24th August, 2010
Citizens yearning for quality service from government and private service providers now have a new voice in an interactive online platform, www.customerserviceview.com.
The consumer advocacy medium seeks to make government, especially at the grassroots, and corporate bodies responsible, through delivering value to the people.
But service providers too stand to benefit as the online forum affords them the opportunity of interacting, first-hand, with the consuming public. They are able attend to so many issues without the hassles of one-on-one physical visits or appointments.
Promoter of the project, Mr. Chiedu Oshai, said Nigerians deserve a better deal from government and corporate bodies. And the online forum, he says, allows the public to complain, and demand service excellence.
Oshai, who heads AGSIL Consult, a Lagos-based marketing consultancy, says the campaign is focusing more on local government areas, because it is the closest to the average people, where complaints on poor service delivery is rife.
“The LGs are the closest to us, but people are not able to reach council officials because of the restricted access common with public officials,†observes the customer service advocate.
But the online platform, www.customerserviceview.com, comes as a convenient alternative for grassroots people to reach those governing them; as they are able to bypass the challenge of the traditional approach of physical visits to the council offices.
With an estimated 24 million internet users in Nigeria (according to the International Telecommunications Union 2009 figures), Oshai believes the online platform is an effective medium for the people to reach the government.
“People can complain on the online platform about poor amenities, make enquiries on rates and taxes, etc; without having to pay anything to use the service.
“And the process ensures faster problem-solving, as the council officials are able to feel the public’s pulse and act on it to deliver better governance,†said Oshai.