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16 March 2023 - NW592

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Van Zyl, Ms A M to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

(1)What total number of offices of his department that are located in the (a) Walter Sisulu Local Municipality and (b) Senqu Local Municipality; (2) whether he will furnish Ms A M van Zyl with a list of the specified offices in each town; if not, why not; if so, by what date; (3) whether there is a mobile Home Affairs office that assists with the day-to-day services, such as the registration of births and deaths, in the towns and/or areas that are not serviced by his department; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details; (4) what number of mobile offices are available in the (a) Walter Sisulu Local Municipality and (b) Senqu Local Municipality; (5) whether he will furnish Ms A M van Zyl with (a) a timetable and (b) a list of areas visited by the mobile offices on a rotational basis; if not, why not; if so, by what date?

Reply:

(1)(a) There are two offices situated in the Walter Sisulu Local Municipality, one in Burgersdorp and the other one in Maletswai.

(1)(b) There is one office situated at Sterkspruit in the Senqu Local Municipality.

(2) The offices are:

- Burgersdorp DHA Local Office Small

- Aliwal North DHA Local Office Medium

- Sterkspruit DHA Local Office Medium

(3) Yes, a mobile itinerary to visit areas with no DHA footprint is drafted monthly.

(4) For now, one mobile unit stationed at Sterkspruit is responsible for both Local Municipalities.

(5) The attached monthly itinerary (Annexure A) shows areas to be visited.

END

16 March 2023 - NW198

Profile picture: De Villiers, Mr JN

De Villiers, Mr JN to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

(1)What are the details of the (a) destination and (b) total costs for (i) accommodation, (ii) travel and (iii) any other costs incurred for international travel of each (aa) Minister and (bb) Deputy Minister of his department since 1 June 2019; (2) what is the total cost incurred for domestic air travel for each (a) Minister and (b) Deputy Minister of his department since 1 June 2019?

Reply:

(1) (a) (aa) Minister

For the details of the destination and total costs related to my international travel for the period 1 June 2019 to 28 February 2023, please see annexure A. Please note I did not undertake any international trips in the 2020/21 and 2021/22 financial years.

(1) (a) (bb) Deputy Minister

For the details of the destination and total costs related to the international travel for Deputy Minister Nzuza, MP for the period 1 June 2019 to 28 February 2023, please see annexure B. Please note that Deputy Minister Nzuza, MP did not undertake any international trips in the 2020/21 and 2021/22 financial years.

(2) (a)

Total cost domestic air travel – Minister for the period 1 June 2019 to 28 February 2023 = R795 212.12

(2) (b)

Total cost domestic air travel – Deputy Minister for the period 1 June 2019 to 28 February 2023 = R1 907580.65

END

16 March 2023 - NW269

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Roos, Mr AC to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

(1)(a) What total number of visa and/or permit applications were processed in total in the period 1 November 2022 to 31 January 2023, (b) what number of visa and/or permit applications were rejected based on missing documents and (c) how do the documents go missing when they are supposed to be captured and scanned electronically by VFS Global; (2) what total number of marriage certificate applications were rejected because (a) no proof of marriage was attached and (b) the marriage certificate was missing from the application; (3) with reference to applications lodged through VFS Global, (a) why is an applicant not allowed to have a copy of the checklist and (b) why must the applicant follow the appeal process and pay an additional application fee to VFS while the reason for the appeal is a supporting document lost by his department?

Reply:

(1)(a) The total number of visa and/or permit applications that were processed in total in the period 1 November 2022 to 31 January 2023 is 17 093.

(1)(b) The number of visa and/or permit applications that were rejected based on missing documents is 333.

(1)(c) In the Visa Adjudicating System when certain documents are not attached by the applicant, the Adjudicator will give a rejection that states missing documents. This does not mean the document was lost between VFS and Home Affairs.

(2)(a-b) The total number of marriage certificate applications rejected because no proof of marriage was attached and the marriage certificate was missing from the application is 70.

(3)(a) The copy of the checklist can be given to the applicant upon request. Providing the copy of the checklist to the applicant is not part of the application process.

(3)(b) In terms of PAJA, applicants have a right to appeal any negative decision issued by the Department. The appeal process is a legislated procedure.

END

16 March 2023 - NW626

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Roos, Mr AC to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

Whether, with regard to the bidding process for the visa and permit applications management tender which closed on 25 February 2022, a service provider has been appointed; if not, what is the (a) status and (b) timeline of the bidding process; if so, (i) who was the winning bidder and (ii) what was the (aa) value and (bb) duration of the contract?

Reply:

a) The bid for the appointment of a transaction adviser for the visa and permit facilitation process that closed on 25 February 2022 was awarded on 24 May 2022 and a service provider was appointed. The bid was subsequently cancelled after discovering that the owner and director was convicted of money laundering in the Pretoria Specialised Commercial Crimes Court.

b) The timeline of the bidding process is as follows:

  • the bid closed on 25 February 2022 at 11:00 am,
  • the bid evaluation was held between 22 March 2022 and 18 April 2022,
  • the bid adjudication was held on 08 April 2022 and 18 May 2022,
  • the appointment letter was issued on 24 May 2022,
  • the contract was cancelled on 1 August 2022.

(i) Kelotlhoko Consulting Services.

(ii) (aa) R 8 400 000.00

(ii) (bb) Three (3) years

END

07 March 2023 - NW32

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Roos, Mr AC to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

What (a) total number of calls to the Home Affairs Hotline number 0800 60 11 90 were (i) received by the hotline and (ii) dropped before they were attended to, (b) are the service level targets of the call centre, (c) was the achievement against the service level target, (d) is the percentage of first contact resolution, (e) mechanism of customer satisfaction is in place, (f) measure of customer satisfaction was achieved and (g) total number of call centre agents were in the call centre on any one shift in the 2021-22 financial year?

Reply:

a) Total number of calls to the Home Affairs Hotline number for the 2021-22 financial year

  1. Total calls received by the Hotline = 602 607 calls
  2. Total number of calls dropped by clients before they answered are 273 760.

b) The Contact Centre service level targets are as follows:

  1. 80% of calls offered to agents by the integrated voice response system are to be answered within 20 seconds
  2. 60% of calls relating to information requests (e.g. how much is an enabling document, which documents are required to apply for enabling documents, how do I apply online, how do I change my online application, live capture offices, location of offices, etc.) and status updates (how far is my application) are to be resolved within the first call (first call resolution).
  3. Average call handling time = 6 minutes
  4. Call abandonment rate= 20%. These are calls that are sometimes dropped or terminated by clients before being responded to.
  5. Cases created and escalated to second line support are to be escalated within 24 hours of the case being created.

c) All service levels for the period under review, with the exception of the call abandonment rate were achieved. This was due to the centre operating at 50% capacity to ensure compliance with the lockdown and Covid-19 regulations as passed by the President of the Republic of South Africa and the World Health Organization.

d) The first call resolution percentage for the financial year 2021-22 was 61%.

e) At the moment there are no systems to measure customer satisfaction levels. The Centre however has a quality assurance unit that ensures that quality interactions happen and that clients are treated in line with the public service code of conduct and that the Bathopele principles are upheld. Where breakdowns in quality assurance are identified, coaching and calibration sessions are arranged to address the gaps. Where misconducts are identified, corrective measures are instituted accordingly.

The Department is in the process of procuring the latest Contact Centre solution with customer satisfaction surveys and questionnaire modules and feedback mechanisms to cover all elements of customer relationship management.

f) The Contact Centre does not have the customer satisfaction measurement module; as such the satisfaction level could not be measured.

g) The total number of Contact Centre Agents on the approved Home Affairs Contact Centre organizational structure is 120. The total number of agents for the 2021-22 financial year was 94. During this period the Contact Centre operated on a rotation system catering for 50% capacity per shift to ensure adherence to the Lockdown and Covid 19 regulations. The Centre therefore had on average 42 agents per shift excluding those with comorbidities and those on isolation as a result of the Covid-19 infections.

END

07 March 2023 - NW405

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van der Merwe, Ms LL to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

Whether, he will clarify the position on e-visas as stated by the President of the Republic, Mr M C Ramaphosa, during the State of the Nation address that after the Government has completed a comprehensive review of the work visa system, it will move quickly to implement the recommendations put forward and will also introduce a remote worker visa, compared to his statement in 2022 that the current visa categories are legislated by the Immigration Act, Act 13 of 2002, and that in its current form the Act does not make provision for a digital nomad e-visa, therefore there are no plans to implement a digital nomad e-visa; if not, (a) why not and (b) what are the timeframes in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

a) Honourable Speaker, the Department has developed a plan for the implementation of the recommendations from the Vulindlela Team that compiled a report on the review of the work visa regime and part of the implementation plan is the amendment of the Legislation and Regulations to include the remote work visa.

b) The amendment of the Regulations will be undertaken in the new financial year, 2023/2024, while the Legislation is still at the Green Paper stage.

END

07 March 2023 - NW394

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Roos, Mr AC to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

What urgent steps will his department take to resolve the matter of disappearing (a) ID and (b) passport applications as a result of load shedding?

Reply:

Applications for Passports and IDs do not disappear as a result of load shedding. When there is load shedding, replications stop because servers of the affected Branches are off. However, the applications captured before load shedding appear on the database. The officials then run a process to reconcile the information.

END

07 March 2023 - NW381

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Chabane, Mr MS to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

Considering that since the establishment of the Border Management Authority (BMA) significant progress has been made to date, notwithstanding, the Republic still experiencing persons entering the country illegally, what measures are put in place by the BMA to tackle such challenges?

Reply:

The BMA has trained and deployed Border Guards to various segments of the land border law enforcement areas and Ports of Entry. Their key responsibilities, amongst others, is to detect and prevent illegal persons from entering the country. Since their deployment, the Border Guards have registered multiple successes in preventing cross-border crime, including illegal migration.

Further, from the 1st of April 2023 officials from the Departments of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development; Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment; Health; and Home Affairs, who are responsible for the execution of border law enforcement functions at Ports of Entry, will be integrated into the BMA which will be characterised by a single command and control structure at Ports of Entry. Guided by the Authority’s SOPs, such a structure will streamline processes for the detection and handling of persons attempting to enter the country illegally by the Authority’s personnel.

