Dear Editor,
Having contributed to NIS for over 24 years, I decided to obtain a record of my contributions when I visited Guyana in 2011. I made an inquiry at one of the NIS local offices and was told that I have more than 1200 contributions and was advised to go to the Georgetown office and request a print out. Due to time constraints, I could not make it to request the print out.
In May, 2014, I sent an email to the NIS PRO requesting a record of my contributions. I did not receive a reply or an acknowledgement of my email. I sent another email in July 2015 and informed the PRO that it has been over 15 months and I have not received an acknowledgement or a response to my request. In September 2015, I received a letter and a record of my contributions from NIS posted to my overseas home address. The record of my total contributions sent by NIS showed that I have a total of 739 contributions. I sent another email to NIS in October 2015 and indicated that a total of more than 500 contributions is missing and provided details about the missing contributions. I also included scanned copies of my record of service in relation to the two places of employment for which the contributions were missing. So far, I have not received a reply from NIS with regard to the missing contributions.
When NIS launched the online system in 2015, I signed up and was able to view my contributions. I discovered that NIS had 410 contributions for me on the online contributions tab. I submitted an online query # 129 on November 11, 2015 in which I outlined my concerns about the missing contributions. The query #129 was updated by NIS on January 18, 2016 and was closed without an answer from NIS with regard to the missing contributions. I sent another query #165 and received this reply from NIS via email – “Good Morning! Please Note: Our Website Is Scheduled To Be Updated On 31.01.2016.” This seems to be a boilerplate response which is unsuitable. The query # 165 was updated by NIS on January 18, 2016 and again was closed without an answer about my missing contributions.
The NIS website was updated in early February 2016 and on checking my contributions I noted that it was updated to a total of 739, but the missing contributions (500 +) were not included. On the contributions page, NIS had this note below my total contributions – “Please be advised that this statement only reflects your contributions that are updated on our computer system.” My last contribution was made 11 years ago in 2004, and I am left to wonder when my missing contributions will be updated.
On February 5, 2016 I sent the email attached below to NIS:
“Dear Sir/ Madam,
“I checked the website today and would like to express my thanks to you and your team at NIS for partially updating my contribution records. I would like you to know that more than 500 contributions are still outstanding. Please see details below in inserted table.
“Grateful for a reply if any process is presently being carried out to find these missing contributions.
“Thank you”
On February 7, 2016 I submitted another online query #201 with regard to my missing contributions and the reply from NIS at >> condetails@gmail.com<< via email indicated that I will receive an initial response within one week. Again, another boilerplate response. It’s been over one month and I have not received a reply despite sending 3 emails requesting an initial response.
The email response to a query: “Good Morning! Please Note: Our Website Is Scheduled To Be Updated On —————” is utterly outrageous. A simple reply, informing the contributor that their query will be investigated, the process involved and the time it will take would have been more appropriate. I am also surprised that two government agencies, GuySuCo and the Ministry of Education seem to be the biggest defaulters. I worked in the private sector and all of my contributions are properly accounted for, including an establishment for which I worked for only one week. Also during my period of employment at the MoE (GTI), I received dental and surgical reimbursement from NIS which means that the NIS had records of my contributions in order for me to qualify for benefits, so something is not right.
Hopefully NIS can get their act together and update my contributions and that of many other contributors who might have encountered similar problems. In the meanwhile I am in a cyberspace line for a couple of months waiting, waiting, waiting.
Yours faithfully,
(Name and address provided)
Editor’s note
We are sending a copy of this letter to Ms Dianne Lewis-Baxter, the PRO of NIS for any comment she might wish to make.
