Deportation is the only practical option for illegal foreigners in South Africa, according to Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi.
The former Home Affairs Minister clarified misunderstandings about the department's involvement in combating illegal immigration.
The former minister of Home Affairs' remarks were aimed at misconceptions surrounding the department's role in dealing with illegal immigration.
Motsoaledi addressed the interdisciplinary media briefing on Wednesday to outline the government's action plan to manage foodborne illnesses.
Government has extended the registration process for spaza shops and other food-handling outlets to the end of February next year.
He emphasised the importance of following the law while dealing with illegal foreigners.
According to Motsoaledi, only foreign nationals who can prove their right to remain in the country can survive being sent back to their country of origin.
“If you are found illegal in the country, there’s no other way to deal with you except a process of deportation. This is unless you can prove that you have a right to be in the country and that you are only illegal because the department might have committed a mistake of not giving you documents,” he said.
He also helped to dispel the myth that the Home Affairs Department is to blame for the country's unauthorised population.
"There is a very wrong perception that everybody who enters South Africa, that if they don’t have any documents, then it’s Home Affairs' fault. Many of them don't deserve the documents because there's no reason why they are here," he said.
Even though he is currently the Minister of Health, Motsoaledi's remarks demonstrate his lifelong dedication to immigration policies.
He continuously stressed the value of abiding by South African law while serving as Minister of Home Affairs.
He said individuals, such as zama-zamas, would not meet the eligibility criteria for legal documentation under South African law.
"Anybody at the end of the process who is found not to have any documentation, it means they are illegal," he maintained.
South Africa has strong mechanisms in place to precisely ascertain a person's standing within the nation, Motsoaledi stated.
Among these systems is the National Population Register (NPR), that keeps track of all citizens who have acquired official credentials like passports, IDs, and birth certificates.
Furthermore, foreign people registered at refugee reception centers who have lawfully entered South Africa are tracked by the National Immigration Information System (NIIS).
According to Motsoaledi, these instruments provide reliable information to verify whether an individual has a legitimate reason to remain in the country.
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