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Showing posts with label government agencies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label government agencies. Show all posts

Saturday, July 26, 2025

Domino effect when calls go unanswered

 

 

Government agencies urgently need to dial up responsiveness when serving the public



RECENTLY, I had to sort out a matter at the National Registration Department (JPN).

I took a day off work and drove to UTC Seremban in Negri Sembilan, where it took a bit of time to find parking.

Upon reaching the service counter, I discovered that the system was down and was told to return the following day.

When I asked how to check whether the system would be operational before making another trip, I was given a phone number to call.

Fair enough, except no one answered the phone despite my repeated attempts at calling the next day.

At around 3pm, I rang the state JPN headquarters to lodge a complaint.

The officer who took my call assured me that they would look into the matter.

About 10 minutes later, the officer called back and told me to go to UTC Seremban again and proceed directly to a specific officer, with no need to queue.

I went the next day and at the end of the process, the officer at the counter asked if I could leave positive feedback for the fast service I had received that day.

I explained that while the final step had been swift, it had taken me three days to resolve an issue that should have taken less than two hours.

There had been no effort by the branch to inform the public of the system failure.

having people show up at the counter only to be turned away, is simply poor practice.

I offered to write constructive feedback on how the department could improve its communication, but I was not given the relevant form.

This was not an isolated incident with a government agency.

Recently, I needed to speak to an officer from a national research institute regarding a news story I was working on.

I called the number listed on their website at various times over the course of several days.

Not once did anyone pick up. There was no alternative number, no automated message, just ringing until it stopped.

Frustrated and with no other option, I visited in person.

Again, more time spent, more resources used, when a simple phone call should have sufficed.

I shared my frustrations with an employee manning the front desk.

out of curiosity, I dialled the number in front of him but the phone on that desk did not ring.

When I asked for the number that connected to the front desk, he said he did not know as he was just sitting in temporarily.

Before leaving, I told the officers how inconvenient it was for the public when phones went unanswered and no other way was given to reach them.

The office is in Kuala Lumpur, which isn’t far from where I work in Petaling Jaya, Selangor.

But what if someone from Johor or Penang wanted to get in touch?

When dealing with government agencies, we often have to take leave from work, travel long distances, arrange childcare and cancel meetings, only to discover that our arrangements had been all for nothing.

This lack of responsiveness not only wastes our time, but also reflects poorly on the professionalism and accountability of public institutions.

It is high time something as basic as answering the phone is given the attention it deserves, as for many, it is the most practical way of reaching out to a government agency.

on that note, I rang the national research institute again recently and this time, the call was answered promptly.

By VIJENTHI NAIR vijenthi @thestar.com.my

Protests in Malaysia: Calls for prime minister Anwar Ibrahim to step down https://youtu.be/qduneQNbKtc?si=MlgWZw2xZtOK2ChN via @YouTube

Friday, May 3, 2019

Check on coming monsoon floods in Penang !

Wake-up call: The floods that hit Penang in 2017 exposed its lack of flood mitigation and disaster preparedness.

GEORGE TOWN: The south-west monsoon season is expected to start sometime this month, prompting fears of flooding and falling trees here.

As dark clouds hang over Penang almost every morning now to herald the coming monsoon, talk of flooding in the state assembly sitting on Tuesday led to several lawmakers and the Speaker himself wanting to have a say.

“I am aware that some government agencies belittle the efforts of assemblymen who highlight flooding and other problems.

“As legislators who face the rakyat, they are carrying out their duties and I hope that the relevant agencies will take them seriously and not make fun of them,” said Speaker Datuk Law Choo Kiang during the day’s proceedings.

Lim Siew Khim (PH-Sungai Pinang) told the assembly how she and Ong Ah Teong (PH-Batu Lanchang) suffered verbal insults when visiting flood victims in Kampung Bukit Dumbar, where homes were flooded seven times, including a few days before the recent Chinese New Year.

This led to Dr Norlela Ariffin (PH-Penanti), Ong and Teh Lai Heng (PH-Komtar) to also stand up and voice their grouses.

Outside the hall, Ong said government officers handling flood problems tend to ignore the pleas of assemblymen.

“We are all in the same WhatsApp groups. When we highlight floods, they never respond,” he said.

Teh told the assembly that government officers don’t face the residents but the assemblymen bear all the insults from flood victims in their constituencies.

Dr Norlela said when she attended the monthly district meetings and called for strict enforcement to end the source of floodings such as deforestation, her pleas were often met with silence.

While the Sungai Pinang Flood Mitigation Plan – delayed for 20 years – has begun again with renewed federal funding, many are worried that the south-west monsoon will still bring back the floods this year.

Scientists Sheeba Nettukandy Chenoli and Chai Heng Lim, in a research paper published last November in the “Journal of Atmospheric and Solar-Terrestrial Physics”, found that the onset of the mid-year monsoon will be on May 19 with a standard deviation of eight days.

State Environment Committee chairman Phee Boon Poh said this was the season when rain coinciding with extra high tides fuelled by the super full moon could lead to severe flooding.

“Between May and June, strong winds stir up huge tidal waves that are not safe for small boats,” he said.

A freak storm on Sunday caused several trees to fall on Penang island, one of them in Tanjung Bungah falling on a passing car.

To keep falling trees in check, State Works Committee chairman Zairil Khir Johari said a special committee was ironing out a method to pass the care of public trees from the Public Works Department (JKR) to Penang Island City Council (MBPP).

“JKR specialises in building and caring for roads and bridges but MBPP has a full landscaping team that includes arborists.

“This team has the know-how to care for public trees and recognise diseased trees that must be felled before they become a hazard.

“We are finalising a method for MBPP’s landscapers to have island-wide jurisdiction of roadside trees and be granted access to federal grants for their maintenance,” he said.

By Arnold Loh and R. Sekaran The Star


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