Section 97 (1) (c) of the Constitution empowers the Ombudsman to open an investigation in any case of alleged maladministration whenever “he considers it desirable to do so of his own motion”. This power is mainly exercised by the Ombudsman when he comes across any press article or through an anonymous letter which highlights the facts of a particular case/situation with possible service failure that causes or may cause prejudice or injustice towards any person or group of persons.
Over the years, the Ombudsman has used this power judiciously and he initiated an investigation only where there was a reasonable surmise of systemic maladministration and it was in the public interest. In the year 2022, a total of 107 ownmotion cases were opened in respect of alleged maladministration on the part of Ministries/ Departments, Parastatals, Local Authorities and the Rodrigues Regional Assembly.
Many of these own-motion cases, the Office of the Ombudsman is at times unable to render the outcome of its intervention accessible to the aggrieved persons and confirm if the Authority concerned has effectively taken corrective measures to address any service failure. In this spirit and in order to communicate the outcome of our investigations, the Office of the Ombudsman has decided to publish a brief of own-motion complaints resolved on its website so that the aggrieved party may take cognisance of the result of the investigation and contact us if necessary.