Department of Home Affairs Offices - What a Shambles

Due to problems with Vodacom and Telkom I have written about on hellopeter in 2024 I decided it was time to write about events in 2023 with the Department of Home Affairs which was even more of a complete Shambles.

I had been meaning to get a new South African ID Book for a few years as it was now starting to fall apart with all the copies made. However, I kept putting it off because of the usual long queues in Joburg government offices. However on Friday 3 March 2023 I was unable to transfer funds to my cheque account to pay my bills as parts of my Nedbank Money App were blocked due to new FICA requirements. On Saturday and Monday the 4 and 6th March 2023 I visited a Nedbank branch to unblock my Money App so all was functioning. They eventually explained I had to go to Home Affairs as my fingerprints were not in the national database. On Tuesday 7 March 2023 I walked into the Joburg CPD to queue outside the Harrison Street Home Affairs Office for an hour so could have my fingerprints added to the national database to comply with FICA, and to order a new ID Book. When the office opened at 8:00 am walked up the stairs to 5th floor and was first in line. No one was there to help for 15 minutes. Then a lady arrived, started eating an apple, rummaging in her bag, shuffling two phones about, getting up and going to talk to a colleague. After a further ten minutes she decided it was time to start work. She called me to her desk but then said my fingerprints were not in the national database and she could not help me. I explained that’s why I am at Home Affairs to correct that. So that large Home Office building in Joburg with many staff could not help me and I was told I had to go to their Lenasia Office.

I trudged home from the Joburg CPD dejected, then did a google search for the address and drove to Lenasia. When I got there they could not help due to CABLE THEFT! They said go to the Ennerdale office. Again a google search for address and another car drive. Got there and they could not help as their PRINTER WAS NOT WORKING and also they were without power! The only member of staff there at that small office, a lady was, however, very helpful and called the Orange Farm Home Affairs Office to see if all was working there. All was but no power until 12:30 pm. Arrived there and waited an hour for power to come on. Anyway they were helpful and completed my application for a new ID Book and submitted electronic copies of my thumb prints. Drove the 50 km back to Joburg and went to Nedbank branch at 2:30 pm after starting out that morning at 6:30 am. Explained that I had visited Home Affairs as they had requested. They then unblocked parts of the Money app on my phone so I could use it. I then had to wait for one to two months for my new ID Book to pitch up at Orange Farm from being issued in Pretoria and make that 100 km trip to collect it.

After some six weeks called the Home Affairs Office at Orange Farm on a number of occasions but no one picked up the phone. When finally someone answered the phone they went to enquire about my ID book and was kept waiting for 25 minutes with no-one eventually coming back to the phone! After some two months decided to drive back to Orange Farm and hopefully my ID Book would now be available. It was, however, but my fingerprints were still not in the national database and had to be recaptured.

From my side if I did not have a car, parts of my banking app would still have been blocked and I would have been unable to pay my bills and to start the process of being in compliance with FICA to get my fingerprints into the system and order a new ID Book! The Orange Farm Office said they were unable to notify me by sms when my ID Book had arrived or that it could be sent from Pretoria to a Joburg Home Affairs Office or to my home rather than having to drive a 100 km to collect it.

In Summary - To obtain my new ID Book and have my fingerprints in the National Database was sent from the Home Affairs office in Joburg (Harrison Street) to their Lenasia Office (could not help duet cable theft) who sent me to their Ennerdale Office (who could not help as their Printer not working) who sent me to Orange Farm now 50 km outside Joburg - What a Shambles at Home Affairs.

A year later a black security guard for the building I lived in asked me to copy his ID Book. As it was old like my previous one I informed him he should go to the Joburg Home Affairs Office at Harrison Street and apply for a new ID Card and have his fingerprints captured for the National Database. This he did and he obtained an sms to collect his new ID card within two weeks of his application!