Corruption, not immigrants, is the real enemy

PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa delivered an address to the nation on June 7, where he theoretically presented a comprehensive “solution” to tackle illegal immigration and the influx of foreigners in South Africa, which is seen as the fundamental problem for crime, poverty, and unemployment.

- YUSUF ISMAIL

The address comes after weeks and weeks of escalating public barbarity towards migrants, emergent anti-immigrant “riots” masquerading as “protests”, and a “deadline” set by vigilante groups demanding that undocumented foreign nationals leave the country or face consequences.

To address the above issues, Ramaphosa presented a beleaguered five-point stratagem. It includes intensifying workplace compliance inspections, enhancing border infrastructure, utilising digital technologies, rooting out internal corruption within the Department of Home Affairs, and stamping out the illegal selling of identity documents.

The Department of Home Affairs has been plagued by deep-rooted, systemic corruption, particularly in its immigration, permitting, and civic services branches for more than two decades. Corrupt officials and external syndicates have routinely colluded to bypass security measures, treat visas as commodities to be sold to the highest bidder, and facilitate fraudulent identification.

The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) over the years traced over R181 million generated by foreign nationals obtaining fraudulent visas, with over R16 million going directly into the pockets of implicated officials. Permits, visas, and IDs were unlawfully issued. This includes the fraudulent issuance of around 2 000 study visas and thousands of fraudulent residence permits that allowed syndicates and unauthorised individuals to bypass legitimate immigration frameworks. Syndicates and high-profile political figures exploited gaps within the system and existing loopholes to bypass all the procedural requirements and necessities for proper registration.