OMBUDSMAN

Ombudsman



Ombudsman

Introduction

The concept of Ombudsman has gained a solid credibility as a complaint-handling mechanism which helps and allows citizens to protect and defend their rights in front of a powerful and complex State. Apart from this main mandate, we can see many ombuds who have developed co-substantial roles such as an educational role or legislative monitoring. While these roles are expanding and may allow for a broader view of the ombudsman's participation in the democratic system, they are still less studied.

Recently, attention has been paid to the generalized decline of complaints and the hypothesized explanation that the ombudsman may also be a victim of the wider democratic deficit affecting many institutions in our society", Interestingly however, less attention has been given to the role the ombudsman can play in fostering trust in the democratic processes and, in a certain way, help resist this overwhelming ambient cynicism, especially in a context of public administration reform where relationships between citizens and the State are under deep changes(Vigoda 2002 ). 

Ombudsman

In general, an "ombudsman" refers to a state official appointed to provide a check on government activity in the interests of the citizen, and to oversee the investigation of complaints of improper government activity against the citizen. If the ombudsman finds a complaint to be substantiated, the problem may get rectified, or an ombudsman report is published making recommendations for change(Kampen Walle Bouckaert 2006).

Further redress depends on the laws of the country concerned, but this normally involves financial compensation. Ombudsmen in most countries do not have the power to initiate legal proceedings or prosecution on the grounds of a complaint. This role is sometimes referred to as a 'tribunitian' role, and has been traditionally fuflilled by elected representatives (The term refers to the ancient Roman 'tribunes of the plebians' (tribuni plebis), whose role was to intercede in the political process on behalf of common citizens).

History of Ombudsman

In the year of 1697 and at the age of fifteen, Charles XII became King of Sweden. Three years later, in the fall of 1700, he won a fabulous victory over Tsar Peter's allegedly tenfold stronger Russian army at Narva at the present border between Estonia and Russia, a victory that forever made him a hero of his time and the subject of a famous Voltaire biography. However, nine years later, in 1709, he was thoroughly defeated by Tsar Peter on the banks of the Vorskla outside Pultava in today's Ukraine, a defeat that gave his hero's aura a tragic gleam - and eventually gave rise to the world's very first Ombudsman institution.

Roles of An ombudsman

Essential to the neutrality of the ombuds' function is the principle of hearing and understanding all perspectives on any given case or situation. In seeking responsible resolutions to individual conflicts, the ombuds is accustomed to taking into consideration the welfare of all parties, including the interests of the organization.

The ombuds not only has close and frequent contact with members of all ranks and affiliations within the Organization, but also handles questions and complaints about all ...