Questions and Replies

Reply:

Honourable member, the matter pertaining to the trip of passengers who made use of falcon 900 airplane from the South African National Defence Force on 08 September 2020 for a flight to Zimbabwe, were dealt with by the President of the country. He took a decision to sanction the Minister of Defence because there were irregularities in the manner in which the trip was undertaken under her stewardship. After the action by the President, I regard the matter as closed except that the Public Protector is doing her own investigations.

END

Reply:

Since the start of the schools project to assist leaners with identity documents on 16 June 2020, the total number of identity documents issued to learners is 229 954.

END

Reply:

1. (a) Radio - R 10,596,343.00

1. (b) Television - R 2,558,411.13

1. (c) Newspapers - R 3,477,185.20

1. (d) Social Media - R 636,500.00

2. List of Media Institutions:

(a) Radio

• Mediamark
• Msg Afrika Technologies
• Primedia Broadcasting
• Sabc
• United Stations
• Community Radio
• Alex Fm

(b) Television

• E SAT TV
• Dstv Media Sales
• Mediamark
• Sabc
• Media Mansion
• Mediamark
• MVM Multimedia
• Zallywood Ltd

(c) Newspapers

• Arena Holdings
• Independent Newpapers
• Media 24
• Vuk’uzenzele
• Ads 24
• Onshelf Trading Forty Four
• The Citizen
• Tiso Blackstar Group

(d) Social media

• Arena Holdings
• Independent Newspapers
• Media24

Remarks: Reply: Approved / Not Approved

 

Mr J W McKay Dr PA Motsoaledi, MP

A/Director-General Minister of Home Affairs

Date: Date:

 

Reply:

As I have previously responded, as far as I know the outbreak of COVID-19 was announced to have started in December 2019 and not November 2019.

END

Reply:

(1)(a) Fifteen (15) officials, in terms of the Organogram, must work at the Sterkspruit Local Office

(1)(b)(i) (a) 1x1 Office Manager - Filled,

(b) 1x1 Civic Service Supervisor - Filled,

(c) 1x1 Mobile Operator - Filled,

(d) 1x1 Messenger - Filled,

(e) 5x1 Admin Clerks – Filled

(f) 2x1 Immigration Officers - Filled,

(g) 1x1 Cleaner – Filled

(1)(B)(ii) (a) 2x1 Admin Clerks – Vacant-Unfunded

(b) 1x1 Control Immigration – Vacant-Unfunded,

2. Vacant posts will be filled when funds are available.

3. The office is fully functional, except when the Network is down.

4. The Sterkspruit Local Office is fully functional, on daily basis.

END

 

Reply:

a) A total of 92 offices were closed since beginning of the lockdown to curb the spread of Covid-19.

b) The following services were affected during the period:

1. Death registration
2. Births Registration
3. Temporary Identity Certificates
4. Re-issuance of Births Certificates
5. Collection of Identity Documents
6. Late Registration of Birth (LRB)
7. Registration and Solemnization of Marriages
8. Smart ID Cards applications for leaners
9. Applications for amendments and rectifications
10. Withdrawal of records at the back office

c) The Department initiated a recovery plan to workout production lost from various branches as follows:

1. Implementation of rotational plans or introduction of shift system to cater for those who might be infected by COVID-19.
2. Gradual re-introduction of services or products to clients using a phased approach
3. Use of virtual meetings to monitor and report progress.
4. Continuous communication to clients and the public on new services that were introduced or reopened.
5. The department has public awareness on services that were reintroduced or reopened.
6. Use of community Radio and virtual launches on certain products such Smart ID Cards to learners, particularly matriculants.
7. Use of mobile offices to reach out to communities.
8. Segmentation of services and directing clients to different catchment areas using pamphlets, provincial managers and local managers to inform clients.

END

 

Reply:

1. Chile – 06
2. Argentina – 20
3. India – 3547
4. The People’s Republic of China – 507
5. Canada – 71
6. United States of America – 356
7. Russia – 52
8. Australia – 85

END

Reply:

The Department established a Central Adjudication Hub at Head Office in November 2019 when it commenced with the testing of eVisa. Adjudication of eVisa applications from abroad was successfully tested at this Central Adjudication Hub. The eVisa is currently being tested in South Africa together with the Biometric Movement Control System (BMCS) and once these systems are fully implemented, the Central Adjudication Hub will also begin to adjudicate eVisa applications in a phased-in approach.

END

 

Reply:

The matter with regard to the Executive Mayor of the Setsoto Local Municipality was investigated by the department and the outcome was communicated to the Mayor and the local municipality. Subsequent to this a court proceedings were initiated by the Mayor and pending the outcome of this process the department is not able to take further action.

END

Reply:

The Cuban medical personnel who arrived in the Republic around 27 April 2020 to assist in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic were issued with Treaty visas. These visas were issued until 27 April 2021 in terms of the Treaty Agreement between South Africa and Cuba.

END

Reply:

I refer the Honourable member to the response I gave him in Parliamentary Question 1307 on the same matter. I have already responded by indicating there was no announcement of a COVID-19 outbreak in November 2019.

END

Reply:

The Department of Home Affairs (DHA) does not hold the mandate over Covid 19 relief payments. The responsible department is Social Development; therefore DHA is unable to respond to this matter.

END

Reply:

The Border Management Authority (BMA) Act of 2020 establishes the BMA, which will be responsible for the implementation of border law enforcement functions, except customs functions, at Ports of Entry and within the maritime and land border enforcement areas of the country.

A BMA Road Map is in place, which will guide the roll-out of the BMA over the short-, medium- and long-term. This 15- year road map is being implemented in an incremental manner over of six (6) phases. The immediate focus in 2020/21 and 2021/22 will be on the first three (3) phases that address:

• Phase 1: Completing tasks from the Pre-Establishment Phase;
• Phase 2: Undertaking tasks linked to the Planning and Establishment Phase; and
• Phase 3: Commencing implementation of the Phase dealing with Initial Roll-Out of the BMA.

Each of these phases have specific identified tasks. Within the context of the limited funding made available to the BMA over the current 2020 MTEF of R109,5m, these priorities and tasks will be flexibly executed. The objective over the current term of government, i.e. 2020 – 2024, is to roll-out the BMA to eighteen (18) Ports of Entry and five (5) segments of the land border enforcement area.

Presently the Department of Home Affairs is focusing on the following immediate tasks:

1. Finalisation of key BMA legislative instruments which will enable the implementation of the BMA, i.e;
2. The BMA Commencement Proclamation; and
3. A Section 97 Presidential Proclamation pertaining to the transfer of border law enforcement functions from relevant organs of state to the Minister of Home Affairs, who in turn will delegate these functions to the BMA.
4. Preparations for the recruitment and appointment of a Commissioner and two Deputy Commissioners for the BMA. This is key as the Commissioner, in terms of the BMA Act 2020, is legally mandated to recruit and appoint officials of the BMA and the officers of the BMA Border Guard.
5. Finalisation of separate Implementation Protocols, as required by the BMA Act 2020, between the BMA and the South African Police Service (SAPS), South African Revenue Service (SARS), and the Department of Defence. These Protocols will inform the working relationship between the BMA and these organs of state.
6. Urgent finalisation and implementation of a BMA Border Guard mobilisation, training and deployment strategy which will be implemented for the initial roll-out in 2020/21 across targeted segments of the land border law enforcement area.

