General News

SA Home Affairs reviewing its ports of entries

Date: Oct 21, 2016

The South African Home Affairs Department is in the process of reviewing all its ports of entries to check whether there is a need to increase them.

This is after residents of Mbuzini village in Mpumalanga, near the border of South Africa and Mozambique, made calls to have another border post opened in their area.

The area is where the late former Mozambican President Samora Machel and 34 others, died when the presidential aircraft crashed in 1986. The residents are forced to travel about 100 kilometres to cross into Mozambique at the Lebombo Border post in Komatipoort.

Some of the residents risk their lives by crossing the fence which separates the two countries illegally. The fence is manned by the South African National Defence Force.

At the current moment the department is reviewing all its ports of entry. Home Affairs Spokesperson Mayihlome Tshwete says the process of establishing a port of entry is very costly.

“At the current moment the department is reviewing all its ports of entry because there is a view amongst the department that we might have too many ports of entry and having port of entries not only speaking to the issues that are raised, there is also cost to the department and for the country in terms of capacity of resources to port of entry to make sure we direct safely and we make sure that all movement is regular. So we are currently reviewing our ports of entry.”

Tshwete says the department is exploring different options which will be of benefit to the community of Mbuzini. He says they might install what they call a community crossing similar to the one erected in the North West at an area called Tsidilamolomo.

“What we may do in that particular area we are currently considering is putting something similar to what we have put in some other ports of entry which is the a community crossing whereby we take the finger print of both side and we put an un manned technology system that allows movement only with the use of finger print that is something we are looking at. But when we are close to conclusion we will sit down with the community and engage them further on the option we are putting on the table.”

Tshwete says the Department of Home Affairs is currently verifying and checking the cost effectiveness of the exercise before reaching its conclusion and engaging the residents.

--sabc—

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