Eugene Brink says Minister Leon Schreiber has put accountability front and centre of his tenure When you think of the Department of Home Affairs, you are usually filled with dread and other unpleasant feelings for various reasons. Corruption, lax officials and system failures, to name just a few.It is a vital government department in desperate need of some good news after years of ineptitude, a lack of accountability and malfeasance. As is stated early in the 2022 Lubisi report on the issuance of visas and permits: The Department of Home Affairs is regarded as one of South Africas most strategic and important aspects of the national security architecture. However, it also remains one of the most vulnerable and targeted departments in government.They control peoples identities, lives and livelihoods. People have committed suicide and many crimes have been committed on account of errors and corrupt acts by home affairs officials. Although an individual seldom needs its services, it has a social, economic and political impact like few other state agencies. In other words, good luck with doing anything worthwhile without having the proper documentation. Claudia Pizzocri, CEO at Eisenberg & Associates, wrote in Business Day in August that the Covid-19 backlog only worsened and made more conspicuous pre-existing conditions of disarray in home affairs. She adds that complacency, insufficient training in constitutional governance, and a security cluster-orientated approach to immigration issues, have consistently lowered standards and caused friction between government, citizens and foreigners.Although the department was and is admittedly not completely dysfunctional, its vast historic scope of corruption and incompetence cannot be chronicled here. This stretches down from top to bottom, and from poor policy decisions to syndicates and small-time venal officials, and to failed digital initiatives.However, a personal anecdote and bigger news stories have contributed to a renewed sense of optimism about home affairs and especially its impact on an economy so reliant on tourism and travel. Not able to drive to a bank branch in Cape Town at a specific date and time, I recently visited the Paarl office near my house with some trepidation to renew my passport. The queues were reasonable, all the staff were friendly and helpful, and I completed my entire application in under an hour. A week later I collected my passport with little effort. This is in stark contrast to my previous experiences at other offices.This came on the back of news that the department had cleared  in a single month  an ID backlog of 247 500 that had accumulated since November 2023. Home affairs minister Dr Leon Schreiber has also gazetted the much-vaunted Remote Work Visitor Visa and the new Points-Based System for Work Visas. This step has drawn praise from the business and tourism sectors for its potential to draw visitors, skilled workers and investors to the country while creating local jobs through their spend. On top of this, Schreiber has put accountability front and centre of his tenure. Some officials were sporadically disciplined, dismissed and even criminally convicted in the past, but corrupt officials have too often escaped sanction for gross misconduct. These efforts have certainly been stepped up since the formation of the Government of National Unity (GNU). BusinessLive reported that the department took action against 33 officials between July and September. This ranged from criminal prosecution to dismissal and suspension without pay. Apparently, this is only the thin end of the wedge and more arrests will follow. Emphatically, it seems that Schreiber is making the secure digitalisation of his departments documents the cornerstone of his tenure. Some efforts have been made in this regard, but none have largely eliminated to visit physical home affairs offices or the 30 dispersed bank branches that assist with passports and smart IDs. He is confident that the department will be fully digital by 2029. I hope hes right and it can certainly be done. Bearing in mind that there is a large digital divide in South Africa  as in the rest of the Third World  many people (especially in rural areas) will not be able to make use of these services in the foreseeable future. But it does alleviate much of the pressure on the existing resources, which could be diverted to offices in those areas. And it will be a huge convenience boost for the rest of us while combating corruption. No more long queues, travelling and wasted hours. After all, it is the 21st Century and there is no reason why we shouldnt be able to do it like the Swedes, Fins and Danes do.         Turning this department around is a Herculean task, to say the least. Schreiber is up against entrenched corrupt networks inside and outside his department, hostile bureaucrats, the unions, and other government entities being able to do what they are supposed to. But green shoots are indeed showing, and this early progress could be prelude to perfection.

