Kenya’s Ombudsman, Otiende Amollo has been unanimously elected the Secretary General of the African Ombudsman and Mediators Association (AOMA).
Amollo takes over from South Africa’s Public Protector, Thuli Madonsela, famed for the report on President Jacob Zuma’s private Nkandla property, commonly referred to as the Nkandla scandal.
The elections took place in Addis Ababa at the AU headquarters alongside the Fourth General Assembly and Biennial AOMA and African Union (AU) conference that concluded November 7, 2014.
The meeting, which was addressed by key dignitaries including Ethiopia President, was organised by the Ethiopian government, AU and AOMA. AOMA is a continental body with 44 member-countries.
The two organs also entered a protocol that will see the two bodies work together more closely.
AOMA urged the African Union to ensure the remaining 10 African States that do not have the Office of the Ombudsman establish it in line with the AU resolution of 2012.
Other major issues under consideration are the need to establish the office of the Ombudsman at the continental level, as is the case in the UN and America among others, and the need to set aside an Ombudsman Day in Africa.
AOMA Member countries include South Africa, Kenya, Ethiopia, Ghana, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Djibouti, Gambia, Ivory Coast, Lesotho, Guinea, Malawi, Mali, Mauritius, Namibia, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Tunisia, Uganda, Tanzania and Zambia.