Today, at around 5 in the afternoon, I tried calling 8Mcdo, to no avail. The phone just kept ringing and ringing and nobody was answering. I called around 10 times to make sure it’s not only happening to that particular call.
I called PLDT 187 to inquire about other McDo delivery numbers because the 8Mcdo doesn’t seem to work. They referred me to an Ortigas branch, and then to the El Pueblo Branch nearest to where my building was.
A Mcdonalds staff entertained my call for delivery. While I was waiting for her to compute the total amount, I could hear her from the background complaining and whining why it had to be her (or them) to relay the message to the call center, and why I couldn’t go through the call center/8Mcdo myself. “Sir! Bakit naman kasi ako pa tatawag, ano ba yan serrr”. “Tapos ako pa mag rerelay dun sa call center?”
And she wasn’t even discrete about it because I could hear her perfectly well like she was speaking directly to me. Disgusted, I made sure I don’t let this pass and give her a piece of my mind.
First of all, in a professional setting, one should never hear someone else complaining when they are expected to render service. The customer, at the very least, should never be made to feel like she is making things harder for any of the staff. We are clients and it is not our problem if there seems to be an internal or technical problem with the call-center and delivery system of McDonalds.
Second, it is very inconvenient for us customers who want to order from McDo when there’s only one delivery number, because, and as it happened today, should that delivery number be disrupted for some reason, how would we be able to order then? The whole idea of delivery is to make it more convenient for customers. There should be some contingent plan if anything goes wrong with the delivery system (line’s cut, call center busy, etc).
As soon as she got back to me (and suddenly she puts on Ms. Friendly tone), I said, “Ms. If you’re going to complain because I’m ordering here, then you can cancel my order. You have made it very clear that you’d rather not accommodate my request.”
“Ay ma’am, hindi naman po. Sorry po ma’am, irerelay naman namin yan sa call center. Pasensiya na po,” she said, apologetically.
I don’t think I was rude in answering her. For once, let’s stop being complicatedly pinoy and tell it as it is. I’m pissed off that I had to hear her complain and then after a minute, she puts on plastic mode like I’m not smart enough to notice it.
As it turns out, the entire 8Mcdo system is down because they transferred call centers, and the delivery boy explained to me how their profits from 70,000 has decreased to just 5,000 pesos this day.
It’s very bad for business. They should make the transition smooth and not inconvenience the customers. And they should not even pass the blame to us.
* * *
I was appalled when I heard the news last night that our overrated boxing hero Manny Pacquiao is planning yet again to run for public office in the 2010 elections. His reason? He wants to help the Filipinos, especially those in Mindanao.
While I hail him a true boxing icon in Asia and perhaps the world, I’m not necessarily convinced he could make a good politician (just yet) –and a Congressman, at that.
I wonder what goes through the minds of Filipino celebrities and sportsmen like him to make them think they can just run because they’re popular, or because they have good intentions.
I have good intentions, too. I want to help Filipinos, especially in Mindanao. I want to provide quality education to them, to help them be literate so they can wisely and not mismanage their votes. I want them to have access to clean water and sanitation, to be informed of the dangers of malaria and not having inidoro. I want them to be aware of the importance of nutrition especially to babies and newborns. And I want to educate them on alternative farming so they don’t have to burn lands and cause further damage to mother nature.
But as I see it now, my intentions will not get me far, because I have to know how to implement all these. I have to have the proper tools, resources, connections, and education most of all to even implement one project that addresses one of these needs.
I have to know policy-making, and most of all, know it myself, and not some adviser who will do the thinking and writing for me.
So why do celebrities ambitiously aspire to be Congressmen, Senators, heck, even President right away without learning the ropes of policy making? Without having at the very least some experience? Do they expect people to do all the thinking for them?
He can start low, like a councilor or kagawad, and not immediately rush to become a Congressman. He should have learned already when Rep. Darcy won by a landslide the last time he attempted to ‘win’ by virtue of popularity.
Filipino voters are smarter and wiser now, I think. (let’s wait til 2010)
* * *
So I’ve been trying to lose weight these past months and my dad noticed it this afternoon. “bakit pumapayat ka nanaman?”
“Eh kasi ayokong tumaba eh. Lumalaki tiyan ko.”
“Who said you were fat?”
“People. And I notice it, too. Bulging stomach. Fitted shirts.”
“Patingin nga!”
“Ayoko nga! Kaya nga nagpapapayat eh!”
Let's hear it