END

07 March 2023 - NW31

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Roos, Mr AC to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

Whether he will furnish Mr A C Roos with a list of the Home Affairs offices with (a) faulty and/or broken Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS) systems and (b) no functioning generator; if not, why not; if so, by what date will the (i) UPS be repaired and (ii) emergency power supply systems be installed in each of the specified offices?

Reply:

  1. Yes indeed frequent loadshedding has led to frequent faulty and/or broken UPS, uninterrupted power supply. Here is a list of those affected as of 17/02/2023.

 

  1. EASTERN CAPE

1

Libode

2

Mt Ayliff

3

Tsolo

4

Mthatha

5

Bizana

6

Sterkspuit

7

Ngcobo

8

Cleary Park

9

Uitenhage

10

Graaff Reinet

11

Port Alfred

12

Willowvale

13

Butterworth

14

Mdantsane

15

King Willaims Town

16

Centane

   
   

2. FREE STATE (UPS)

1

Bloemfontein

2

Thaba Nchu

3

Koffiefontein

4

Ficksburg

5

Phutaditjhaba

6

Harrismith

7

Kroodstad

8

Sosolburg

9

Welkom

10

Bothaville

11

Bulfontein

   

3. GAUTENG (UPS)

1

Heidelberg

2

Sebokeng

3

Springs

4. KWAZULU-NATAL (UPS)

1

Empangeni

2

Richards Bay

3

Ndwendwe

4

Mondlo

5

Hluhluwe

6

Mbazwana

7

Mtubauba

8

Ixopo

9

Kokstad

10

Port Shepstone

11

Scottburg

12

Umngeni

13

Tongaat

   

5. LIMPOPO (UPS)

1

Thohoyandou

2

Malamulele

3

Vuwani

4

Musina

5

Mokopane

6

Mookgophong

7

Jane Furse

8

Nebo

9

Praktiseer

10

Mankweng

11

Dendron

12

Motjadhiskloof

13

Giyani

6. MPUMALANGA (UPS)

1

White iver

2

Hezyview

3

Mhala

4

Komatipoort

5

Malalane

6

Carolina

7

Piet Retief

8

Secunda

9

Standerton

   

7. NORTHERN CAPE (UPS)

1

Kimberly

2

Galeshewe

3

Barkley West

4

Pampierstad

5

Postmasburg

6

Kuruman

7

Sprinkbok

8

Calvinia

9

De Aar

10

Prieska

11

Colesburg

12

Douglas

13

Carnavon

   
   

8. NORTH WEST (UPS)

1

Swartruggens

2

Makwe

3

Potchefstroom

4

Wolmaranstad

5

Molopo

6

Lichtenburg

7

Taung

   
   

9 WESTERN CAPE (UPS)

1

Nyanga

2

Atlantis

3

Wynberg

4

Citrusdal

5

Worcester

6

Plettenburg Bay

7

Caledon

8

Mosselbay

   

(b) Generators are subjected to frequent breakdowns during loadshedding. Here is a list of those affected as at 23/02/23.

  1. EASTERN CAPE (GENERATOR)

1

Ngqeleni

 

2

Cradock

 

3

Sterkspuit

4

Ngcobo

 

5

Uitenhage

6

Graaff Reinet

7

Port Alfred

8

Willowvale

9

Butterworth

  1. FREE STATE (GENERRATOR)

1

Bloemfontein

2

Botshabelo

3

Thaba Nchu

4

Koffiefontein

5

Harrismith

6

Viljoenstroon

7

Welkom

 
     
  1. GAUTENG (GENERATOR)

1

Centurion

2

Soweto

 

3

Evaton

 
     
     
  1. KWAZULU-NATAL (GENERATOR)

1

Empangeni

2

Ndwendwe

3

Mondlo

 

4

Mbazwana

5

Paulpeitersburg

6

Ixopo

 

7

New Hanover

8

Umzikhulu

9

Kokstad

 

10

Port Shepstone

11

Scottburg

 

12

Pinetown

 

13

Commercial Road

14

Greytown

15

Ladysmith

     
     
  1. LIMPOPO (GENERATOR)

1

Thohoyandou

2

Malamulele

3

Vuwani

 

4

Musina

 

5

Thabazimbi

6

Mookgophong

7

Jane Furse

8

Praktiseer

9

Mankweng

10

Dendron

 

11

Motjadhiskloof

12

Giyani

 
     

6. MPUMALANGA (GENERATOR)

1

White River

2

Hezyview

 

3

Mhala

 

4

Mashishing

5

Komatipoort

6

Malalane

 

7

Bethal

 

8

Secunda

 

9

Volksrust

 
     
  1. NORTHERN CAPE (GENERATOR)

1

Galeshewe

2

Pampierstad

3

Jan Kempdorp

4

Calvinia

 

5

De Aar

 

6

Prieska

 

7

Colesburg

8

Douglas

 

9

Carnavon

 
     
     
     
     
     
     

8. NORTH WEST (GENERATOR)

1

Makwe

 

2

Klerksdorp

     

9. WESTERN CAPE (GENERATOR)

1

Nyanga

 

2

Atlantis

 

3

Bredasdorp

4

Wynberg

 

5

Citrusdal

 

6

Worcester

7

Plettenburg Bay

8

Caledon

 

9

Mosselbay

10

Mitchell's Plain

11

Ceres

 

12

Oudtshoon

13

Prince Albert

14

Vredendal

     

80

   

(i)The department has installed generators and Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) units in all its modernised offices throughout the country. The department has contracted a service provider to service and repair all the generators and UPS units where necessary.

(ii) This service provider is currently in all the Provinces. The challenge is the scarcity of UPS units within the country.

END

07 March 2023 - NW387

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Tito, Ms LF to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

What (a) progress has he made in dealing with the problem of long queues at the offices of his department and (b) are the reasons that he has been unable to resolve the crisis to date?

Reply:

a) In its effort to eliminate long queues in front offices, the department has rolled out the Branch Application Booking system to all one hundred and ninety-eight (198) offices with live capture system for clients to book a slot before they can visit our offices. In addition, twenty (20) additional mobile trucks have been procured making the fleet now stands at a total of one hundred and twenty-seven(127) and they are deployed at schools and at offices with high volumes of clients to deal with the issue of long queues.

The department in partnership with Banks and Malls will be expanding its footprint where there will be DHA offices in Banks and Malls. Currently The department has twenty-eight (28) bank branches rolled out with live capture system for both ID Cards and Passports applications as well as collections. For this financial year the department will also roll out its services to the Malls. The pilot will commence at Menlyn Shopping Mall in March 2023 and will be rolled out in phases to other provinces.

b) The department is continuously engaging with private partners to ensure that its footprint is expanded and this will resolve the problem of long queues.

END

02 March 2023 - NW88

Profile picture: De Villiers, Mr JN

De Villiers, Mr JN to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

What are the details of the (a) make, (b) model, (c) year of manufacture, (d) cost and (e) purchase date of all the official vehicles purchased for (i) him, (ii) the former Minister, (iii) the Deputy Minister and the (iv) former Deputy Minister of his department since 1 June 2019?

Reply:

i) No vehicle was purchased for the Minister since 1 June 2019.

ii) No vehicle was purchased for the former Minister since 1 June 2019.

iii) The following vehicle was purchased for the Deputy Minister (a) make: BMW (b) model: 520d (c) year of manufacture: 2019 (d) cost: R668 000 (e) purchase date: 19 December 2019.

iv) No vehicle was purchased for the former Deputy Minister of the department since 1 June 2019.

END

02 March 2023 - NW33

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Roos, Mr AC to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

What (a) is the total number of mobile units that (i) his department had from 1 April 2022 to 30 September 2022 and (ii) were fully operational, (b) percentage was deployed in accordance with planned day-to-day schedules and (c) is the total number of (i) applications received and (ii) schools visited by the specified mobile units?

Reply:

(a)(i) In the period requested, the department had a total of 110 mobile units from 01 April 2022 to 30 September 2022. The breakdown per province is as follows:

Province

Number of Mobile Units

No of Units with Accident/ Mechanical Breakdown

Remaining Total Number of Mobile Unit

Eastern Cape

15

1

14

Free State

10

1

9

Gauteng

9

0

9

Kwazulu Natal

14

0

14

Limpopo

13

0

13

Mpumalanga

11

0

11

Northern Cape

10

0

10

North West

11

0

10

Western Cape

13

1

13

Head Office (Special Projects)

4

0

4

TOTAL

110

3

107

(a)(ii) Out of one hundred and ten (110) mobile units, one hundred and seven (107) were fully operational. The three (3) mobile units allocated to Western Cape, Eastern Cape and Free State respectively are not fully operational due to mechanical breakdown challenges as the units belong to an old fleet procured in FY 2005/06 and some of the units were previously involved in accidents.

(b) A total of 107/110 mobile units were deployed during the reporting period with planned day to day schedules. This averages a total of 95% of the total units deployed on day to day schedules to close the gaps where there is no DHA footprint and render services in remote rural areas.

During the above reporting period 464 areas/visiting points were visited by mobile units as per day to day schedules in terms of DHA Hybrid Access Model. A further 46 areas were visited during Ministerial service delivery outreach programmes in Eastern Cape, Limpopo, Mpumalanga and North West to promote early birth registration and Smart ID card products.

(c)(i) The total number of one hundred and eleven thousand nine hundred and sixteen (111 916) smart ID cards applications were collected by mobile units of which contributes to 8,44% of the national total applications collected on mobile units. A further, four thousand eight hundred and eighty-six (4 886) passport applications were collected by mobile units during the reporting period.

(c)(ii) A total number of two thousand two hundred and eight (2 208) schools were visited by mobile units during the above period in different provinces.

END

28 February 2023 - NW33

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Roos, Mr AC to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

What (a) is the total number of mobile units that (i) his department had from 1 April 2022 to 30 September 2022 and (ii) were fully operational, (b) percentage was deployed in accordance with planned day-to-day schedules and (c) is the total number of (i) applications received and (ii) schools visited by the specified mobile units?

