National News

ISLAMABAD, May 1 (APP): The Federal Ombudsman has disposed of over
227,000 cases in last three years with implementation ratio of over
97 per cent.
According to an Ombudsman Office official, the quantum jump in
disposal of cases was due to the hard work of investigating officers
and not a single complaint was pending with the Wafaqi Mohtasib which
was more than 45 days old.
The appeals’ ratio on Ombudsman’s decision was only 0.37 per cent,
he said adding that only 10 per cent decisions of Ombudsman had
been suspended by the President in appeals, upholding 90 per cent
decisions.
He said in 2013, there was no timeframe to decide the cases and
over 75,000 applications were pending. Now under the pilot project of
Swift Complaint Resolution (SCR), complaints were being redressed
within 15 days at complainants’ doorsteps, he said.
The FATA Grievance Commissioner, the official said, was available
for resolving tribesman’s problems against federal agencies for the
first time in country’s history.
He said one-window operation had been started at eight major
Pakistani airports to facilitate overseas Pakistanis where the
officials of 12 departments concerned remained present round-the-clock
to solve the problems of expatriate.
He said focal persons had been appointed in 92 Pakistani missions
and embassies to maintain liaison with the Pakistanis working abroad to
help resolve their problems, while one day a week had been fixed by ambassadors to hear the complaints of expatriates without any formal appointment.
He said machine readable passports were also now being issued to overseas Pakistanis.
With the help of educational institutions and NGOs, he said, arrangements had been made in jails for the education of children and imparting of different skills to other jail inmates. Sweet Homes had
also been set up in major jails for the children living with their
mothers, he added.
Federal government departments/agencies had been directed to complete pension cases of an employee one month before his or her retirement and
also AGPR to ensure its timely disbursement in accounts, he added.
The official said a committee had been constituted to review the
working of police stations and recommend measures to improve their operational efficiency and make police stations public friendly.
The Federal Ombudsman, he said, had expanded its operations in the country’s 90 tehsils to provide much-needed relief to maximum number
of citizens living in far flung areas of the country at their
doorsteps.