State Comptroller Englman and Mayor of Nof HaGalil Plot Inaugurated the New Bureau of the Office of the Ombudsman

The bureau is located in the "Mol Harim" complex, 18 Menachem Ariav Street, Nof HaGalil. The ceremony was also attended by the Director of the Office of the Ombudsman, Adv. Dr. Esther Ben-Haim, and the Director General of the Office of the State Comptroller, Brigadier General (Res.) Yishai Vaknin.

The opening of a bureau for reception of the public in a central and accessible location, in the heart of the commercial zone with convenient parking, will allow the residents of the Galilee and the north, and the residents of the cities of Nazareth and Nof HaGalil in particular, to optimally avail themselves of the Office of the Ombudsman in order to realize their rights.

The Office of the Ombudsman operates, during times of routine and emergency, to investigate complaints regarding public bodies and to assist every person in ensuring the realization of their rights. The Office of the Ombudsman operates tirelessly in promoting fair and effective public service for all. The bureau's employees speak different languages (including Arabic, Russian, Amharic and more), and they are able to assist inquirers in ensuring their rights vis-à-vis the public bodies. Likewise, the representatives from the bureau work in public diplomacy and raising awareness of the Office of the Ombudsman's activity among various eligible populations from all sectors.

State Comptroller and Ombudsman Englman said at the opening assembly that "When I took office, I attached importance to providing a voice to those without a voice. Accordingly, one of the objectives included in the vision of the State Comptroller and Ombudsman is reinforcing the accessibility of the Office of the Ombudsman and the exposure of its activity to society, including to the population living in the geographical periphery and the population deserving of advancement, which are less aware of its existence and possibility of applying to it. Such as the population from the Arab society, the Russian speaking population, Ethiopian immigrants and other populations. The purpose of opening the regional bureau is to make the Office of the Ombudsman's services accessible to these populations and all the residents of the Galilee and the north. We shall be available to you in our new home in order to investigate your complaints vis-à-vis all the public bodies.

I wish to thank the dedicated employees of the Office of the Ombudsman for their dedicated and professional work and their efforts to assist the complainant public as much as possible, during times of emergency and during times of routine. I am also grateful to the mayors of Nazareth and Nof HaGalil for their cooperation with our Office for the sake of the public".

Examples of the important work of the Nazareth-Nof HaGalil bureau:

• A local authority built a mound of rocks next to the complainant's house, as part of the works to build a kindergarten in the adjoining plot and thereby it created a nuisance of dust and blocking the view from the complainant's house. Staff members from the bureau visited the site accompanied by representatives from the Ministry of Environmental Protection and representatives from the local council, and it was agreed to remove the mound of rocks immediately and restore the site to its former condition.
  
  
• Following explanatory activity conducted by staff members from the bureau at a non-profit organization operating among needy people, a complainant contacted us and claimed that she does not understand why she had stopped getting an Arnona (property tax) discount. An investigation of the complaint showed that there had been a malfunction in the synchronization of data between the National Insurance Institute's automated systems and the municipality's systems and therefore the complainant was no longer identified as being eligible for a discount. Following the investigation, the malfunction was rectified for the future and the municipality recalculated the past Arnona charges and the complainant received a repayment in the sum of more than NIS 4,200.