ActionSA wants Schreiber to address illegal immigration in SA

Schreiber

Cape Town — ActionSA has called out the first move made by new Minister of Home Affairs, Leon Schreiber, saying he should have focused on the more important issue of illegal immigration.

Schreiber’s first act as Home Affairs Minister was to extend the temporary concession for foreign nationals currently awaiting the outcome of visa waivers until 31 December 2024.

This extension came in the wake of the previous concession’s expiration on 30 June, which had left many applicants vulnerable to adverse consequences, including the risk of being erroneously declared “undesirable”.

“Without this concession, international tourists and workers who contribute to our economy would have been punished if their documentation expired while they awaited the outcome of Home Affairs processes. This would not only be unfair and irrational, but would also discourage investment, tourism and skills transfer.

“Under the concession I granted today, this situation is averted and applicants, businesses and other stakeholders are protected while Home Affairs tackles the backlog of visa applications. Clearing this backlog is an urgent priority and I will keep the public updated as we proceed,” Schreiber said.

He added: “This extension safeguards applicants – including those who are contributing to South Africa through their scarce skills – from suffering adverse consequences or being erroneously declared undesirable while they await the outcome of applications submitted to the department.”

In a statement, however, ActionSA caucus chief whip, Lerato Ngobeni, called on Schreiber to acknowledge and address the crisis of illegal immigration with equal vigour and make it the department’s priority.

Ngobeni said that the minister needs to understand how corruption and mismanagement within the department have enabled criminal elements to take advantage of the legal visa system.

“This illegality has contributed to the proliferation of drugs and illicit goods in South Africa, necessitating urgent strengthening of our borders and immigration controls,” she said.

“If the Minister’s intention is to put the interests of South Africans first, he must prioritise the crisis of illegal immigration with the same urgency as he highlights the issue of work visas.”

She said Schreiber must put the interests of South Africans first and should prioritise illegal immigration with the same urgency as he highlights the issue of work visas.

“ActionSA will closely monitor all developments as the new Home Affairs Minister outlines his plans, exercising maximum oversight to ensure that the interests of South Africans are protected.”

Ngobeni’s sentiments were echoed by ActionSA leader, Herman Mashaba, who called for Schreiber to establish a special unit to handle illegal immigrant issues.

In an interview with Newzroom Afrika, Mashaba said the party was fully aware that they would not permit any minister or anyone else to jeopardise the country’s sovereignty. He said that the country should be in a position where there is not one single undocumented person in the country.

“We cannot allow anyone to bring illegality into our country; drug dealers and drug syndicates are making our country their playground, hijacking buildings and bringing in people to come and work in restaurants, whereas 12 million South Africans are unemployed. In addition, bringing people to run spaza shops in our communities.

“All those funding spaza shops bring money through illegal means and money doesn’t come through our normal banking systems and when they have made profits from our people, the money is also taken out through illegal means,” Mashaba said.

He also issued a warning, claiming that illegal immigrants funding terrorist groups in secret, will lead to their takeover of South Africa soon.


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Compiled by Matthew Petersen

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