Ombudsman calls for efficiency in issuance of permits for filling stations

Delays in accessing licences to set up filling stations inconvenience investors, according to the Office of the Ombudsman. It recommended that the regulation for such businesses should be streamlined to address the problem. The recommendation was made on Monday, January 8, as the Lower Chamber of Parliament’s Committee on Political Affairs and Gender analysed the report of the Office of the Ombudsman for the financial year 2022/2023. This is one of the issues that the report exposed. It indicated that the issue stemmed from procedures that were followed in requesting and granting such licences in different public entities – including Rwanda Environment Management Authority (REMA), Rwanda Development Board (RDB), Rwanda Utilities Regulatory Authority (RURA), and the City of Kigali or districts. “This delayed the implementation of projects, and caused losses to investors,” the report reads in part. ALSO READ: Five key highlights from Ombudsman’s annual report According to the report, the Office of the Ombudsman held a meeting with the concerned public entities, and realised that there are measures that were taken, including working under a one-stop centre. The office requested that those entities should further improve their collaboration in assessing and expediting applications for building filling stations. It also recommended that there should be improvement in the regulations for such licences, and that it should be indicated when such licences can be available. The Deputy Ombudsman in charge of Preventing and Fighting Injustice, Odette Yankurije, said a filling station is a profitable business, as “many people want to venture into it. RURA tells us that they have hundreds of pending requests.” The issues that we observed in that business were based on how permits were issued, and inefficiency in the process, she said, indicating that “there are many licences that a person who wants to set up a filling station is required to have.” They include an environmental impact assessment licence, construction permit, and installation licence. “For instance, there was a case of a person who applied for setting up a filling station, and had licences from RDB and REMA, as well as RURA, but a district refused them a construction permit, yet it did not show tangible evidence it based on [for that],” she said. “They told us that it is the appreciation of the district. So, something based on appreciation, without showing a provision or a regulation, can sometimes create room for injustice or corruption,” she added. As a solution, apart from improving the legislation related to issuing filling station licences and adopting a one-stop centre approach, the Office of the Ombudsman requested that places where it is not allowed to set up such stations should be clearly indicated. “We see that those new products can help to address the loopholes for corruption and injustice resulting from those procedures, laws, and operations that are not effective,” she said.

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Ombudsman calls for efficiency in issuance of permits for filling stations