Post office customers angered by closures
Over the past month, the Dalbridge branch in Congella as well as the Musgrave Post Office closed their doors.
POST office branches around Durban are declining in numbers as the South African Post Office (SAPO) continues to shut branches.
Over the past month, the Dalbridge branch in Congella as well as the Musgrave Post Office closed their doors, much to the ire of residents.
Father Dane Elsworth from St Cyprian’s Anglican Church said he was shocked when the Dalbridge branch closed without warning or notification to its customers, particularily those who have paid post boxes.
“Through the grapevine I understand, to collect post, you have to go to the Central Post Office in town. It is not clear if one requires one’s post box moved to, say, Queensmead Mall post office, if this is for the customer’s cost and I am also not sure if we can keep the same post box number,” he said.
Chris Wittenbrink said he had a post box at Postnet at The Cowey Centre and recently found a notice indicating that the sheriff of the court had closed the Post Office at The Musgrave Centre this month.
“We are renting a post box at Postnet Musgrave at Cowey Centre which collected post for its clients via the post office in Musgrave. Staff members were locked out by the sheriff, and had no idea what was going on and could not give any advice regarding the collection of our mail. It shows the usual mismanagement from state owned enterprises and I am sure most citizens are more than tired of all the mismanagement and corruption around us,” he said.
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Responding to the news, resident, Cheryl Johnson, said: “I heard that Musgrave Post Office was closing down or had closed down on social media. We’ve had a post box there for 40 years. What next? SAA? SABC? ESKOM?”
Nobuhle Njapha, SAPO spokesperson, refuted the claims that the Post Office was in financial trouble, saying branches were not being closed down but were being amalgamated. The Berea and Musgrave branches were being merged into the Bishopsgate offices and the Mayville and Dalbridge branches merged with the Durban Central offices.
“The SA Post Office is in a healthy cash flow situation, but is continuously rebalancing its network of outlets to changing consumer patterns in relation to branches that are close to one another,” she said.
She said all operations from the Musgrave Post Office had been moved to the Overport post office branch, and customers from the Dalbridge branch could use the Durban as well as Bishopsgate Post Office in Russell Street.
“ Our customers have a choice to move their boxes to another branch but that means they will have to change the address as only Durban branch will accommodate Dalbrige boxes,” she said.
SAPO has said the process of merging branches has not resulted in any job losses, as the staff from the closed branches have been absorbed.
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