The growing number of fraudulent identity documents and passports is likely to increase due to government inefficiency.
This has affected the partnership between the Department of Home Affairs, SAPS and the Hawks to halt the growing number of fraudulent identity documents and passports being issued out by corrupt home affairs officials.
Kirsten Halcrow who is the managing director of one of the oldest background screening companies in South Africa, EMPS said one of the biggest stumbling blocks in curbing ID, passport and drivers’ licence fraud was the fact that none of the role players’ computer systems “talked” to each other.
“The home affairs Hanis system does not talk to the SAPS Afis fingerprint system and neither of the two could communicate with the roads department Enatis system,” she said.
Halcrow said “until this bottleneck has been addressed we are going to see ever increasing instances of fraud with the horrendous implications that it holds for the public.”
She added that 8.22% of the IDs that have been checked by EMPS were fraudulent.
Recently a senior immigration officer and a Pakistani national were arrested for “facilitating” fraudulent documents for foreign nationals for bribes amounting to R23 000.
The suspects were arrested in an operation between the Department of Home Affairs and the Hawks.
Home Affairs spokesperson Mayihlome Tshwete said “we know that the individual was producing close to 500 ID’s and we know there are 42 people who might have been involved with them. We don’t want to give too much information at this point.”
The senior immigration official has allegedly been part of an immigration syndicate for some time. He was caught after he facilitated the release of four Pakistani nationals, who were held at Lindela Repatriation Centre for deportation.
“What we can assure the public is that we have zero tolerance for corruption and anyone involved in this kind of activity will get the harshest penalty they deserve,” said Mayihlome.
The Hawks are certain that more arrests will follow soon.
-Siphokuhle Mkancu
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