Newsroom
A racism complaint sat unanswered for five years, not because it was complicated, but because the Road Transport Department (TOM) simply didn’t respond.
That’s the core of a new report by Ombudswoman Maria Stylianou-Lottidi, who said her office sent 11 letters asking TOM to comment on a complaint from a Pakistani man claiming a driving examiner humiliated him and refused to test him because of his nationality.
“Get out of my office and out of my country. Go back to your homeland. I will never give you anything.”
According to the complaint, the examiner, identified as Mr. X, began by asking where the applicant was from. When he replied “Pakistan,” Mr. X allegedly told him he “doesn’t approve licenses for non-Cypriots.”
The man said he correctly answered all the oral theory questions but was still marked as having failed and barred from taking the road test. Mr. X allegedly warned him that if he reapplied without requesting a different examiner, “the result would be the same.”
When the applicant asked for an explanation, he claims he was told, “Get out of my office and out of my country. Go back to your homeland. I will never give you anything.”
The man filed his complaint in September 2020. Lottidi contacted TOM immediately, then again and again, with eight reminder letters, a warning, and even a formal summons. For years, nothing.
TOM finally replied in May 2025, saying too much time had passed to investigate the complaint properly. They also defended Mr. X as an “experienced” examiner with fair pass–fail rates.
Lottidi wasn’t convinced. Her report says the only reason the case can’t be properly examined now is TOM’s own refusal to respond, which she says violates the law and shows “a lack of respect” for citizens who file complaints.
She also noted that TOM never actually addressed, or refuted, the alleged racist remarks, raising concern that the accusations may be well-founded.
The Ombudswoman has now sent her findings to the Transport Minister and TOM’s director, urging the department to strengthen its procedures so complaints don’t vanish for years.
