I'm as mad as hell! A message for Cable and Wireless.

Those of us who saw the film "Network" will remember the evocative rant from Peter Finch, as the news reporter, Howard Beale. Forget inflation, recession, ABC Highway, Crop Over, West Indies cricket. Let's deal with life's real issues. I need service!

Those famous lines:

"I'm a human being, Goddammit. My life has value!

I'm as mad as hell and I'm not going to take this anymore."

They resonate in my head everytime I feel slighted, especially by corporations and their operatives. Remind yourself with the video. I'm going to my window right now.



I've done a fair bit of screaming like this since I came to Barbados. So, without further ado, I will say why I am as mad as hell this time.

I was put on hold on the phone last night for 35 minutes listening to background elevator music and leader of the opposition, Mia Mottley, lay into PM David Thompson. Ms. Mottley eventually finished her "speech". I decided to hang up. I could take no more waiting for someone, anyone, anything who worked for Cable and Wireless, to come to the phone and talk to me, after I had outlined my problem. Someone other than me in this blog needs to get C&W to understand that putting a calling customer on hold for more than half an hour IS NOT SERVICE. (In the world of the Internet, bold letters signify screaming.)

In some countries, when people get angry and want to be noticed they do extreme things. French farmers load up their tractors and dump liquid cow manure in front of Parliament and on the main roads. In Japan, they put on bandanas and head bands and walk around with placards in front of the corporation, demanding resignations or hari-kari--the ritual suicide for shame that is 'too unbearable'.

What can I do? I can wuk up with some soca music and hope that someone notices? (That's what I saw some strikers do.) I can threaten to not use my phone? Nah. I can threaten to not pay my bill? Nah. I can threaten to change service provider? Aha. That might work. Sometime during the day I will go to the other company and ask them if I can switch my service. Oh, that does not work so easily: my phone is locked to the C&W service. Cunning stunts, as they used to say.

I will make one more attempt today to get in touch with a human at C&W. If I fail, I think I will speak to one of the farmers in Barbados to see if I can get me one of those truck loads of tomatoes that they cannot sell and are due to rot in the fields. Or maybe I go up the gross scale and round up some barrels of African snails--more fitting in image. Now, wouldn't that make a pretty sight to have that truck load dumped in the lobby of one of C&W's offices?

Is this what I have been reduced to?

Solutrea pulls out of Jamaica telecom sector

An interesting story that has been brewing in Jamaica during July came to another critical point yesterday, as Solutrea Jamaica Ltd (formerly Biscom), decided to pull out its investment in Jamaica's telecom sector (see report in Jamaica Gleaner). Solutrea had been granted recently a licence to become a new player in the mobile phone market. Concerns had been raised about the company's integrity as a result of its failure to pay a fee, by a specified due date. Mr. Keith Walker, CEO of Solutrea, reportedly said that 'politicisation' and harsh comments in the media had caused company shareholders to conclude that the timing of its Jamaica project was not favourable. The company had been due to make investments of some US$50 million. It had been granted a mobile licence effective June 1 this year, and was due to pay a fee of J$500 million (about US$7.5 million, or BS$15 million) by end-June. Reportes indicate that the payment was made, but in mid-July, and the government decided to revoke the licence.The company will return the licence and the government is expected to return all the money paid so far by Solutrea.

Jamaica's Cabinet ordered an enquiry into the affair, and Technology Minister Phillip Paulwell has been under pressure to resign, amid questions regarding conditions for granting the licence and possible conflicts of interest. Remember that Jamaica is in the run-up to general elections, so this affair is likely to find itself high in the political rhetoric that will flow in coming weeks. The opposition party has indicated it will release its findings on the affair.

Mr. Walker is reportedly based in Barbados, so it will be interesting to see what fall out occurs there.