This is Cyprus – The Reality.

I came across this article yesterday and meant to re-blog it but then it completely slipped my mind.

So while I have a few minutes while I’m eating breakfast I decided to pop it on….

Cyprus is completely behind when it comes to PC and internet skills so this article from the Cyprus-Mail tells it like it is especially in the case of Government departments and the constant paper trail that is Cyprus bureaucracy at its’ best.

Sending an email to a government department is best likely to receive no response at all, a phone call may get answered if you’re really lucky but a letter or fax will generally produce a reply with an official letter of some kind but whether it will be in any language other than Greek, well that’s another story too!

It’s the only place where I’ve seen translators set themselves up outside the government buildings’ kafenion (cafe) where non-Greek speakers can pay a few euros to get a form filled in on their behalf.

As for “settling queries” through SMS messages from 2013, I for one will most certainly not be holding my breath!

And as usual, the commentors at the end of the article have had a field day 🙂

Modern Age Frustration.

Below is part of the article by Jacqueline Agathacleous but you can read the full version by following the link at the end:

LAWMAKERS were told yesterday that the public would soon be able to settle queries with government departments through SMS messages, as deputies pushed for e-government to counteract crippling bureaucracy and bad service.

The House Institutions Committee was informed by the public administration and personnel department that the SMS system was expected to be up and running in 2013.

Some deputies said until then, the public would have to continue to endure the crippling bureaucracy and “attitudes” of certain public servants.

Opposition DISY’s Andreas Kyprianou said: “In the past five years – and I am speaking about Demetris Christofias’ government – absolutely nothing has happened to update the public administration.”

He said a modern European state could not operate with procedures that date back to 1960. “For someone to secure a document, it has to be stamped 20 times and go through 20 officials,” he said.

Read the online version here.