Sell a submarine, save the Post Office?

As an infrequent but dedicated purchaser of books from Amazon.com, I was surprised to read a number of articles claiming that the company would no longer be shipping goods to South Africa because our Post Office was infested with thieves and nogoodniks.

Customers of Amazon who still wanted to acquire their products were, according to these articles, purportedly required to use the services of private couriers.

In addition to the above, there were a number of other articles worth reading on the subject, including one from Simon.co.za, which says that while the South African Post Office is generally reliable, it can be inconsistent at times. It then looks at other factors that might have occasioned Amazon’s decision.

A second one contains the details of a News24 investigation that covers the issue in some depth as well.

In response to allegations, Post Office spokesman Lungile Lose (a most unfortunate name for a Post Office mouthpiece) expressed surprise at the news and said that the Post Office would be speaking to Amazon to find out exactly what the problem was, and would then take it up with the Universal Postal Union.

Lose also set out the overwhelming success rate that the Post Office has had in resolving cases of mail theft.

What you should also be aware of is the fact that in 1999 the Post Office formed a security and investigations services division, which does appear to have made a significant difference.

Personally I have never had a situation where anything that I have ordered has gone missing. In fairness, however, I have had people warning me never to send money through the mail because letters arrived with torn envelopes after, so they believe, postal workers were trying to see what was in them. Whether this is coming from personal experience or just gossip they’ve picked up from others is another story.

The problem is that far too often you give a dog a bad name and there’s no way back. Is that the case here or does our postal service still leave much to be desired?

In considering this, please be fair to all parties and don’t only give the bad news. If you’ve found improvement, say so. Particularly in light of the formation of the SIS division in 1999.

In addition, do you believe that Amazon’s decision was based upon expedience or a genuine concern that many of their products weren’t reaching their proper destinations? If you don’t know anything about this one, rather don’t guess. If you read Simon.co.za, alternative reasons are suggested.

It does appear, however, that Amazon.co.uk is still utilising the services of the Post Office, which might lend credence to the suggestion of a logistic problem rather than the causes allegedly identified.

If that is so, then we won’t have to ditch one of our vital submarines after all.