WESTERN BUREAU -
MORE than 10,000 persons islandwide who renewed or were issued drivers' licences between October and November last year, are still awaiting the identification card from the Inland Revenue Department (IRD).
Persons in all the parishes, outside of Kingston are experiencing difficulty accessing their drivers' licences, some of which were issued as far as last October.
The problem is also forcing Government to pay out millions of dollars in overtime monies to workers at the 28 offices of the IRD who are putting in the hours trying to resolve the issue.
The problem has been resolved in Kingston where the bulk of licences are issued, but workers in other parishes are working two extra hours each evening to assist with handling the backlog.
The IRD is blaming the glitch on a new system, which gives a new look drivers' licence identification card, and incorporates the drivers' licence number with the Taxpayer Registration Number (TRN).
The new system, which took effect on November 1 last year, was also expected to rid the Jamaican roads of bogus licences by weeding out illiterate motorists.
"The transition was longer than we thought," said Paula Ferguson, Public Relations Officer for the IRD in a statement last week. "We thought a month and a half would have been okay, (this) system is a more upgraded version of the same programme."
But while most persons granted licences in January have already received their identification card, licences issued more than three months ago are still waiting to be printed. "We are printing current licences now," said Mrs. Ferguson. "...but for October and November, the transition period, some of them are still not printed."
The IRD is unable to say how many bogus licences are in the system, but is certain that most of them have been removed. Drivers who come to renew their licences are asked to read a simple sentence. The licence of those who are illiterate are not renewed.
"We are talking about illiterate drivers," Mrs. Ferguson admitted.
She said drivers who have "bought" their licences and avoided the standard examinations can hardly be singled out as long as their original documents were signed by legal authorities and they pass the reading test.
"If there is collusion at the depot, there is nothing we can do about that," she explained. "...if the person is able to read, the department cannot tell whether or not the licence is bogus. However, if the signature ...is not legitimate or if the holder cannot read, then we regard the licence as bogus."
Meanwhile, affected persons are driving around on the nation's streets, with only a receipt from the Collector of Taxes (indicating that they are being legitimized) and in some cases their expired licences.
Head of the Constabulary Communication Network, Deputy Superintendent of Police James Forbes, said the police islandwide have been instructed to be lenient with motorists who cannot produce their drivers licence.
"If the person has the expired licence, we will accept it once the person has the receipt indicating that the driver's licence is being dealt with," Mr. Forbes explained. He said persons who are acquiring a driver's licence for the first time, should have the provisional (learner) licence along with the receipt, to show to the police officer.
