by ERNESTO T. SOLIDUM
Worldwide economic recession can be bad for many business and service establishments. The Philippine Postal Corpo-ration (PPC) is a sterling example which faces a more challenging task ahead. The Bureau of Post used to be the country’s prime mover of letter, parcels, and money orders.
With modern telecom-munication and servicing like mobile phone, i-pods, laptop/PC and electronic money transfers, customers of PPC dwindled. The Bureau of Post was converted into Philippine Postal Corporation as a government owned and controlled. But PPC failed to adjust to the technology advances and lost great part of its business.
Ma. Cristina V. Morales, Acting Post-master of Kalibo says that revenue for January to June 2008 was P2.3 million. "This is barely enough to keep us afloat in these hard times." Local PPC has 30 employees in its plantilla.
To counteract, we conduct promotion campaigns on postal ID and International Express Mail Service (IEMS). A postal ID is issued upon payment of P315. It is processed after all requirements are submitted and released in 20 minutes.
IEMS takes five working days for letters/parcels to reach their addressees says Morales. Customers can also avail of registered mails for overseas with return card which costs very reasonable. Domestic airmail with proof of delivery cost only P14.00.
Presently, residual customers are credit card companies, banking insti-tutions, pawnshop establish-ments and government agencies like DOJ (RTC/MTC), DOTC, and DOH. Payment in Civil Service and Entrance tests are paid through purchase of money order.
Express parcel deliveries and money transfers are dominated by private companies because of speed, reliability, accessibility, and courtesy of personnel.
Morales wishes to increase the annual revenue target PPC set to 10 percent over the previous year. "I’m afraid this may not be possible because of financial crisis, and rapid advances in telecommunications" which government cannot speedily adjust.
In mail delivery, incomplete information of addressee, absence of zip code and no return address adversely affect PPC efficiency. Some of them are promptly returned to addressee. A big number is forwarded to Dead Letter Office.
GSIS Pension
The GSIS pension payment being coursed through the banks and withdrawn by e-Card is a big blue to PPC. Pension checks handled by PPC are more convenient, the benefits enjoyed as they were paid down to the last centavo. But not anymore. I believed Mr. Winston Garcia, President of GSIS must understand that it is immoral for him to require say an aging, sickly pensioner from Buruanga to go to Kalibo to collect his money, said Morales.
In the United States, postal agency recently laid off thousands of its employees due to reduced demand for its services and in part because of economic downturn.
Other government agency with financial trouble and at-risk of being phased out in this digital world is Bureau of Telecommunications (BUTEL), a facility that provides domestic and international telephone exchanges and telegraphic transfer. Both PPC and BUTEL are under the Department of Trans-portation and Com-munications which lost its claims to high technology and for its failure to adjust with time. In Kalibo, the government is maintaining BUTEL officials and employees without customers to serve. /MP
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