I am a government retiree and thought my disgusting and stressful experiences with our government service will remain forever. I remember that if you apply for a permit, license, clearance, or even pay income tax, you have to spend a day or more per transaction. The tiresome long queues were the worst part—regardless of age, gender, or physical condition. I even saw someone on a wheelchair falling in line to comply with the “first- come-first-served policy.”
The good point, however, is that there are still government offices that are effective and efficient with their service.
May I use the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) to show that it is still possible to improve government service. When I was still an employee of the National Irrigation Administration from 1969-2005 and a GSIS member, I used to transact business with that office. I usually needed a day to complete my salary loan application and waited for a month to receive the check. When I retired in 2005, my early experience in getting my monthly pension was extremely terrible, time-consuming, tedious, and even dehumanizing. A clerk or a security guard will even shout at anyone not in line to get their priority number.
But look what happened to the GSIS. I do not know why it happened, who made it happen, and when it happened. All I know is that I only spent no more than five minutes to file my pension loan, and every 8th day of the month, I receive my monthly pension via ATM. I do not even need to go to the machine because my daughter can do it for me. The GSIS would even greet me on my birthday.
I am sure that all government employees who are GSIS members experience the same satisfaction with that office. I am hoping against hope that they, too, strive hard to do the same in their respective offices. Their motivation should be: If GSIS has become as efficient and effective, why couldn’t my office do the same?
ARSENIO UNAJAN BAQUILID, arseniobaquilid@yahoo.com