Commission on Administrative Justice has visited Moyale to sensitise marginalised communities on the mandate of the body and their right to access public information.
In collaboration with the Geneva Centre for Security Sector Governance, the Commission organised a sensitisation forum that brought together national and county government administrators as well as citizens and media practitioners in Moyale town.
The objective of the session opened by Director Osman Mohamed on behalf of commission chairperson Florence Kajuju was to create awareness of CAJ’s mandate and take services closer to rural border communities.
Mohammed said having effective complaint-handling mechanisms is crucial to address the concerns and complaints of all citizens, especially those living in marginalised and far-flung areas.
“The commission is keen to bridge the justice gap by taking the services of CAJ closer to marginalised and vulnerable communities,” Mohammed stated.
He added that the commission is concerned about the challenges being faced by citizens in accessing identity documents, especially children and youth.
He added that inefficiencies and delays in processing those documents by the relevant government agencies are also a matter of concern.
“While progress has been made in issuing legal identity documents in Kenya in a timely, efficient, and procedurally fair manner, a study conducted by CAJ identified that there were still some barriers, particularly in some border regions,” he said.
CAJ enforces administrative justice in the public sector by tackling maladministration through effective complaints handling and alternative dispute resolution.
The Commission also has a mandate of overseeing and enforcing the implementation of the Access to Information Act, 2016.
The Commission will also hold similar forums in Isiolo, Meru and Wajir counties to inform public officials and citizens about their rights and obligations and to promote transparency and accountability.
The event was also attended by Commission Moyale Deputy county commissioner Robert Nzuki and Sololo Sub county Administrator Abdo Ala.
