By Alusine Fullah
The Office of the Ombudsman was set up by subsection (2) of section 146 of the Sierra Leone Constitution which also provides the functions of the office. The office has the responsibility to investigate the malpractices of: Ministries, Departments and Agencies of Government of Sierra Leone; Higher Education Institutions; and Any member of the Public Service or Institutions that are publicly funded in Sierra Leone
By law, the office has the mandate to receive, to investigate, to mediate and to resolve complaints lay against administrative decisions, malpractices of the public sector, Institutions of higher learning set entirely or partly out of public funds. The office of Ombudsman role seeks to conduct a professional investigation, to the highest standards, by determining whether an administrative action by a Government Department or Public Institution has been undertaken unfairly. In these functions, we seek to improve public administration for the benefit of all Sierra Leoneans.
In nexus to the foregoing constitutional mandate, the Office of Ombudsman has commenced investigations into the above matters as required by Section 7(a)(ii)and 7(b) of the Ombudsman Act No.2 of 1997 which outlines the functions of the Ombudsman in these types of situations.
In a press release that was dated on the 19th January, 2024 it notes: “The attention of the Ombudsman has been drawn to articles on local tabloids about the sacking of approximately 100 staff members of Parliament and also the non-payment of terminal benefits and other entitlements to over 300 former workers of the Sierra Leone Airport Authority. The Ombudsman would like to inform the general public that he has commenced investigations into the above matters as required by Section 7(a)(ii)and 7(b) of the Ombudsman Act No.2 of 1997 which outlines the functions of the Ombudsman in these types of situations.
