The Democratic Alliance (DA) has put increased pressure on the Department on International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) to work with its embassies, particularly in Namibia and Mozambique, to bring back South Africans that have been stranded in those countries for weeks.
Staff at these embassies seem to have lost any power to instruct our border gates to allow safe passage for these citizens.
There is still great uncertainty as to why these South Africans who are stuck in our neighbouring countries have not been able to come home. Speculation is rife that it may be due to a shortage of quarantine facilities or inefficiencies at Home Affairs.
The DA calls on DIRCO to immediately engage with embassies and the Departments of Health, Home Affairs and Public Works to ensure and facilitate the safe passage of those South Africans who need to return home. We urge them to find safe and immediate solutions around these issues even if it means self-quarantine or quarantine sites further into the country.
What cannot happen is that school children, required to return in the foundation and essential years are denied their rights to an education and that people left vulnerable due to a shortage of funds or medicines are locked out of their country due to a lack of action by DIRCO.
The DIRCO Director-General concedes there are over 3000 people still needing to be returned, yet when we have low hanging fruits just within our reach we seem reluctant to stretch out to apply ourselves.
The DA call for an immediate solution that should not be delayed any further than this weekend.
Click here to contribute to the DA’s legal action challenging irrational and dangerous elements of the hard lockdown in court