Dr Mike Masiapato, the commissioner of the Border Management Authority (BMA)
From January 1 to 7, 480 people who were trying to enter the country illegally were intercepted at Beit Bridge.
Dr Mike Masiapato, the commissioner of the Border Management Authority (BMA) says the authority started on January 1, 2024, and that the number kept on escalating towards the end of the week.
“We have been able to process around 25 000 individuals into South Africa. All in all, the number of people that we facilitated from January 1, 2024, to January 7 is sitting at 119 000 but above the number of people we facilitated, we have been able to intercept around 480 individuals attempting to enter the country illegally,” said Masiapato
“These are the individuals who had been intercepted for entering the port of entry without the requisite documentation, but some of those we intercepted along the borderline, where the border guards are deployed together with the members of the South African National Defence Force. In addition to this, we can indicate that all our processes are going according to plan,” added Masiapato
The Border Management Authority (BMA) said that the measures being adopted would ensure Zimbabweans returning to South Africa had the proper documentation.
“As the Border Management Authority, the implementation of the returning leg of the execution of our festive plan is going according to the manner in which we have planned. We continue to administer to people coming back into South Africa,” said Masiapato
PA LAUNCHES CAMPAIGN AGAINST ILLEGAL CROSSINGS FROM ZIMBABWE
In a recent week the Patriotic Alliance (PA) monitored illegal movements between South Africa and Zimbabwe through the Malala Drift, River in Limpopo.
The Patriotic Alliance (PA) says the country lacks strong borders due to a lack of decisive government leaders. The party’s leadership is on a campaign to stop illegal immigrants from crossing the Limpopo River from Zimbabwe into South Africa.
The party’s president Gayton McKenzie says more than 700 people were turned back to Zimbabwe while attempting to cross the river.
“We would be incredibly naive to think our actions at the border would stop all illegal crossings. Our intention was to put a spotlight on the crisis facing us all and to highlight the dangers. We have no border. The problem is much bigger than we can show.” said Gayton McKenzie