The challenges relating to the influx of undocumented foreign nationals in Musina were placed in the spotlight during the launch of the Musina Home Affairs Stakeholders Forum (MHASF), which was held at Musina Municipality's council chambers on Wednesday, 18 October.
The Home Affairs Stakeholders Forum is an initiative of the national government to instil a sense of patriotism and national consciousness around the significance of building a secure and credible national population register. Each sphere of government is mandated to have this forum, whose term of office is aligned to the term of office of the council. The forum, which should be composed of community stakeholders and government departments, is coordinated by the Office of the Speaker and representatives from the Department of Home Affairs.
Addressing guests during the launch, Musina Municipality's Speaker, Siyaphi Shirilele, said the forum would serve as a platform through which authentic public participation between the people and Home Affairs was facilitated. She added that the forum would also promote accountability by Home Affairs to the communities it served, thus enhancing cooperation and collaboration.
Shirilele said that the launch of the Border Management Authority (BMA) in Musina by President Cyril Ramaphosa earlier this month had come at just the right time as Musina was experiencing a huge influx of undocumented foreign nationals. "It is important for a country to have secure borders, so that people who get in and out should be accounted for. We are happy that the launch of the BMA will play a meaningful role in this regard. Through this forum, we will be able to assess and report on customer-satisfaction matters relating to services rendered by the Department of Home Affairs at local level. We will also be able to escalate urgent matters that need attention to the national department of health. As council, we will give [our] full support to this forum, so that it executes its duties with ease," she said.
The MHASF comprises Shirilele as chairperson, Ntuweleni Madamalala as deputy chairperson, Musina Home Affairs Office Manager Evans Sithi as secretary, Teboho Molea as deputy secretary, Pastor Solomon Takalani, and Jacob Matakanye. The names of the representatives from the departments of health, basic education, social development, the SAPS and CoGHSTA will be forwarded by their respective departments to form part of the office bearers.