Pensioners were forced to wait five hours yesterday to collect their monthly pension at the Bourda Post Office because of an internal lapse of the administration yesterday.
The old age pensioners who spoke to this newspaper said that they arrived at the post office at their usual 7:00am only to be told that the pay sheet had not yet been sent over by the Ministry of Finance and that they’d need to return the following day. This, the group said, prompted them to refuse to leave the post office until they received their pension. One man, Milton Fraser said, “We don’t have placards but we’re protesting and we’re not moving until we get our money”. He continued, “We went to the Ministry of Finance and they said they sent everything over, so we come back here”. An official at the post office refused to tell Stabroek News what caused the delay, but it was observed that they were telling pensioners to wait. Within a half hour of constant inquiries, pensioners were told to form a line to collect their pensions.
One woman, Sybil Williams said it was a relief because it is a hassle to travel to the post office and a strain on her already meagre budget.
The pensioners who had been complaining of their aches and pains rushed to the counter and one by one they started collecting their monies.
