Bureaucracy!

Blog144:

If there’s anything that’s frustrating, and enough to scream about it, for me … it is filing paperwork for processing – wherever in the world!  Especially aggravating is when an office, one from which you need a document produced and taken care of, does not thoroughly list all required papers needed before the filing time so that it could move smoothly from point A to point B. 

I was terribly shut down … really annoyed today that I had to go back 3 steps and retrieve 3 documents before the one I needed could be looked into.  What I huff about is that why this was not transparently stated so that people like me could readily obtain what I need!  It made me feel stupid to get there at the site, after an already challenging travel and time, that I did not have what would fulfill a smooth application for a homeowner’s membership. 

My woe was not as really as terrible as another person’s lap-landed situation in the same documentation office here in Manila – The Philippines, that is.  Filing for documentation next to me, a not so advanced senior adult, wanted to apply for what she thought would be her crowning reward --- a Senior Citizen’s identification card.  This would give her recognition and the right to be pampered with very special treatment in the coming days.  She would enjoy discounts in food establishments, pharmacy, supermarkets, and even on transportation to and from a place.  I overheard ‘the attending office personnel’ tell her that she would have to go to a different office, not in the same building mind you, get 5 ID pictures, fill out an application, and proof of residence certification in the ‘Barangay District she claimed as residence.  She did not have all required pieces of information, much less pictures she was asked to show.  I pitied the woman who went from an amiable countenance to that of a confused and a frustrated being!  Her trouble was deeper than mine!

What does one do?  Not a blessed thing.  You couldn’t even verbalize your aggravation.  Doing so expands the issue without a clear solution in the horizon.  You simply turn around and collect what are needed and then begin the path to obtaining a needed or desired document … again!