Dear Editor,
As a relative of pensioner Oswald Williams, who has been bedridden for some months, I have witnessed and experienced the frustration caused when attempts are made to uplift his life certificate needed to access his hard earned pension.
Because Mr Williams is bedridden he has authorized a relative to uplift his pension from the GuySuCo Enmore Estate pay office, a process that is done weekly. However, there is need for the authorities to verify he is still alive, and a life certificate is issued every three months before the needed authorization can be done.
In each instance the certificate is issued late, causing delays in his pension being accessed. On some occasions the welfare officer at the pay office would say she has no transportation to take her to Mr Williams’s home while on others she is just not in the office. She was offered transportation in one instance but she refused this.
Editor, these delays have had a negative impact on Mr Williams’s already poor health, since he is a very proud individual and does not want to be dependent on anyone. His various pensions are adequate to take care of him, but when the pension from an organisation to which he had dedicated all of his working life is late, this can sometimes create difficulties. As a result Mr Williams becomes stressed over the situation and his frail health gets worse.
I am appealing to someone in authority to look into this matter. It has now been four weeks since Mr Williams had his last pension, and this coupled with previous delays in unacceptable.
I am hoping that this letter will trigger some movement from the powers that be and the situation will be rectified.
Yours faithfully,
(Name and address provided)
Editor’s note
We are sending a copy of this letter to GuySuCo’s department of Human Resources for any comment they might wish to make.
