Do not rush to apply for a new ID- Home Affairs

Nomava Nobumba
03 March 2010

Home Affairs department has urged the public to work together with them to prevent the blockages in their offices.

This follows after reports that about five hundred thousand Identity Documents have not been collected yet.

Minister Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma said her department does not have enough space to keep these documents, and urged the public to collect them as soon as they receive a text message from the department.

“We still have old ID’s back from 2004 and at some stage we will destroy them,” she said.

Dlamini Zuma also believes that people do not value their ID’s and when they do not see them, they rush and get temporary ID’s to do their businesses.

“Some of the people that caused blockages are those who realise at the bank that they do not have their documents. They run to get temporary ID’s, so in that case a process of a new ID commence. They do not bother to come to fetch them,” the minister said.

However, the department has reiterated that it will continue to reduce corruption in the department.

Dlamini Zuma said her department have put tighter controls and systems in place to ensure that documents are produced and distributed securely.