END

Reply:

I wish to point to the honourable member that the designation of “never married” does not affect people in Nikah or Muslim marriages only.

A broad range of South Africans are affected by this problem.

• Prior to 1994 various laws were used by the different self governing territories or Bantustans wherein each had their own act. When they were amalgamated in the broader South Africa after 1994, they were not on National Population Register.
• Unfortunately when a marriage does not appear on the National Population Register (NPA) the person’s marital status is technically unknown. Hence their death certificates at death, their certificate reflected as never married.
• This affects people who stayed in Bantustans and those from the Indian Community whose marriages were never re-registered on the NPA after 1994.
• Since the introduction of Recognition of Customary Marriages Act. Act 102 of 1998 the government managed to re-register some. Those not yet re-registered still have this unfortunate designation.
• The Department acknowledges this problem but opted for a wholesale change in the entire marriage regime by developing a totally new policy. We don’t believe a piece meal solution will help.

END

Reply:

(1) As to whether the Department opens for more services or not and by what date will be determined by lockdown regulations and this decision will be taken by the National Coronavirus Command Council structure when it is ready to do so.

(2) On 3rd of July 2020,I signed into amended regulations, the provision for applications for identity cards or documents for learners. These are essentially new identity document applications (1st issues) that are being catered for. However, since Alert level 5 of lockdown regulations, eligible South African Citizens were allowed to apply for Temporary Identity Card (TIC) which is a valid and authentic enabling document. Therefore, a person who is issued with TIC can also use it to access Social Services including Social Relief grant. Up to so far nobody needing new ID for purposes of accessing social grants was presented to us. If you have any list of such people, please present same to us.

(3) The Department has opened its offices and Services to receive and process applications while observing Covid-19 regulations by allowing one third (1/3) of the Staff compliment at their respective offices at a time. The Department has prioritised and staggered its services which should be applied for and processed. As the country progress from one alert level to the other, the Department will also gradually add other services to enable its offices to cope with the demand whilst complying with Covid 19 regulations.

END

Reply:

There were people that were declared undesirable during this period. The system automatically declares an over stayer undesirable and in this instance, the manager was supposed to override the system and ensure that nobody is declared undesirable. This was an oversight which was corrected and those that were identified by the department as affected by this, have been cleared. There are others that may have been unnoticed during this exercise. They are in contact with the department and are being assisted on a case-by-case basis to remove their undesirability status on the movement control system.

END

Reply:

(1) The increased number of arrests of illegal immigrants would have resulted in releases if the deportations were not implemented;

(2) The deportations costs incurred by the department was R23,329,354.82 in 2019/20 financial year;

(3) The country’s policy position of recouping the costs incurred in returning illegal immigrants to their countries of origin is the subject of ongoing bilateral discussions led by the DHA and DIRCO. All countries have to date indicated a lack of funds in relation to this. In SADC and South America, Consular services in foreign missions such as Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Brazil and Venezuela are actively involved in assisting the deportees to source funds for self-payment from their relations. The assistance also extends to the purchase of bus and flight tickets by the Consular Officers;

(4) what are the relevant details of monies (a) paid by his department and (b) received on deportation from each country of deported immigrants for the past 12 months?

(a) Deportation expenditure amounted to R23,329,354.82.

(b) Self-deportation costs by foreign nationals were R5,634,165.20.

 

END

Reply:

(a) The mandate of sourcing office accommodation for departments lies with the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI).

Umlazi - Currently the office has a small office at the Magistrate’s Court in Umlazi rendering the following services: Birth and Death registration, Amendments, Rectifications and Green Barcoded IDs; the Department is however looking at relocating the current Prospecton Medium Office to Umlazi and modernise the office.  The Department is currently in negotiations with the Department of Public works and the Ethekwini Metro Municipality to obtain suitable premises. A possible Public Works premises has been identified but it needs substantial renovations.  We aim to have the new office in Umlazi fully functional and operational by the end of the 2021/22 financial year.  The reason for these extended projections is that the building identified need extensive renovations and there is a dependency on Public Works to finalise and move forward with the project.

(b) Chatsworth - The Department currently have a Medium office situated in the Chatsworth area operating from the SASSA building in the centre of Chatsworth. We are already operational in this area with the following services: Birth, Marriages and Death registration, Amendments, Rectifications, and Green Barcoded IDs. The DPWI has provided a report to the department detailing the renovation costs and these were too high to warrant the department of Home Affairs to continue with the renovations. The Department of Home Affairs has thus requested DPWI to source suitable alternative accommodation so that the Chatsworth office can be relocated and modernised. The time frame for modernisation will depend on DPWI sourcing the alternative accommodation.

One must take note that due to the COVID-19 pandemic the department has reprioritised funding to help manage this pandemic within the operations and this is likely to have an impact on the above plan.

END

Reply:

a) 

(i) Visas and (ii) permanent resident applications

Year	Visas	Permanent resident applications
2018	12	53
2019	6	257
2020	61	460
Total	79	770

 

b) 

Year	Visas	Permanent resident applications
2018	None	None
2019	None	23 of 257 (pending at various stages of adjudication)
2020	18 of 59 (pending at various stages of adjudication)	192 of 460 (pending at various stages of adjudication)
Total	18	192

c) 

The spousal and refugee categories of permanent residence applications require investigation on the existence of spousal relationships and the verification of the certification by the Standing committee, which takes some time to finalise. However, the adjudication team has resumed work during June 2020, and is adjudicating all outstanding applications whilst application offices of application (VFS Global) is still closed for new applications, save for collection of outcomes, under the Alert Level 3 of the national state of disaster. It is envisaged that by the end of August, all applications would have been finalised

END

Reply:

Combating stock theft, drugs and cigarettes smuggling does not fall under the mandate of Home Affairs. Immigration operations to combat irregular migration are carried out nationally and this includes areas near the border environment. In the last Quarter of 2019-20 financial year, 55 operations / inspections were initiated by the department and a total number of 73 illegal foreigners were arrested. In addition to that, a number of 9 528 illegal foreigners were arrested in operations initiated jointly with other law enforcement stakeholders. The first quarter of the 2020-21 financial year fall within the period of lockdown. Operations were conducted in support of other law enforcement and a total number of 3 482 Illegal foreigners were arrested.

