I hope today's posting will serve well as a precautionary measure for all (mobile and land line) phone users.I received an international call last Saturday morning. Worrying the call might be work related, I answered it and 1 minute down the road I've noticed the woman on the other side has very thick Northern Chinese accent. I ended our tele-conversation after I realised she was trying to sell me "timeshare" property.
She called me again yesterday morning at about the same time. Our conversation went like:
Her: Ms, I would like to discuss with you on the timeshare property.
Pancake: Sorry, I have no time to talk to you, and I have no $ to buy any property right now.
Her: Ms, it won't take you too long. I will explain to you all details and you don't have to buy if you don't want to.
Pancake: I am really busy and I would appreciate if you don't call my phone again.
(Pancake cut the phone conversation promptly).
She called again this morning.
Her: Ms, I would like to discuss with you the property you've decided to buy in our conversation yesterday.
Pancake: Please put the record right. I have NEVER wanted to buy any property from you, and I have told you NOT to call me again on my phone.
Her: You talked to me last Saturday and you allowed me to talk to you yesterday and today you've asked me not to call you.
Pancake: Please set the record right. I have NEVER wanted to talk to you. I told you right from the second minute you called me last Saturday. Please DON'T call me on my phone again, and I warn you I will alert our Business Crime Investigation Department if you dare call me again.
Her: You know what! (she raised her voice). After talking to you three times, I think you sound like a pig and you think like a pig too.
Obviously I was very angry after hearing those comments that I don't deserve. I've alerted Brunei's DST and B-Mobile mobile phone operators. I've also lodged a police report. If any of you is experiencing phone harassment as such, please do not keep it silent. Alert your phone operator and inform your Business Crime Department. I believe sedikit sedikit jadi bukit, together all of us will help to mitigate this business scam.
2 comments:
I'm happy to read that you are really an assertive person. That is good. I know this is irritating. I had same experience while living in Singapore. I know some lucky draw organisers in Malls passed information on what we fill in the forms, to telemarketers. I got a call whereby I won a measly $10 voucher at a sea food restaurant and I was asked to go to a certain address to pick it up. I found out from the conversation that they got my phone number from my lucky draw entry at Ngee Ann city. I also found out it was a time-share company and it would be a hard sale for me to avoid them if I come to their office. In the end, I told him he can spend the voucher on my behalf and no thanks!!.. Nuisance! Morale of the story, I never now join any lucky draw at any MALL!!!
Thanks for seeing my follow-up actions as assertiveness and not nosey or useless. I told a friend recently, and he suggested I should just hang up and that's it. One person can't change the world, he told me. What a discouraging feedback.
Yep, I agreed re lucky draw. I've never filled in those forms because my philosophy is: There is no free meal in this world ;)
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