Frustrated with service at traffic department

Residents have expressed mixed feelings about the efficiency and performance of staff at the Ndlambe traffic department in Port Alfred.

In a recent Facebook question, TotT asked readers their opinion of service at the Ndlambe traffic department and, by and large, received positive feedback.

However, Talk of the Town is also aware of many complaints that have been made against the department and has received and published letters criticising the service from staff.

One recent complaint came from Alistair Machin and his wife, who furnished TotT with a letter of complaint that they submitted to Ndlambe Municipality, highlighting the poor service they received from traffic department staff when attempting to register a vehicle.

According to Machin, they visited the department on three occasions, only to be turned away each time. Their first visit was on Monday January 4, the first working day in the new year.

“We arrived between 1.20 and 1.30pm and found the office closed.

“There was a queue of about six people outside, one of whom said they had been told by the office staff that the office is closed for lunch every day from 1 to 2pm,” Machin said.

The couple then returned on Wednesday January 6 at 2.35pm, just as the offices were closing.

Those waiting outside were turned away by the staff and informed that there were too many people in the office to be processed by 3pm, their closing time.

“This means that the office was only open for 35 minutes on this day,” a frustrated Machin told TotT.

“We were particularly annoyed because we had travelled all the way from Alexandria.

“It was another wasted day.”

The next day, Thursday January 7, the couple again made the journey and arrived at the traffic department a few minutes past 2pm.

“At the time, there was a queue of about 10 people waiting outside the offices,” Machin said.

“It quickly grew to about 15 people.

“We stood outside in the heat and the sun without being served by anyone or even being told what was happening.”

At about 3pm, a staff member appeared and informed those waiting outside that they must return the following day, Machin said.

However, Machin and his wife had enough at this point and complained to the staff member, who he identified as “Mr Lunga”.

Machin said “Mr Lunga” repeated several times, “I am only the messenger. If you don’t like it, shoot me,” which further raised Machin’s hackles.

“No one laughed,” said Machin, adding that the comment was highly contemptuous toward the customers present.

Apparently, while the queue of customers were waiting, another five of six people entered the offices to collect forms and do other business.

Machin wanted to know if some customers were given preferential treatment.

Another aggravating factor was when the supervisor (she told Machin she was in charge, but he did not get her name) was overheard by Machin’s wife (who speaks isiXhosa) allegedly telling her staff that they “must not serve the white man”.

Machin said he and his wife were the only white people in the queue.

Machin has requested answers to his complaint in his letter, and suggested that the department have a ticket system such as at banks, so that customers are served according to order.

TotT sent questions to municipal spokesperson Cecil Mbolekwa regarding the handling of complaints and the traffic department’s opening times.

In reply, Mbolekwa wrote: “We acknowledge that there are challenges in our traffic department, but as the municipality we are making sure that those challenges are resolved.”