New police complaints hotline rings red-hot
A third police option is proving a winner, with a new 24-hour hotline set up by the National Police Commission (NPC) registering more than 50 complaints since its January 1 launch.
The new hotline (0710361010) is a step forward from two other complaints mechanisms, one set up directly under the Inspector General of Police, and the other by the Police Relief Centre (Police Sahana Mandiraya) in Colombo.
The IGP service only accepts complaints online under "Tell IGP" on the police website, police.lk. Members of the public can also see the IGP in person on Fridays, before 11am. Complaints to the Police Sahana Mandiraya must be brought in person or submitted by fax on 112430914 at any time of day or night.
The NPC, set up under the 18th Amendment as an independent body, virtually replicates the functions of the Police Sahana Mandiraya, which also records and investigates complaints against the police, functioning as a department within the police service.
Police spokesperson SSP Ajith Rohana rejected claims of replication between the three complaints mechanisms.
“'Tell IGP' only functions till 10pm while the NPC hotline is open 24 hours,” he said adding that the IGP line was set up to cater to complaints requiring immediate action.
NPC Secretary T.M.K.B. Tennakoon, however, asserted the NPC line was set up to serve very similar purposes.
“Often most incidents take place during the evenings, not during office hours. We established this so that people can com- plain to us whenever an incident occurs so that we may also be of help,” Mr. Tennakoon said.
He said more than 50 complaints had already been recorded, mostly relating to police inaction and abuse of power.
The hotline is managed by a team of four Investigating Officers (IO). Complaints are immediately recorded and are followed up with the hope of resolving issues before they reach the status of a formal investigation.
“With the hotline it is sometimes possible to follow up issues immediately, which helps in resolving the issue, and the complainant receives the required service immediately,” Mr Tennakoon explained.
“The IOs are all graduates who have been given special training in handling the calls and processing the complaints.”
Meanwhile the Immigration De- partment information hotline (1962), set up on December 20, has already registered close to 6000 calls.
“There were problems in giving out information in the past," said Immigration and Emigration Controller-General Chulananda Perera. "Because the officers are busy attending to all the people who come here, sometimes they have not given out proper information over the phone.”
“Now we will be recording all calls and monitoring them, and if the operators cannot give sufficient information the call is transferred to the relevant officer or department,” he said.
Most of the 800 calls logged each day are from people needing guidance on obtaining a passport.
“Many Sri Lankans living overseas also call to get information about their passports,” said Deputy Controller Roshanie Ratnayake.
She said many people lack basic knowledge about services provided by the department and become victims of middle-men.
“People think that some of the places offering different services down the road near the Department of Immigration office are our sub-offices and get caught by various false schemes. With the new system they can call and ask about our services and make the necessary preparations,” Ms Ratnayake explained.
The information centre is manned by 20 operators who are graduates. If a caller is not satisfied with the answer given by an operator, the call will be transferred to the relevant departmental officer to obtain clarification or further information.