MBABANE  An assistant immigration officer, who was allegedly involved in fraudulent activities in the Ministry of Home Affairs, has revealed how the operations were conducted.Lungile Mazibuko, who has been made an accomplice witness, made the revelation when testifying against her colleague, Mboneni Zwane and Delight Moyo from Zimbabwe. An accomplice witness is a person who knowingly, voluntary or intentionally gives assistance to another in (or in some cases fails to prevent another from) the commission of a crime. The duo was arrest following fraudulent activities, including theft of Eswatini government passport books, bribery, corruption and fraud. Zwane is also accused of illegal manufacturing of the passports, visas and permits. Evidence presented by Mazibuko pointed out that the corruption activities started around 2022. She revealed that she walked in the footsteps of another officer, who was transferred to the headquarters. Mazibukos evidence further revealed that she worked with Zwane and Moyo, who paid her between E500 and E700 per passport, which were brought for stamping in the absence of their owners at the Ngwenya Border Gate, where she was deployed as an immigration officer.  These are allegations whose varacity is yet to be tested.DutiesMazibuko, who was employed by the ministry in 2010, told the court that she was transferred to Ngwenya Border Gate in 2014. She said in 2022, they were joined by Samukeliso Ndlovu, who also served as an assistant Immigration Officer. She said their duties included capturing passports into the system, stamping them, checking validity of visas and permits, and passports expiry dates. She told the court that they also checked if immigrants had not overstayed in Eswatini.  She said as they worked with Ndlovu, he told them that he had a friend, Hsiao Nkwanyana, who was used to crossing to South Africa. She submitted that as time went on, she got to know Nkwanyana. However, she said Ndlovu was transferred to the headquarters. Nkwanyana came to me with a batch of Eswatini international passports after Ndlovus departure. He told me that he used to work with Ndlovu and he asked me to assist him. I understood him to mean an illegal activity. There were too many passports, which did not belong to him, she alleged.The Crown wanted to know what the law said concerning the stamping of passports. In response, Mazibuko told the court that the law provided that passports were stamped in the presence of the owners. She said the stamp meant the passport holders had entered and exited the country. However, she told the court that Nkwanyana promised to pay her for stamping the passports in the absence of the owners. It was Mazibukos evidence that Nkwanyana warned her against capturing the passports into the system. She told the court that Nkwanyana made it clear that the passports would not appear in the system. She stated that when she tried to capture the passports into the system, she realised that they had particulars of different people. Nkwanyana paid me E400 per passport. I kept E200 and paid E200 for the stamp per passport at the South African side. I did what he requested me to do and it became a deal, she said.Deal Mazibuko told the court that during the course of the deal, Nkwanyana introduced his wife, stating that she would call her. After some time, she said Nkwanyanas wife, whom she only identified as sikoni, called her. She stated that she directed Nkwanyanas wife to her house.   She submitted that Nkwanyanas wife brought a batch of passports and cash to her house. It was her evidence that Nkwanyanas wife used to bring the passports and fetch them later. She said while working with Nkwanyanas wife, he received a call from her colleague, Zwane, mid 2023. She told the court that Zwane asked if she knew anyone who manufactured fraudulent passports. The officer submitted that she gave Zwane Nkwanyanas cellphone number. He said he thought I knew someone else, as he already knew Nkwanyana. I called and informed Nkwanyanas wife that I gave Zwane her husbands cellphone number. However, she responded that they knew Zwane and that he had some passports in the batch, she said. She told the court that Zwane confirmed knowledge of the passports and encouraged her to continue working. She told the court that Nkwanyanas wife continued to bring the passports and cash for stamping. However, she said Nkwanyanas wife would sometimes tell her that she would get the money from Zwane.

Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber said on Wednesday that his department has taken decisive action against what he calls pernicious practice by certain officials, as part of his objective to unlock tourism and job creation.Schreiber stressed the need for Home Affairs officials to abide by standard port of entry visa requirements, alleging that some officials and e-visa managers have asked for unauthorised Immigration Regulations requirements from applicants.The unauthorised requirements include death certificates of applicant`s parents, marriage certificates, divorce certificates, proof of specified bank balance in the accounts and also consent from the applicant`s employer or educational institution.The standard, valid requirements are the passport of the applicant, a statement or document detailing the purpose and duration of the visit, a valid return airline ticket or proof of the reservation, and proof of sufficient financial means with certified three months bank statements.He explained that these regulations applied to physical applications processed at South African Missions abroad, as well as applications submitted on the e-visa platform.No additional documents are required from applicants, he stressed, adding that officials were also not authorised to request applicants to notarise their documentation.