GRATUITY PAYMENTS

Press, Volume LXXXII, Issue 24899, 12 June 1946, Page 10

GRATUITY PAYMENTS

Sir, —Complaints •by former servicemen awaiting gratuity payments have reached such a volume that it appears strange to me that there have been no statements published by the powers-that-be to explain the delay. I lodged my application immediately the forms were available; but as yet I have not received payment. I was informed at the Christchurch Post Office about two weeks ago that accounts were being received from Base Records (Wellington) at the rate of 200 a day. More recently, I learned that owing to the restricted inter-island steamer service, the accounts are now only coming to hand every two days. I honestly think gratuity payments hre deliberately being spread over a certain period; and I -don’t think I would be far wrong in saying that thousands of accounts have probably been finalised at Base Records and that only a certain number are “allowed” to be dispatched each day.—Yours, etc., „ WIDE AWAKE KIWI. May 16, 1946. [The Minister of Defence (the Hon. F. Jones) says: “Approximately 200,000 applications for war service gratuities have been lodged with the Director of Base Records to date, of which 100.000 have been completed and Post Office Savings Bank books issued. Owing to the magnitude of the task and the limited staff which has been available to complete the assesments, delay in finalising all claims has been unavoidable. However, every effort is being made to deal with the balance of applications on hand in the shortest time possible. Your correspondent may rest assured that all gratuity payments are cleared to the Chief Post Office daily as soon as they are assessed, and no finalised accounts are held a day longer than is necessary.”].

Sir, —I would be interested to learn the reason for the delay in the payments of the gratuities supposed to have been received by all former servicemen on April 1 of this year. Because of this pearl of procrastination this former serviceman has another handicap added to his rehabilitation troubles; and since money seems a more convincing argument than war experiences, one gratuity in hand would appear to be better than a bushful of empty promises. When this letter is placed before the proper authority (whoever that may be) I have no doubt the gilt-edged excuse “shortage of staff” will serve to placate. But when world events placed in jeopardy the freedom of this and other countries the services were not particularly short staffed. Like many other returned men, I feel that the Government has perpetrated a grievous blunder in setting a date of payment and not fulfilling a public promise.—Yours, etc., TEMPUS FUGIT. June 5, 1946.