POLOKWANE – Long and slow-moving queues at the Home Affairs Department in Polokwane had residents – most of who had visited the offices for ID documents or passports – fuming last Thursday.
They said they were tired of being cut off in the line “after a maximum of 28 people could be attended to per day from 08:00 to 15:30, excluding lunch time”.
Some who travelled from faraway areas told Polokwane Observer that they had been coming for many consecutive days without receiving assistance.
An elderly man, who had travelled from Botlokwa with his grandson to help him collect his smart ID card, sat hopelessly on a bench outside of the offices.
Fairbridge Masipa said they had been waiting since 05:00 and had still not received help in the early afternoon.
“We wanted to do this thing before schools reopen,” he said.
Mogoshadi Maila said they were told that power cuts and water shortages are the reasons why the client service officers would only manage attending to fewer people than normal.
“It is shocking that a government institution does not have alternative backup plans for water and electricity emergencies. I wonder if Dr Aaron Motsoaledi [Home Affairs Department Minister] is aware that there are no backup generators here or if it’s just not being utilised,” Maila remarked.
Meanwhile, Acting Provincial Manager Thifhelimbilu Machaya said he noted the unusual influx of customers, and that this was the result of Gr 12 learners who needed their documents issued by the time they write their final examinations.
He also commented on the water situation, saying the Polokwane office too was affected by the shortages, and got delayed when water tankers did not provide water for drinking and sanitation purposes.
“Also, our generator was faulty for a while, but it has since been fixed to mitigate power cuts. Citizens should kindly pardon us for this issue, but employees have been working overtime, up to 20:00 sometimes, to accommodate the piling queues.”
Machaya asked that customers be patient with them.
