Stop passing the buck on complaints, Hong Kong Ombudsman tells government departments

Hong Kong’s outgoing Ombudsman Connie Lau Yin-hing has told government departments to stop passing the buck when handling complaints about maladministration, saying some were kicking responsibility around like a football. In departing words before leaving her post at the top of the watchdog next month, Lau also said staffing levels at her office were tight and more manpower would be needed if the workload grew any further. The Office of the Ombudsman had 120 employees as of March last year, among whom 65 were investigators. The staff handled 4,826 new complaints in the 2017-2018 financial year and 758 brought forward from the previous year. “On some occasions, when a complaint involves several departments, the first department passes the buck to a second department, which then passes it to a third. They need to stop kicking complainants around like footballs,” Lau, 67, said. She became Ombudsman five years ago and said there had only been minor improvements on the issue in that time. “I hope in future all departments will stick to the concept of ‘one government’ and stop passing the buck,” Lau said. The number of complaints filed to the Ombudsman has fallen in the last few years. In 2017-18 the figure was 4,826, but back in 2013-2014 it was 5,624. Hong Kong’s top policewoman will step down early to head Office of the Ombudsman in April Some 624 were made against the Housing Department in 2017-18, followed by 476 against the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, and 306 for the Lands Department. Lau said many officials were now quicker to rectify shortcomings than in the past. “These days, after we have launched investigations but before we release our reports, sometimes the departments have already taken improvement measures. This is very good,” she said. Almost 90 per cent of cases were dealt with in less than three months, she added. The rest took three to six months and very few longer than half a year. Lau has pressed government departments to make use of mediation services to resolve disputes with complainants, which she said had sped up the process. Last year 237 complaints were settled through mediation compared to just 38 five years ago. The service had relieved pressure on office employees. “Do we have a lot of staff? Of course not. We have fewer staff than the Consumer Council. When I left the council, it had 150,” she said. “But our staff are very professional. That’s very important.” Hong Kong ombudsman will consider investigating government’s handling of tree waste in the aftermath of Typhoon Mangkhut Manpower was tight but the workload was still manageable, she said, although more would be needed if the office were to take on new tasks. Last year the Ombudsman received a government subvention of HK$116 million. The amount is adjusted each year in accordance with inflation. In November the office released a report on the Home Affairs Department and Lands Department accusing both of failing to take adequate enforcement action against indigenous villagers burying their dead outside designated burial grounds. The report was the result of a follow-up investigation on an earlier probe conducted in 2015. But the office’s operations are not without restriction. The Ombudsman Ordinance states Lau cannot launch an investigation if a complaint is made anonymously, concerns personal actions by Hong Kong’s chief executive, or security, defence or international relations. She refuted assertions that her office was a toothless tiger. Acting on anonymous complaints would be unfair to the department in question, Lau said. “The ordinance gives the Ombudsman quite a lot of power. This power includes access to information, which is necessary for us to launch investigations. This is our strongest weapon,” she said. Certification system for Hong Kong’s elderly care homes to launch in next 3 months following damning Ombudsman report on ‘systemic failure’ Lau has a reputation for taking on powerful enterprises. As head of the city’s consumer watchdog she investigated major power and oil companies accused of violating customers’ rights. She spent 38 years on the front lines of consumer protection, having joined the Consumer Council in 1974 and eventually becoming its chief executive for five years before leaving in 2012. She was the city’s first Ombudsman appointed from outside the civil service in 15 years. Lau said she had no plans to take on any more public posts. On Friday the government said deputy police commissioner Winnie Chiu Wai-yin, the highest-ranked woman in the force’s 175-year history, had been appointed the new Ombudsman. Chiu had rich investigative, managerial and administrative experience, Lau said, and would do an even better job than her.

Stop passing the buck on complaints, Hong Kong Ombudsman tells government departments

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;}In parting shot Connie Lau tells officials to ‘stop kicking responsibility around like a football’

In parting shot Connie Lau tells officials to ‘stop kicking responsibility around like a football’