Residents step in to help struggling Umhlali post office
Left with one working computer, which is fast becoming obsolete, a broken air-conditioning system and a decaying façade, hamstrung staff members are given little help to provide a good service.
Umhlali Post Office continues to deliver little more than woe to both staff and clients, but the efforts of the community might soon change its fate.
Left with one working computer, which is fast becoming obsolete, a broken air-conditioning system and a decaying façade, hamstrung staff members are given little help to provide a good service.
The two staff that remain, acting branch manager Dhilip Premlall and teller Samantha Balwan, give their best, but they can do little more than keep the office afloat.
“We are desperately in need of some more support. We try and sort out issues whenever they come up, but it is mostly not enough,” said Premlall.
Aside from the aforementioned issues, Premlall also had to deal with vagrants for months, before he was able to get Umhlali Saps to help two months ago.
“It was a difficult period, because the vagrants would not leave and we were also dealing with huge SASSA grant queues,” he said.
The tide has turned recently, with the community and Ward 22 councillor, Privi Makhan, rallying support.
Although maintenance is the job of the provincial Post Office, rather than the municipality, Premlall said Makhan has taken on the task with aplomb.
“I want to say a huge thank you to Privi and the Salt Rock community who have made a real difference recently, with more changes hopefully coming soon.”
Two Salt Rock residents have already donated and will soon install new air-conditioning units, he said.
Makhan confirmed that more changes were planned for the coming months.
“We have initiated a clean up project with the assistance of the Dolphin Coast Conservancy and a number of other private businesses that will be assisting with the refurbishment. This bears testament to the willingness of our community to get involved and align to improve our local spaces.”
“If anyone else would like to get involved, please contact me directly,” she said.
Premlall did confirm that the Post Office is still operational despite the difficulties.
SASSA grants are being paid out on specific days which are dictated by ID number, which has eased queues.
Uncollected packages overflow from the shelves, covering the floor and every available workspace.
“I want to urge anyone who may have had a package delivered to come and collect it. This includes all listed mail. We have a register with names on it and we have already run out of shelf space.
“Where a number has been provided, we send SMS reminders, but either they are not received or people believe it to be spam. Please do come and look through the register when you have an opportunity,” Premlall said.
The KZN Post Office acknowledged receipt of the Courier’s queries, but had not responded at the time of print.
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