Reply:

(a)(i) In the period requested, the department had a total of 110 mobile units from 01 April 2022 to 30 September 2022. The breakdown per province is as follows:

Province

Number of Mobile Units

No of Units with Accident/ Mechanical Breakdown

Remaining Total Number of Mobile Unit

Eastern Cape

15

1

14

Free State

10

1

9

Gauteng

9

0

9

Kwazulu Natal

14

0

14

Limpopo

13

0

13

Mpumalanga

11

0

11

Northern Cape

10

0

10

North West

11

0

10

Western Cape

13

1

13

Head Office (Special Projects)

4

0

4

TOTAL

110

3

107

(a)(ii) Out of one hundred and ten (110) mobile units, one hundred and seven (107) were fully operational. The three (3) mobile units allocated to Western Cape, Eastern Cape and Free State respectively are not fully operational due to mechanical breakdown challenges as the units belong to an old fleet procured in FY 2005/06 and some of the units were previously involved in accidents.

(b) A total of 107/110 mobile units were deployed during the reporting period with planned day to day schedules. This averages a total of 95% of the total units deployed on day to day schedules to close the gaps where there is no DHA footprint and render services in remote rural areas.

During the above reporting period 464 areas/visiting points were visited by mobile units as per day to day schedules in terms of DHA Hybrid Access Model. A further 46 areas were visited during Ministerial service delivery outreach programmes in Eastern Cape, Limpopo, Mpumalanga and North West to promote early birth registration and Smart ID card products.

(c)(i) The total number of one hundred and eleven thousand nine hundred and sixteen (111 916) smart ID cards applications were collected by mobile units of which contributes to 8,44% of the national total applications collected on mobile units. A further, four thousand eight hundred and eighty-six (4 886) passport applications were collected by mobile units during the reporting period.

(c)(ii) A total number of two thousand two hundred and eight (2 208) schools were visited by mobile units during the above period in different provinces.

END

28 February 2023 - NW88

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De Villiers, Mr JN to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

What are the details of the (a) make, (b) model, (c) year of manufacture, (d) cost and (e) purchase date of all the official vehicles purchased for (i) him, (ii) the former Minister, (iii) the Deputy Minister and the (iv) former Deputy Minister of his department since 1 June 2019?

Reply:

i) No vehicle was purchased for the Minister since 1 June 2019.

ii) No vehicle was purchased for the former Minister since 1 June 2019.

iii) The following vehicle was purchased for the Deputy Minister (a) make: BMW (b) model: 520d (c) year of manufacture: 2019 (d) cost: R668 000 (e) purchase date: 19 December 2019.

iv) No vehicle was purchased for the former Deputy Minister of the department since 1 June 2019.

END

22 February 2023 - NW107

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van der Merwe, Ms LL to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

(1)Whether, with regard to the recent arrest of an alleged Mozambican national, Mr Esmael Malude Ramos Nangy, in an upmarket estate in Centurion, and in light of reports that the alleged human trafficking kingpin was in possession of multiple bank cards for South African banks as well as other documentation, any paperwork and/or documentation of his department allowed the specified person to reside in the Republic; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details; (2) whether, with regard to alleged syndicates run by illegal foreign nationals who are dealing in the trafficking of humans and drugs, the hijacking of buildings and the smuggling of illicit goods and stolen vehicles, his department has any plan in place to identify the criminals and act against such criminality, which is now rife within the borders of the Republic; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details of the plan; (3) what (a) total number of foreign nationals were deported in 2022 and (b) is the breakdown of the specified figure in terms of country of origin?

Reply:

1. According to departmental system, Mr Esmael Maulide Ramos Nangy, is a Mozambican national holder of a non-South African Identity document. He applied for permanent residence permits in 1991 for himself and family which were subsequently issued in 1992.

The arrest of Mr Esmael Maulide Ramos Nangy was as per warrant of arrest and extradition request by the government of Mozambique through INTERPOL, where he is alleged to be linked to multiple kidnappings criminal activities.

There is no information at the disposal of the department that link him to be involved as the kingpin in human trafficking activities as alleged. He is still in detention pending court appearance in court on 20 February 2023 for bail hearing and commencement of extradition process.

2. The department is primarily responsible for illegal migration and collaborates with the South African Police Service (SAPS) as a way of addressing any illegal activities including dealing with criminal syndicates, human trafficking and smuggling activities. This is done through enforcement operations guided by the Immigration Act that empowers police and immigration officers to detain persons suspected of being in contravention of the Act in order to verify their status. The department is running its own Siyasebenta operation which has targeted a number of areas such as security industry, mining and factories.

The Immigration Act regulates the immigration of legal status as well as the processes related to arrest, detention, prosecution and deportation of any person entering and remaining in the country illegally. This legislation retains the strong security border control and the use of law enforcement to manage migration inland and at ports of entry as well as manning of the borderline by the newly established Border Management Agency (BMA) in collaboration with South African National Defence (SANDF).

(3)(a) The total number of persons deported from Jan to Dec 2022 is 22258.

Month

Number of deportees

Jan 2022

1731

Feb 2022

2209

March 2022

2040

April 2022

1161

May 2022

1583

June 2022

1840

July 2022

1514

August 2022

1471

September 2022

1770

October 2022

1785

November 2022

2242

December 2022

2912

Total

22258

(3)(b) The breakdown of country of origin of the highest numbers of foreign nationals deported in the calendar year from Jan to Dec 2022 are as follows:

Annual: Jan 2022 to Dec 2022

Nationality

Number of deportees

 

Mozambique

7102

 

Zimbabwe

5776

 

Lesotho

4861

 

Malawi

2907

 

Swaziland

1149

END

22 February 2023 - NW108

Profile picture: van der Merwe, Ms LL

van der Merwe, Ms LL to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

(1)Whether, following the deployment of border guards of the Border Management Authority (BMA) at the Beitbridge border post and footage taken over the festive season detailing illegal movement and/or activity between Zimbabwe and the Republic (details furnished), he has met with the Minister of Police, Mr B H Cele, to discuss the SA Police Service (SAPS) allegedly sabotaging the work of the BMA; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details; (2) given that the specified border post has been known for many years for the corrupt activities of officials from his department and SAPS, what are the reasons that (a) he has taken no steps to end such corrupt activities and (b) staff from SAPS and his department who are deployed there have not been removed and/or replaced; (3) whether, given that with rising levels of lawlessness in the Republic, the rise of illegal migration and the movement of illicit goods and trafficking of humans being commonplace at the specified border post, and noting that the BMA border guards were touted by the Government and the President of the Republic, Mr M C Ramaphosa, as the answer to the crisis notwithstanding that their work is being hampered, he will raise the matter at Cabinet level; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details; (4) with regard to cross-border movement, what (a) total number of foreign nationals in possession of (i) refugee and/or (ii) asylum-seeker permits left the shores of the Republic in (aa) December 2022 and (bb) January 2023 to return to their countries of origin and (b) is the breakdown of the specified figure in terms of countries of origin?

Reply:

1) On 14 July 2022 the BMA deployed the first 200 cohort of the Border Guards in various ports of entry and some vulnerable segments of the borderline. Forty (40) Border Guards were deployed at Beit Bridge Port of Entry and are responsible for the implementation of border law enforcement in conjunction with members of the SAPS. This is due to the fact that the Border Guards are not yet fully capacitated to full take over the functions. Currently, these functions are implemented through a Multi-Agency approach which is coordinated by the BMA through a Multi-Party Agreement. In fact, the BMA would fully take over the functions from the 1st of April 2023 through the implementation of an integrated model.

The port operational functioning has a process flow managed through various cascading Border structures overseen on quarterly basis by the Legislated Committees, the Border Technical Committee (BTC) and the Inter Ministerial Consultative Committee (IMCC). The two latter structures the BTC and IMCC were designed to deal with all challenges that cannot be solved by the Border Management operational structures. The BTC and IMCC have already met 3 times in 2022 and the final 4th quarter meeting will take place respectively on the 15th and 24th March 2023. In that upcoming meeting the BMA will present the feedback review and reflections on operations conducted in the border environment especially during December 2022/January 2023 festive season. It should be noted that Ministers of Police and Home Affairs are permanent members of IMCC, so all issues that are part of the review and reflections of the festive season would be dealt with in the meeting of 24 March 2023.

(2)(a) With regard to challenges of insider threat and possible corrupt activities by officials, the BMA would through during the integration process embark on extensive vetting processes of all officials to be integrated into the BMA as required by section 13 of the BMA Act, 2020.

(2)(b) The BMA and SAPS have entered into an Implementation Protocol in accordance with the provisions of the BMA Act which details the coordination and cooperation between the two state organs towards the implementation of border law enforcement functions. The Protocols were signed by both BMA and SAPS Commissioners on the 9th of June 2022.

(3) Matters, including challenges, related to border management are discussed by the BMA’s Inter-Ministerial Consultative Committee (IMCC) on Border Management which comprises of ten (10) members of Cabinet including the Ministers of Police, Home Affairs, Defence, State Security and others. Identified interventions to resolve such challenges are endorsed by the Committee for implementation.

(4) The number of refugees who travel across borders cannot be determined due to the fact that they do not travel with passports reflecting their asylum seeker status. Those who happen to travel do not inform the department and the responsible unit (Asylum Seeker Management) that they are leaving the country. Therefore, the Department is unable to provide the required statistics.

END

04 January 2023 - NW4643

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Roos, Mr AC to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

What (a) are the reasons that his department failed to file the heads of argument on the matter of Zimbabwean Exemption Permits as directed by the Court to do on 14 November 2022, (b) remedial action will be taken against the person accountable for filing the heads of argument and (c) action will he take to deal with repeated instances of contempt of court by his department? NW5765E

Reply:

(a) The reasons for failing to file Heads of Argument on 14 November 2022 will be subject to an application for condonation in court. In the circumstances, I am hamstrung to answer the question at this stage.

(b) In light of the answer above, it is premature to speculate on the remedial action.

