Local councils biggest source of complaints

Local councils, the Inland Revenue Department, the Malta Transport Authority (ADT), the health authorities and the Malta Environment and Planning Authority (Mepa) were the biggest sources of complaints last year, the Ombudsman's report, released yesterday, shows.

With 11 per cent of the caseload, local councils are a cut above the rest in terms of complaints, followed by the IRD with nine per cent, ADT at eight per cent and the health authorities and Mepa at six per cent each.

The Ombudsman, Chief Justice Emeritus Joseph Said Pullicino, who took office in December, met the press after presenting Anton Tabone, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, with a copy of his report.

The largest number of cases lodged, Dr Said Pullicino said, revolved around the rigid interpretation the authorities give to regulations, which in turn results in injustices.

A large number of complaints are also lodged because of excessive delays and lack of action when requests are submitted to authorities or because of decisions deemed unjust.

When asked whether he was satisfied with the level of cooperation received from other authorities and the government, a source of complaints by his predecessor Joseph Sammut, Dr Said Pullicino said that so far he has generally found nothing to complain about.

"I am characteristically not a person to get easily frustrated," he said. "Plus what Mr Sammut voiced his concern about were really a few hot cases."

Dr Said Pullicino had words of praise for Mr Sammut who, he said, left an office in good order with no major backlogs despite the fact that the office had been left without an Ombudsman for a few months. Like his predecessor, Dr Said Pullicino laid stress on the need for the introduction of a Freedom of Information Act. The trend in Europe is that the Ombudsman's office takes more of a human rights role, he said.

Among these responsibilities, the trend is for children's rights and rights concerning freedom of information to be taken under the Ombudsman's wing.

Speaking on the Freedom of Information Act, a draft of which the government has promised to deliver by the end of the year, Dr Said Pullicino said he agrees that the Ombudsman should act as the regulator for such a law.

"Irrespective of who shall be the regulator, I think it's high time we introduce such a piece of legislation," he said.

Asked about the government's suggestion to entrench the Office of the Ombudsman in the Constitution, he said he was quite optimistic that there would not be any obstacles for it to happen.

It should have been done before, he remarked, adding that "it's a positive step".