I have no regrets establishing Public Complaints Commission

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo on Tuesday said he had no regrets establishing the Federal Public Complaints Commission (FPCC) when he was the military head of state between 1976 and 1979.

Obasanjo said this when Mrs Oluyemisi Somorin-Dawodu, the Commissioner, Federal Public Complaints Commission, in Ogun paid him a courtesy visit at his hill-top residence in Abeokuta.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the FPCC was established by Decree 31 of 1975 of the Supreme Military Council (SMC) when Obasanjo was the head of state.

It has since metamorphosed into the Public Complaints Commission (PCC).

Obasanjo , President of the country between 1999 and 2007, said that the commission was established to create a platform through which ordinary people in the society could be defended and secure justice.

The former president, who said that the commission was still relevant, noted that the objective for which the body was established was being met.

"Although, I cannot say that the need we saw then has completely disappeared, but there have been testimonies of cases where the commission has come to the rescue of the helpless,’’ he said.

Obasanjo said he would continue to provide necessary support to complement government’s efforts to enhance the operations of the commission.

Earlier in her remarks, Somorin-Dawodu had solicited Obasanjo's assistance in the renovation of the commission’s roofless office in Ota.

She also solicited for assistance in the commission's bid to establish an area office in Abeokuta North Local Government Area for more effective operations.

The commissioner, who later addressed newsmen, said the commission had concluded over 25 out of the 100 complaints it received since she assumed headship of the body in April.

She said the operations of the commission were being hampered by paucity of funds.