(c) The Department of Home Affairs (“DHA”) has adopted a strict internal communication protocol in 2020 dealing, inter alia, with failure to comply with Court Orders by officials of the DHA. Failure to comply with Court Orders is visited by disciplinary action. Furthermore, in terms of the said internal communication

03 January 2023 - NW3186

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Marais, Mr EJ to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

(1) On what date did he attend the last meeting of any structure outside the Government in order to receive recommendations on the deployment of personnel in his department and/or entities reporting to him; (2) whether any appointments to his department and/or entities reporting to him were discussed during his attendance at any private forum and/or external structures to the Government; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what (a) are the details of appointments that were discussed and recommendations received and (b) other Government matters were discussed during the last meeting of any such forum? NW3903E

Reply:

(1) I did attend a meeting of the deployment committee of the ANC at the end of 2019 to brief them on the process I was going to follow in the appointment of the Director General of the Department and the CEO of Government Printing Works. I did not go there to receive any recommendations about who to appoint.

(2) As I said I briefed them on my processes and they agreed with me (a) I discussed the appointment of the Director General and the CEO of Government Printing works. I never received any recommendations as the Committee agreed with what I had outlined to them. From there I followed all the public service prescripts on the appointment of such positions until the Cabinet made the final decision on whom to appoint.

(b) No other Government matters were discussed.

12 December 2022 - NW4674

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Tito, Ms LF to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

Whether he has been advised of numerous cases of family members who are sent from pillar to post due to the mistakes made by his department on death certificates, such as identifying a deceased person as divorced where the person was never married before; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

No, the Department has however issued a circular to all its local front offices directing them on the process and the email address to be used by offices to update or amend the marital status of individuals including the deceased on the National Population Register(NPR).

The relevant details should include the following:

  1. Affidavit from a family member confirming that the deceased person was never married.
  2. ID copy of the deceased person
  3. ID copy of the informant
  4. Copy of death certificate

The Department, if furnished with the details as alluded to above, will investigate and analyse the veracity of the information, and update the details on NPR accordingly.

END

12 December 2022 - NW4526

Profile picture: Hlengwa, Mr M

Hlengwa, Mr M to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

Whether, with reference to transactional agreements between individuals in exchange for marriages and identity documents which has caused a rise in identity theft and unknown illegal marriages that he alluded to, his department has taken any steps to also address the oversight and prevent the huge number of individuals who have also been recognised lawfully as married and have unknowingly had their identity stolen by others; if not, why not; if so, (a) what are the relevant details and (b) how has he found it to be possible that his department is failing to adequately provide identity documents to some while individuals find themselves married without their consent?

Reply:

a) Yes, the Department has a procedure for dealing with reported fraudulent marriages and identity theft. To elaborate further,it must be highlighted that identity documents theft and fraud, in most cases, does not necessarily involve only the Departmental officials but also the public at large, contractors or service providers, etc., that very well form part of the corrupt activities.

The Department however assists victims of identity theft if the case is reported by the aggrieved or affected persons. Victims should immediately report identity theft through the Law enforcement agencies, mainly the South African Police Services(SAPS) and also the Departments’ Immigration Services Branch to assume investigations and to provide feedback on findings in this regard. Victims can also call the National Anti-Corruption Hotline to report cases of fraud and corruption. Where there is sufficient evidence provided and it can be proven without doubt that the marriage is fraudulent, the Department expunges such a marriage and provides feedback to the victims.

The Department due to the number of fraudulent marriages reported every year has implemented some measures that have largely contributed in reducing the number of fraudulent marriages, as follows:

  • Introduction of a new marriage register (DHA-30) which requires a photo and thumbprint of the couples for verification purposes.
  • The Department requires prospective couples to make an appointment with the nearest front office to verify the marital status and to subject themselves to brief interviews prior to registration of the marriage.
  • On the day of the marriage, a couple must present the following documents to the person officiating at the marriage ceremony:
  • Identity documents (for each person getting married).
  • If a foreign national is marrying a South African citizen, the non-citizen should present a valid passport as well as well as a completed BI-31 Form (Declaration for the Purpose of Marriage, Letter of no impediment to confirm that he/she is not married in country of origin).
  • If the marriage is for a minor (a person under the age of 18 years), written consent is needed in the form of DHA32 by both parents/ legal guardian or form DHA34 from the Commissioner of Child Welfare or a judge. In the case where the marriage is between minors under the ages of 18 for boys or 15 for girls, written consent from the Minister of Home Affairs will also be required.
  • If any of the persons who are getting married are divorced, the final decree of divorce should be furnished.
  • If any of the persons who are getting married are widowed, the deceased spouse’s death certificate must be submitted.

b) No, as indicated above in (a), the Department does not have challenges in providing identity documents to any individuals who found themselves married without their consent or due to identity theft. In terms of the Identification Act. (No. 68 of 1997) the Department provides identity documents to all citizens of the country provided that, their particulars are included in the population register and provided that they apply in the prescribed manner for an identity document.

END

12 December 2022 - NW3974

Profile picture: Khanyile, Ms AT

Khanyile, Ms AT to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

Since the expiry of Zimbabwe Special Permits in December 2020, what (a) total number of the holders of the specified permits have applied to renew their permits to date, (b) is the breakdown of the total number of applications in terms of each visa category and (c) total number have been (i) successful and/or (ii) rejected in each visa category?

Reply:

a) Approximately 6000 by September 2022. More applications are streaming in a daily basis.

(b) The breakdown of the total number of applications at the moment in terms of each visa category is as follows, and list not exhaustive.

  • Critical skills – 1195
  • Business - 19
  • General work visas – 62
  • Relative visa – 1006
  • Study visa – 443
  • Retired visa – 19

( c) The information regarding applications that are successful and/or rejected cannot be disclosed at this stage due to the ongoing litigation. One of the disputes before court is on the potential success or otherwise of the application lodged by the affected Zimbabwean nationals.

(d) The Department of Home Affairs has appointed a Departmental Advisory Committee to advice on the visa applications – furthermore, I have approved a significant number of waiver applications lodged by the affected Zimbabwean nationals.

 

END

12 December 2022 - NW4538

Profile picture: Cebekhulu, Inkosi RN

Cebekhulu, Inkosi RN to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

Whether he will furnish Inkosi R N Cebekhulu with the details of (a) the processes of the monthly tribunal that is held to deliberate on applications for identity documents that do not have the required documentation for the normal Home Affairs procedures and (b) the time frame in which persons can expect to receive feedback from the processes of the tribunal; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

a) Yes, in terms of the Births and Death Act (Act 51 of 1992), all notices of birth of any South African that meets the requirements must be registered within thirty (30) days, and a computerised birth certificate is issued. South African citizens not possessing the documentation required to apply for identity documents follow the Late Registration of Birth(LRB) process. The LRB process is in place to accommodate South Africans who have not registered their children within the stipulated 30 days of birth and to ensure that qualifying applicant(s) are assisted with birth registration, where young persons are unable to obtain their identity documents (IDs) as a result of not having evidence of birth registration or proof of birth.

In respect of LRB applications for births above thirty-one (31) days to one (1) year the applicants are not subjected to interviews by the screening committee panelists, however a document verification process is done on the spot with the applicant, and the ID number will be generated by the office of application and as such the birth certificate is issued on the same day, if systems are operational.

However the LRB process for births of one (1) year up to fifteen (15) years and above has more stringent measures, as it is done only at designated local front offices in the province and is subjected to a screening committee which composes of a Chairperson at a District Manager: Operations(DMO) level, Office Manager, Immigration Officer and Secretariat and an additional member.

The steps in the application process and the requirements are as follows:

  • Complete DHA 24 (LRB), DHA 288 (LRB affidavit), and all other relevant forms.
  • Online verification of the informant’s fingerprints against HANIS (Home Affairs National Identification System); or a full set of manual fingerprints taken to be submitted for verification at Head Office, to be verified against HANIS.
  • After verification of fingerprints, they are taken back to office of application to continue with process of application.
  • Applicant(s) to provide Proof of Birth issued by Health Facility where child was born or school letter with copy of admission register from school or baptismal certificate (issued within 5 years of birth).
  • DHA office to conduct further background checks to authenticate the veracity of the information furnished, including information relating to the health facility / school records / church records, etc.
  • Separate interviews conducted for the applicant and informant(s) of the person whose birth is to be registered, through the LRB screening committee, as established by DHA.
  • If above approved by the LRB screening committee the File with all relevant information and supporting documents is sent to DHA Head Office (Pretoria) where the ID number will be generated, provided it complies with all requirements. If approval is not granted the matter is referred to Immigration Services for further investigation with the reasons provided.
  • Short message service (sms) is activated to inform the applicant of the successful application and to collect the birth certificate.
  • Birth Certificate to be collected at the office of application.
  • Applicant can apply for an ID as a result.

b) The turnaround time is one hundred and eighty (180) days, provided that the process above is followed and all requirements are met. However regular adjudication by the screening committee is often delayed by among others:

  • Non-availability of clients for scheduling of interviews as clients change contact details;
  • Insufficient supporting documents on the application and
  • Delays with fingerprint verification due to poor quality of fingerprints taken.

END

08 December 2022 - NW4401

Profile picture: Hunsinger, Dr CH

Hunsinger, Dr CH to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

What is the (a) total number of staff employed and/or provided as departmental support in (i) his and (ii) the Deputy Minister’s private offices and (b)(i) job title and (ii) annual remuneration package of each specified person?