END

 

Reply:

a) The total number of mobile units deployed to high schools during June 2020 were 38.

b) The intention is to assist all identified high school learners who are without identity documents who have been through the partnership with the Department of Education.

c) (i)(ii) On 16th June 2020, the Department through the Deputy Minister of Home Affairs launched a national school project in Mpumalanga, to prioritise matriculants for 1st Issue applications by making use of Mobile Units. The arrangement between Department of Home Affairs and the Department of Education is that provincial Departments of Basic Education provide the Home Affairs provincial offices with lists of learners that do not have identity documents as well as schools where such learners can be found. The provincial Home Affairs offices, in collaboration with the identified schools, use the lists to draft schedules for when such learners can be assisted. Furthermore, from 3rd of July 2020, the application for identity document service was opened and is available for learners at all the DHA local offices. This was done as a multipronged approach to ensure all learners in need of an identity document can access this service unhindered.

END

Reply:

a) The Department established a Central Adjudication Hub at Head Office in November 2019 when it commenced with the testing of eVisa which took place in Kenya. Adjudication of eVisa applications from abroad was successfully tested at this Central Adjudication Hub.

b) The eVisa System development has been completed.

c) On 10 July 2019, during the Department’s Budget Vote, we committed to increase the number of Officials who are processing visas in our large tourist hubs in China, India and Nigeria. We have since deployed 12 Officials (4 in each country) on a temporary basis to process the large number of tourist applications we receive from these countries. We have also presented a Business Case to National Treasury for permanent appointment in our critical Missions.

END

 

Reply:

• The Department has appointed an independent audit firm to investigate the matter. This firm was appointed in March 2020 but due to the COVID 19 pandemic, they were only able to commence with the investigation in May 2020.

• The investigation is still under way, the audit firm has completed the review of phase one (RFB1412/2016) which is the qualification phase of the bid process and they have also interviewed some of the officials from both DHA and SITA. They are now busy with phase two (RFB1498/2016) of the bid process. This also include reviewing of the service level agreement, review of digital imaging data of individuals from SITA, interviews of all other officials from various stakeholders (CSIR, SAPS, ARMS, BIG Group, Core Focus, ENS, Gartner) who formed part of the bidding process.

END

 

Reply:

a) The Department works closely with Department of International Relations and Co-operation (DIRCO) in terms of the protocols provided by Government. The communication to applicants living abroad is arranged through DIRCO for proper coordination and to address the risk associated to enabling documents.

b) The Department of Home Affairs (DHA) and DIRCO prepared a communique to Missions abroad to forward all long outstanding applications to DIRCO and DHA has created an e-mail address to deal with long outstanding applications. Both departments agreed on the automation of the application process which will be done in the medium to long term with the aim of ultimately reducing turnaround times.

END

 

 

Reply:

a) In December 2018, DHA was required to extend the contract with VFS for a period of 24 months, effective 1 January 2019 – 31 December 2020. The extension was necessitated at the time to ensure continuity of the Departments business operations globally. On the instruction of the Department, the service provider holds a presence in 18 territories globally with frontline services being offered through 45 Visa Application Centres (VAC’s)– all of which are situated within strategic international nodes critical to the conduct of foreign-based travel, investment and business into the RSA. An unstructured change at the time would potentially have placed operational efficiencies at risk. Considering the complexity of such a global frontline services operating model, the Department had to ensure service continuity by extending the contract for the period referred. This extension also provided opportunity for the department to build an independent capability to render equivalent services through the development of an electronic eVisa platform, which was demonstrated to The President in October 2019. This is under a phased, controlled release which has been delayed in 2020 with the advent of COVID-19 resulting in a global shutdown of international travel and service-based operations.

b) The Department started the procurement process in January 2018 when its Bid Adjudication Committee (BAC) approved the open tender process. The Bid Specification Committee (BSC) undertook the drafting of technical specifications. At that stage, a parallel process was initiated to request a legal opinion whether the Department should proceed with an open tender process or defer to a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) process. A legal opinion was received on 26 April 2018 through the Office of the State Attorney, wherein it was recommended that the Department should proceed with a PPP process. Further consultations took place with the Senior Council, Finance, Supply Chain Management and National Treasury to ensure that the process was legally compliant. In October 2018, National Treasury confirmed that the Department should follow the PPP process through a Request for Information ("RFI") to test the market and the results thereof should be shared with the Office of the Chief Procurement Officer. The Department published an RFI in December 2019. Seven responses were received by 17 January 2020 with four companies assessed as compliant. This information was submitted to National Treasury on 08 April 2020.

c) The Public Private Partnership (PPP) was registered with National Treasury under GTAC. A letter of PPP confirmation was received from National Treasury on 16 January 2020. The PPP engagement with GTAC was delayed with the onset of COVID-19 and lockdown instituted since 26 March 2020. However, following the easing of lockdown conditions, the engagement with GTAC on the PPP started in June 2020 and is continuing in order to implement the PPP process.

END

Reply:

Since the formalisation of the partnership between the Departments of Basic Education and Home Affairs through the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on 1 March 2010, a total number of 8 989 858 Identity documents were issued to first time applicants, ie.16 years of age and above, for the period 1 April 2010 to 31 March 2020.

END

Reply:

Honourable member, the Portfolio Committee On Home Affairs, which you are a member of, paid a visit to the Government Printing Works on 17th of June 2020, to gather facts about the issues you are enquiring about. As a member of the Committee, I am sure you have access to such a report.

END

Reply:

(a-b) The intelligence agencies of the state and the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) are primarily responsible for national security and protecting the territorial integrity of the country. On the advice and guidance of these organs of state, I will consider undertaking a support role within the legislative mandate of his portfolio.

END

Reply:

1. LZ [Mathobula] Mathobela v Minister of Home Affairs & another (Case no. 98386/18 - Gauteng Division, Pretoria - Court Order Date: 12 June 2019)

1.1 This matter involved the application for citizenship in case of doubt in terms of section 15 of the South African Citizenship Act 88 of 1995. The Court ordered that the applicant is a South African citizen and directed the Department of Home Affairs (“DHA”) to enter the applicant’s particulars in the population register and issue her with a South African citizen identity number, birth certificate and identity document within 30 days of the order.

Why has his department not fully complied with the court order?

1.2 The Court Order was issued in the Gauteng Division of the High Court. It later transpired that the applicant is ordinarily resident in Cape Town. The applicant approached the Cape Town and officials of DHA were not aware of the Court Order.

What steps have been taken to fully comply with the order?

1.3 An instruction has been given to the Cape Town office to assist on urgent basis. The applicant’ attorneys have been duly informed.

By what date will his department fully comply with the order?

The DHA will fully comply by 31 July 2020.

2. Minister of Home Affairs v Miriam Ali and Others [2018] ZASCA 169 (SCA) (Case no. 1289/17, Supreme Court of Appeal – Court Order Date: 30 November 2018)

2.1 The matter pertains to the interpretation of section 4(3) of the South African Citizenship Act 88 of 1995 (amendment that came into effect on 1 January 2013) in which the main issue was whether or not the section applies with retrospective effect and further is the respondents (on appeal) satisfy the requirements of citizenship by naturalisation. The question was whether in the absence of Regulations, the High Court was correct in directing the Minister to accept applications on affidavits as the order encroached upon the doctrine of separation of powers.

