Legalizations II

Once again at the UBA Legalizations sector—now, looking back and comparing it to the past (ten years ago), the place is more comfortable. The requirements have led to joining what used to be three classrooms into a single hall-classroom, a waiting room with chairs where those of us who used to line up along a couple of sidewalks on the street itself can now settle in.
Is there a need for this? Is there not a single official, supervisor, or worker with a bit of aptitude (and the necessary attitude) to organize the distribution of the waiting numbers?

I estimate there were about 200 people waiting for legalizations, far fewer than when I went back in February 2008. The signs indicate that they hand out 800 numbers per day. Out of old habit—very common in public agencies and nowadays in private ones as well—people arrive very early to queue up and secure one of the first spots or, in extreme cases, hold a spot for someone else. Today the same thing keeps happening, but thinking about it carefully, you lose more than you gain.

I was analyzing the situation: I arrived at 8:30 a.m., and there were already about 50 people waiting. Some people arrived between half an hour early and 11:00 a.m., which is when they start serving. They move at a pace of 50 people every 20 minutes out of the 800 available spots. The last person, who arrived at 11:00 a.m. (in a hypothetical case), was served in 1 hour and 20 minutes, meaning by 12:20 p.m. at noon. It’s a bargain compared to those of us who waited from 8:30 a.m. until 11:00 a.m. But why do so many of us arrive so early? Do we still put our trust in something? I think we do, and that "something" is order in the distribution of the numbers.

Once again, they mock us. From the time I arrived, only the cleaning staff was present, along with one person whose exact role I don't know, but who could well be an orderly or a hall monitor. What would it cost to give that person the numbers right then so they could hand them out as people arrived? What would it cost to leave the numbers out so everyone could help themselves? Only the incompetence of the public employees—who are no more than 5 or 6—can provide an explanation. When everyone is already waiting in total disarray, one of the regular employees comes out with the numbers and places them on a door, causing everyone to crowd around and frantically grab one before hearing the employee say, "Please, in an orderly fashion"—what hypocrisy!

Today, as people kept arriving, they were sitting down in a disorganized manner. One person stood up and suggested sitting down in an organized way; most did, while others stayed as we were—I had taken a spot near the door. Those who kept arriving after the first rows filled up neatly went back to sitting down in a disorganized way. Before the numbers were brought out, a woman stood up and spoke about taking them in an orderly fashion, replying haughtily to someone and implying she had gone the day before and it had been total chaos. But that was nothing new—it is always a mess, and tomorrow it will be a mess again. It cannot be solved through self-management by those waiting; that culture simply doesn't exist among us, and there is no authority figure to enforce that order. In fact, it is authority itself that causes the disorganization. When they brought out the numbers, a young guy near the back headed straight down the aisle to grab one of the first ones, but a barrage of shouting and catcalls sent him back where he came from. The typical local "cleverness" (viveza) had awakened in that individual, but it's nothing new—when the exact same scenario plays out every day, this guy just had the bad luck that today the "waiters" had organized themselves.

Let us consider those who travel from out of town, or those who have a one-hour commute within the city itself. Let us think of those who work and request to arrive late just to get this procedure done. They shouldn't be mocked with an unnecessary, avoidable wait that offers no benefit whatsoever.

The fee schedules on the bulletin boards are poorly explained—or at least confusing—though they are remarkably efficient when it comes to collecting payment.

Anyway, I assume that tomorrow the story of waiting for a legalization number will repeat itself once more, just with a different cast of characters.

 

(originally published on 07/29/2008)