Johannesburg - The journey to get an ID and thus a pension has been a long one for Qomu Nala. The 62-year-old lost her document years ago and has struggled to rectify the situation.
She lives in a shack in Jabulani, Soweto, with her six children and nine grandchildren and washes taxis to earn a living because without an ID, she couldn’t get a pension.
The Department of Home Affairs failed to help Nala until The Star intervened.
“They said I was married to a man from Cameroon by the name of Youndjo. When I tried to correct this, they told me they were tired of people like me,” she said.
“I did not understand how this happened because I’m a widow.”
Home Affairs officials told her to produce the ID of the Cameroonian man and to bring an affidavit explaining the situation.
“I went through the same process even after I brought in the affidavit. I showed them my original marriage certificate to my late husband, Muntongelutho Nala,” she said.
Officials then told Nala the only way she could resolve the problem was to divorce the Cameroonian man, which meant taking both her ID and his to Home Affairs.
“I couldn’t understand why they would ask me for that when I don’t even know this person. Where would I even begin to find this man? And I do not have an ID, but they asked me to bring it in,” she said.
She was then sent to the Hillbrow Magistrate’s Court to file divorce papers there.
“The person who was handling my case went on leave and then my case was never resolved,” said Nala.
She could not afford to travel repeatedly to the different offices.
The Star then took up her case, and officials from the Department of Home Affairs head office stepped in.
Last week, Nala went back to the Phefeni office of Home Affairs and finally received a temporary ID.
Her fraudulent marriage was cancelled and her application for a pensioner’s grant was approved at the Orlando West South African Social Security Agency offices.
She will receive her first grant next month.
Home Affairs officials are also helping her get the correct identity papers for her children and grandchildren.
“I don’t know how to feel. It’s like the burden I have been carrying has just been lifted off me,” she said.
Nala said she would still wash taxis every now and again.
Home Affairs spokesman Mayihlome Tshwete said when people found themselves in situations like Nala’s with ID fraud, they needed to submit an affidavit with a case number to the department.
“Such a ‘marriage’ would be regarded as fraudulent and is of no force and effect. On the strength of the affidavit, the department then removes such a ‘marriage’ from the Population Register,” he said.
He urged South Africans to protect their identities by ensuring that all enabling documents were kept safe.
“The department reiterates its commitment to ending the practice of duplicate IDs, which continues to wreak havoc in the lives of those affected South Africans. This has the negative effect of denying those affected their right to engage in education, business and banking and denies them access to basic government services,” said Tshwete.
People affected by ID fraud should go to their nearest Home Affairs office. Identity numbers can be verified by texting the number to 32551.
The Star