By Aggrey Baba
The Inspector General of Government (IGG) has launched a fresh nationwide drive against government officials accused of frustrating citizens through delays, abuse of office and poor service delivery.
IGG Lady Justice Aisha Naluzze on Monday announced that all the Inspectorate’s 16 regional offices will move into communities next week to receive complaints from angry and frustrated Ugandans and, where possible, resolve them on the spot.
The move comes after the IG revealed that complaints about administrative injustice made up 37% of all cases it investigated and concluded in the Financial Year 2025/2026, with the IG saying that many of these complaints come from local governments, where ordinary Ugandans have to deal directly with government officials to access basic services.
The complaints include delayed salaries, pensions and gratuities, problems accessing the government payroll and delays in getting National Identity Cards, land titles and passports.
The Inspectorate is also receiving complaints from workers who say they have been unfairly interdicted or victimized after raising concerns about wrongdoing in their workplaces.
Speaking to journalists at the Uganda Media Centre, Lady Justice Aisha Naluzze said the situation could no longer be treated as a simple matter of slow government offices, further warning that when officials ignore rules and procedures, they create room for corruption.
“Corruption thrives where administrative rules and procedures are broken or ignored,” she said.
The IG says it resolved 1,011 Ombudsman cases during the last financial year and recommended UGX 2.35 billion in payments to people who had been denied their rightful employment benefits.
Now, during what the IG has declared “Ombuds Action Week”, its teams will take the fight directly to the communities.
The regional teams will work with the Judicial Service Commission, National Identification and Registration Authority (NIR), Police and local government officials to handle complaints that may require different government agencies to act.
The teams will also conduct spot checks at public service points to find out whether government services are being delivered properly, an operation which will form part of Uganda’s activities to mark International Ombuds Day on October 8 under the theme, “Ombuds: Office of Options.”
The IGG said the Ombudsman should not be seen only as an office people run to after everything else has failed.
Instead, she said, citizens can use the Inspectorate to seek early intervention, mediation and help in resolving disputes without going through costly and lengthy court processes.
The IGG also plans to engage Parliament, including the Speaker Jacob Oboth-Oboth, to push for stronger implementation of its recommendations against government institutions.
The IGG urged people facing delayed benefits, workplace injustice or neglect by government officials to come forward and report to the Inspectorate. (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