Reply:

(a) 22

(a)(i) 12

(a)(ii) 10

(b)(i) The information is as follows:

MINISTER

12

ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATIVE SECRETARY

1

ASSISTANT APPOINTMENT AND ADMINISTRATIVE SECRETARY

1

CABINET AND PARLIAMENTARY OFFICER

1

CHIEF OF STAFF: MINISTRY

1

DIRECTOR: ADMINISTRATIVE SECRETARY

1

DOMESTIC WORKER

2

DRIVER/MESSENGER

1

MEDIA LIAISON OFFICER

1

REGISTRY CLERK: SUPERVISOR

1

SECRETARY/RECEPTIONIST

1

SPECIAL ADVISOR

1

DEPUTY MINISTER

10

COMMUNITY OUTREACH OFFICER

1

DOMESTIC WORKER

1

DRIVER/MESSENGER

1

FOOD SERVICE AID

1

HEAD: DEPUTY MINISTRY

1

HOUSEHOLD AIDE

1

PARLIAMENTARY AND CABINET SUPPORT

1

PRIVATE SECRETARY

1

REGISTRY CLERK

1

SECRETARY/RECEPTIONIST

1

Grand Total

22

(b)(ii) The annual remuneration of all staff is tabulated hereunder:

Annual salary Notch (In Rands)

104073

124434

176310

181650

261372

290088

477090

744255

882042

950220

1073187

1139058

1264176

1269951

1739784

MINISTER

 0

2

 0

1

1

1

1

 0

1

1

 0

1

1

1

1

ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATIVE SECRETARY

 

 

 

 

 

 

1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ASSISTANT APPOINTMENT AND ADMINISTRATIVE SECRETARY

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1

 

 

 

 

 

 

CABINET AND PARLIAMENTARY OFFICER

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1

 

 

 

 

 

CHIEF OF STAFF: MINISTRY

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1

 

DIRECTOR : ADMINISTRATIVE SECRETARY

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1

 

 

 

DOMESTIC WORKER

 

2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DRIVER/MESSENGER

 

 

 

1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

MEDIA LIAISON OFFICER

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1

 

 

REGISTRY CLERK:SUPERVISOR

 

 

 

 

 

1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SECRETARY/RECEPTIONIST

 

 

 

 

1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SPECIAL ADVISOR

                           

1

Annual salary Notch (In Rands)

104073

124434

176310

181650

261372

290088

477090

744255

882042

950220

1073187

1139058

1264176

1269951

1739784

DEPUTY MINISTER

1

2

1

0

2

0

0

2

1

0

1

0

0

0

0

COMMUNITY OUTREACH OFFICER

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DOMESTIC WORKER

 

1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DRIVER/MESSENGER

 

 

1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

FOOD SERVICE AID

1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

HEAD: DEPUTY MINISTRY

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1

 

 

 

 

HOUSEHOLD AIDE

 

1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PARLIAMENTARY AND CABINET SUPPORT

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PRIVATE SECRETARY

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1

 

 

 

 

 

 

REGISTRY CLERK

 

 

 

 

1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SECRETARY/RECEPTIONIST

 

 

 

 

1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Grand Total

1

4

1

1

3

1

1

2

2

1

1

1

1

1

1

END

08 December 2022 - NW4185

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Khanyile, Ms AT to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

Whether his department has received any applications for asylum from Ukraine citizens; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what (a) total number of applications were (i) received, (ii) approved and/or (iii) rejected and (b) were the reasons for the rejections?

Reply:

(a)(i) For the year 2022 the Department received 1 application through the Desmond Tutu Refugee Reception Centre.

(a)(ii) Approved - 0

(a)(iii) Rejected - 0

(b) The 1 application is still in process as the applicant must attend a second interview with the Refugee Status Determination Officer(RSDO)

END

08 December 2022 - NW4361

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Khanyile, Ms AT to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

(a) What is the current backlog across all visa categories, (b) what has been the average response time for each visa category and (c) by what date does his department envisage to have cleared the current backlog with regard to all visa categories?

Reply:

a) The current backlog across all visa categories is 56543.

b The average response time varies for different visa categories; there are different turnaround times for applications listed in the departments APP and those that are not listed in the APP.

  • The turnaround time for applications for critical skills visas is 4 weeks, as indicated in the APP. Currently the average response time is 4 to 10 weeks.
  • The turnaround time for business and general work visas is 8 weeks, as indicated in the APP. Currently the average response time is 8 to 14 weeks.

c) The department envisages to have cleared the current backlog by June 2024 for all categories of visas.

END

08 December 2022 - NW4313

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van der Merwe, Ms LL to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

(1)With regard to the entry of non-citizens into the Republic at ports of entry, what measures are in place to prevent non-citizens from exceeding the (a) period of their visa-free stay and/or (b) duration of their stay as per their visa allowance; (2) whether this is tracked and/or monitored; if not, why not; if so, (a) how in each case and (b) what total number of non-citizens overstay their (i) allowed visa-free stay and/or (ii) visa-allowed stay in the Republic in each of the past five years?

Reply:

1. With regards to the entry of non-citizens into the Republic at ports of entry, both categories of travellers (visa exempt and visa required) are provided with a specified period of stay when they comply with admission requirements as stated in the Immigration Act.

The preventative measures include applying a risk based approach with visa adjudication if the person is from a visa required country. At the port of entry, the immigration officer will conduct an examination and if required, a secondary immigration inspection will be conducted before endorsing the passport and recording the movement on the system.

Additional measures to ensure non-citizens do not exceed the period of their visa entry includes compliance inspections and immigration stop and search operations that can detect such persons.

(2)(a) It would be difficult to track and/or monitor every person that enters the Republic. It is the responsibility of the traveller to respect and adhere to the laws of the country.

In terms of the Immigration Act, a person must comply with the permitted period of stay and depart on or before the expiry date of their visa, failing which he/she will be declared undesirable upon departure or become an illegal foreigner liable for deportation.

This is also tracked and monitored through immigration inspections and immigration led operations as well as by monitoring the departmental systems.

(2)(b) The total number of non-citizens that overstayed:

Year Visa Exempted Visa Required Grand Total

2022 19 589 1 085 20 674

END

08 December 2022 - NW4381

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Khanyile, Ms AT to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

What (a) is the total number and (b) are the names of countries that will (i) qualify for eVisas in the next three months and (ii) not require any visas at all to come to the Republic for tourism and short-stay business purposes within the next six months?

Reply:

(a)&(b)(i) The Department has not yet decided on the total number and the names of countries that will qualify for eVisas in the next three months. The Department has rolled out the eVisa system to the following 14 countries: - China, India, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Uganda, Mexico, Kenya, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Cameroon and Saudi Arabia.

(b)(ii) There are 135 country nationals that do not require a port of entry visa to South Africa. The names of the countries are listed on the attached annexure.

END

08 December 2022 - NW4544

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Zondo, Mr S S to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

What are the details of how his department has supported matriculants to obtain their identity documents to ensure that they can write their examinations?

Reply:

The Departments of Home Affairs and Basic Education entered into a Memorandum of understanding in 2010 regarding the mutual cooperation, support and sharing of information. This agreement assisted in facilitating access and visits to schools. Each and every year, the Department of Basic education provides list of learners without Identity documents to Home Affairs and the list is shared with the provinces.

Upon the receipt of the above list, provinces prepare schedules to visit schools using Mobile units, where learners who are 16 years and above including matriculants are assisted in applying and in obtaining their Identity documents as a result.

END

08 December 2022 - NW4548

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van der Merwe, Ms LL to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

Whether, in view of a recent presentation to the Portfolio Committee on Home Affairs that indicates that the Republic is home to 15 million undocumented persons, he has found that the numbers point to (a) a complete failure by his department to implement its own immigration laws and (b) a safety and security threat to the nation; if not, why not in each case; if so, what steps will be taken to remedy the perceived illegal migration crisis in the Republic?

Reply:

a) Honourable member, firstly I want to iterate that the department does not believe that figure is accurate as we have not been provided scientific evidence that it is so. The most credible source the department is aware of is the figures given by the Statistician General Risenga Maluleke where a figure of 3.95 million foreign nationals are said to be in South Africa according to their mid-year population estimates in 2021.

Secondly, the Department is not failing to implement its own immigration laws as indicated in its annual reports, through various programmes, including the law enforcement operations in the security cluster to detect unlawful immigrants, prosecute and deport them or issue orders to leave.

To prevent re-offending, their details are captured on the Visa Entry and Stop List and the entry as well as departure of all travellers are recorded on the Movement Control System. This is one of the tools that Port Control utilises to prevent undesirable or prohibited persons from entering into the country.

The review of the systems of managing the issuing and extension of temporary residence visas and conferring of permanent residence permits is underway to improve the effectiveness of the policy, infrastructure and implementation.

b) The porousness of the country’s borders is well-documented, hence the establishment of the Border Management Authority to respond and manage the borderline under one strategic and implementation structure. The performance in the target areas will be reviewable within the 2023/24 financial year, with effect from 1 April 2023.

The department will continue with its enforcement activities within the country as well as the deployment of the newly formed Border Guard of the Border Management Authority.

END

05 December 2022 - NW4549

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van der Merwe, Ms LL to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

Whether, in view of the large number of rural residents who have to walk long distances and take multiple forms of transport to reach the offices of his department and the modernisation of the Home Affairs systems such as the Branch Appointment Booking System (BABS), his department has any practical alternatives to those in rural areas who do not have access to smartphones, technology and/or consistent and reliable internet connection to secure themselves slots online; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

The Department of Home Affairs’ Access Model has identified 778 mobile service points and the majority of them are in rural areas to service citizens; hence in the next financial year we will be buying additional mobile units to add to the current fleet and expand the footprint to ensure that citizens receive the services in their localities.

Secondly, all offices with BABS have been given tablets to assist citizens with booking and the State Information Technology Agency (SITA) is working on zero rating data requirements for government websites to enable citizens to access BABS on our website for free.

END

05 December 2022 - NW4442

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Mthenjane, Mr DF to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

Which steps of intervention have been taken to combat the long lines of freight trucks waiting to cross the Republic’s ports of entry?

Reply:

Border Management have identified the management of trucks along the highways, national roads and corridors towards the ports of entry as one of the factors affecting the operational dynamics in the legitimate facilitation of persons and goods.

The following planned responses as contingences were developed:

  1. The establishment of the integrated traffic management plan with all transport and traffic authorities in the respective corridors to ease traffic movements;
  2. Collaborating with stakeholders in the freight industry regarding the utilisation of truck holding areas and the diversion of trucks to these areas;
  3. The utilization of single lane processes towards the weighbridges for some controlled movements; and
  4. The deployment of dedicated traffic officers along the routes and corridors by Provincial and Local traffic authorities to ensure compliance and enforcement of traffic laws.

END

05 December 2022 - NW4320

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van der Merwe, Ms LL to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

(1)What interventions has his department undertaken in Hillbrow and other communities to ensure that all who live and work within the borders of the Republic are legally permitted to do so; (2) what is the position of his department on estimates by some that the Republic is home to approximately 15 million illegal and/or undocumented migrants; (3) how does his department intend to address the prevalence of undocumented and/or illegal migrants within communities; (4) whether he has found that the daily growing numbers of illegal and/or undocumented migrants is a national crisis as his department is unable to implement its immigration legislation; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details in each case?

