In her Budget Vote debate the Minister of Home Affairs, Prof Hlengiwe Mkhize, stated that the core mandate of the department is to secure and confirm the identity and citizenship of South Africans. “Securing the identity and status of every citizen is part of our journey towards socio-economic transformation and the restoration of the dignity of our citizens in line with the Constitution of the Republic.”
She dedicated her department’s budget vote to the late Mr Oliver Reginald Tambo’s resilience, visionary zeal, integrity and courage, she said. “One of the department’s strategic priorities in this financial year is the completion of its modernisation programme to replace an outdated system that is not secured and efficient. More than R519 million is earmarked for this purpose.
“On this priority area, the task was to replace around 38 million green-barcoded ID books with secured smart ID cards over five years and we exceeded the target by a projected 498 000 cards issued. By the end of March 2017, the total number of smart ID cards issued was over 2.6 million, making a total of 6.8 million cards issued to date,” Prof Mkhize said.
At the heart of the department’s strategy for a new Home Affairs is a department that is driven by technology driven. It is hoped that this will, among other things, improve the efficient management of the country’s ports of entry, which remain one of the issues that has a direct bearing on securing the identity and citizenship of our country. The minister is optimistic that the Border Management Authority Bill will take care of the growing concern about the management of South Africa’s borders.
The major priority shift to date is the repositioning of the department as part of the security cluster, she said. “A discussion paper on the repositioning of Home Affairs, based on the business case, will be published in the Government Gazette on Friday 19 May 2017. Substantive comments can be submitted until 30 September 2017 and we will be engaging with stakeholders. These inputs will inform the drafting of a White Paper on the Repositioning of Home Affairs, which will guide the drafting of future DHA legislation.”
The Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Home Affairs, Mr Lemias Mashile, praised the department for some of its sterling achievements. “This department’s drive to modernise its services has enhanced the fight against fraud and corruption. Numerous officials have been taken to task for such misbehaviours.”
The system has also brought in security improvements in visa regulations to enhance the security of citizens and the state, he said. He also hailed the repositioning of the department as a move in a right direction. “This department is now part of the Security Cluster and has a security mandate, which is the key to our sovereignty.”
Our immigration system is broken, said the Democratic Alliance’s (DA) Mr Mohammed Hoosen. “While most countries are rolling out the red carpet, we are rolling out the red tape.”
For far too long we have heard of stories of people who simply walk across the border and nobody in the Home Affairs can tell us how many undocumented immigrants are living in South Africa, he said. “We need an immigration system that is fair, effective and one that contributes to growing our economy and creating jobs. The first thing we must do is to fix our fence.”
Our borders have been converted into havens for criminal syndicates, said Ms Hlengiwe Hlophe of the Economic Freedom Fighters, in rejecting the budget vote. “The downside of this is that thousands of low-skilled immigrants find it easy to enter our country and out-compete locals in the informal sector, while making it difficult for highly skilled individuals to enter the country and contribute to the development of our economy.”
This portfolio remains close to the IFP and our leader, who directed this department so ably during his tenure as its minister from 1994 to 2004, said Ms Sibongile Nkomo in support of the budget vote. With the total budget of R7 billion in this financial year, the department should be able to effectively reach the goals that it has set itself, he added.
Abel Mputing
18 May 2017
Arrange a tour