Update
KNYSNA NEWS - Got a complaint about Knysna Municipality and its service delivery? Well it seems there may be life after your complaints yet after the municipality's acting municipal manager Dr Michele Gratz announced the formation of a special committee to monitor community complaints last week.
Gratz in a statement on Friday said any person or organisation may lodge a complaint about any aspect of the municipality's operations and services.
The formation of this committee will make sure that complaints are attended to on time and residents receive feedback on their complaints.
Monitoring committee
According to Gratz, the municipality acknowledges that feedback to customers could be delivered faster and more effectively. "A big step in addressing this issue has been the establishment of a committee to monitor complaints, meeting on Friday mornings," she said.
"My office will be monitoring complaints via this services monitoring committee. It is very easy to request a service or lodge a complaint. As long as the correct channels are used, requests and complaints will be logged and followed up on – and we will have a record of when what actions were taken specific to any issue," said Gratz.
She added that the customer relations department is responsible for addressing issues regarding service delivery as well as the related communication between the municipality and the customer.
To assist in managing requests and complaints, the municipality's Customer Service Charter specifies time frames within which specific departments must resolve certain issues. "This document assigns specific service standards to each department – for which my office will hold them accountable at the weekly services monitoring committee meetings," added Gratz.
'New approach to customer service'
She said the combination of this charter, the customer relations department and its related processes signify a new approach to customer service within the municipality – that of "transparency, accountability and service excellence".
"It is important to remember that the municipality and all its customers are partners in a relationship that can only flourish if we all perform our responsibilities. In this case, ours is service delivery and resolving complaints and service requests. The customer is responsible for keeping their account in the clear and to report issues and problems as soon as they occur. We have a greater chance at success when we all work together," she said.
Complaints – this is how you do it:
Acting municipal manager Michele Gratz said people can lodge their service request or complaint by –
- sending an email to customercare@knysna.gov.za;
- sending an SMS to 44453;
- downloading the Knysna Municipality cellphone app for free from app stores for Apple or Android (non-smart phones are also supported);
- calling the municipality on 044 302 6594;
- writing to the municipality at PO Box 21, Knysna 6570; or
- visiting your nearest municipal office.
But, Gratz stated in no uncertain terms, "Your issue will not be addressed if it is not lodged in one of these ways.
"Do not send it to my office or use any other email address or phone number you might have. Sending it to me or any other director, manager, councillor or employee will not speed up the process of resolving your issue – it will not be addressed if it is not lodged appropriately."
Specific information needed
She said when lodging a complaint, specific information must be provided. "We will need the name and surname of the complainant, as well as their cellular number. Once a complaint or service request has been lodged, the customer will receive a reference number via SMS.
This number will help both the customer and the municipality to track progress made on the issue," said Gratz.
Previous article: Knysna Municipality forms special complaints committee
'We bring you the latest Knysna, Municipality news'
