HOME AFFAIRS: THE BEST MEDICINE Our ability to laugh at ourselves shows strong character. Right? What about the ability to laugh at others? Weak character? Anyway… I don’t often have to encounter home affairs, so I hope that my ability to laugh at their incompetence does not come back to bite me any time soon. That would really affect my character.

Congolese refugee Kakozi Yves Bin Ndume lost his residency permit.
He duly reported this to the police and accordingly obtained an affidavit to this effect.

On Monday, he innocently went along to the Home Affairs office in Nyanga to get a duplicate of his permit.
While he was in the queue, a fight broke out and the police were summoned.
Although not involved in the fight – well, according to him – Yves was arrested along with several others.

 

Police warned him that he was ‘in a lot of trouble’ because he did not have a residency permit.
Bin was held in custody in Cape Town, then hauled to Johannesburg, held in custody again, transported to Durban and released there.
Why the tour of the country, I seriously don’t know.

When poor Ndume eventually got to Home Affairs in Durban, he was told that, even though his permit was on the system’s computer, they could only give him a duplicate 'if he produced the one that he had lost!'

When contacted, a Home Affairs spokesman said ‘it would take 24 hours to comment.’
Expect a really long comment.

Kader Khan
Editor
info@yummie.co.za