We
want the public to count on us, Eto
HONOURABLE
Mathias Eto is the Federal Commissioner, Public Complaints Commission, Delta
State.
In an
interview with BLESSING OMOEVAH, he revealed the secrets of conflict resolution.
May
we meet you?
I am Hon. Mathias Eto, a Federal
Commissioner for Public Complaints Commission, Delta State.
What
other public positions have you held?
I was chairman in Isoko Local Government
Area as a whole. Politically, I was State Deputy Chairman of United Congress
Party (UNCP) and also a board member, governing council of Federal College of
Education (Technical), Potiskum School, Yobe State.
Could
you cast light on the activities of the commission?
The commission receives complaints from
members of the public who feel aggrieved by administrative actions which they
considered injustice, either by ministries, agencies, public institutions and
industrial liability companies. The commission takes complaints, resolve and
address the effects.
How
many branches does the commission have and where are they located?
Federal Public Commission is in every state
capital, each state is supposed to have five zonal offices; and in the case of
Delta State, there are four zonal offices located in Warri, Ughelli, Agbor, and
Oleh.
All the zonal offices are situated in the
various local government council secretariats.
How
is the public reacting to the commission?
The reaction of the public is quite
impressive because the commission creates awareness through campaign, and
enlightenment programmes.
What
are the procedures of the commission?
If one feels unhappy in his place of work,
such as deliberate denial of promotion or position, he can complain to the
commission. Or, one if is wrongly
dismissed from his place of work within or outside the state, such cases should
also be reported to the commission and immediately, it will be resolved. Also,
in case of pensioners, the inability to get the pension payment either by the
company or government, or when pensioners’ names are removed from payroll, the
commission can also resolve such cases after following the due process. Other cases, such as when O’Level results are
withheld, can also be resolved by the commission. Any complaint within one year
is accepted by the commission but more than a year complaints are not accepted.
Is
the public really informed about the activities of the commission? If yes, what
success have you made?
As I said, the commission creates awareness
through awareness programmes in the Television, radio and newspapers. The state
newspaper, “The Pointer” gave the
commission column for publication every Friday but the problem of the public is
that they don’t read or listen to news. The good news is that the few that read
or listen to news are spreading the news.
Considering
the numerous challenges facing the state, what is your advice to Deltans?
There are various pension associations that
regulate pension schemes. In this case, seven and half per cent of pension
payment is remitted to the pension associations. Recently, a lot of problems
have been resolved through the Public Complaints Commission.
