Monsoon complaints cells act as perfect outlet for citizens to vent frustration

Cell operat­ors said they mostly got calls of people sweari­ng at Wasa and Fesco.

FAISALABAD:

Three new complaint cells and 22 complaint centres have been established in various parts of the district to deal with emergency situations regarding the monsoons. According to tehsil administration officials, however, the complaint cells are being used to target government bodies such as the Water and Sanitary Agency (Wasa), Faisalabad Electric Supply Company (Fesco) and other administrative organisations.

District Coordination Officer (DCO) Naseem Sadiq said that three complaint cells and 22 complaint centres had been established to deal with all emergencies pertaining to the monsoons. “We wanted a mechanism through which we could address all emergency situations the moment they cropped up. The complaint centres allow us to monitor specific areas and keep tabs on the situation,” he said.

However, complaint cell operators have said that the centres are not being used for the purpose they were designed for. “So far we have barely gotten five calls relating to the monsoons but over 300 calls of people swearing at various government bodies. Sometimes we actually begin redirecting calls of customers who only want to complain and abuse Wasa or Fesco due to power cuts and sanitation problems,” said a calling centre operator.

“It is a daily struggle to keep our patience. Sometimes the calls begin as early as 7.30am and they last all day. We were trained to address problems related to the monsoons but we are paid to sit and listen to people swearing for hours,” said another regional complaint cell operator. A controller at the main switchboard said that she had begun to recognise the tone of the caller and acting accordingly. “Now I can tell early on if someone is calling just to complain and hurl abuses to so I redirect them to two empty lines. If I cut the call then they keep calling back,” said Hadia Athar. The DCO said that that all necessary machinery including de-watering sets had been provided at these complaints centres where Wasa staff would remain available round the clock to deal with any rain and flood related situations.  He said that one complaint cell had been setup at the Wasa Head Office with a toll free number at #1334. Wasa deputy director Khalid Dogar will supervise this cell and can also be contacted on his phone at 0302-7010593. “We have introduced these services to facilitate people and they are taking full advantage of this mechanism,” he said. A second complaint cell was established at the Jinnah Colony overhead water reservoir.

Wasa deputy director Muhammad Anwar will control this cell with telephone at # 041-9200365 and mobile phone number 0300-6659746.  Other centres have been setup at Hide Market overhead water reservoir Sir Syed Town with contact numbers 041-2604142 and 0322-6276874 where Sub Engineer Muhammad Boota will be the in-charge whereas Assistant Director Muhammad Arshad will supervise the complaint cell setup at Peoples Colony overhead water reservoir with contact numbers 041-9220057 and 0333-6504460.

A complete list of complaint cells is available with any one of the main cell operators but people working the desk have expressed their dissatisfaction in this regard.

“We thought we were being proactive after last year’s floods. This time we wanted to be prepared but so far all we are receiving are complaints about daily water tank cleanings or power cuts,” said an operator at Peoples Colony.

Besides these centers, Wasa has also setup 10 emergency camps in various parts of Faisalabad including Chaudhary Flour Mills, Sir Syed Town, Bohranwali Ground, Raja Ghulam Rasool Nagar, Nishat Abad near Jhumra Road Bridge, Old Disposal Works Teezab Mills Jaranwala Road, Imam Bargah Chowk Allama Iqbal Colony, Jhang Road Disposal Station, Narwala Road opposite Gulshan Colony Disposal Station, Sheikhuprua Road opposite Gulistan Colony Disposal Station and Jail Road near the Passport Office.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 29^th, 2011.