OVER the past year I have spent a lot of time and energy trying to understand why it is such a big problem getting hold of anyone at Ekurhuleni.
It is especially difficult to get hold of the call centre when there is a crisis or a need. One of the biggest complaints from residents is that no one at Ekurhuleni answers their phones. I am regularly confronted with this criticism from residents. Ekurhuleni has one of the most advanced telephone systems and has set the bar in telecommunications infrastructure. Yet the answering of phones seems to be a challenge and we just cannot bridge this gap. The impression with members of the public is that officials sit in their offices without working or alternatively that the phones are just not being attended to. I have sat in several meetings since I first raised this issue a year ago and I now fully grasp the immense frustration members of the public face when phoning Ekurhuleni. I had a electricity crisis this past week and instead of following the internal route I worked through the Ekurhuleni Call Centre and switchboard. I realised once again that Ekurhuleni does not have a switchboard. This very important customer service tool has been replaced with a direct call management system which basically means you phone the person you want to speak to directly. Due to this bad experience last week I am now necessitated to investigate the Ekurhuleni telephone problem once again.
The regular electricity and water interruptions are due to routine maintenance but people are not aware of this which results in SMSs and telephone calls from residents with enquiries about the problem. Due to the phone system I simultaneously get complaints about service delivery and the call centre not answering phones. I tried several times to call the call centre with nothing but a ringing phone on the other side.
The Ekurhuleni IT department gave me the lame excuse that phones at the Ekurhuleni Call Centre and on officials’ desks are not just ringing without answer – when phones are engaged it also rings similarly to what call wait on a cellphone would do. I think we need to re-look this whole system of telecommunications in Ekurhuleni and come up with a solution that will both be helpful, informative and responsive to the needs of the ratepayers in Ekurhuleni.
Together we should find solutions that will make Ekurhuleni a better place to live.
