It was a chaotic scene at the registry offices on Thursday as over 40 people lined up outside, desperate to get their hands on their national IDs. But there was a catch - they had to cough up an extra US$1 each to keep the generator running during the load shedding. Can you believe it?
Several people there spilled the beans to The Mirror, saying that when the generator ran out of fuel, the registry officers had the nerve to ask everyone in the queue to chip in a dollar to buy more. Talk about adding insult to injury!
Those who didn't have the spare cash were left high and dry, getting shoved to the back of the line. It's like the registry was saying, "No money, no ID for you!"
When the Minister of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage, Kazembe Kazembe, heard about this, he was fuming. He said, "This is unacceptable. We don't have a policy like that. We'll get to the bottom of this; mark my words."
The Provincial Affairs and Devolution Permanent Secretary, Dr Addmore Pazvakavambwa, also said that clients shouldn't have to pay any extra fees that aren't in the law. He promised to chat with the provincial registrar and launch an investigation. It's about time someone took action!
One of the poor souls in the queue, Monica Hanyani, told her story. She said she got there at the crack of dawn, 6:30 a.m., and was number 30 on the list. But when she couldn't fork over the extra dollar, she got bumped back to number 56 and had to wait until 2 p.m. to finally get her ID. Talk about a long and frustrating day!
Monica said, "I don't think it's right for Government departments to treat people like this, especially when we're just trying to get our IDs." And she's got a point - it's not fair to make people who are already struggling pay extra just to get what they're entitled to.
Several people there spilled the beans to The Mirror, saying that when the generator ran out of fuel, the registry officers had the nerve to ask everyone in the queue to chip in a dollar to buy more. Talk about adding insult to injury!
Those who didn't have the spare cash were left high and dry, getting shoved to the back of the line. It's like the registry was saying, "No money, no ID for you!"
When the Minister of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage, Kazembe Kazembe, heard about this, he was fuming. He said, "This is unacceptable. We don't have a policy like that. We'll get to the bottom of this; mark my words."
The Provincial Affairs and Devolution Permanent Secretary, Dr Addmore Pazvakavambwa, also said that clients shouldn't have to pay any extra fees that aren't in the law. He promised to chat with the provincial registrar and launch an investigation. It's about time someone took action!
One of the poor souls in the queue, Monica Hanyani, told her story. She said she got there at the crack of dawn, 6:30 a.m., and was number 30 on the list. But when she couldn't fork over the extra dollar, she got bumped back to number 56 and had to wait until 2 p.m. to finally get her ID. Talk about a long and frustrating day!
Monica said, "I don't think it's right for Government departments to treat people like this, especially when we're just trying to get our IDs." And she's got a point - it's not fair to make people who are already struggling pay extra just to get what they're entitled to.
