A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE OMBUDSMAN SYSTEMS IN NIGERIAAND BRITAIN IN REMEDYING ADMINISTRATIVE INJUSTICE

Abstract

The crucial responsibilities of the ombudsman in curtailing administrative abuse of powers and maladministration in most countries of the world cannot be overemphasized. The British ombudsman came to be through the Parliamentary Commissioner Act, 1967 and the Complaints Commissioner became known as the Parliamentary Commissioner. The Nigeria's Ombudsman was established in 1975 with the name Public Complaints Commission (PCC) as an organ of the government set up to redress complaints lodged by aggrieved citizens or residents in Nigeria against administrative injustice. Despite this lofty structural vision, lack of political will on the side of government coupled with other systemic inefficiencies, has considerably undermined the efficacy of the Commission as a temple of justice in Nigeria. With the use of the doctrinal method, this study carried out a comparative analysis of Nigeria's Ombudsman with that of Britain. After comparatively analyzing the British ombudsman and discovering lessons that Nigeria can draw from it, this study recommended, among others, that the Public Complaints Commission should be restructured to readily adopt best international best practices in delivering its core mandates. One of the key recommendations include the abrogation of the locus standi provision in Section 6(1) (g) of the Nigeria's Public Complaints Commission Act so that, like in its British counterpart, personal interest will not be a condition for bringing a complaint before the Commission.