PAKISTAN | Ombudsman’s Office Plays Vital Role to Protect Public Rights

The Sixth Annual Ombud Day was celebrated recently all over the world, including Pakistan. A prestigious event was held at Lahore under the auspices of the Office of Ombudsman Punjab which was presided over by the Hon’ble Ombudsman Punjab Major Azam Suleman Khan (Retd) (Hilal-i-Imtiaz).

The event was attended by the senior officers of Ombudsman Punjab and by the officers incharge of other Ombudsmen offices located at Lahore which include Dr. Arshad Mahmood (Member Incharge, Wafaqi Mohtasib Regional Office, Lahore), Mr. Abdul Basit Khan (Adviser Incharge, Regional Office Insurance Ombudsman), Syed Sibt-e-Hassan (Senior Consultant, Ombudsperson Punjab) and Ms. Adeela Rehman (Adviser Incharge, Regional Office Federal Tax Ombudsman).

While addressing the audience, Major Azam Suleman Khan (Retd) impressed upon the elimination of corrupt practices and mismanagement in the public service delivery mechanism. He also dilated upon the pivotal role of the ombudsman office in the establishment of good governance so that the government departments and officials believe that they are accountable to the people and that there must be no negligence in this regard.

He emphasized that this is the only way to ensure the formation of a society based on justice, equality and transparency. He further added that this will strengthen people's trust in institutions. He also commended the efforts of all the ombudsmen institutions in resolving citizens problems in an efficient manner. Furthermore, he stated that the Office of Ombudsman Punjab is playing an important role in protecting the rights of the people and providing them relief promptly and cost effectively. He apprised the audience that in line with the provisions of the Punjab Office of the Ombudsman Act, 1997, a Research and Development Wing has recently been established in the Ombudsman Punjab office so as to carry out studies and research about the operational and systemic processes of the provincial government departments with a view to identify problems and gaps in governance and to recommend implementable way forward to ensure good governance and efficiency in public service delivery.

Further the ombudsman apprised that a robust media wing has also been functioning effectively to create awareness amongst the public about the institution. In order to ensure public accessibility to this Office, a 24/7 Helpline 1050 was also launched for registering complaints and seeking details about under process complaints. Also, mass awareness ensured through different social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

In his concluding remarks, the Hon’ble Ombudsman Punjab thanked the distinguished guests and appreciated the coordination among the Federal and Provincial Ombudsman institutions in connection with the resolution of public complaints in a more efficient manner. In the end, the Hon’ble Ombudsman Punjab presented mementoes to the senior officers of Ombudsman institutions.

Source: The Office of the Ombudsman for the Province of Punjab, Pakistan