Dear Editor,
I had applied several times on behalf of poor residents in my community and also for members of my church for birth, death and marriage certificates, but the wait is very long. I applied for some birth, death and marriage certificates since last year, but only received a few of those which I had applied for in the post.
If a person has never been registered, the Registrar at the GPO should send me a card saying that the person’s record cannot be found. However, I received no such card after sending in the applications. In an age where modern technology is on the increase, I don’t think one should wait more than two weeks to get a birth certificate from GPO.
I gave some of these applicants the receipt, and even filled out a new form for them to go and apply for their certificates directly at the GPO, but they never heard a word in the mail. As a result of slow and poor processing of birth certificates, perhaps thousands of our Guyanese citizens have been unable to register for their new identification cards.
Why is it that birth, death and marriage certificates are taking months and even years to be processed at the GPO? It seems as if there is a lot of incompetence at this institution. GPO will maybe claim that they mailed these certificates and they probably got lost in the post, which could be true except that I am well known in my community, and even the post office will call me on the phone if mail is there for me. Besides, I have a post box.
I am not the only person who is faced with this problem; there are thousands of Guyanese experiencing the same thing because the lines for these documents are getting longer and longer every day, and some have to resort to bribery to obtain them.
Amerindians are given first preference to obtain birth certificates through the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs, so why is it that Indians and Africans are given such a hard time?
Another problem is the wrong spelling of names, and at times a completely different name will appear on the birth certificate when compared to the old British Guiana birth certificate. What is really happening at the registry?
Another problem I am faced with as a marriage officer is the long waits for marriage certificates. Just about a year ago when I married a couple I would register the marriage and apply for the marriage certificate at the same time. I would be given a slip to obtain the marriage certificate in a week, which I would get. Now they have a new requirement that when I register a marriage I have to go downstairs and apply for the person’s marriage certificate or the person will have to make the application. Unfortnately, marriage officers like myself are blamed because the marriage certificate will take months to come or only after several applications have been made or I have gone back into the marriage section to query the situation. I applied for a marriage certificate for a marriage I registered since February 8, and to date I have received nothing in the post.
Why is it we are faced with so many problems for just minor things? We have not progressed very far as a nation after 43 years of independence. It’s about time the Minister of Home Affairs looked into these issues. For Guyana to progress we must stop living in denial and correct our incompetence from day to day.
Yours faithfully,
Rev Gideon Cecil
