The Ombudsman reiterates the lack of response from the municipal Departments to the Recommendations of 2023

The Citizen's Advocate, Mrs. Moilanen, has reported to the Special Commission of the Plenary for Complaints and Suggestions a summary of the Recommendations (RAS) issued during the year 2023, in which she has once again emphasized the lack of an official response from the implicated Departments.

The recommendations, covering various topics, always indicate in their final part the need for a response from the municipal Departments, which should declare in writing the ACCEPTANCE or REJECTION of the Defender's proposals, stating the reasons for their stance.

During the meeting, the Commission's president and some of the councillors from implicated Departments have taken note of the repetition, but no response has been given. Considering that some of the RAS were communicated almost a year ago, it is neither reasonable nor legally correct not to respond to the Defender. Only the councillor of the Delegated Area for the Elderly, Mrs. Marqués, a member of the Commission, has indicated that efforts are underway to provide an official response to RAS 5/2023.

Among other issues discussed in the Commission, it has been reported that the Defender's Office has reached its limit in 2023, with 565 cases processed, almost 4% more than the previous year. At the same time, the Defender has expressed concern about maintaining the workload in light of personnel cuts at the end of the year.