Watchdog urged to open more offices

The Ombudsman’s office should have permanent premises decentralised to at least district level as this will make it easier for the population to access the institution’s services.The call was made during a media practitioners’ training organised by the office of the Ombudsman this week. The training, which is part of a serialised programme held annually, aimed at strengthening the role of journalists in the fight against corruption and injustice to promote good governance.“There are people out there especially in rural areas who badly need services of the ombudsman but have no capacity to get to Kigali,” said Feston Muhire, a journalist working with Radio Izuba that operates in Ngoma District, Eastern Province.Currently, people who need services of the Ombudsman have to report their cases to the Kigali based office, call the toll-free 199 phone number or channel their petitions through email. Muhire noted that although the office of the ombudsman conducts periodic visits across the country, to respond to problems faced by the population, he pointed out that it is not efficient basing on the need.“Getting access to internet or even a phone--private or public so that people can log their complaints, is not easy in distant areas,” another journalist said during the discussions.He noted that with services of the Ombudsman coming closer to the population, people will be inspired to report corruption cases.Speaking to The New Times, Bernadette Kanzayire, the Deputy Ombudsman, said there are factors that currently limit her office from establishing permanent offices out of Kigali.“We are aware of the problem, but our budget can not enable us to get to that level at this time,” she said.Kanzayire had also earlier told journalists that decentralising their services to local administrative units could lead to interfering with local leader`s responsibilities.During the training, among others, journalists were trained on the corruption law and good service delivery and the need for public servants to declare their wealth in the fight against corruption.

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Watchdog urged to open more offices