Cape Town residents are encouraged to reach out to the City of Cape Town’s independent Ombudsman’s Office on Wednesdays throughout the month of October 2022 at the Cape Town Civic Centre. This additional outreach to bring services closer to residents is in honour of International Ombudman’s Month which aims to highlight the importance of these oversight bodies and to encourage residents to make use of the services offered.

Ombudsman’s Office teams will be at the Cape Town Civic Centre, Concourse Level, at the municipal customer care office on Wednesdays from 10:00 to 13:00, on 5, 12, 19 and 26 October 2022. The Ombudsman’s Office assists residents with all last-resort municipal complaints as part of its function of making sure the City performs on its service delivery mandate timeously, properly, inclusively and respectfully.

The October Month initiative is in addition to The Office of the Ombudsman stationed permanently at the following municipal offices:

Khayelitsha Walk-in Centre

Liberty Promenade Mall Walk-in Centre, Mitchells Plain

Kuils River Walk-in Centre

Durbanville Walk-in Centre

‘We are using the month of October to highlight the importance of holding government to account and to empower residents with the knowledge that they have last-resort complaint channels to ensure the City of Cape Town remains an open, transparent and responsive government that delivers on its service delivery mandate.

‘Our office continues to ensure that we bring our services closer to communities, especially closer to vulnerable residents. We encourage residents to visit us to learn more about our services and how we can assist them with their complaints,’ said the City’s Ombudsman, Vusumzi Magwebu.

How to lodge a complaint with the Ombudsman

Once a complaint form has been completed, it can be sent by post or delivered to:

The Ombudsman

Third floor

Tower Block

Cape Town Civic Centre

12 Hertzog Boulevard

8001

Cape Town

Alternatively, the complaint form can be emailed to ombudsdirect@capetown.gov.za or faxed to 021 400 5952.

Please always describe a complaint in detail, including the name/s of the official/s involved, what happened and any relevant dates and times. Please always include any relevant documentation or evidence. The Ombudsman’s Office will assess the complaint to determine whether the office can assist or whether to direct the complainant to the appropriate department or institution.

The office follows the Ombudsman By-law (2015). It functions with independence, credibility and impartiality. It is against the law and South African Constitution to interfere in the business, powers and functions of this office. The City encourages members of the public to approach the Ombudsman once they have exhausted the required channels.

There are many City complaint channels available to members of the public, depending on the nature of the complaint.

The Ombudsman does not investigate the following complaints, as there are other complaint channels for these:

any legislative or executive decisions by the Council, any of its portfolio committees or subcouncils;

any matter involving an allegation of fraud, corruption or corporate crime as referred to in the City’s Fraud Prevention Policy;

any matter or dispute which must be dealt with or settled within the field of labour law;

any allegation relating to financial irregularities;

any cases where the complainant has not reported the matter to the line department as a first port of call;

any alleged irregular conduct of a councillor;

any complaint which is vexatious or frivolous;

any tender-related matter; and

administrative appeals.

Contact for assistance/information

SMS 44781

Contact details: 021 400 1701 and 021 400 9441 (Monday to Friday, except on public holidays) between 10:00 and 14:30

Email: ombudsdirect@capetown.gov.za

For more information, please visit: www.capetown.gov.za/Ombudscomplaints

Source: City Of Cape Town