Editor,
The simple sending and receiving of mail is part of the life blood of a nation, not just for the man in the street but, more importantly, for commercial businesses. I am wondering if the Government, while it fans around wondering what to do about that building, has given thought to the potential for claims for reimbursement of monies charged for late payment of bills because Joe Blow did not receive his electricity bill before Joe’s service was turned off, through no fault of his own; or an international company here missed a major opportunity to bid on a substantial overseas contract because the invitation to bid is somewhere in the bowels of the Post Office sorting room.
Does Minister Campbell, realise that countries are not only graded for the strengths of their economies, such as our near junk status, but also national postal services are graded by the Universal Postal Union (UPU) and I would suggest that we are about to be down-graded to below countries such as North Korea or even Haiti thereby not allowing us access to smooth international direct mailing services, but will probably have to go through a third party!
I understand that Post Office staff have been telling their revolving Ministers, for at least 15 years, that the absolute best place for a new Post Office building – and ONLY the Post Office, it was noticeable that every other government office located in the Post Office building left that place many, many months ago – is at the southern end of the present general car park; then, as soon as the building is completed and operational the present building can be razed and the parking lot is returned. It is further understood that corruption, graft and pay-outs have been the major problems to this happening, one must wonder how millions of the people’s money have been wasted to date on this, I understand a good few million dollars have been paid out on the aborted attempt to convert the City Market Harrold and Baillou Hill Roads. Why, oh why, would anybody, in their right mind, want to take over another building which will then have to be surveyed for structural soundness then stripped for the necessary requirements needed for a secure building as necessitated by the very nature of a safe Post Office.
Now we come to the current totally unacceptable situation where Bahamians are being expected to work in a positively dangerous building that is falling down around the workers, with no air-conditioning and mold and rat infestation causing serious health problems; and then you and me public get upset when firstly it has been taking one month and more for a letter posted on one side of the building to reach our boxes on the other side of the building, then, secondly, we get more than upset when those staff, fully understandably, withdraw their labour because the conditions they are forced to work under are not acceptable.
Minister Campbell, I fully appreciate that this is a situation not of your making but inherited from previous incompetent governments, but, unfortunately you are the Minister now responsible, and we, the long suffering public, who, you may remember, put you in that place. Please listen to the very people who work there and make the right decision and build the new Post Office on that parking lot, don’t ask for ideas of your fellow Ministers just tell them what is happening and then allow the technical people to work out the details and build!!
Disgusted,
Harry Strachan
