KARACHI:
Even after 73 years of independence, we are yet to learn the meaning and importance of properly using our surname. I visited Sadar passport office last week to apply for my granddaughter’s passport who is just seven months’ old.
When my son told the data operator to write our surname in the respective column, the data operator refused to comply and wrote my son’s name instead. The passport office needs to be taught the difference between father’s name and surname. Then the data operator demanded the original B-form which my son had unfortunately forgotten to carry in a hurry, but fortunately had a copy. He was made to go home and bring the original copy which took him almost an hour. The data operator could have easily verified the photocopy of B-form from his system since he had full access to NADRA database, yet he chose to make things hard for us.
In the end, the officer refused to accept my granddaughter’s passport form and asked my son to get it attested by a 17-grade government officer. The whole process was nothing but a huge inconvenience for us as the staff sitting behind the counter chose to enforce their superiority rather than using their powers to help people.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 15th, 2021.
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