BMA prepares for night shift amid Mozambique border tensions

The Border Management Authority (BMA) says border guards are prepared to maintain security at the Lebombo port of entry throughout the night amid threats of continued protests in Mozambique.

The BMA commissioner, Dr Michael Masiapato, provided an update on operations at the Lebombo port of entry leading into Mozambique late Monday afternoon.

The update comes after Mozambique’s Constitutional Council confirmed Monday the disputed October election results that extended the ruling Frelimo party’s half-century grip on power.

Court confirms Chapo’s victory

Ruling party presidential candidate Daniel Chapo secured 65 percent of the vote, the seven-judge bench ruled, revising down the initial results of nearly 71 percent.

The final results follow two months of street protests that left more than one hundred people dead.

Watch the BMA’s update here:

Masiapato said that since the morning, the BMA processed about 8 000 people, with around 6 000 people exiting South Africa and about 2 000 people coming back into South Africa.

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“We have, since early this morning, stopped the processing of cargo because of the threat of the outcome in as far as the Constitutional Council is concerned, in terms of confirming the election outcomes in Mozambique,” the commissioner said.

Masiapato added that officials on the Mozambican side of the border confirmed that protests will start soon.

In light of this, border guards, which include BMA officials, South African Police Service (Saps) officers, and South African National Defence Force (SANDF) members, will be ready to deal with any eventuality.

Border guards on alert at Lebombo port

“We do have a strong contingent on the border guards that are here to be able to protect the port infrastructure, as well as the workers or the people that are within the port precinct,” Masiapato said.

He added that BMA is also ready for “option two” in case Mozambicans advise South Africa to stop processing people.

In the event that this happens, border officials will divert travellers to the Mananga border post, where travellers will enter into eSwatini and then travel about 100 km to be able to enter via the eSwatini-Mozambique port of entry.

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“We shall be here at the port throughout the night, and we shall definitely make sure that there is no security threat to the port of entry, both even to the officials of the BMA and the rest of the other stakeholders.