Home Affairs ‘killed me’

Source: Natal Courier, 18/11/2018

She says she ‘almost died of shock’ when she was told that ‘according
to the system’ she died in 2016.
Samkelisiwe Kunene has been declared dead by Home Affairs.
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.