I REFER to Ms Jovita O. Leano's letter headlined, ''All-day waiting'' (South China Morning Post, July 29).
A great number of people visit our Immigration Headquarters every day for various immigration services.
To ensure that applications are processed in an orderly and fair manner, we operate on a first-come-first-served basis. Applicants are given number tags to wait for their turn.
As Ms Leano did not provide specific details, it is not possible for us to look into her allegations and to give any comments.
However, applicants may choose to leave our offices and come back at a later time when their turn is due. Our officers are always willing to advise applicants on the approximate time to return upon request.
To cope with the ever-increasing volume of work without any corresponding increase in resources, the Immigration Department is constantly reviewing its policies and procedures with a view to enhancing productivity. We are also actively working on an information systems strategy. Intensive planning activities are being undertaken to design and develop a series of new automated systems.