Passport office boosts customer service

THE EDITOR, Sir:
The Passport, Immigration and Citizenship Agency (PICA) notes the concerns raised in the letter to the editor in the People’s Report section of The Gleaner of October 31, 2015, titled ‘Painful service at passport office’, and apologises for the below-par service the customer received when he/she visited our offices on the day after the Heroes Day holiday.
We experienced staffing challenges on that day, coupled with the arrival of a large number of customers during the lunch period, which resulted in significant delays, despite our best efforts to manage the situation.
We have assessed the situation and have instituted measures to avert any further recurrence of this kind, in keeping with the high standards of customer service we set for ourselves.
We accord the highest priority to customer feedback, especially from customers like the writer, who take time to document and share their concerns with us. We value this, and wish to assure our thousands of other customers that every effort will be made to meet the demand during the traditionally high pre-Christmas season. Among the measures are reassigning and deploying additional staff, and putting in place interim arrangements to ease the inadequate parking challenges at our Constant Spring Road head office.
Ultimately though, we are seeking to permanently resolve the customer parking issue and to better accommodate our customers by relocating the main offices of PICA in the near term.
Additionally, we are now in the process of procuring the necessary infrastructure to allow for online passport applications during the course of the next financial year. PICA customers are currently able to download application forms from our website at www.pica.gov.jm where they are able to access application requirements. Our electronic queuing system provides customers with small children, as well as the elderly and disabled persons, with specific tickets for a special line.
In the meantime, we have been trying to make contact with you to learn more from your observations on that ‘down day’ in our operations. Please feel free to call our offices and ask for me directly.
JENNIFER E. MCDONALD
CEO, PICA