“Hello, boleh saya bercakap dengan PUAN Halimatusa….”

"Hello, selamat tengah hari. Boleh saya bercakap dengan PUAN Halimmm Matussadiyaaa Asnan?"

"Ya, saya bercakap"

"Owh, ya PUAN Halimmma Maatusa, saya mengganggu ke?"

"Ya, siapa ni?"

"Owh begini ya Puan Hali, saya Cik Siti PUAN Kembang dari syarikat Haram Jadah… dulu PUAN Hali pernah menggunakan Kad HARAM edisi Premium kami, betul tak?"

"Ya…"

"Ok, begini ya Puan Halimmmatusa, saya ingin mengumumkan di sini ya Puan Hali.."

"Ah, yayaya, apa ek? Cepat sikit boleh tak? Saya tengah kerja ni actually"

"Owh.. saya nak menerangkan…" tet tet.

 

Lima minit kemudian…

 

"Hello, Boleh saya bercakap dengan PUAN Halimmmmat….."

"Yayaya, kenapa????"

"owh, sorry.." Click!

Boleh gitu????? Dia hang up macam tu je???? Some more, dia panggil aku PUAN??????? PUAN????? Totally absurd!!!

 

*****

 

I got these kinda calls this afternoon at exactly 12.03pm according to my phone record. And of course the first call must have taken place at 11.58am, right? Why at noon? Maybe because they expect us already hit for our lunch break. Owh, c'mon! Even IF the lunch hour starts at 12.00pm sharp pun, wouldn't we'd be like getting ready for it, like maybe start our engine, or maybe already hit the road? And suddenly the phone rings and we have to search everywhere in the car, where is the damn phone, maybe the call is from the office and urgent thing and…. "Hello….bla bla bla (damn it!!)

Benda yang paling I got sick and tired and FELT LIKE I WANT TO JUST, PUKE is, dengan dia punya introduction. Ok, maybe my name is very hard to pronounce, unlike Siti Nurhaliza, right? But, Halimatusa'adiah isn't that awkward name either, anyway! Please lah! Do some research first before you call! Ask your dua-kali-lima colleagues HOW TO PRONOUNCE names! Lepas tu, c'monlah!!! PUAN???? Are you sure that the MOST appropriate way to approach stranger is to address her as PUAN for female stranger and whut?? TUAN for male, I guess???? I think for those yang dah kahwin pun akan rasa bangga kalau orang panggil dia CIK instead PUAN, am I right? Owh, maybe it was my bad! Maybe in the application form for whatever card or service or anything, I put there as Mrs instead of Ms. and I put there MARRIED instead of SINGLE, my bad!!

That is another thing over there, for sure! How the hell that our personal data are with them????? Aren't they supposed to be CONFIDENTIAL???? Even IF let's say that the call is coming from the same company that we'd subscribed to, it still sounds RUDE!!! Breaching the confidential and privacy boundaries, sounds more like it!!! Argh!!!!!

I'm not sure if I'm saying this on behalf of the whole of the lovely citizen of Malaysia, but I think a lot of people feel just as uneasy as me when we receive such calls. And please, when we say we are busy, and we are NOT INTERESTED in what ever plan that you have for us – it just simply means that WE ARE NOT INTERESTED and don't EVER bother to call us back at whatever time you think that is more appropriate! Don't!!

And too bad, if any researches are being conducted via this channel to study the respond of Malaysians toward telemarketing or the courtesy level of Malaysian bla bla bla.... then, the result will be embarrassing to the nation as we somehow, or eventually will sound rude in our intonation along the conversation. Maybe other countries respond better than us in Malaysia…maybe it's just because they address them as Miss and Mr!! And pronounce the name CORRECTLY!!

I believe that there's no law to govern our rights on this matter. I didn't manage to catch Singapore Talking for the episode where they were discussing about this matter and expressing their depression over no law for this. But I'm pretty sure and I have a strong feeling that the public responded just like me.

*****

Back to my story above – my lunch hour starts at 12.30pm and yes, I was doing my job and didn't you get it "saya mengganggu ke?" and I responded, "YES!!!" ????

However, ironically, I'm holding a Telemarketing position too and I make random calls now and then. But I keep it simple and short and I address them as MISS or MR and I do it in ENGLISH for the first approach cos it sounds waaaaayyyy better… Like :

 

"Hello, Afternoon. May I speak to Miss Halima, please?

Instead of:

"Hello, selamat petang. Boleh saya bercakap dengan Cik Halima?"

 

Am I right? Lepas you have got the right person and do some of your introduction, you nak cakap Malay ke Chinese ke, apa2 languange pun, UP TO YOU!!

 

Common sense…. That's all you EVER need!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!