on the phone

here i am, one hour into my morning, still on the line since it started. the call is across the causeway, so i can only imagine telekom malaysia getting all excited about it. the music i have been listening to the whole morning is not exactly engaging enough to make me forget i am being tiresomely put on hold, one more time. her voice, although sweet, is starting to make me scream bimbo in that now dull echoing cavern of my head. don't believe what you hear, government offices over the causeway is no more efficient than ours. they are sweeter, definitely, and miles more polite, but no more efficient. actually, even less, if at all possible.

apparently, the payment side of the department that collects blood from its citizens, and non-citizens alike, does not communicate with the assessment side, neither do they want to. did they get into a huge argument, these two members of the supposedly same family? was there a huge row over who got the most credit when it comes to bleeding us dry to finance invesments into ludicrous ventures? like a go-between, i am forced to call one and then the other to relay the message. he said this, she said that. i am quite sure they are in the same building, for goodness sake, whilst i am here, all 280 miles away. that makes perfect sense. for goverment departments, that is. they didn't even want to hear any of it, until i had to steel my voice and throw in an occasional threat. all in an equally sweet voice, of course.

they have derived a system where they tax you on income that you are not going to receive and will never receive, simply because they feel you are likely to receive. and they will even fine you penalty on not paying tax on the income that you did not receive. let's see 5% penalty on 0 income is.....0!! all these plucking off figures from thin air, that's how they are financing the waste water recyling venture is it? you can't simply tell them you won't receive such income, they'll ask you 'so how soon can you pay?'. i'm not paying, i will not be receiving any income!!!! such thick skull. sigh.

you have to give them one thing though, they are sweet. and polite. now, if only we can work on some efficiency behind the facade.