Durban - People are afraid to go to Home Affairs in Pinetown because of criminal elements lurking outside it, owing to the “lack of security”.
The Mercury was inundated with letters, published in Thursday’s newspaper, in the wake of a report of businessman Visvin Reddy’s stabbing outside the premises on Monday.
Reddy was looking for parking across the road from the offices when he was attacked in his car. He was stabbed twice and needed stitches.
But the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Home Affairs distanced itself from the situation on Thursday, asserting that crime in the vicinity of Home Affairs was not department's problem.
Readers complained of muggings and hijacking attempts from criminal gangs, which they said preyed on visitors to Home Affairs.
“Not a day goes by when someone is not accosted, mugged or stabbed and children are left traumatised outside Pinetown Home Affairs”, wrote a reader, who said attacks were regularly reported on a community Facebook group.
“It would appear that one or two gangs of young men are deeming visitors to Home Affairs soft targets. These incidents are reported to the SAPS, but nothing... is being done.”
The SAPS called that claim “baseless” on Thursday, saying Pinetown had “visible policing and tactical response members” deployed on a 24-hour basis.
Readers also bemoaned the lack of on-premises parking, which left the disabled and elderly vulnerable when they parked far away.
The manager of Home Affairs in KZN, Cyril Mncwabe, said security inside the premises was “adequate”, and that crimes outside Home Affairs were not the department's responsibility.
“If you are going to hospital and you get mugged outside, is it the hospital’s problem? We have our own security inside. If it’s not inside, how does it become a Home Affairs issue?”
Readers also alleged that the office manager at Pinetown Home Affairs had been “attacked three times”. Mncwabe denied knowledge of that.
Regarding the parking issue, Mncwabe said there was paid parking on the roof of the building, but he conceded that it might not be sufficient.
The provincial SAPS could not give the number of complaints received as statistics had not been released yet.
The Mercury