Home Affairs officials fired for selling SA documents to foreign nationals

The Department of Home Affairs has sacked two employees for selling South African identities to foreign nationals.

Another four officials were suspended for similar offences.

Phathisani Outshiki from the department’s Benoni office was found guilty of  gross misconduct for processing 111 documents to foreign nationals at a fee of R1,000 per application. The applications used the particulars of South African citizens. 

According to the department, 98 of the documents were passports and 13 were identity documents.

Outshiki was fired after pleading guilty to the charge against him. He is appealing his dismissal.

Another fired official, David Motsamai, who worked at the Germiston office was also found guilty of gross misconduct for processing 13 passport applications for foreign nationals, using the particulars of South Africans. He charged a fee of R2,500 and R5,000 per respective application.

He also pleaded guilty and was fired immediately.

The department said police are pursuing criminal charges against both Outshiki and Motsamai and are tracking the South Africans who sold their identities as well as the foreigners who wanted to buy the documents.

“Fortunately, all the fraudulently processed IDs and passports were flagged as fraudulent and were removed from Home Affairs records thus rendering them useless and unusable by the people who acquired them. None of these documents were ever used,” read the Home Affairs statement.

The disciplinary hearings for the four officials who were suspended on 1 July at the Tzaneen office for allegedly processing fraudulent documents are scheduled within 10 working days.

All six officials were unknowingly under the radar of the Home Affairs Counter Corruption Branch.

“We shall fearlessly and ruthlessly root out corruption wherever it rears its ugly head. I have no doubt that with support from members of the public who are patriotic enough to report these corrupt practices, we dare not fail but win this battle” said Minister of Home Affairs Aaron Motsoaledi.

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