World Ombudsman Day: We must join hands to ensure, unity – FCT complaints commissioner.

By Sadiq Abubakar, Abuja

As the Nigerian Ombudsman institution joins other countries of the world to mark this day with a message of diversity and unity in line with this year’s theme for the celebration which is; Diverse in Role. United in Service, the FCT commissioner for Public Complaints Commission (PCC) Mr Ezekiel Musa Dalhatu has said that all hands must be deck in order to ensure and unity of the country irrespective of tribal, religious and ethnic affiliations.

H le said the Ombudsman institution is widely recognized as an effective device of curbing official abuse in public administration.

“It is a system which shows how the rule of law should be implemented to protect the rights of the people as enshrined in the constitution and other laws and regulations,” he said.

According to him, in performing its functions, the Ombudsman does not only check on the excesses of public officials but helps government to correct its errors that have been made involuntarily or otherwise thereby ensuring good governance.

He said the Public Complaints Commission (PCC) the Nigeria’s version of the Ombudsman was established in 1975 and entrenched in the 1999 constitution( as amended), which he said was specifically captured under S.315 (5) (b) of the constitution.

He said the commission is empowered by its enabling Act to conduct proactive and reactive investigation into complaints lodged before it in respect of administrative actions and inactions of the federal, state, local governments, public institutions and corporate companies.

He, however, stated that the implication of such statutory provisions is that, the PCC is vested with the responsibility of curbing and correcting all forms of unholy practices, which he said directly or indirectly affects normal public administration in both private and public institutions.

Musa, said the commission has over the years serves as a veritable instrument that protects the citizens against abuse by those in power and helps the government to perform better by becoming accountable to the people.

“And it is on this premise that today, I call on all and sundry; government institutions, corporate organizations, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO) young and old to put all hands on deck and join in the country’s search for resolutions to the many protracted conflicts that have plagued our peaceful co-existence as a nation,” he said.