Home Affairs ‘killed me’

Samkelisiwe Kunene (51) can’t believe that the Department of Home Affairs has left her for dead. Literally. She says she ‘almost died of shock’ when she was told that ‘according to the system’ she died in 2016. The mother of four has since been unable to sleep peacefully.
She didn’t know that her ID was invalid until the day she went to the bank to get forms for her late husband’s pension payout. To her surprise, she was told that according to the information on the system, she was dead.
” Where did I die, what caused my death? All these questions ran through my mind but worse of all I could not get the money that my children needed from the bank,” cried Samkelisiwe. She was asked by the bank teller to go to Home Affairs and have the matter sorted out; only then would she get the money.

Aggrieved, Samkelisiwe went to Home Affairs and was issued with a re-submission form and another form to be filled out by her old high school.

She was also asked to bring an affidavit with her mother’s signature and her late husband’s death certificate. Samkelisiwe claims to have bought in all the necessary documents last November.
“I was told to wait six months as the Department needed to process all of my documents. I did all that but up until today, nothing has been done and I am still declared dead by Home Affairs.”
The most frustrating issue she has had to face because of this ordeal is that her two children had to drop out of College because there is no money to pay the fees. “My two youngest children had to drop out of Berea College because I could not get their father’s money – one of them was supposed to be doing her final year this year.”

The Courier contacted Dundee’s Department of Home Affairs and was told that Samukelisiwe’s case is with the Immigration Home Affairs department and they are not sure what the hold up is but will do a ‘follow up’.
Samukelisiwe has since suffered from depression and is hoping that this matter will be sorted out soon.