A SURGE in complaints to the Nasinu Town Council has been attributed to improved reporting system with ratepayers now able to have their concerns centrally recorded and tracked through to resolution.
Acting chief financial officer Imran Khan told the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Social Affairs on Tuesday that the council had centralised its complaints system, replacing the fragmented approach used in 2018.
He said complaints were previously handled separately by departments, including building, health, finance and depot teams.
The council now has a dedicated complaints officer reporting to the manager of corporate services, with complaints received through walk-ins, Facebook, online platforms, and email recorded in a central register.
Mr Khan said the council had reduced its complaints turnaround time to seven days, while outstanding cases were actively followed up until resolved.
He said unresolved complaints generally involved illegal developments or issues requiring the intervention of other agencies, including sewer and health-related matters.
“We’re receiving a lot of complaints in regard to Fiji Roads Authority for road repair works and non-maintenance of streetlights,” Mr Khan said.
“We’re also having a lot of complaints in regard to Water Authority. If you look at areas such as Tuirara, Nadera and Narere, these are very prone areas where we have issues with Water Authority in regard to sewer spillage.
“We are monitoring those.”
Mr Khan said the council had memorandums of understanding with relevant stakeholders and forwarded complaints to the responsible agencies while keeping ratepayers informed.
