Members of the National Assembly Public Accounts Committee (PAC) headed by the speaker of the National Assembly, Hon. Elizabeth Renner Tuesday urged the Office of the Ombudsman to comply with procurement requirements of the Gambia Public Procurement Authority (GPPA).

According to the deputies, this move will without doubt help the office keep proper records of its financial expenses as indicated in both the audit and account reports of the Office of the Ombudsman. The PAC members were responding to the financial reports of the  Office of the Ombudsman covering the period 2003 to 2007, presented by Alhaji B. Sowe, ombudsman of The Gambia and his financial director, Samba Mbye.

Presenting his report to the Committee, Mbye said the Office of the Ombudsman is an independent institution created by an act of the National Assembly, and mandated to receive complaints, investigate and make recommendations to the parties concerned. He adds: ?We received 95 complaints out of which 24 were completed and six are pending. We received subvention every year for the operations of the office. We are having only one utility vehicle and as such, we are limiting its use.

The government approved five vehicles for the office in 2008 but we received only two. We have opened a branch in Basse, Upper River Region and we will soon open another one in Mansakonko in the Lower River Region, which will also cover the North Bank Region.?
Mbye explained that the Office of the Ombudsman was not properly audited over the years.

This prompted them to request the Office of the Auditor General to conduct an audit of the institution whose report is what they are presenting to deputies. He went further to give a detailed overview of the aims and objectives of the Ombudsman Office, challenges besetting the institution since its inception in 1999 to date, success stories and the way forward.

The first NAM to respond to the Ombudsman?s report was Hon. Sellu Bah of Basse, who hailed the efforts of the institution in requesting for an  audit exercise to be carried out at their office. The Basse NAM urged  them to redouble their operations in the area of restoring human dignity and complaint resolution in line with the constitutional requirement.

Fabakary Tombong Jatta, majority leader and NAM for Serekunda East said he could not apprehend how an investigative institution can operate with only one vehicle and expressed his desire to know the effectiveness of the Ombudsman, especially with regards to public complaints. He advised the institution to comply with requirements of the GPPA, saying ?your independence does not mean that you are not subject to limitations. You must comply with the GPPA procurement and financial rules and regulations. This will in effect, greatly help your operations?.

Hon. Alhaji Sillah, NAM for Banjul South also emphasised the need for the institution to comply with the GPPA Act. Nonetheless, he thanked them for coming up with such a detailed financial report covering the period 2003 to 2007. Hon. Sidia Jatta, NAM for Wuli West; and Hon. Cherno Jallow, NAM for Upper Nuimi among others, thanked the institution for what they called a brilliant move undertaken. The ombudsman of the Gambia, Alhagie B Sowe assured deputies of his institution?s resolve to improve on its weaknesses and described the PAC sitting as an excellent experience for him and his team.