TAJ could learn about customer service from PICA

THE EDITOR, Madam:

Last Wednesday, I accompanied an elderly family member to the Tax Administration of Jamaica (TAJ) office in Mandeville to transfer and register a recently purchased motor car. As a senior citizen, he was not required to join the long line outside the building’s entrance and he was soon ushered in by security personnel. I, however, was directed to sit and wait outside under a small open tent. It was just after noon and the sun was high and shining intensely. Consequently, I was soon hot and very bothered. To make matters worse, an intermittent wind whipped up loose earth in the vicinity of the tent, causing a dust nuisance.

After an hour and a half of this ordeal, I sought relief by asking the security guard’s permission to check on my elderly relative. When I located him in the cramped and crowded TAJ office, he informed me he was standing in his third line and should be done in a bit. That “bit” morphed into 45 minutes, a total waiting time on my part of over two hours in heat and dust! Those that waited in the long line had a much worse experience than I had. I, at least, could sit and wait, they were made to stand and wait in the dust and heat.

This Monday, I went to the Passport Immigration and Citizenship Agency (PICA) office in Kingston to renew my passport. I arrived at 7:08 a.m. and was directed to a white tent at the rear of the building. On entering the tent, I was delighted to be greeted by air conditioning. However, my delight turned to dismay as there were at least 60 people seated and waiting ahead of me. However, three officers dealt with customers in an impressive manner. Next, I was directed inside the main building where I was processed by another very efficient officer, after which I paid for the same-day service I needed. I was in and out in under an hour.

Later that afternoon, I returned to pick up my new passport. This did not go as smoothly as in the morning as I was made to wait for about 25 minutes under a hot open tent and the office space was very cramped. But I was in and out in about an hour. Altogether, my PICA visit was a much more pleasant experience than I had had at the Mandeville TAJ just days earlier.

On my way home to Mandeville, I could not help but ponder: How many air-conditioned tents could have been purchased by an estimated 350 million of our tax dollars so far wasted by the TAJ management, to rent a still unoccupied building earmarked to replace the current, no longer fit for purpose Mandeville TAJ building? Seems to me there is a lot of passing of the buck going on while our money is still being wasted. Who, I wondered, will be held accountable for this sordid state of affairs with Mandeville’s TAJ office?

ALWYN GREGORY

Mariner, Manchester