 

2.2 The Supreme Court of Appeal issued the order that:

 

“The Minister shall –

3.1 Within one year of the date of this order make regulations in terms of s 23(a) of the South African Citizenship Act 88 of 1995 (the Act) in respect of applications for citizenship by naturalisation in terms of s 4(3) of the Act;

3.2 Pending the promulgation of the regulation in 3.1 above, accept applications in terms of s 4(3) South African Citizenship Act 88 of 1995, on affidavit.”.

Why has his department not fully complied with the court order?

2.3 The DHA was advised to approach the Constitutional Court (“CC”) as the Order of the SCA had the effect of encroaching upon the subordinate legislative powers of the Minister. The CC declined to hear the matter largely because the DHA delayed in launching the appeal proceedings.

What steps have been taken to fully comply with the order?

2.3 The draft Amendment Regulations to deal with the procedure and requirements for making an application have been prepared and finalised. However, the draft Amendment Regulations must be published for public comments before they are promulgated and due to the National State of Disaster, especially the period between 26 March 2020 and early July 2020, a decision taken was that the DHA may not be able to obtain the adequate public comments due to lockdown Regulations. The draft Amendment Regulations ha been gazetted for public comments.

2.4 The applicants have been issued with certificates for citizenship by naturalization.

By what date will his department fully comply with the order?

 

The DHA will fully comply by 15 September 2020.

3. Scalabrini Centre of Cape Town & 4 others v Minister of Home Affairs & 4 Others, (Case no. 5242/2016 - Western Cape Division, Cape Town - Judgment date: 19 June 2019)

 

3.1 This was an application to review the DHA’s failure to take a decision and make a determination regarding the refugees who are entitled to refugee status and asylum in South Africa by virtue of section 3(c) of the Refugees Act 130 of 1998 because they are dependent spouses and children of the applicants.

3.2 The Court Order dated 19 June 2019 reads:

“The Standard Operating Procedures from the Department satisfies the requirements that entitles the Department to adopt appropriate policies and procedures which facilitate the reception and assessment of claims by dependents of refugees.

Further that such refugee applicants have the right to work, attend school, receive basis and emergency health-care and may not be detained, arrested or deported.”

The Department has conducted training on the implementation of the Standard Operating Procedures and the same is being implemented.

Why has his department not fully complied with the court order?

3.3 The DHA has conducted training on the implementation of the Standard Operating Procedures and same is being implemented.

What steps have been taken to fully comply with the order?

The DHA has fully complied with the Court Order.

By what date will his department fully comply with the order?

 

The DHA has fully complied with the order.

4. Lawyers for Human Rights v Minister of Home Affairs and Others [2017] ZACC 22 (CC) (Case no. CCT 38/16, Constitutional Court - Judgment date: 29 June 2017)

4.1 This matter concerned the consideration of the conditions under which illegal foreigners are detained before deportation in terms of section 34 of the Immigration Act 13 of 2002. The applicant challenged certain provisions of section 34 relating to detentions . These conditions included a failure to inform foreigners of the rights. The section requires them to be notified of, the inability to exercise these rights owing to lack of resources and legal assistance.

4.2 The court ordered, inter alia, the following:

“2. Section 34(1)(b) and (d) of the Immigration Act 13 of 2002 is declared to be inconsistent with sections 12(1) and 35(2)(d) of the Constitution and therefore invalid.

3. The declaration of invalidity is suspended for 24 months from the date of this order to enable Parliament to correct the defect.

4. Pending legislation to be enacted within 24 months or upon the expiry of this period, any Illegal foreigner detained under section 34(1) of the Immigration Act shall be brought before a court in person within 48 hours from the time of arrest or not later than the first court day after the expiry of the 48 hours, if 48 hours expired outside ordinary court days.

5. Illegal foreigners who are in detention at the time this order is issued shall be brought before a court within 48 hours from the date of this order or on such later date as may be determined by a court.

6. In the event of Parliament failing to pass corrective legislation within 24 months, the declaration of invalidity shall operate prospectively.

7. The Minister of Home Affairs and the Director-General: Department of Home Affairs shall, within 60 days from the date of this order, file on affidavit a report confirming compliance with paragraph 5, at the High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Division, Pretoria.”.

Why has his department not fully complied with the court order and what steps have been taken to fully comply with the order?

4.3 The DHA has filed a report in Court and fully complied with paragraphs 4, 5, 6 and 7 of the Court Order. All illegal foreigners who are arrested and detained for deportation are brought before a magistrate within 48 hours for conformation of detention.

4.4 During 2018, the Portfolio Committee on Home Affairs introduced a Committee Bill to amend the Immigration Amendment Bill to address the defects in section 34(1) the Immigration Act as declared by the court to be invalid. However, at the end of the term of the fifth Parliament, the Bill was not finalised and therefore not saved. In this regard, the order of invalidity is applicable until proper provision is made in the Immigration Act.

4.5 The DHA has embarked on extensive Policy Review in line with international trends of dealing with immigration and refugee protection in one single legislation.

 

By what date will his department fully comply with the order?

 

4.6 The DHA has fully complied with the order. The section declared unconstitutional will be dealt in the said Policy Review.

5. Scalabrini Centre of Cape Town v Minister of Home Affairs [2017] ZASCA 126 (Case no. 1107/2016, Supreme Court of Appeal - Court Order Date: 29 September 2017)

5.1 The matter involved the decision to close refugee reception office under section 18(1) of the Refugees Act 130 of 1998 challenged on the basis of unreasonableness and rationality. The Court found that decision-maker failed to take into account relevant considerations, comply with the empowering provision and committed errors of law.

5.2 The procurement of infrastructure is made through the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (“DPWI”). In this regard, the DHA had identified a site however confirmation was received that the service provider for the identified site will not be continuing with the process. As a result, the signing of lease agreement was not proceeded with.

Why has his department not fully complied with the court order?

5.3 I refer to my answer above.

What steps have been taken to fully comply with the order?

5.4 The DHA has engaged DPWI to restart the process for the new tender, and DPWI advised that the Bid Advertisement closed on 25 May 2020 and five (5) bids or responses were received. Due to restrictions on movements due to the National State of Disaster, the process of physical inspections of the five (5) sites as per the bids may be delayed.

5.4 I must add that National Treasury advised the DHA that its budget will be reduced by R562 million in the financial year 2020/2021. This will have a huge negative impact on the DHA’s procurement of infrastructure.

By what date will his department fully comply with the order?

5.5 Once the above processes are completed, the DHA would have fully complied with the order. The DHA is unable to provide an exact date of compliance as the successful implementation depends on DPWI’s assistance, but monthly reports are furnished to the applicant’s attorneys on progress.

6. Ntumba Guella Nbaya v Director General of Home Affairs (Case No. 6543/15) (Case no. 6534/15, Western Cape Division, Cape Town - Court Order Date: 3 June 2016)

 

6.1 In this matter, the Court ordered the DHA to extend asylum seeker permit applied for in Refugee Reception Offices other than Cape Town. The permits of all those who presented themselves were extended whilst their files were being transferred to the Cape Town Refugee Reception Office.

