On a full and very constructive day, the Ombudsman of the Citizen and the Enterprise Observatory left its first "stigma" to Civil Society and Open Government, participating in the competitive part of WeOpenGov that took place at its 2nd Forum on Tuesday, March 5, 2024, at the War Museum. The founder of the Observatory, Ioannis Fytros, during the presentation of the project focused on the reasons that led to the implementation of symparastatis.gr, stressing the need for transparency and accountability in local government, amid the challenges of corruption and maladministration faced by public administration in Greece in general.
The presentation highlighted the current legal framework of the institution of the Ombudsman of the Citizen and Enterprise and its role in tackling maladministration and corruption, improving the relationship between citizens and local authorities. Particular reference was made to the pathologies of the implementation of the institution in local government and to the fact that, despite the obligation of some municipalities to elect an Ombudsman, many failed to do so due to legal, administrative or even political obstacles. symparastatis.gr was presented as a platform that gathers information on the implementation of this institution in each municipality and region, aiming to strengthen the right of citizens to information as well as to cultivate awareness of both citizens and local government towards the institution and the principles it is called upon to defend, namely legality, transparency, accountability, effectiveness, impartiality and good administration. As an example of this goal, it was also mentioned the Open Letter sent on 5 January 2024 to the 212 municipalities that are obliged to choose an Ombudsman, reminding them of this obligation and outlining the role and value of this institution.
Two other proposals presented in the WeOpenGov competition are also worth mentioning: the “Artificial Intelligence Application Observatory – AI Watch” presented by Ioannis Kotronis, as well as the proposal “Staying in Greece – Did you know that...” presented by Ioanna Palaiopanou, Aravella Salonikidou, Eugenia Perdiki and Varvara Vamvoura – an excellent proposal that eventually won the first prize.
Finally, a special honor for the Observatory of the Ombudsman of the Citizen and the Enterprise was the separate report of the Executive Director of Transparency International Greece, Dr. Angelos Kaskanis, at the closing of the 2nd forum and the award ceremony. He expressed the intention of the IT-Greece to support the two Observatories presented, as he stated that they "embrace many of the basic principles of transparency for political integrity, for participation, for safeguarding citizens' rights and strengthening democracy".
Watch the video presentation of symparastatis.gr:
[available with Greek subtitles]