Reply:

(1) The department’s inspectorate is fully engaged in immigration operations and inspections. Areas such as Hillbrow and other communities are regularly visited by immigration officials who conduct compliance. The Inspectorate unit deployed a dedicated team to Diepsloot from 6th April 2022 to 8th July 2022 where 1910 arrests were made for illegal migration. The department also conducts its own multi-stakeholder operation called “Operation Siyasibenta” on a monthly basis. On 11 November 2022 Siyasibenta operations were focused on farming areas around country with a total of 111 foreign nationals arrested for being undocumented.

(2) The department does not believe that figure is accurate as we have not been provided scientific evidence that it is so. The most credible source the department is aware of is the figures given by the Statistician General Risenga Maluleke where a figure of 3.95 million foreign nationals are said to be in South Africa according to their mid-year population estimates in 2021.

(3) The department will continue with its enforcement activities within the country as well as the deployment of the newly formed Border Guard of the Border Management Authority to the borders.

(4) The prevalence of undocumented migrants is a global due to push factors relating to either economic and environmental. The department is able to implement its legislation and has been doing so. In addition to this the department co-operates with other departments and foreign governments to tackle the problem.

END

05 December 2022 - NW4148

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Winkler-Lidgett, Ms HS to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

Whether his department plans to implement a digital nomad e-visa like the other 40 countries that have done so globally, including Namibia, in order to promote tourism; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

  • The current visa categories are legislated by the Immigration Act No. 13 of 2002. In its current form the Immigration Act does not make provision for digital nomad e-Visa. Therefore, there are no plans to implement a digital nomad e-visa.
  • The department has to date launched and piloted e-Visa System in 14 countries in line with the Government’s plans to streamline and modernize the visa application process to make it easier to travel to South Africa for tourism and short term business and work visits. The e-Visa System enables the prospective visitors to apply for a Visa online, while in their home countries without visiting the Mission.

END

01 December 2022 - NW4443

Profile picture: Mthenjane, Mr DF

Mthenjane, Mr DF to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

Which steps of intervention has he taken towards the abolishment of all borders to promote free trade amongst African countries?

Reply:

The promotion of free trade amongst African countries does not require the abolishment of all borders but the continued implementation of regional and continental initiatives to manage the flow of goods.

The Department of Finance as the responsible Department can provide relevant information on the current initiatives to improve the facilitation of goods into and from South Africa to give effect to free trade amongst African countries.

The Border Management Agency is working closely with the South African Revenue Services to ensure the efficient facilitation of people and goods through our ports of entry.

END

01 December 2022 - NW4362

Profile picture: Khanyile, Ms AT

Khanyile, Ms AT to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

What (a) type of visa class was granted to all the occupants of the Russian yacht called Nord that is supposed to dock in the Cape Town harbour, (b) is the duration of each visa and (c) number of occupants are on the specified yacht?

Reply:

The yacht referred to has not docked at any of South Africa’s harbours. No pre-clearance application was received for such a yacht to dock at Cape Town harbour.

END

01 December 2022 - NW4207

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Roos, Mr AC to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

With regard to the recruitment of 10 000 unemployed youth graduates to join the digitisation project of records of his department, (a) who was awarded the tender to assist with the appointments, (b) who makes the appointment decisions, (c) for each of phase 1, 2 and 3 list the (i) offices where the recruits will work and (ii) total number of recruits allocated to each specified office and (d) what is the status of procurement of (i) scanners and (ii) workstations for the specified project?

Reply:

a) The Department has not awarded any tender to assist with the recruitment process for the 10 000 unemployed youth graduates. However, the recruitment was facilitated by the Department of Employment and Labour (DEL) through the Employment Services of South Africa (ESSA) Programme. The service was provided at no cost to the Department of Home Affairs (DHA).

b) Interview panels were set up by the DHA nationwide to interview candidates. Interview panels make recommendations for appointments.

c) The DHA adopted a phased approach for the recruitment of young unemployed graduates and as demonstrated in the table below, the allocation recruits will be per province rather than offices and is aligned to the volume of documents that require digitisation.

d) The procurement of equipment and software for the digitisation process was advertised via an open Request for Bid, which closed on 23 September 2022. The evaluation process to select a preferred provider for the duration of the project is in an advanced stage. Workstation procurement is being done through a SITA transversal contract for the 1st cohort and is due for delivery in December 2022.

END

01 December 2022 - NW4060

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Sharif, Ms NK to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

(1)Whether, with regard to the responsibilities of his department in relation to the Alteration of Sex Description and Sex Status Act, Act 49 of 2003, he will furnish Ms N K Sharif with a statistical summary of the most common reasons provided by the Director-General (DG) for the rejection of applications in terms of section 2(3) of the specified Act; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details; (2) what total number of officials in the DG's office work on assessing and deciding upon the specified applications in terms of section (a) 2(1) and (b) 2(3) of the Act; (3) whether he will furnish Ms N K Sharif with copies of all standard operating procedures, guidelines, checklists and all other guiding documentation developed by his department to help officials in the office of the DG to take decisions in terms of section 2(3) of the Act; if not, why not, if so, what are the relevant details; (4) what is the average turnaround time for the specified applications from submission by an applicant to a decision communicated to the specified applicant?

Reply:

  1. There is no statistical summary of rejected applications in terms of section 2(3) of the Act.
  2. Four (4) Officials
  3. The standard operating procedure (SOP) for the Alteration of Sex Description and Sex Status was signed in October 2020 and is applied by officials that process the applications. The Department is unable to provide a copy of the SOP due to the sensitivity of the procedures to be followed in this category of applications that involves the amendment of personal information. The documents required by the Department from applicants in this category are indicated under “Amendments” on the DHA website.
  4. The average turnaround time is 4-12 weeks

END

24 November 2022 - NW3955

Profile picture: Van Zyl, Ms A M

Van Zyl, Ms A M to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

(1)What are the details, including addresses, of the Home Affairs offices situated in the municipal area of the Walter Sisulu Local Municipality; (2) whether the offices are fully staffed; if not, what (a) is the plan to staff the offices and (b) are the time frames of filling the vacant posts; (3) whether the internet works optimally at the offices; if not, why not; if so, what (a) is done when there is load shedding and (b) are his department’s plans to ensure that services are not interrupted by load shedding; (4) whether the phone lines are functional at the offices; if not, what are the time frames regarding the date it is envisaged that the phone lines will be fixed; (5) whether he has found that there are any other specified services that are not rendered and/or delivered at the offices; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what (a) plans are in place to ensure that the services will be delivered and (b) is the frequency of service of the mobile office to towns that are not serviced by offices?

Reply:

1. The Department of Home Affairs has two offices in the municipal area and they are Aliwal North, Local Office Medium situated at number 18 Hunt Street Aliwal North 9750 and Burgersdorp Local Office Small, No.31 Van Der Walt Street, Burgersdorp 9744,

2. Offices are not fully staffed and there is a capacitation programme currently underway to fund vacancies but all posts for office managers have been allocated funds. The Aliwal North office has appointed one Civic Service Supervisor who assumed duties as from the 1st September 2022. There is one vacant funded post of Civic Service Supervisor for Burgersdorp which emanated from the current recruitment process and will be filled soon.

3. The State Information Technology Agency (SITA) is making an investment to improve internet connectivity at DHA offices and both offices have generators that are used during load-shedding to ensure that services are not interrupted.

4. There are temporary telephone lines for Aliwal North Local Office Medium with the following numbers: 051 633 3317, 051 633 2118, 051 633 2883,051 633 2281 and they are functional. Permanent lines will be installed once Telkom is done with the migration to fibre-lines.

5. Inspectorate Services are not done at the Burgersdorp Local Office Small, due to the size of the office. At the Aliwal North Local Office Medium, recruitment for Immigration officials has started in phases. (a) The Immigration Officials of the Sterkspruit Local Office Medium, have an Itinerary that covers Senqu Local Municipality, and Walter Sisulu Local Municipality. (b)A monthly itinerary for the mobile units is drawn to service towns with no DHA footprint.

END

24 November 2022 - NW4059

Profile picture: Sharif, Ms NK

Sharif, Ms NK to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

(1)With regard to the responsibilities of his department in relation to the Alteration of Sex Description and Sex Status Act, Act 49 of 2003, what total number of applications has his department (a) received in terms of section 2(1) since the specified Act was promulgated, (b) granted in terms of section 3 of the specified Act and (c) rejected in terms of section 2(3) of the Act; (2) what total number of rejections had reasons communicated to the applicants as it is required in terms of section 2(3) of the Act?

Reply:

(1) (a) A total number of 476 applications were received.

(b) A total number of 7 orders were granted for alteration of sex description.

(c) No rejections were made in terms of section 2(3) of the Act.

(2) None.

END

24 November 2022 - NW4217

Profile picture: Steenhuisen, Mr JH

Steenhuisen, Mr JH to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

Whether he will furnish the Leader of the Opposition with a list of all South Africans who are in possession of a diplomatic passport; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

The Honourable Member is herewith informed that Diplomatic passports are issued according to the South African Diplomatic Passport Policy and that the Department of Home Affairs is not the custodian of this policy, and similarly not responsible for the application(s) as well as the issuance of this category of passports whatsoever. Hence it is requested that any information relating to Diplomatic Passports should be addressed to the Department of International Relations and Co-operation (DIRCO).

END

24 November 2022 - NW4209

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Roos, Mr AC to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

Given that on 1 November 2022 the Portfolio Committee on Home Affairs was informed that staff in the Home Affairs legislative drafting unit do not have the necessary legislative drafting expertise, what (a) total number of staff are in the legislative drafting unit, (b) is the total salary and benefits of the staff in the specified unit, (c) are the reasons that staff were hired to the positions without the relevant experience, (d) work are the staff currently busy with given that they do not have legislative drafting expertise, (e) are the reasons that legislative drafting training was not undertaken for the staff, (f) period has the position of Director: Legal Drafting been vacant and (g) are the reasons that an independent legislative drafter was appointed and the skill was not brought in-house?