Why has his department not fully complied with the court order?

6.2 The DHA has fully complied with the Court Order.

What steps have been taken to fully comply with the order?

6.3 None as the DHA has complied with the order.

By what date will his department fully comply with the order?

See my answers above..

7. Mzalisi NO & others v Ochogwu & another [2019] ZASCA 138 (SCA) (Case no. 630/2018, Supreme Court of Appeal - Court Order Date: 1 October 2019)

 

7.1 This matter involved the eligibility of asylum seekers whose status has not been determined to marry whilst lawfully residing in South Africa. The validity of particular paragraph [2.1(b)(iii)(dd)] in the DHA circular imposing absolute ban on asylum seekers seeking to marry was found to be inconsistent with the law and invalid.

7.2 The DHA has since amended the circular to deal with the inconsistency and issued an amended circular during January 2020 to all the Offices of the DHA for implementation. Furthermore, an opinion has been sought from external Counsel on the issue of circulars and directives.

 

Why has his department not fully complied with the court order?

The DHA has fully complied with the Court.

What steps have been taken to fully comply with the order?

 

The DHA has fully complied with the order.

By what date will his department fully comply with the order?

 

See my answer above.

8. OZM v Refugee Appeal Board & Others Case No. 44643/14 (Case no. 44643/14, North Gauteng High Court, Pretoria - Court Order Date: 4 June 2018)

8.1 The matter involved a judicial review of the decision of the Refugee Appeal Board (“RAB”) for rejecting the application for refugee status. The Court ordered referral back to the Refugee Status Determination Officer (“RSDO”) for reconsideration within two months.

Why has his department not fully complied with the court order?

8.2 The application is yet to be reheard and contact will be made with the applicant’s attorneys to inform her to avail herself for a rehearing immediately the Refugee Reception Offices resume with their functions. Furthermore, the applicant’s asylum seeker permit has been extended pending the determination of her application.

 

8.3 The DHA will fully comply with the order within 30 days of the opening of the Refugee Reception Offices, as they are currently closed under Alert Level 3 Lockdown.

9. KN & 3 Others v Standing Committee for Refugee Affairs & 7 Others Case No. 50342/16 (Case no. 50342/16, North Gauteng High Court, Pretoria - Court Order Date: 6 November 2019)

9.1 This matter was for a judicial review of the decision of the Refugee Status Determination Officers for rejecting the applications for asylum and the decision of the Standing Committee for Refugee Affairs (“SCRA”) for upholding the decisions of the Refugee Status Determination Officers. The Court ordered that the matter be remitted for reconsideration by the Refugee Status Determination Officers.

Why has his department not fully complied with the court order?

9.2 See my answer below

What steps have been taken to fully comply with the order?

9.3 The application is yet to be reconsidered and contact will be made with the applicant’s attorneys to inform the applicants to avail themselves for a rehearing immediately the Refugee Reception Offices resume with their functions. Furthermore, the applicants’ asylum seeker permits will be extended pending the determination of their application.

9.4 By what date will his department fully comply with the order?

The DHA will fully comply with the order within 30 days of the opening of the Refugee Reception Offices, as they remain closed.

10. Abdi Kadir Khalif vs The Refugee Appeal Board & 5 Others Case No. 32474/2017 (Case no. 32474/2017, North Gauteng High Court, Pretoria - Court Order: 15 May 2018)

10.1 The Court ordered the DHA to release the applicant from Lindela Holding Facility to allow him to apply for asylum and the DHA duly complied.

10.2 The judicial review against the decision of the Refugee Appeals Board is still pending. The DHA has filed the record in terms Rule 53 of the Uniform Rules as the matter is opposed.

Why has his department not fully complied with the court order and what steps have been taken to fully comply with the order?

10.3 See answer above.

By what date will his department fully comply with the order?

The DHA has complied with the order.

END

Reply:

The Government Printing Works (GPW) currently has no in-house legal services capacity, however, this situation is being addressed through the revision of the organisational structure which envisages establishing such capacity.

(a) The GPW spent a total of R 4 579 563,70 (excl. VAT) in external legal fees over the past 3 financial years, as follows:

1 April 2017 - 31 March 2018	R 1 320 124,48
1 April 2018 - 31 March 2019	R 2 240 836,50
1 April 2019 - 31 March 2020	R 1 018 602,73

(b)(i) The following three firms received the highest total amounts over the 3 years in question:

NT Mchunu Incorporated

Masondo Attorneys

De Swardt Vogel Myambo Attorneys

(b)(ii) The abovementioned three firms received the following amounts (excl. VAT) in total over the 3 years in question:

NT Mchunu Incorporated	R 1 112 299,05
Masondo-Malope Attorneys	R 1 097 285,08
De Swardt Vogel Myambo Attorneys	R 713 682,11

(b)(iii) The legal fees were in respect of the following:

 

Firm	Legal Opinion	Contracting Services	Other *	Total
NT Mchunu Incorporated	R387 920.08	R587 435.97	R136 943.00	R1 112 299,05
Masondo Attorneys	R 24 335.73	-	R150 513.15	R1 097 285,08
De Swardt Vogel Myabo Attorneys	-	R 86 789.63	R626 892.48	R 713 ,682.11

* Other refers mostly to cases where the firms were hired to provide a bouquet of legal services over a particular time. Such services included drafting contracts and service level agreements, development of legal policies, contract vetting, and provision of general legal advice.

END

Reply:

I will refer the Honourable Member to the report of the Portfolio Committee after the visit of the Committee to the Government Printing Works on 17th June 2020. Honourable member is a member of the Portfolio Committee. I believe The Honourable member has access to the report.

END

Reply:

1. Yes. The names of the suppliers, the specified goods and or services, the amount of each transaction, and the specified goods and or services are listed on the attached EXCEL spreadsheet.
2. Yes, some of the goods and services were procured in accordance with the prevailing emergency procurement instruction notes issued by National Treasury. The detail of each case is listed on the attached EXCEL spreadsheet.
3. To provide the officials of the Department and clients visiting its offices with the necessary personal protective equipment (PPE) and to sanitize offices where cases of Covid 19 were reported.
4. No.

END

Reply:

(a) A criminal charge was opened at the Krugersdorp Police Station and the investigation has been transferred to the SAPS Gauteng Provincial Office for further investigation.

(b) The penalty to be levied on the company will be measured contractually and according to the Conventional Penalties Act to quantify the damage suffered by the department.

(c) The service provider, Enviromongz, requested the Private Security Industry Regulatory Authority (PSIRA) to conduct an inspection of the Lindela Holding Facility, and it was confirmed that they were not in breach of any laws regarding the shift patterns, as well as the payment of wages and salaries. The PSIRA findings have been communicated with Lindela officials and staff.

END

 

Reply:

1. The development of DHA Access Model adopts scientific methodologies rather than a subjective approach in the determination of optimal locations for its service points to ensure provision of equitable access to its services. However, the department conducted the Customer Satisfaction survey in 2018 which confirmed that the department’s service points are not located optimally and not fairly distributed.

