THE grieving family of a retired Southend sub-postmaster have said he died “without getting justice” following the Post Office’s “criminal” actions over the Horizon scandal.
The damning criticism comes amid renewed anger over the failure of the Post Office’s Horizon computer system, introduced in 1999, which forced hundreds of postmasters to settle shortfalls themselves.
An ongoing public inquiry has heard from more than 700 branch managers who were wrongly convicted of theft, false accounting, and fraud.
Rod Wohl ran the Post Office in Argosy Toys on London Road, Westcliff.
Over nine years, he paid £10,000 out of his own pocket to meet the shortfalls, as required in his contract. He died last year, without receiving an apology or compensation.
His son Paul Wohl, 51, described the Post Office’s actions around the Horizon system as “absolutely criminal”.
He said: “My father and at least 60 other sub-postmasters died without ever getting justice.
“They knew they had broken software, but they whitewashed it and told everyone it was all fine.
“The computer system was not fit for purpose.
“I would personally like to see every postmaster apologised to and renumerated for their losses.
“Those who went to prison need to be compensated above and beyond.
“You can’t replace the time they lost.”
Just like the ITV drama about the scandal, “Mr Bates vs The Post Office”, Paul says his father hit the button on the computer and a shortfall would appear.
He said: “Sub-postmasters are generally not rich, they’re just normal people who decided to run a business for themselves.
“Those who could afford to cover the shortfalls did.”
“When your tills don’t balance every week, you begin to suspect your staff and even members of your family.
“Couples split up over it.
“People committed suicide.
“My dad just took it on the chin, paid what was due and shrugged it off.
“He didn’t want to rock the boat and lose his Post Office.
“So, it was a proper kick in the teeth when they closed it in 2008.
“Fining the Post Office won’t hurt them like they hurt us.”
A Post Office spokesman declined to comment on an individual case, but said: “We fully share the aims of the current public inquiry, set up to establish what went wrong in the past and the accountability for it.
“We are acutely aware of the human cost of the scandal and are doing all we can to right the wrongs of the past, as far as that is possible.
“To date, offers of more than £138million have been made to around 2,700 Postmasters, the majority of which have been agreed and paid.”
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