A frustrated member of the public in Antigua and Barbuda has penned an open letter to a local editor, pulling back the curtain on what they describe as unprofessional and ineffective work culture plaguing some statutory government agencies and public workplaces in the country.
The whistleblower, who identifies only as a concerned citizen, detailed their own weeks-long ordeal trying to access basic public services from the national Social Security office. Since August 11, they have made repeated attempts to contact the office via telephone to book a much-needed appointment, yet every call has gone unanswered, leaving the citizen stuck without the support they require.
What makes this lack of public service even more infuriating, according to the letter writer, is the clear evidence that many employees at the same office have enough free time on their hands to host live streams on TikTok during regular paid working hours. This stark contrast – between an inaccessible public office that fails to answer basic customer calls and staff spending work hours creating social media content – has sparked deep disappointment among the public relying on these institutions.
The citizen emphasized that public sector employees are compensated directly through taxpayer contributions, which means the public has an inherent right to receive timely, respectful, and competent service from the people they pay to serve them. If members of staff have surplus capacity to produce live social media content while on the clock, the letter argues, they absolutely have bandwidth to prioritize answering public inquiries and assisting residents with their official needs.
In closing, the letter calls on senior management teams at these public institutions to immediately intervene, address this unapproved off-duty conduct during working hours, and implement stricter oversight to ensure all public employees remain focused on fulfilling their core public service duties. The writer stressed that the people of Antigua and Barbuda are owed a far higher standard of public service than they are currently receiving.