2. The Accessibility Modelling that is done on the computer utilises the accessibility modelling software which applies and run three accessibility models, that is, Expansion, Reduction and Relocation Model. These accessibility models takes into account realities on the ground, including demographics of the population (distribution, composition and concentration of the population), geographical areas within the country and spatial information related to geographic coordinates of the existing offices, road network and distance norms and mode of transport available to citizens.

To be more specific, the following information pertaining to realities on the ground is incorporated into the accessibility modelling software during the process to determine optimal locations:

• 1.1 Demographic information on the distribution of the population, using Population Census 2011, Community Survey 2016 and Population estimates.
• 1.2 Existing geographic areas, that is, urban and rural areas, including villages, towns and suburbs from where the target population is located; The target population for the department’s services is the total population and every individual interact with the department more than five times in their lifetime.
• 1.3 The road network including information on the speed limits for different types of roads within the country and different modes of transport; Road network information, including national, secondary and tertiary roads and footpaths which are used create distance tables that provide information on the distance from each geographic place to every other geographic place. This information provides better link between communities, DHA service points and the road network
• 1.4 The geographic coordinates of existing service points which are used to determine the service delivery gap and the actual distance citizens currently travels to the department’s service points
• 1.5 Geographic access norms and standards and population parameters for different types of service points are also incorporated into Accessibility Model. The imported geographic access norms and standards include:
• Distance norm, the emphasis is on the distance that citizens travel to reach DHA service points. The revised distance norm for the department’s services is 25km in Urban areas and 20km in rural areas.
• Population threshold of DHA service points, which provides the minimum number of beneficiaries which can be served at different types of DHA service point per year.

• 1.6 Furthermore, the department has further integrated the geographic access norms in other standards which take into consideration the quality and affordability of DHA services and the needs of people with physical and other vulnerabilities. These include:
• Service standards, these covers the turnaround times, operating times, processing times, the cost and quality dimensions of DHA services
• Internal capacity standards, provides adequate staffing, productivity and infrastructure required for different types of services points
• Facility standards, includes physical accessibility standards and space specifications which are used to develop DHA Model office required for the construction of new service points and refurbishment and reconfiguration of existing service points.
• 1.7 Accessibility statistics are generated and maps showing optimum locations of service points produced using ArcMap.

2. The model begins locating the optimal sites for facilities based on where the largest concentrations of beneficiaries are located. Facilities are continually added until all optimally located sites have been identified. As each of the facilities is added, the accessibility model takes into consideration competition between services points for beneficiaries situated nearby and the location of facilities is continually adjusted to ensure that beneficiaries’ area allocated to their closest service point.

It must be noted that optimal sites might not be identified in some areas, particularly where geographic access standards and population parameters of the different types of service points could not be met. In such instances, the department considers other ways in which access to DHA services can be improved. The department, uses mobile services, participate in Thusong Centre and further uses eHomeAffairs as complementary channels to its facilities.

3. The DHA Access Model will provide the total number of facilities as well as the total number of mobile visiting points required for the department in order to meet the service delivery needs of the people and attain its Constitutional mandate.

4. In conclusion, accessibility modelling conducted on a computer takes into consideration realities on the ground and services provided to clients on an equal basis, for example, every client is to travel a maximum of 25 km to DHA service points in urban areas and every client residing in rural areas travels a maximum of 20 km to DHA service point. Therefore, the primary goal of the DHA Access Model is to:

• Assess the distances that citizens currently travel to the department’s service points in order to identify the gaps in provision of services
• Address the needs of citizens to access facilities within urban and rural areas in an equitable manner and
• Develop strategies on affordable solutions to improve geographic access to the department’s services

The DHA Access Model is based on a 25km distance norms in urban areas and 20km distance norm in rural areas. Once the Model is finalised, the department will conduct consultative workshops and meetings with stakeholders and beneficiaries to get an understanding of a reasonable distance from their perspective given the socio-environmental and economic factors. The department will continue improving geographic access to its services through the reduction of distance norms given the changes in the distribution of the population, composition and concentration of the population, changes to socioeconomic and other characteristics, including migration, changes to human settlement patterns and new developments.

END

Reply:

The Draft Immigration Bill is still been developed in consultations with relevant stakeholders. It will however be submitted to Parliament for consideration, once the review of the White Paper on International Migration has been undertaken and finalised.

END

Reply:

a) Nine (9) areas have been completed and these include the migration of the following systems into SITA data centres from SARS i.e. SMS Gateway, e-Home Affairs, BQMS and e-Visa. Eighteen (18) areas are in progress and five (5) have not started.

b) The two (2) areas that are part of SITA’s responsibility involve switching centres across the country and one has been completed and another one is in progress.

c) We have installed generators in all Live Capture offices.

d) The Department engaged SITA with regard to the Telkom Trunk Failures to review our Service Level Agreements with SITA in order to improve support turnaround times.

e) The Department is currently addressing the issue of obsolete network devices by doing a technology refresh of the Network Equipment, namely Routers and Switches, in a phase approach.

The Department has managed to purchase the following new Network devices:

• 2018/19 - 100 Routers and 60 Switches
• 2019/20 - 50 Routers and 40 Switches
• 2020/21 - 30 Routers and 30 Switch
• END

 

Reply:

1. The central government of China imposed a lockdown in Wuhan and other cities in Hubei on 23 January 2020. This was followed by a declaration by the World Health Organisation (WHO) on 11 March 2020 that declared the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak a global pandemic. The knowledge thus held by the Minister would be similar to any other person with access to international and social media regarding the manifestation of the virus (COVID-19).

2. (a) None as the central government of China imposed a lockdown in Wuhan and other cities in Hubei on 23 January 2020. This meant no travel in or out of the city was allowed.

               In addition to the lockdown, the following should be noted: 

• South African Airways (SAA) terminated operations from Beijing Capital International Airport to O.R. Tambo International Airport (ORTIA) in November 2019.
• Air China (CA) operated direct flights from Bao'an (Huangtian) International Airport in Shenzhen and Beijing Capital International Airport to ORTIA daily.
• Cathy Pacific (CX) operated from Hong Kong International Airport (HKG) to ORTIA. During the period of the Corona outbreak, all travellers arriving at HKG from China who spend more than 14 days in China were returned.
• Singapore Airlines (SQ) operated from Singapore Changi Airport (SIN) to ORTIA. With the outbreak in China, all travellers arriving at SIN from China who spend more than 14 days in China were returned.
• Japan and South Korea also informed South Africa through diplomatic channels that South African citizens arriving from China who spend more than 14 days in China during that period would be returned to China.  This was followed by more than 30 other countries.

 

Upon arrival in South Africa, Port Health screens all travellers (including Chinese Nationals) on international flights before admission into the country.

The declaration by the World Health Organisation (WHO) on 11 March 2020 that declared the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak a global pandemic was followed by an announcement by the President of the Republic of South Africa declaring a national state of disaster on 26 March 2020.  

