How Much Does Incompetence And Ignorance Cost?

in Reflections3 days ago (edited)

If I were to use one word to characterize what this year was like for me legally, I'd say "nightmare". It was a nightmare and it's still not over yet.

Early this year, in February I had to renew my ID and that's when the whole madness started. Someone has warned me previously, that I'm going to run into some trouble, but me, the naive, I thought I can still be the exception to this and get away with it. Well, I was wrong.

Long story short, I was told there's a problem with my address and I need to go to the urbanism office to get a certificate which clarifies the problem. Sounds easy, after all, it's just a document, right?

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Well, it took them 4 (FOUR) weeks to issue me a certificate, that clarifies my address. Four weeks for a simple paper and three people were needed to sign it, like it was a state secret or something.

After getting the certificate, I managed to renew my ID and said let's get the correction in the land registry, to be on the safe side and avoid this circus in case I need another official document next time, that needs my address. I paid 15 euro for this update, even though it wasn't my mistake or fault and was happy it's taken care of, thinking I'm out of the woods, I'm never going to go through this bureaucratic torture again.

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Then this week I had to renew my ID again and was telling myself, thank God, my papers are in order, there will be no problems. When I handed in my papers, everything seemed to go smoothly, but when I was about to leave, the lady came out of her office to let me know there might be a problem with the address and told me she's going to call me if they reject my application.

This was the moment when I started rolling my eyes, but I have the habit of taking a deep breath before saying anything and after that deep breath I decided to not say anything and left. The next 2 days were stressful. I was expecting a call any minute to be told the madness is not over after all and I have to go through that charade again, but in fact I got a text letting me know I can pick my ID up the next day.

You can imagine how happy I was that I don't have to go through another nightmare, like in February, but in the same time I was thinking, how on earth can these institutions work like they do? Wherever you go, you need official documents to solve anything and all they have to do is copy the details from those official documents. Then how on earth can they mess up things like that?

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So while I was checking the schedule as to when I can pick my ID up, I saw the reviews people left for the office issuing IDs. The rating of 3.2 stars already suggested it's not going to be good, but what I was about to read, blew my mind.

For those of you who are not familiar with how things are working in my country, most of the government offices and not only, are requiring online appointments, to avoid crowds and confusion and to also facilitate smooth administration and problem solving. Banks for example have a ticket system you can use at the door, to get a number, but here, at the ID office, your only option is to make an appointment online.

This measure has been implemented to make life easier, yet people were complaining of not knowing and about not having a possibility to get an appointment at the office. If I say this is crazy, that's an understatement. Imagine everyone has a smartphone these days, everyone has internet and all it takes is to google the website and get an appointment. With the details required, it takes 2 minutes in total, if you're slow. If you are a bit more knowledgeable, you can do it in one minute, but some people only use their phones to chat on different video platforms and for facebook as that is a must these days in some circles I don't want to characterize now, and nothing more.

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So how much does incompetence and ignorance cost? They say a lot of people has to die for something to change, which sounds brutal, but it is true, unfortunately.

State run offices are full of incompetent and lazy people (no offense), who got the job because they are the relative of someone influential, they have been shown what to do and doing that without thinking. They get paid regardless if they do the job or not, so why they should bother, right?

The majority of the population on the other hand is expecting others to do the work as thinking and trying to find a solution is not something they are used to. Blaming others for their incompetence and ignorance is easier than actually trying to learn something new that can help them. The generation that was brought up and taught to not think, just do what they are told, without questioning anything, will never be able to individually think and learn. I don't even whant to know how many people are in this category.

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there's a problem with my address

I had a similar issue when I was in Kharkiv and it was hell. I had to go to a village near Russia to get my permanent address details so that I get my residence permit... Collecting the paper from the regional office was not the last work, later I had to visit 2-3 government offices to do a notary and other shit...I had to stay without ID for 6 months...😋. The good thing was I was still a student back then so didn't become illegal...So, I feel your pressure...

I'm really sorry to hear that, I was hoping I'm the only one in this situation. Six months is totally unacceptable though! These people should be fired asap!

