The Portfolio Committee on Home Affairs has invited the Minister of Home Affairs, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, and senior management of the department to account on processes that led to Mr Shepherd and Mrs Mary Bushiri receiving permanent residency permits in South Africa.
“The committee noted the assertion by the Minister that the permanent residency of Mr and Mrs Bushiri was fraudulent, but is worried that nothing was done to investigate and charge both Mr and Mrs Bushiri and departmental officials who granted the permit. It is in this context that the committee saw it prudent to urgently invite the Minister and his department to account on departmental processes around this matter,” said Adv Bongani Bongo, the Chairperson of the committee.
The committee has on countless occasions highlighted the need for consequence management against corrupt elements in the Department of Home Affairs that compromise and undermine the security of the national population register by fraudulently granting permits to underserving recipients.
Furthermore, the committee scheduled this meeting as a way of finding workable solutions to our porous borders in the short-term as the country awaits the roll out of the Border Management Authority. Also, the committee wishes to receive from a person of authority information on how Mr and Mrs Bushiri left South Africa without travel documents.
Meanwhile, the committee will also receive a response from the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) on public comments on the Electoral Laws Amendment Bill [B 22 – 2020]. The committee resolved, following last week’s meeting, to invite the IEC to clarify some concerns raised by interested individuals and organisations on the amendment Bill.
Some of the issues raised by members of the public that should be responded to by the IEC include the socio-economic impact assessment done for the Bill, the impact of the IEC’s intention to introduce e-voting, especially in relation to what security measures protect the election, as well as the cost implications of potential future electronic voting (e-voting) in its internal costing of the Bill.
Details of the meeting
Date: Tuesday, 17 November 2020
Time: 9h00
Format: Virtual meeting
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