DCEO, Ombudsman Fight For Autonomy

(MENAFN- The Post) MASERU

THE Ombudsman and the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Offences (DCEO) have appealed to the Senate's Law Committee after two critical clauses that would ensure their autonomy were expunged.

The clauses were part of the Omnibus Bill, also known as the 10th Amendment to the Constitution.

Ombudsman Advocate Tlotliso Rapolaki told the Law Committee on Tuesday that the clauses were left out despite that they were direct decisions of the people gathered during the national reforms dialogue

The National Reforms Authority (NRA), she argued, had rightfully included the recommendations in the Bill only to be plucked out by parliament.

She complained that the current Bill“will still leave our office where it is”.

“We had high hopes that the reforms process would change the current situation of our institution that is only independent on paper and not in practice,” Advocate Polaki said.

She said the recommendations were that the Ombudsman's office should switch to the new model where it will be called the Office of the Public Protector.

“The model is also in use in neighboring countries like South Africa, and Zambia,” she said

“The model should be chosen as it allows the Ombudsman to make final and binding recommendations that can be enforced,” she argued.

“We had recommended that it should be written that the Ombudsman shall be independent and autonomous.”

She admitted that one of the experts engaged envisaged that the Ombudsman's office was never intended to have final, binding, and enforceable powers.

“However, we met with other Ombudsmen from other countries, to understand how they work with this model.”

She said the Zambian public protector is one of the most effective and well performing, as their decisions are binding

“Their constitution is clear that they have powers that are equal to high court judges,” she said.

She said the office of the public protector in South Africa is also using the same model.

She said the proposed reforms still consider the Ombudsman to be another arm of the government, yet they have to be independent, and work with parliament.

“The current reforms process will not help our office, it will still leave it where it has been,” she said.

She said the current proposed amendments are also not clear on what the Ombudsman's role is on the human rights mandate, adding that the lines are not drawn between them and the human rights commission

“If one knows that they would be jailed for not implementing the recommendations, they will act quickly,” she said.

Yesterday, the DCEO made a similar plea to the senate.

The institution expressed frustration that many of their proposed amendments were left out of the 10th constitutional amendments.

Led by Advocate Sefako Seema, the DCEO highlighted that their suggestions had not been incorporated into the draft.

One major issue Advocate Seema raised was of the proposed removal of the Director General's powers, which would be transferred to a committee of four people and a chairperson

Advocate Seema said the DCEO had recommended retaining a Director General who would oversee both operations and investigations, but the new structure would complicate their operations.

“While we have no issue with the committee, we believe it should be a board or commission,” Advocate Seema argued, adding that a permanent commission could lead to friction in the execution of duties.

He emphasised that such a change would make it difficult to manage their operational requirements effectively.

Seema also stressed the importance of defining the function, funding, and the appointment of the Director General and commissioners in the constitution to ensure the institution's autonomy and security.

“Without these protections, officials may operate with fear of suspension,” he said

The DCEO had proposed a name change to the Lesotho Independent Anti-Corruption and Ethics Commission to align with international best practices.

“Removing the DCEO from the civil service would allow it to operate independently, free from political influence,” he said.

He also pointed out that the current process for appointing the Director General, who is chosen by the Prime Minister, lacks clarity and could lead to political bias.

“Each Prime Minister is a politician, and institutions like ours should remain independent from politics,” he stressed.

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