Dear Editor,
The picture on the front- page of a recent issue of the Stabroek News of a mega- line in front of the Central Immigration and Passport Office in Georgetown sent chills down my spine, even as I (the holder of a passport that expired in May 2007) am hesitant to visit this office to endure a very long wait.
Many months after the launching of the Machine Readable Passports, there seems to be no ease of persons visiting this office on a weekday basis. I’ve heard sickening stories such as that one has to leave one’s home at 3:00 am to arrive at the Passport Office at 4:00 am just to beat the crowd which usually builds up shortly thereafter.
The messages emanating from the senior officials at this place suggest that they do not tell persons to arrive at these times at their office, however, if people don’t then how will they get seen by an immigration officer and conduct their business? Isn’t it, then, the fault of the system these people have put in place since the launch of the Machine Readable Passport.
To cushion the crowds at the main office, can’t renewing and application for new Machine Readable Passports be done at New Amsterdam and at other offices across Guyana?
It is so easy to renew or apply for new passports in other countries. For example, in the U.S.A., one could simply use the post to process their application and acquire a new passport. Why can’t this proposal be taken into consideration? But first, sir, we need the services of the MRP’s to be expanded to the other regions of Guyana, for example, Berbice, Linden, etc. Do you know how burdensome it is to travel so far at such an early time to the Passport Office in Georgetown?
Yours faithfully,
Leon Jameson Suseran
