Jacob Zuma’s new Presidential hotline may be toll-free but could cost you a lot of time. The hotline was launched last Monday and Zuma even answered some of the calls himself. We put it to the test.
Jacob Zuma’s new Presidential hotline may be toll-free but could cost you a lot of time. The hotline was launched last Monday and Zuma even answered some of the calls himself. We put it to the test.
We asked Grahamstown residents what questions or comments they would raise if they called the Presidential hotline. One of our reporters dialled 17737 to see what the response would be to some of these questions and comments. The first attempts on Wednesday morning were unsuccessful as there was an engaged tone every time we called.
That afternoon however, after trying for another 10 minutes and getting the standard ‘network busy’ response, we were finally put through only to hear: "Welcome to the Presidential hotline".
We then heard a recorded message informing us that "due to high call volumes all our operators are busy, please continue holding for the next available agent." This was followed by seven minutes of more recorded messages about government and their future plans for South Africa, as well as the occasional "Thank you for your patience. Your call is important to us." After about 20 minutes in total another voice answered to inform us that they were "busy at the moment, please try again later" and cut us off.
Although the calls bore no fruit, there was no charge as the hotline is toll-free.
On Monday afternoon Presidential spokesperson Vusi Mona said the hotline received 7261 calls between 9am and midday. This works out to about 40 calls a minute. However, according to the governmental press release, there are only 40 agents answering the individual calls. After your call has been taken by an agent, it is then put through to public liaison offices in the Presidency, national departments and provinces.
"The Presidency will spend the next few weeks ironing out problems with a view to having a fully functional service by the end of the month," Mona said.
The Presidential hotline cost more than R4-million to install and another R1.5-million will be spent each year on salaries for the 70 call centre staff. "Additional running costs are also expected," Mona said.