 

3. Since the state of disaster declared by the President of the Republic of South Africa on 26 March 2020, all borders remain closed except for limited categories of movement as provided for in the Disaster Management Act and Regulations.

END

 

 

Reply:

(1)(a)(i)

Month	Arrivals
Nov-19	11 869
Dec-19	8 932
Jan-20	14 055
Feb-20	4 852
Mar-20	2 022

(1)(a)(ii) The central government of China imposed a lockdown in Wuhan and other cities in Hubei on 23 January 2020. This meant no travel in or out of the city was allowed.

In addition to the lockdown, the following should be noted:

• South African Airways (SAA) terminated operations from Beijing Capital International Airport to O.R. Tambo International Airport (ORTIA) in November 2019.
• Air China (CA) operated direct flights from Bao'an (Huangtian) International Airport in Shenzhen and Beijing Capital International Airport to ORTIA daily.
• Cathy Pacific (CX) operated from Hong Kong International Airport (HKG) to ORTIA. During the period of the Corona outbreak, all travellers arriving at HKG from China who spend more than 14 days in China were returned.
• Singapore Airlines (SQ) operated from Singapore Changi Airport (SIN) to ORTIA. With the outbreak in China, all travellers arriving at SIN from China who spend more than 14 days in China were returned.
• Japan and South Korea also informed South Africa through diplomatic channels that South African citizens arriving from China who spend more than 14 days in China during that period would be returned to China. This was followed by more than 30 other countries.

 

(1)(a)(iii) None, as lockdown was imposed on Wuhan and other cities in Hubei from 23 January 2020. This meant no travel in or out of the city was allowed, including international travel to South Africa.

(2) Not all Chinese nationals that travelled into the Republic left the country. This is mainly due to the lockdown in Wuhan that did not allow for the return of travellers to curb the spread of COVID19. It should also be noted that some Chinese Nationals entered South Africa on longer term visas for purposes such as study and work

Month	Arrivals	Departures	Difference
Nov-19	11 869	11 696	173
Dec-19	8 932	12 381	-3 449
Jan-20	14 055	12 829	1 226
Feb-20	4 852	5 050	-198
Mar-20	2 022	2 970	-948
Total:	41 730	44 926	-3 196

(3) This question should be directed to the Department of Health.

END

Reply:

a) International tourists arriving in the Republic are normally provided a period of 30 to 90 days for holiday purposes. Since 26 January 2020 the total number of travellers that arrived in South Africa for holiday purposes is 2 315 334, of these 223 624 have not yet departed (as on 30 June 2020).

b) On 14 April 2020, the Department announced visa concessions to address immigration matters during the lockdown period. Visas which expired during lockdown are regarded as valid until 31 July 2020. Holders of such visas will not be arrested or detained for holding an expired visa and will not be declared illegal or prohibited persons. Those who opt to return to their countries of origin or residence after the lockdown will not be declared undesirable upon departure. These temporary measures remain valid until 31 July 2020 unless extended officially by the Department.

END

Reply:

• The Department of Home Affairs has a constitutional obligation to provide equitable and quality service to the population of the Republic of South Africa residing in both rural and urban areas. The Department through its footprint development and optimisation strategy adopted a multi-channel strategy to deliver its services and this strategy utilizes the combination of traditional distribution channels (Physical Infrastructure), non-traditional channels (Mobile Units), partnerships with Public and Private organizations and the use of Information Communication Technology (ICT) to deliver on its services as well as to improve Geographic access to its service and quality of services the department delivers. The department established its distribution channels through the utilization of a scientific method to assess the provision and location of its services which includes the Geographic information system that assist the department to determine the optimal number and locations of traditional channels it requires to meet the service delivery needs of the population residing in both rural and urban areas.
• The provision of the Department’s distribution channels is determined by the Accessibility models that the Department utilises in order to determine optimal locations to establish its facilities.
• The Department has 412 offices accross the country through which services are rendered to the public.
• The Department has also increased its roll-out to 26 Banks where clients can lodge applications for Smart ID Cards.
• Mobile Units are also being equiped with the new live capture technology for deployment to rural areas.
• Provincial offices, through the Stakeholder Forum structures that has been established at Provincial, district and local municipality levels, mobilizes communities where they live to apply and collect their identity documents applied for.
• It is a standard practice for DHA to align its operating hours to that of the IEC during voter registration dates as well as on the actual election day(s).

END

Reply:

1. (a) At level 3, starting from 1st June 2020, religious marriage officers can solemnise marriages under the existing marriages Act (1961).

(b) All requirements for solemnisation must be complied with. Such marriages solemnised by religious marriage officers must be submitted within three (3) days from solemnisation at an office where such marriage officers resort. Once all the paper work shall have been submitted at the nearest office, Department of Home Affairs (DHA) officials would then register such marriages.

2. DHA’s mandate is limited to registering the marriages; matters relating to wedding officiation falls outside the scope of DHA’s mandates.

END

Reply:

1. A total number of 1,376 illegal foreigners were deported since lockdown; comprising:

1. 488 Mozambicans,
2. 705 Zimbabweans,
3. 178 Basotho and,
4. 5 Swazi.

2. Refugees and asylum seekers have status in the country and cannot be repatriated, including those with appeals at the Standing Committee on Refugee Affairs (SCRA) and the Refugee Appeal Board (RAB).

END

Reply:

1. The Department followed all three National Treasury’s Instruction notes numbers 8 of 2019/2020, 3 of 2020/2021 and 5 of 2020/2021 in respect to all procurement relating to the COVID 19 pandemic. The details of each transaction are disclosed in the attached spreadsheet.
2. The method of procurement is indicated in the spreadsheet.
3. The reason for which the specified business was awarded the specified bid is also indicated in the spreadsheet.

END

Reply:

​​ The Department of Home Affairs has a constitutional obligation to provide equitable and quality service to the population of the Republic of South Africa residing in both rural and urban areas. The Department through its footprint development and optimisation strategy adopted a multi-channel strategy to deliver its services and this strategy utilizes the combination of traditional distribution channels (Physical Infrastructure), non-traditional channels (Mobile Units), partnerships with Public and Private organizations and the use of Information Communication Technology (ICT) to deliver on its services as well as to improve Geographic access to its service and quality of services the department delivers. The department established its distribution channels through the utilization of a scientific method to assess the provision and location of its services which includes the Geographic information system that assist the department to determine the optimal number and locations of traditional channels it requires to meet the service delivery needs of the population residing in both rural and urban areas.

• The provision of the Department’s distribution channels is determined by the Accessibility models that the department utilises in order to determine optimal locations to establish its facilities.

• The Department is currently conducting a geographical accessibility study which commenced in April 2019, to assess the provision and geographic locations of its service points in relation to where people live and work with the ultimate goal of improving geographic access to its services. The findings of the project are used to develop the department’s access model which will clearly outline the geographical areas which are under-served, poorly served and well-served by the department’s available footprint.

