Dear Editor,

My husband Arjune Ramperaud NIS No. A-3057551 died at the age of 79 in November 2013. I applied to NIS for the funeral expenses. I got the forms, filled them out and took them in to NIS Brickdam. I had all the requirements as stated on the forms, but I was asked to produce my birth certificate which is not listed on the forms. Nevertheless, I was still told I would have to get it.

Editor, I am not living around the corner from NIS; I live on the East Coast. Why is it that they do not list all the requirements on the forms before giving them out?

However, I came home and returned the next day with the document. In the end I was told that everything is in order and I must return in a month’s time to collect the cheque and I would also get the survivor’s benefit.

I waited over a month and went back to NIS, where I was told that they have the cheque, but wanted to know who paid the funeral parlour and the cremation cost. The named stated on the receipt was that of my son, Khemraj Rampersaud, and the official told me that he would have to authorize me to collect the cheque. So I came home and got my son to give me an authorization.

I returned to NIS a few days later with my son’s authorization and was then told to return the Wednesday for the cheque or it could be posted. I told them to post it.

I came home to wait for the cheque. Instead I received a letter from NIS asking me several questions, so together with my son I went to NIS again with the letter. The lady in the cage explained that the letter should not have been sent, and it appeared as if she was going to pay me the cheque when another lady came up and requested to see the death certificate. She looked at it and said that she cannot see the date of death, and so she would not approve the payment.

The lady in the cage told me to go to the Georgetown Public Hospital and ask the clerk to brighten up the date of death. At the GPH the clerk told me that there was no record of the date of death and I would have to go to the office in my district because my husband died at home. I went to the Plaisance office but was told that all the documents had gone to the registry and I would have to wait for the official death certificate. At this point I am waiting at home for the official death certificate before going back to NIS.

Editor, to my mind these ladies at NIS should be removed from their positions. They are making NIS look very bad. Also NIS should issue an identification card to each employee.

I don’t have to produce a death certificate at this stage because it was produced in the first instance and was accepted. Then I was told to return after a month for my cheque. I was told by the people upstairs that the cheque would be posted so why was it not posted.

Could NIS say when I would be paid.

Yours faithfully,
Germina Rampersaud

Editor’s note

We are sending a copy of this letter to Ms Dianne Lewis-Baxter, the PRO of NIS for any comment she might wish to make.