PE refugee centre to reopen
The Refugee Reception Office in Port Elizabeth has been moved to a new building and will open in October – after being closed for almost eight years.
This was announced by Home Affairs Deputy Minister Fatima Chohan yesterday.
The office has been moved from Stone Street, North End, to Gibaud Road in Sydenham.
Port Elizabeth Refugee Reception Office manager Sabelo Ngxitho said: “When we open, we will process both new and old applications.”
Refugee reception offices are meant to receive and process new applications from people who are seeking asylum.
The opening will bring relief to thousands of asylum seekers who have had to travel to other provinces to obtain services.
Chohan’s visit to Port Elizabeth comes in the wake of World Refugee Day on Wednesday.
The North End office was instructed by the Supreme Court of Appeal to reopen in February 2016. But Home Affairs identified a shortage of funds and staff as well as technical challenges in the delay in reopening the office.
Speaking on a recent ruling by Port Elizabeth High Court judge Glen Goosen, which exposed serious misconduct by attorneys in cases against Home Affairs, which may indicate a rip-off in terms of legal bills, Chohan said: “We will ensure there is no recurrence of what we call opportunistic litigation.”