After spending days camping on the sidewalk in front of Central City Mall in Surrey, hoping to get an emergency passport in time for a long weekend cross-border trip, several dozen people walked inside Service Canada’s office and asked to be seen.
Beside them was Kamal Kaur, who said, “They didn’t come to call us, no one called us, so around 11 o’clock we decided to go inside.”
Discussions between this group and the security guards guarding the door of the Service Canada office in the mall became so heated that an RCMP was called.
“The police came here and tried to calm the crowd. The crowd told them exactly what was happening and how long they were waiting, “said Avang Najarli, who has been camping for two days for her passport.
Const. Surrey RCMP’s Gurvinder Ghag said staff were there to keep the peace. “Some people standing in line waiting to get their passports were disappointed with the waiting time. “Unfortunately, this is not something we have control over,” Gag said, calling for patience.
Serena Vlasovoulis was not surprised that the police were called. She spent Wednesday night and all day Thursday at the Surrey Passport Office, hoping to receive documents for her trip to Las Vegas on Saturday, but left disappointed and empty-handed. Others have been camping there since Monday.
As time went on, Vlasovoulis decided to try his luck at the Vancouver Passport Office in downtown Sinclair on Friday, which was making some last-minute emergency walks. Her flight is booked for 7 a.m. Saturday.
“I did everything I could to get my passport on time, and I definitely think the government needs to do something about this whole situation, and quickly, because people are really fed up,” Vlasovoulis said as he sat on the atrium floor. outside of Service Canada with a friend who also needs an emergency passport for their trip to Vegas because those who ordered in March have not yet arrived.
Right behind them in line is Cherry Watson, who is booked for Saturday’s flight to Mexico City for a long-awaited family celebration.
“I woke up this morning very discouraged. “I’m here, it’s my third day and I’m tired, my body hurts and I really want my passport,” Watson said.
She understands that Service Canada has a small staff, but believes the federal government needs to do more to address the huge backlog of passport renewals.
“They knew that once they opened things, people would want to travel and go home and see their loved ones. So they had to include other things here, “Watson said.
Everyone in line who had long plans to travel over the weekend knew this was their last chance. Service Canada’s passport offices are already closed until Tuesday.
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