Peace FM to retrain its receptionists

Peace FM, an Accra-based radio station, is one of the leading broadcasters in the country. I thank the Management of the said station for continuing the inspiring broadcasts. Particularly worth mentioning is the quick manner in which it airs items of news as they happen.

Despite the aforementioned achievements, Peace FM or its receptionists seem to lack basic in-office procedures. One of such visibly missing procedures is a logbook or document for letters received. But how did this issue come to light?

The issue came to light when I dropped a letter at the Reception on Thursday 31 March, 2016, at round 11am to 12 pm. I made all the required entries at the Security Desk on the said day. On the envelope, the only message written is ‘TO PEACE FM’.

At the front desk, one of the receptionists asked me of only the contents and the purpose of the letter and I explained after which she took the letter from me.
Miraculously, the very reason that compelled me to send the letter and/or the message it contains to the station for broadcast is now receiving the most deserved national attention. And the said authorities handling the issue are doing their very best to resolve the concerns professionally. One of the appeals they made to me is to stop the broadcast. And that request makes a lot of sense.

Accordingly, I went to PEACE FM again on Tuesday 5th April to withdraw or take back the letter. At the reception, I met two receptionists—one slightly dark and slim and the other cosmetically fair-coloured and somehow plump. The question both ask me was ‘Whom did you give the letter to?’ And my response was that I handed in the letter to the Reception of PEACE FM.

The receptionists told me that they are three at the desk and that I should tell which of them I gave the letter to. I become surprised because how could I enter an office to transact an official business with a company and have to memorize the names or faces of its receptionists. The slightly dark and somehow well-mannered receptionist explained that I should wait for the third receptionist to come and that she might be the one who received the letter. What was obvious then is that the renowned radio station lacks a logbook to record documents received. No DOUBT ABOUT THIS LAPSE. PEACE FM must fix this problem without any further delay.

The second issue to be addressed. The cosmetically light-skinned receptionist rudely remarked while playing games on her tablet ‘We receive thousands of letters each day and at the close of work we carry them and dump them at the boss office. Therefore, it is impossible for me to go there and pick out your letter for you’. Apart from the rude manner in which she said it, it is again clear that the STATION probably lacks a filing system for its documents. If not, it is very easy to search for a letter whose date and time of receipt are well known. The Station must fix these two problems—the receptionists’ manners and/or the filing system.

Then I wanted a guarantee that the document will not be broadcast even if I couldn’t get it back. The ‘obaa bia ye kokoo’ receptionist told me that the document would not be broadcast but could not offer a guarantee upon questioning. All that while she was calling the security to come and whisk me off.

But what is this document or its contents? The envelope contains a 2-page cover letter and an 18-page booklet. The title of the cover letter is ‘Errors committed by WAEC and their effects on Ghana’s Education’.
As the title implies, no one tells you (this reader and PEACE FM) that the document has serious security implications. If so, why was it sent there in the first place? And the answer is that the state authorities who earlier received the first copies refused to act on the contents. However, the Education Ministry that received the second copy has thus far given a super-attention to every detail in the document. Therefore, public hearing of the document is now pre-mature and unnecessary.

By this publication, I appeal to the authorities of PEACE FM not to broadcast the said document and to again make arrangements for me to come and pick up the copy.
Many thanks to the Management of PEACE FM.

Iddrisu Abdulai
020-9101533 & iddrisuabdulai12@yahoo.com