PESHAWAR: The KP Ombudsman Secretariat will set up four more regional offices in as many districts to facilitate people to file complaints and get relief in native towns.
“We have opened regional offices in Dera Ismail Khan, Abbottabad and Swat to provide relief to the people there. Now, the government is keen on expanding the Ombudsman Office services to more areas. Four new regional offices will be operational in Bannu, Kohat, Khyber and Bajaur soon,” said KP Ombudsman Syed Jamalud Din Shah while speaking at a function in Karak.
A communication said the programme was part of the awareness-raising campaign launched by the Ombudsman Secretariat to motivate people to register complaints for free against any irregularities in the government departments.
Addressing the audience, at the Government College in Karak, Syed Jamalud Din Shah highlighted the role of the KP Ombudsman Secretariat in providing relief to the people who turn to the facility with grievances against the public entities.
He asked the students and elders to approach the Ombudsman Office without any difficulty in case of any irregularity. “You do not need to hire the services of any lawyer but just lodge the complaint on a simple paper. The application can be submitted along with an affidavit to the Ombudsman Secretariat in Peshawar or any regional office. The relief would be provided in a short time”, he assured.
Syed Jamalud Din Shah said university students and staff had filed cases as well to get relief from our Ombudsman offices.“Majority of the cases are being filed against education, health, irrigation, universities and communication departments, respectively,” he added.
Speaking at another gathering in Bannu, Jamalud Din Shah said over 4,000 complaints had been received by the Ombudsman Office and a majority of the complainants won relief within the specific period.
Replying to questions from the audience, the ombudsman said all government departments had nominated their focal persons to deal with cases received from the Ombudsman Secretariat.
“We are in contact with the government departments. The chief secretary has directed all heads of the government agencies to cooperate with the Provincial Ombudsman Secretariat in connection with the implementation of cases,” he elaborated.