Reply:

(a) Six (6)

(b) R4 555 841 per annum.

(c) The Senior Legal Administration Officers have the requisite qualifications, as well as experience, to be appointed within the Unit. There is however a distinction between these competencies and that of a Specialist Legislative Drafter, who, has advanced knowledge and expertise required for the formulation of Draft Bill into a legislative framework for submission to Cabinet and Parliament, and ultimately, tabling as an Act.

(d) Currently, the Unit is developing the draft Bills relating to;

  1. Electoral Amendment Bill;
  2. Marriage Bill;
  3. National Identification and Registration Bill;
  4. One Stop Border Post Bill;
  5. Public Holidays Bill. This Bill is initiated as a result of request to determine whether or not certain public holidays should be declared as non-trading days;
  6. Security Printer’s Bill;
  7. Section 34 of the Immigration Act, 2002.

(e) Legal officials within the Legal Services Drafting Unit possess the requisite drafting skills and experience, and have been instrumental with the development of the Draft (foundation) Bill’s as detailed in (d) above. However, the process does not end within the Department and as an outcome of consultations across government Clusters and concerned entities, an integrated legislative formulation of the Draft Bill becomes possible, but prior to it being advanced to Cabinet and then Parliament for approval, it must conform to a specific framework and drafting language, and this is where the skills of a Specialist Legislative Drafter is required.

(f) The erstwhile Director: Drafting left the employment of the Department in November 2021. The Department proceeded to advertise the vacant position and is in the process of finalising the appointment of the Director: Drafting.

(g) Refer to the reasons alluded to in (e) supra above.

END

24 November 2022 - NW4208

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Roos, Mr AC to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

In light of the fact that the SA High Commission Canada charges CAN$127 for a passport and CAN$253 for a maxi passport and the SA High Commission New Zealand charges NZ$135 for a passport and NZ$270 for a maxi passport, what are the reasons that (a) the prices are far higher than the R1 200 for a passport and R2 400 for a maxi passport advertised on 1 November 2022, (b) non-first-time United Kingdom (UK) applicants pay the equivalent of R1 200 for a passport and R2 400 for a maxi passport when they are forced to pay an additional GBP35 to apply through Visa Facilitation Services Global and (c) non-first-time UK applicants do not have the option to apply directly at the SA High Commission?

Reply:

a)  New passport and travel document tariffs were gazetted in the Government Gazette No. 47256 dated 9 September 2022. In accordance with this Gazette, the tariff for a normal 32-page adult and child passport applied for at a South African mission is R1 200.00 while the tariff for a maxi passport applied for at a South African mission is R2 400.00. These new tariffs became effective 1 November 2022.

The missions were informed of the new tariffs for passports and travel documents under cover Revenue Circular No. 6 of 2022, dated 31 October 2022. In this regard, the missions were informed of the ‘spot rate’ to be used in instances where the tariff needs to be converted into a foreign currency. Using these ‘spot rates’ for Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom, the indicative prices for normal 32-page passports and maxi passports should be as per the table below:

Country

Spot rate

32 page passport

Maxi passport

Canada

0.0753383665

CAD91.00

CAD181.00

New Zealand

0.095299378

NZD115.00

NZD230.00

United Kingdom

0.047938754

GBP58.00

GBP116.00

Spot rates are used to ensure consistency in the applicable exchange rate. The Department therefore does not vary tariffs payable at the missions on a daily basis as the exchange rates fluctuate. The prices at the missions are rounded up to eliminate the need for change.

The mission in Canada applied the wrong spot rate and did not immediately update its webpage with the correct amounts for Canadian dollars. This oversight has been rectified and the current rates for passports as per the website is the following:

Adult / child passports (32 pages): CAD91:00 (http:///www.southafrica-canada.ca/regular-south-african-passports-c55-processing-fee/ )

Maxi passport (48 pages): CAD181 (http://www.southafrica-canada.ca/maxi-passports/ )

The mission in New Zealand also applied the wrong spot rate. This mission was requested to update its webpage with the correct amounts, in New Zealand dollars, for South African passports applied for at the mission.

b) The introduction of a passport pilot project in the UK through VFS was as a result of high volumes of applications and over six to nine months turnaround times with limited staffing in the Mission in London. The pilot turnaround time is one month and the service fee charged is to cover the overhead costs of VFS.

(c) The applicants may still apply at the Mission should they opt to do so and avoid paying the VFS service fee.

END

24 November 2022 - NW4141

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Roos, Mr AC to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

(1)Whether he will furnish Mr A C Roos with a list of the court cases in the 2022-23 financial year, in which his department has been instructed to amend regulations and/or legislation, that have not been done; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details; (2) whether he will furnish Mr A C Roos with a list of the (a) deadlines given by the court to effect the order for each case and (b) actions taken to satisfy the requirements of the court order in each case; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

1. During 2022-2023 financial year the Department was instructed to amend certain sections of the Immigration Act, 13 of 2022 on the matter of Tereza Rayment & 5 others v The Minister of Home Affairs: court case No. 3919/20, as summarised hereunder:

The Applicants sought to declare the Immigration Act, 13 of 2002, unconstitutional based on Sections 10(6), 11(6), 18(2) and 43, and Regulation 17 thereof. The Western Cape High Court held that Sections 10(6), 11(1)(b) and 18(2), read with Regulation 9(5) and 9(9) are inconsistent with the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa. That declaration of invalidity was suspended for 24 months from the date of the order, to enable Parliament to remedy the inconsistency.

The Western Cape High Court ordered that the Department must consider granting the Applicants authorization to remain in the RSA in terms of Section 32(1), pending the outcome of such applications. Costs were ordered to be paid by the Department, including the costs of two Counsel.

Both the Applicants and the Department were not satisfied with the order and therefore appealed, and cross appealed respectively, resulting in the stay of the court order and thus it cannot be implemented.

2. The above-mentioned court application is the only court case during the 2022-23 financial year wherein the Western Cape High Court instructed the Department to amend its regulations and/or legislation. As mentioned above, the court order has been stayed due to the pending appeal processes.

END

 

24 November 2022 - NW4128

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Singh, Mr N to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

With regard to the dismissal of a certain employee (name furnished) who has since passed on, which was later found to be substantively and procedurally unfair by an arbitrator, what (a) has been the progress with regard to the arbitrator’s award of R232 916,67 to the specified employee’s family and (b) measures has his department actioned to ensure that their disciplinary and consequence management processes are fair to their employees?

Reply:

a) The Department does not have any outstanding arbitration award to the amount of R 232 916.67 that is due to Mr Moodley’s family.

The Department received an arbitration award dated 27 July 2010, in respect of Manickum Moodley which ordered that: -

  1. Mr Moodley be paid a sum of R232 916.67 in outstanding salary for the period May 2009 to May 2010;
  2. The first payment to the amount of R154 028.60 was paid to Mr Moodley on 31 March 2011;
  3. The second payment to the amount of R288 061.50 was paid to Mr Moodley on 14 April 2011;
  4. Mr Moodley was paid a total amount of R442 090.10 which was outstanding salary payments.

b) The Department applies the Disciplinary Code and Procedures for the Public Service which is premised on the principles of prompt, fair and consistent, amongst others.

 

END

24 November 2022 - NW4067

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Roos, Mr AC to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

What was the total amount of (a) legal fees that was spent on defending legal actions against his department, (b) cost orders that were made against his department and (c) contingent liabilities against his department in the 2021-22 financial year in each case?

Reply:

a) Hereunder please find a list of argued matters in court and the amount spent on legal costs.

NB: Please note that where amounts are not stated it is because the Department is awaiting invoices of payments from the Department of Justice (State Attorney). The Department of Justice is responsible for payments on behalf of Client-Departments and the Departments in turn, reimburse the offices of the State Attorney.

YEAR 2021 LOST MATTERS

 

