🧶What is the difference between oversight institutions, regulatory body and complaint mechanism?

Oversight institutions or bodies, regulatory bodies, complaint of grievance mechanisms refer to different forms of accountability mechanisms with varying mandates.

🙅🏽 Oversight Institutions or Bodies

An oversight institution or body is an independent legal entity with power and responsibility to scrutinise or oversee certain functions of government, service provision, and public life. It may have the power to, among others, conduct investigations based on complaints from the public, produce accountability reports, and make recommendations to government or other relevant bodies. In Malaysia, there are various oversight bodies with specific mandates:

Oversight Body	Mandate
Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (SUHAKAM)	Human Rights Commission of Malaysia Act (Act 597)
Enforcement Agency Integrity Commission (EAIC)	Enforcement Agency Integrity Act (Act 700)
Independent Police Conduct Commission (IPCC)	Independent Police Conduct Commission (IPCC) Act 2020
Sexual Harassment Tribunal	Anti-Sexual Harassment Act 2022
Child Rights Commission	Human Rights Commission of Malaysia Act (Act 597)

🙅🏽 Regulatory Bodies

Regulatory bodies are responsible for supervising and regulating specific industries, sectors, or activities to ensure compliance with laws, regulations, and standards. They could be independent and may have the authority to enforce regulations, issue licenses, conduct inspections, and investigate violations. For example, the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission is a regulatory body overseeing the communications and multimedia industry based on the Malaysian Communication and Multimedia Commission Act (1998) and the Communication and Multimedia Act (1988).

🎭 Complaint or Grievance Bodies

A complaint or grievance body would be any body of authority in the private or public setting who has the responsibility to ensure any wrongdoing, discrimination, or misconduct is investigated and addressed with a responsibility towards the complainant or victim. A complaint mechanism or process can exist at all varying levels - project, company, sector, national, regional, and intergovernmental levels - with varying objectives, approaches, target groups, composition, mandate, and resolutions. Resolutions could include mediation or other dialogue-based, problem-solving methods, investigations or fact-finding, make recommendations. They are also known as ‘complaint procedures,’ ‘redress systems,’ or ‘accountability mechanisms.’

Adapted from the following sources:

1. OECD Public Integrity Handbook: Oversight

2. Guide for Parliaments: Independent Oversight Institutions

3. Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission

4. What are grievance mechanisms?