...they have not got the manpower to attend to the request...
Believe it or not....this is a big issue with a lot of sections, including mine, in AsA. We just can't get the people, or we are told we don't need anymore. At the moment we have a 12-18 month turn around on requests...we just can't do it any quicker.
Not acceptable I know....but that's the current state of play.
Out of interest, what is it you are trying to get an answer for?
Alpha