We refer to the letter Push for Ombudsperson for justice, equality .

First and foremost, we, the Public Complaints Bureau (PCB), Prime Minister’s Department, wish to thank the writer for his critical insights and the suggestions regarding the setting up an independent institution like the Ombudsman to address concerns such as administrative abuse and mal-administration.

Though at present there is no Ombudsman in Malaysia, we would like to highlight that the PCB performs a similar function. Thus, I would like to take this opportunity to share with the writer and the public as to what the PCB is currently doing to enhance the quality of service delivery by addressing public complaints against government agencies in a prompt, effective and courteous manner.

Since its establishment in 1971, the PCB has been entrusted by the government to act as a grievance-handling mechanism for the general public. Its core function is to receive complaints and concerns of the public and address them accordingly. By performing this function, the PCB directly acts as the watchdog for the government against mal-administration and administrative abuse.

The writer raised the point that the power of the Ombudsman lies in his/her ability to investigate complaints and wrongdoings of government functionaries and then notify the public or the relevant government agencies, or both, of the findings. In addressing the complaints received, the PCB either conducts its own preliminary onsite investigation or call for explanations by the relevant agencies.

Besides writing to the relevant agencies and departments for comments, PCB also uses various approaches to obtain a more comprehensive view and understanding of the case. These include surprise visits, field observations, interviews and joint discussions between the agencies and the complainants.

Although, admittedly, the PCB does not have any explicit power or authority to instruct or compel government departments and agencies to change a decision or action based on the outcome of the investigation, the PCB does carry an implicit authority by virtue of being an agency under the Prime Minister's Department. This simply means that government departments and agencies cannot easily ignore matters that are brought to their attention by the PCB.

Furthermore, there is also the Permanent Committee on Public Complaints, a high-powered committee chaired by the Chief Secretary to the Government, to which the PCB is the secretariat. The committee presides over complaints that cannot be resolved at agency level.

The writer also raised the point that the goal of the Ombudsman is to assist the communication between the public and the government and help create solutions that arise between the two. At the PCB, we also serve as the conduit between the public and the respective government agencies. Through the PCB, the government provides the public with a dedicated avenue for them to submit their complaints or grievances.

At the present moment, the PCB provides numerous channels for the public to forward their complaints. These include the official website which is available 24x7, telephone and facsimile numbers, letters and complaint forms. The public can also walk-in to any of the PCB offices around the country or attend PCB's various pro-active programmes held regularly throughout the country.

Recently, we have also introduced complaints through SMS to 15888 (BPA ADUAN) to make it even more citizen-friendly. As a result of these proactive efforts to facilitate the submission of complaints as well as the increasing public confidence and trust in PCB, the number of complaints received increased from 8,066 in 2008 to 12,683 in 2009. Despite the increase in number of complaints received, our complaints resolution rate improved from 90.6% in 2008 to 97.6% in 2009.

The writer also suggested that the proposed Ombudsman set up a People's Council through which the public can raise questions, comments and ideas to the Ombudsman. At this juncture, we wish to explain that the PCB currently has an advisory board which performs a similar function as suggested.

The members of the advisory board comprises representatives from the various sectors in the society including the non-governmental organisations (NGOs), the business community, the private sector, the media and the academe.

It is also interesting to note that although the PCB is not an Ombudsman, it is a founding member of the Asian Ombudsman Association (AOA) and the director-general of the PCB is a member of its board of directors, which is an elected position. This reflects the recognition of the importance and role of the PCB in addressing issues related to administrative abuse and mal-administration in the public sector.

Through our association with the AOA, we are able to share our experiences and to learn from each other in our journey towards enhancing public service delivery. From time to time, PCB officers are sent to attend courses conducted by the AOA to enhance their level of professionalism as well as to share their experiences with others. Furthermore, PCB is also held in high esteem by AOA members as well as by the international community.

It frequently receives visit from AOA members who have come to exchange and share their experiences as well as to learn about our approaches in managing public complaints. Some of these visits were sponsored by their respective countries or international organisations including the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

Besides the PCB, there are also several entities in the current set-up to deal with the various issues of administrative abuse and mal-administration and these include the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), the Enforcement Agency Integrity Commission (EAIC), the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) and the Auditor-General’s Office.

The PCB, being part of the government machinery does not impede its effectiveness in carrying out the task entrusted to us. In our many exchanges with the Ombudsman of other countries, our position is looked upon as an advantage as we have direct relationship with other government agencies and thus are in a better position to see through our recommendations or resolutions of complaints.

Lastly, we would like to invite the public to forward their complaints and grievances on public service delivery to us via our website or by telephoning 03-8888 7777.

The writer is director-general, Public Complaints Bureau, Prime Minister’s Department.