NAMES

CATEGORY

REASON FOR THE APPLICATION

TOTAL AMOUNT

1

Dembello Markos

Immigration/ urgent

Release from detention

R209 052.95

2

Mbrik Barsodo Shafe

Immigration

Release from detention

R16 618.77

3

Alert Ndlovu

Immigration

Release from detention

R34 848.00

4

Chand Uzzal Mondol

Immigration/ urgent

Release from detention

R27 200.00

5

Dwatat Ashenut

Immigration/ urgent

Release from detention

R1 615.98

6

Deroke Ashuro Abacho

Immigration

Release from detention

R76 525.72

7

Khaled Abdelmoniem Foud

Immigration/ urgent

Release from detention

Awaiting invoice from Justice

8

Hassim Allamin

Immigration

Release from detention

Awaiting invoice from Justice

9

Faruk Omar

Immigration/ urgent

Release from detention

R173 119.97

10

S Ntukwana

Labour relations Act

Re-instatement

R53 100.00

11

Herbert Mfabi & & Musana Luzake

Immigration/ urgent

Release from detention

R27 200.00

12

Kamal Adissa Agbe Akinotcho

Immigration Act/urgent

Release from detention

R2 519.72

13

Manedo Ayano

Immigration Act/urgent

Interdict deportation and release to apply for asylum

Awaiting invoice from Justice

14

Lamboroko Berekete

Immigration Act/urgent

Interdict deportation and release to apply for asylum

Awaiting invoice from Justice

15

Ababa Joseph

Immigration Act/urgent

Interdict deportation and release to apply for asylum

Awaiting invoice from Justice

16

fayez Mohammed

Immigration Act/Urgent

Release from detention

R27 744.00

17

Kotiso Tsagae

Immigration Act/urgent

Release from detention

R35 700.00

18

Amin Abukar and 5 others

Immigration Act/urgent

Interdict deportation and release to apply for asylum

R70 000.00

19

Fayeza Nuraden

Immigration Act/urgent

Interdict deportation and release to apply for asylum

R47 775.00

20

Douglas chidi Obere ofenedu

Immigration Act/urgent

Interdict deportation and release to apply for asylum

Awaiting invoice from Justice

21

Rashid Adam

Immigration Act/urgent

Interdict deportation and release to apply for asylum

R10 500.00

22

Centre For Child Law // Minister of Home Affairs and others

Births and Deaths Registration Act 51 of 1992

constitutionality of section 10— section is unconstitutional

R122 560.00

23

mezene Tedessa Someno

Immigration Act/urgent

Interdict deportation and release to apply for asylum

R89 182.50

24

Mohlakore Matsaba

Immigration Act/Citizenship, urgent

Interdict deportation

R33 480.00

25

Dutimo Bakala

Immigration Act/ urgent

Interdict deportation

R82 100.49

26

Tugugn Tedesse Achamo

Immigration Act/ urgent

Interdict deportation

R25 561.45

27

Birhu Kibamo &Tesfaye John

Immigration Act/ Urgent

Interdict deportation

R19 200.00

28

Detamo Wondmagan

Immigration Act/urgent

Urgent application

R106 261.55

29

Hussen Mohammed

Immigration Act/ urgent

Urgent application

R102 395.07

30

Getachew Tirore Watango

Immigration Act/ urgent

Urgent application

Awaiting invoice from Justice

31

Abeni Girma Teloro

Immigration Act/ urgent

Urgent application

Awaiting invoice from Justice

32

Kanora Gabese Gabore

Immigration Act/ urgent

Urgent application

R341 250.00

33

Fhatuwani Sibanda

Citizenship Act/ Immigration Act

Urgent application

R123 395.00

34

kabula Ilunga

Immigration Act/ urgent

Urgent application

R19 550.00

35

Maria Belvedere Florencia

Labour relations Act

Labour Matter

R87 200.00

36

Ramadhani Rajabu

Immigration Act/urgent

Urgent application

R40 341.19

37

Kamorudeen Tunde Isiaq

Immigration Act/urgent

Urgent application

R34 200.00

38

Salamu Muramo Rejabo

Immigration Act/urgent

Urgent application

R11 400.00

39

Dutimo Bakala

Immigration Act/ urgent

Interdict deportation

R82 100.49

40

Echozona Lawrence Nnalue

Immigration Act /Urgent

Interdict deportation

R23 015.00

41

Bebeyi Sheye Niyi

Immigration Act /Urgent

Release from detention

R18 050.00

42

Daniel Amelate

Immigration Act/urgent

interdict deportations

R116 700.00

43

Desta Abore

Immigration

Release from detention

R97 490.00

44

Noyonkuru Elie

Immigration Act/urgent

Release from detention

R12 810.00

45

Irutabantu Destiny

Immigration Act/urgent

Release from detention

R12 870.00

 

TOTAL

   

R2 259 328.85

YEAR 2022 LOST MATTERS

1

Genamo Solomon

Immigration Act/Urgent

Release from detention

Awaiting invoice from Justice

2

Claire Breukel and Elisa Sofia Sain Serrano// minister of home affairs and others

Immigration Act/urgent

interdict/ POE

R373 235.00

3

Denise Charlotte Hausermann Gordon-Kind

Immigration Act /prohibition sec 29(2)

prohibition sec 29(2) review

R53 586.89

4

Ziaul Hoque&4 others vs Minister of home affairs and one other

Immigration Act

Setting aside decision on PR applications

R25 200.00

5

Hossan Mohammad Delawar

Immigration Act/refugee Act

Interdict against deportation

Awaiting invoice from Justice

6

Ursula Jenny Dinah Jantjies and Vili Krasimmirov Georgiev

Amendments

Ordering department to amend the details of applicant on Birth register

R53 000.00

 

TOTAL

   

R532 021.89

(b) The Department has incurred R27 071 037.81 in cost orders for the financial year 2021/2022. This composes of settled matters, mandamus applications, costs ordered by the courts, etc.

The Department has incurred R10 951 153.39 in cost orders from 1 April 2022 to date.

(c) The total amount of contingent liabilities for financial year 2021/2022 is R 2 107 068 000.00

END

 

24 November 2022 - NW4061

Profile picture: Sharif, Ms NK

Sharif, Ms NK to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

(1)Whether, with regard to the responsibilities of his department in relation to the Alteration of Sex Description and Sex Status Act, Act 49 of 2003, he will furnish Ms N K Sharif with all internal research that his department has conducted in terms of its responsibilities in relation to the specified Act; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details; (2) what total number of appeals has he received, challenging the decision of his department to reject an alteration of sex description application, since the inception of the Act; (3) whether he will furnish Ms N K Sharif with a statistical breakdown of his ruling on such appeals; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details; (4) whether any members of the Trans Activist Coalition have been included in the drafting processes of the amended Identifications Act, Act 68 of 1997, which will be presented to Cabinet in 2023?

Reply:

1. No internal research has been conducted as the department’s responsibility and mandate as guided by Alteration of Sex Description and Sex Status Act, Act 49 of 2003, is to process applications in this respect.

2. None received.

3. Not applicable as no appeals have been received.

4. No member of the group, identified, has formed part of the drafting team. The Bill will be gazetted for public consultation wherein comments and inputs are expected, inter alia, from the community identified.

END

17 November 2022 - NW4066

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Roos, Mr AC to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

Regarding the Government Printing Works system crashes in February 2021, 31 January 2022, 25 Μarch 2022 and 11 April 2022 that caused complete audit data loss, (a) what are the reasons that on 31 January 2022, almost a year after the total data loss of February 2021, there was no backup in place, causing yet another complete audit data loss, (b) what is the total cost of data recovery to date as a result of the system crashes, (c) by what date will the data recovery project be completed and (d) what are the total estimated costs for the completion of the data recovery project?

Reply:

(a) No audit data/information was lost on the 31 January 2022. The system disruption that happened on this day was in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) environment, which does not have finance/audit information. GPW used the disk-backup to restore the affected systems in the DMZ environment.

(b) The following organisations were consulted to assist with data recovery:

  • Hewlett Packard (OEM)
  • CSSI data recovery specialists
  • State Security Agency (SSA)

GPW did not raise purchase orders for all the above organisations, therefore no costs were incurred.

(c) The Original Equipment Manufacturer (HP) communicated with GPW that the data which was lost as a result of EVA hardware crash cannot be recovered. There is currently no project underway to recover lost data.

(d) GPW will not incur any costs.

END

17 November 2022 - NW4103

Profile picture: Mkhonto, Ms C N

Mkhonto, Ms C N to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

(1)What (a) steps have been taken to ensure that communities living in rural areas are easily accommodated in the new online application system and (b) online awareness campaigns related to the new application system have been undertaken; (2) whether any community education programmes aimed at empowering persons with the know-how were conducted; if not, why not; if so, what enabling resources does his department offer to persons to make the system more user friendly?

Reply:

(1)(a) We continue to make efforts to ensure that all communities, including those in rural areas, are accommodated in the new online application system. The Branch Appointment Booking System (BABS) is one of the Home Affairs interventions for improving services, including for our people located in rural areas.

Members of Parliament have been very helpful in the development and rollout of the online application system, particularly on the inclusion of offices in more rural communities in the pilot phase and also in the rollout of the project.

The online application system is only available for smart ID card and passport applications. Citizens are still welcome to visit Home Affairs front offices for other services.

The booking system is run on a hybrid model, with both online bookings and ‘walk-ins’ allowed. The Department allows and encourages walk-ins and also provides tablets to officials in order to help those who do not have data and would prefer to make a booking for another day instead of waiting in a queue. This is to ensure that as we rollout the new system, no one is left out, and all have access to services.

Following the launch, in June 2022, the booking system has been extended and is currently utilised in 163 of the 198 offices that have the ability to process smart ID cards and passports. At end of October 2022, more than 200 000 people have used this system.

(1)(b) I made a public announcement about the online booking system (BABS) during in my Budget Vote Speech, on 24 May 2022. This was followed by numerous radio and television interviews which I handled with the help of the Deputy Minister and delegated officials, to promote awareness on the new booking system. These interviews were in national, regional and community media platforms.

On 13 June 2022, I held a question-and-answer radio phone-in programme with 26 community radio stations.

The Communication Unit has also undertaken activations with Metro FM at Menlyn Mall, on 21 to 24 September 2022. This Unit has also developed videos and digital posters which it regularly runs on social media platforms of the Department and those of other Government departments.

(2) Yes, education programmes were and continue to be conducted, including the booking system’s activations I’ve alluded to. The Department has provided tablets to officials for them to take clients through the system and in this way we trust that those who were assisted will also be able to spread the message to others. Offices have floor walkers, queue marshalls and Office Managers to assist clients in the queues to make bookings.

To support this migration of service delivery platforms, the Communications Unit in collaboration with the BABS Project Management Office, did activations in selected offices in June 2022 where they were explaining to clients and officials how the system works.

The education programme explaining the new system was extended to cover officials in order to empower them to serve clients intending to use the new system. In this regard, information and posters were shared with Provincial and Office Managers to ensure that they assist in preparing their teams for the changes. A leaflet on the booking system was published in the in-house newsletter, Ikhaya, and the Director-General dedicated an issue of the online newsletter – Notes from the DG’s Desk – to the BABS and what it entails.

END

08 November 2022 - NW3954

Profile picture: Van Zyl, Ms A M

Van Zyl, Ms A M to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

(1)What (a) amount does his department owe to the (i) Walter Sisulu Local Municipality and (ii) Senqu Local Municipality, (b) is the age analysis in each case on monies owed and (c) are the details of the (i) building and (ii) use thereof; (2) whether his department has any plans in place to address the debts; if not, why not; if so, what (a) plan and (b) are the time frames in which the debt will be settled?

Reply:

(1)&(2)

The Department of Home Affairs (DHA) does not owe Walter Sisulu Local Municipality and Senqu Local Municipality any money for rates and services. In this regard, please note that the municipal accounts for rates and services in respect of buildings occupied by the DHA are managed and paid for by the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI). The DHA reimburses the DPWI on a monthly basis for such expenditure.

END

08 November 2022 - NW3471

Profile picture: van der Merwe, Ms LL

van der Merwe, Ms LL to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

What total number of notices of birth were issued by his department to migrants who have given birth in the Republic in the past 10 years?

Reply:

The Department does not keep statistics of the manually issued notices of birth to migrants as there’s no provision on the National Population Register (NPR) to register such notices.

The Live Capture birth register module has been designed to capture such information in the future once birth registration migrate from NPR to Live Capture.

END