Incirlik IG works for you

  • Published
  • By Lt. Col. Pete York
  • 29th Air Base Wing inspector general
INCIRLIK AIR BASE, Turkey --  Okay, you've finally had enough, got up your courage and decided to file a complaint with the Incirlik Inspector General. What happens now? When you walk into our office or contact us via telephone, what occurs? 

First, we will ask several questions, one of which will be "Did you file your complaint with another agency?" We ask this because we do not want two agencies working the same complaint. Did you talk to your supervisor and first sergeant? Which Air Force Instruction has been violated? Who violated it, and when? 

Once we get these answers, we'll ask you to fill out an Air Force Form 102, Personal and Fraud, Waste and Abuse Complaint Registration, which helps us get the facts down. We'll also ask you what outcome you'd like to see from your complaint. Then, with facts in hand, we set up a future date when we will contact you again. 

Along with this initial information, there are a few points about IG complaints you should remember. 

First of all, by definition, you're only giving us one side of the story. In order to be fair to all parties, we will look for the other side. We are not lawyers and we are not your advocate: that responsibility lies with the Staff Judge Advocate and the Area Defense Council. The IG office is interested only in the truth, and will do everything possible to find it out. 

But back to the complaint: when the IG has your statement, we'll refer to AFI 90-301, which guides us in the appropriate Course of Action. There are five possible COAs: Refer, Transfer, Assist, Dismiss and Investigate. 

When we "refer," we hand your complaint to the appropriate agency. For example, maybe your complaint belongs to the Equal Opportunity, Defense Finance and Accounting Service or even your commander. 

"Transfer" occurs when we pass the complaint to a higher-headquarters IG. Transfer comes into play when the complaint is against the IG his-or-herself, or someone in the IG chain of command. "Transfer" ensures we don't self-investigate. 

The third course of action, "assist," is commonly called "Two-phone Call Complaints." These are frequent and normally reserved for complainants who simply require extra assistance. 

The fourth element, "dismiss," occurs when the IG dismisses complaints that are too old or which have occurred outside of a sixty day window. Complaints that disclose no wrong-doing or violation of regulations are also dismissed. 

And finally, "investigate." Very few IG complaints actually make this cut. We most often investigate allegations of reprisal and restriction. 

'Reprisal' occurs when an unfavorable action is taken against a complainant because they went to the I.G. whereas 'Restriction' occurs when one is not allowed to seek the IG's assistance or counsel. 

During this COA determination, we will keep the complainant informed of our actions. If our COA does not satisfy the complainant, we encourage them to take the issue to Higher Headquarters IG. 

Finally, three more points worth remembering: There is no AFI that states your boss must be likeable. There is no AFI that says your first sergeant can't use occasional profanity. And lastly, the IG process may take minutes or months, depending on the complexity of the complaint. Please be patient. 

Regardless of your situation, please call your local IG office at 676-6253 or 676-8878 if you have questions, need clarification or just want to talk. We're here to help!