya and the United Nations Development Programme for their support that

has enabled us to actualize this goal. I also wish to thank the Commissioners and

staff of the Commission for their commitment and discipline that has enabled the

Commission to set the pace in matters of administrative justice and good

governance.

Ombudsman and Governance


The Ombudsman institution is important instrument of accountability in public

administration. The world over, it is one of the fundamental watchdog

institutions that support good governance and democratic development. The

centrality of an Ombudsman is derived from the need to provide citizens with an

institution within the democratic framework which enjoys independence andpublic confidence, and to whom citizens can have easy access for the redress of

their grievances. It is equally important that such system should be cheap,

accessible, expeditious, impartial, objective, independent and held in high

esteem.

According to the Human Development Report of 2002 on the theme ‘Deepening

Democracy in a Fragmented World,’ the establishment of an Ombudsman is animportant step to making democracy effective and meaningful. The ombudsman

also contributes to strengthening public confidence in the government thereby

enhancing public administration. This, it achieves by striking at the root of

maladministration such as injustice, delay, negligence, unreasonableness,

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improper, discriminatory and unjust action, oppressive behaviour on the part of

the administration.

The presence of the Ombudsman has a ‘tonic effect’ on public administrationsimply because public officials are always careful that rules and regulations, if

applied wrongly, their decisions may be questioned. Due to this, the

Ombudsman has been described as ‘an administrative doctor’ and ‘auditor-

general of human relations accounts. The growing faith in the Ombudsman as an

institution of accountability has seen global spread to over 150 countries in the

last 30 years, making it one of the fastest growing institutions in modern times.

The State of the Ombudsman in Africa


Like other regions in the world, the Ombudsman is one of the pillars of

governance and democracy in Africa. This explains the reason why it has grown

exponentially to over 34 countries from its humble beginnings in Tanzania in

1967. In my view, this development is a testament of the premium placed on the

Ombudsman by African states, as an oversight institution, capable of

transforming public administration.

One of the striking features of the Ombudsman in Africa is the modification of

the institution from its classical model to suit the circumstances of the particular

countries. This took the form of creating institutions with multiple competencies

with extensive powers that were hitherto unknown to the Ombudsman. A

number of Ombudsmen in Africa presently have enhanced investigative powers,and adjudicative powers, and offer any remedies, including compensation.

Although I am aware of that the adaptation in Africa has changed the character

of the classical Ombudsman, I hasten to add that such modification was

necessary in the context of the various African countries.

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While such development has been celebrated, the growth and presence of the

Ombudsman in a number of African countries has not been felt. Few countries

have been able to tackle the central challenges facing the institution, ranging from

their anchorage to operational effectiveness. In my respectful view, this situation

is historical. The post-independence African state deemed good governance as a

barrier to development which was the primary focus. However, this approach

fundamentally changed in the 1990s with the realisation that the two were

intertwined. Despite the foregoing, it is my position that many African countries

are yet to develop the culture of respect for the rule of law, a culture where noaction is taken in the absence of penal consequences. In that environment,

moralsuation cannot work; only the threat of or coercion works. If court orders

are ignored, how much would a recommendation by the Ombudsman achieve?

Worse still, implementation through parliamentary reporting has been

disappointing due to the politicization of the work of the ombudsman and lack

of sufficient scrutiny of the reports.

The ombudsman in Africa continuously find themselves in contradictory

situations where they are expected to be the people’s defenders or watchmen

against bad administration while at the same time bestowed with ‘soft’ powers

for operation. How can the Ombudsman fight puffery in government and

investigate high profile systemic issues and merely make recommendations? It is

my opinion that the ombudsman in Africa must have more than mere

recommendatory powers for it to be effective. The Ombudsman must not be

made to rely or depend on other instrumentalities of government in the

discharge of its functions. It would be preposterous to expect the ombudsman to

deliver on its mandate and gain the trust of the public while it has been rendered

ineffective or allowed to become a constitutional or statutory eunuch or toothless

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bulldog. I am well aware of the characteristics of the classical Ombudsman, but

posit that such model can no longer suffice, if the Ombudsman is to be relevant

in Africa.

Second Regional Colloquium of African Ombudsmen


This is the second time we are holding the Regional Colloquium of African

Ombudsman Institutions, the inaugural one having been held in September 2013

in Nairobi, Kenya. The Colloquium has provided a platform for benchmarking on

the operations of the Ombudsman in Africa. This provides a source of inspirationand support to each of us as we share ideas and experiences.

I hasten to add that while the inaugural Colloquium focused on the placement of

the Ombudsman in the governance structures within various African countries,

the Second Colloquium seeks to discuss ways of strengthening the institution to

respond to the unique needs and circumstances of Africa. This is aptly captured

in the theme of the present Conference‘Securing the Ombudsman as an Instrument

of Governance in Africa’which speaks to the contemporary issues facing the

Ombudsman in Africa. This, it seeks to achieve through an exquite analysis of the

role of the Ombudsman in Governance, Emerging Lessons in Investigations,

Ombudsman and the Courts and Enforcement of the Decisions of the

Ombudsman. These topics will serve to prompt us to re-evaluate our positions

and take appropriate action.

In this regard, the Colloquium will seek to answer the following questions:

i)What is the relevance of the Ombudsman in Africa’s governance process?

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ii)As a watchdog institution, how effective has the Ombudsman been in

executing its mandate in Africa?

iii)What strategies have we adopted to secure the implementation of our

recommendations and decisions?

iv)What is the relationship between the Ombudsman and the Court? How

has this played out in practice?

I have posed these questions as a way of preparing us for the various topics of the

Colloquium, which were carefully indentified for a discourse on various topical

issues on Ombudsmanship.

I wish to reiterate that the adoption of the Ombudsman in Africa must be

meaningful, and not merely salutary. Let us remember that service delivery and

governance in Africa will never be enhanced without oversight institutions, and

the Ombudsman as one of the oldest oversight institutions, must be given the

pride of place in Africa’s governance arena. In this regard, I invite you to have a

robust discussion of the issues relating to the above topics and share your wide

experiences on ombudsmanship.

Thank you and may God bless you.

DR. OTIENDE AMOLLO, EBS

CHAIRPERSON OF THE COMMISSION ON

ADMINISTRATIVE JUSTICE (OFFICE OF THE OMBUDSMAN) - KENYA

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Documents

Remarks by Chair - Second Colloquium