Telephone calls to the office of Eastern Cape premier (OTP) Phumulo Masualle have gone unanswered for months due to a technical glitch.
The landlines have been “out of order” since last November after a new system was installed and the old numbers made redundant.
The Daily Dispatch yesterday called seven numbers listed for supply chain, human resources, communications, Masualle and acting director-general Mahlubandile Qwase – all in vain.
Callers instead hear a pre-recorded message which says: “The number you have dialled does not exist”.
The situation has left workers infuriated, with Nehawu chairman at the OTP, Loyiso Sobhili, describing it as “a huge problem which is an embarrassment to the office which is supposed to be the engine of the province”.
Sobhili said the new telephone system had rendered all old numbers useless. He said OTP landlines now used an 087 prefix, a change he said was never communicated to any stakeholders.
“It is very embarrassing for a high office such as OTP to be out of touch with people, municipalities, national departments and even service providers. This really affects our smooth running.
“It shows that there is a lack of leadership skills and poor planning at senior level,” said Sobhili.
The premier’s office recently issued employment adverts and other official documents still containing the old telephone numbers.
“Even when eligible candidates call human resources to enquire about advertised posts, they never get any assistance as their calls go straight to voicemail.”
He said the issue was raised by employees at a recent staff meeting with Masualle and senior managers, “but we were never given any concrete undertaking this matter will be fixed soon”.
No response to questions had been received from OTP spokeswoman Mandisa Titi by the time of writing.
A senior official, who asked to remain anonymous because he was not authorised to speak to the media, said the problem was also putting strain on students at various tertiary institutions financially supported by OTP.
“Students have landline numbers they call when enquiring about their financial support.
“However, this is very frustrating to them as some could not get hold of the office when they wanted to register for this year.
“It was very painful when some of them had to take public transport to Bhisho from universities such as Fort Hare and Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University just to enquire about their financial support,” the official said.
He said it also impacted on suppliers querying payments.
“ is crippling service delivery.” — asandan@dispatch.co.za
Phone link to premier’s office cut off since 2014
The landlines have been “out of order” since last November after a new system was installed and the old numbers made redundant.
The Daily Dispatch yesterday called seven numbers listed for supply chain, human resources, communications, Masualle and acting director-general Mahlubandile Qwase – all in vain.
Callers instead hear a pre-recorded message which says: “The number you have dialled does not exist”.
The situation has left workers infuriated, with Nehawu chairman at the OTP, Loyiso Sobhili, describing it as “a huge problem which is an embarrassment to the office which is supposed to be the engine of the province”.
Sobhili said the new telephone system had rendered all old numbers useless. He said OTP landlines now used an 087 prefix, a change he said was never communicated to any stakeholders.
“It is very embarrassing for a high office such as OTP to be out of touch with people, municipalities, national departments and even service providers. This really affects our smooth running.
“It shows that there is a lack of leadership skills and poor planning at senior level,” said Sobhili.
The premier’s office recently issued employment adverts and other official documents still containing the old telephone numbers.
“Even when eligible candidates call human resources to enquire about advertised posts, they never get any assistance as their calls go straight to voicemail.”
He said the issue was raised by employees at a recent staff meeting with Masualle and senior managers, “but we were never given any concrete undertaking this matter will be fixed soon”.
No response to questions had been received from OTP spokeswoman Mandisa Titi by the time of writing.
A senior official, who asked to remain anonymous because he was not authorised to speak to the media, said the problem was also putting strain on students at various tertiary institutions financially supported by OTP.
“Students have landline numbers they call when enquiring about their financial support.
“However, this is very frustrating to them as some could not get hold of the office when they wanted to register for this year.
“It was very painful when some of them had to take public transport to Bhisho from universities such as Fort Hare and Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University just to enquire about their financial support,” the official said.
He said it also impacted on suppliers querying payments.
“ is crippling service delivery.” — asandan@dispatch.co.za
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