Hahaha, the system is slow and I believe not organized. Sometimes they don't even know how to handle a case and force us to do unnecessary paperwork...Everything is supposed to be in the system but I don't understand why most of the time, they say they don't have anything...

In an ideal world, these institutions should have a common database to be able to consult it when official documents are needed and not put citizens through this madness, but such a database needs work and funds, therefore they are not interested.

Sooner or later it has to happen, but I think we still have to wait a good few years. Especially Ukraine 😟

therefore they are not interested

That's the thing, they are not interested at all...

Unfortunately. But you know what's funny? They are called public servants, but all they serve is themselves 😆

You need a DOGE like the US 🙄

You can't make this stuff up 😳 it is really happening...

On a more serious note, government bureaucracy, old systems, and inefficiency are everywhere. In California where I used to live, some tech entrepreneurs offered to replace the Department of Motor Vehicles outdated systems for FREE. It would have streamlined everything and allowed most transactions to be done online. It was killed by the government workers unions because of all the jobs that it would have replaced 🤦

Oh God! This situation is so familiar. Every government institution has an outdated and slow system here, that freezes most of the times. The reason for this is because usually these projects are won by people who are relatives, cost a lat more that it should and are never efficient.

Owww this reminds me so much about my days in the Caribbean where the only way to get stuff done for an ID was in office hours which were the same as my working hours and you had to stand in line and not have your phone in hand while waiting. Every government official thingy getting done always took the whole week and no one really seemed to care about it all..

these kinds of things can be so stressfull if the person in front of you doesnt give it the same priority as that you are willing to give it.

I hope it is all done by now?

I can imagine what is going on and how things are handled in less developed countries, where people have no voice.

I was ready to go higher if needed in this case, but thank God it was not needed. I got my ID in 2 days, which is a good result and I'm happy. Let's see how fast I can get my passport, but there shoul be no problem there 😜

I don't know what country you live in but I can assure you that even in Italy it's chaos, the bureaucracy doesn't work and often relies on IT systems that are often unusable and useless, it's quicker to ask the Pope for an appointment rather than making one to redo the documents.

I live in Romania but I know Italy is not any better in this regard, unfortunately, and you just confirmed that.

Sorry about all you had to go through, we all had our shares of 'mares this year but we have to be grateful for how far we have come. Nice pictures by the way 🤗🤗🤗 wishing you a blessed weekend.

I fully disagree. What I've achieved is my hard work and I don't see who i have to be grateful to, other than myself,
and that doesn't nean I have to forgive these incompetents.

it's better to just let go.. I get the feeling of the pain.. I'll still say sorry about the situation..

Maybe for you it is, but not in a civilized world. Things that are wrong must be fixed and letting it go means accepting and supporting this behavior. Not me, no way!

🙂🙂I wish you find the justice you seek. 🙌🙌🙌

Some of the people in the government (if not most) are incompetent and the sad thing is we have to pay for their mistakes and ignorance. Hope they get a dose of their own medicine !BBH !LOLZ !PIZZA

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A lite house.

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A lot of things have changed but there's still a long way to go.

PIZZA!

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@day1001(4/10) tipped @erikah

We experience various problems but there is a solution for everything, the point is to remain patient in all the problems we face :)

I disagree. I don't have any patience anymore, when incompetent people are wasting taxpayer's money and time.

yes, that's true, when there are incompetent people, we definitely put them at risk, maybe they can't take care of themselves.. Greetings from Indonesia-aceh @erikah

Waooo!!! Bonitas tomas fotográficas @erikah, la última que nos muestras con la flor rosada quedo de postal. Súper bella.

Gracias por compartir tu contenido navideño 🌨. Saludos y feliz domingo amiga !!! 😊🙏🏻👏

Wow! I thought that cronyism, that is, being friends with someone or knowing someone to get a job, was only a problem in my country, but as far as I can see, brurocracy is present in many places, even though everything is just a click away from your phone, which is the fastest. But well, I am glad that you finally got an affirmative answer and got your ID card. Regards!