• Furthermore, the DHA Access Model will provide the number of service points that are required to provide optimum levels of services and access to beneficiaries, potential optimum, sites for new facilities and areas that should be given priority. The Department of Home Affairs will utilise the DHA Access Model to:
•  Set targets for reducing distances that people travel to access our services
• Assess what is affordable for fixed offices and what can be done by mobile or other means to extend access and affordability
• Consult with provincial and local authorities on their spatial development frameworks to identify sites that are suitable for DHA facilities, coordinating planning and investment in new facilities.

• The implementation of the Department’s Access Model will commence during 2020/21 financial year. The department utilises geographic information system software to also assess the provision of its service points as well as the total population that are covered by its service points. The preliminary DHA Access Model shows that the department requires approximately 261 front offices and 183 mobile visiting points to deliver optimal services to the population as depicted in the table below.

• The Department has dedicated offices, in the form of mobile units, which are used to visit communities to render services. These mobile offices are managed by Mobile Office Managers and all tools of trade required are kept in those mobile offices.

• Furthermore, Stakeholder Forum platforms enable the Department to reach out to far flung communities by having community leaders in the persons of the Ward Councilors, Ward Committees, Community Development Workers (CDWs) to bring us needy, undocumented community members, who would require documentation in all its forms, by informing them of the documentation requirements for them to know what to bring when requiring Home Affairs services. The regular Stakeholder Forum meetings, in conjunction with the Departmental officials, that are held bi-monthly, craft Itineraries for different Wards, or localities with dates, and times, stating the requirements, or supporting documents that must be brought along by the clients.

• Programs are distributed to our stakeholders, including Speakers and ward Councillors, during Stakeholder Forums before the actual day of rendering services to a particular area to allow communities to prepare themselves in advance. Our Mobile Offices also play a meaningful role by visiting such communities to sensitize them about our visits and also place our programs at prominent areas for public consumption.

• The Department does not have a prescribed set of visits. Visits are normally informed by the volume of clients who require services at a particular place. Ward councilors normally accumulate the information on the services required by their communities; this will then inform the Department when developing community visit programs with regard to the number of visits to a particular area.

• The Department has put in place the Service Delivery Charter that provides the turnaround times for services it delivers in all its offices. The Service Charter also provides the redress mechanisms that are put in place in order to address the services that are not delivered within turnaround times as stipulated in the Service Delivery Charter.

• These mechanisms including the Department’s contact centre and the complaints and suggestion boxes that are placed within all front offices of the department of home affairs. The details of the contact centre is provided on the Service Charters that are displayed in all front offices where clients are able to call the contact centre and enquire about their applications. The contact centre of the Department of Home Affairs, given the status of the application has the capacity to resolve complaints and cases to the finalisation of the application.
• Furthermore, queries and complaints that are logged through the complaints and suggestion boxes in all front offices of the Department are attended by District Managers: Operations, and they implement appropriate remedial actions to address the situation. Premier/ Ministerial complaints are attended at Head Office through Provincial Manager’s office.

END

Reply:

1. a) None.

b) There are 118 842 asylum seekers with a permit expiry date after 4 May 2020.

2. a) As at 31 March 2020 there were 80 758 refugees with active section 24 certificates recorded on the National Immigration Information System (NIIS).

b)

Country	Total
Afghanistan	8
Algeria	4
Angola	25
Bahamas	1
Bangladesh	206
Benin	3
Bulgaria	5
Burundi	2737
Cambodia	1
Cameroon	341
Central African Republic	9
Chad	3
Comoros	2
Congo	4668
DRC	24033
East Timor	1
Egypt	7
Eritrea	1625
Estonia	3
Ethiopia	15853
Gabon	1
Ghana	7
Guinea Bissau	1
India	4
Iran	1
Iraq	15
Ivory Coast	28
Jordan	3
Kenya	142
Lebanon	1
Liberia	48
Macau	2
Malawi	8
Mali	5
Morocco	4
Niger	3
Nigeria	11
Oman	2
Pakistan	11
Palestine	40
Russia	10
Rwanda	1128
Saint Kitts and Nevis	1
Senegal	3
Serbia	1
Sierra Leone	21
Solomon Islands	7
Somalia	24972
Sri Lanka	11
Sudan	99
Swaziland	7
Sweden	1
Syria	42
Tanzania	35
Togo	12
Turkey	5
Uganda	468
Ukraine	3
Yemen	3
Zambia	60
Zimbabwe	3997
Grand Total	80758

END

Reply:

1) No person is allowed entry/ departure which does not relate to essential services.

2) Yes, the number of arrests by SANDF is increasing. In April 2020, twenty-two (22) undocumented foreigners were arrested and by May 2020, the number of arrests has increased to three hundred and fifty-seven (357) undocumented nationals. The department is finalising deportation processes in this regard.

3) The Department of Home Affairs was not involved in the procurement of the border fence and a response should be requested from DPWI.

END

Reply:

Customary marriages are regulated by the Recognition of Customary Marriages Act, 1998 (Act No. 120 of 1998) which provides for requirements for a valid customary marriage and registration thereof. In this regard, there is no power vested on Government to extend the provision of the Act to other types of marriages, as doing so will be acting ultra vires. A marriage entered into in terms of Muslim rites is thus far not recognised in the South Africa. In this regard, the Department has embarked on discussions throughout the Republic regarding the development of a policy on marriages in order to find possible means to deal with all types of marriages and enact legislation that addresses some of the types of marriages or practices that may not be recognised as marriages. This process will culminate in a legislative process to address certain issues relating to different types of marriages.

END

Remarks: Reply: Approved / Not Approved

Mr J W McKay Dr PA Motsoaledi, MP

A/Director-General Minister of Home Affairs

Date: Date:

Reply:

1. No, it is not within the mandate of the Department of Home Affairs to offer Covid-19 or other relief to small businesses.

2. Not applicable.

END

Reply:

In terms of the Immigration Act, 2002 (Act No 13 of 2002), as amended, a visa or permanent residence may be withdrawn if good cause exists to do so, for example if the holder fails to comply with the provisions of the Act or terms and conditions of the visa or permanent residence permit. Such person must be notified in writing that the visa or permanent residence shall be cancelled for the reasons disclosed in the notice and that the holder is thereby ordered to leave the Republic within a period stated in that notice. Such person has a right to make representations to the Director-General which must be considered before making a decision. Furthermore, a permanent residence permit may be withdrawn if its holder is convicted of any of the offences listed in Schedules 1 and 2, or has been absent from the Republic for more than three years. The Act does not make provision for foreign nationals with valid work visas to be declared illegal on grounds of increased unemployment rate.

END

Reply:

1) The unit price differed per supplier and per quantity / per unit of measured but it ranged as follows in terms of the attached spreadsheet:

a) mask (R2.13 - R2 450.00)

b) sanitiser (R9.65- R4025.00)

c) pair of gloves (R0.52- R13.85)

2) Each Home Affairs office in each province were provided with Personal Protective Equipment for each official.

END