Stuck in the endless Home Affairs queues

With reference to the article entitled ‘Uncollected IDs cause problems at Home Affairs’ in last week’s ZO Weekender edition, did anyone question why this is such a huge problem?

If you are one of hundreds of Zululanders who queue at the offices daily, you will realise it is an absolute nightmare to pick up your ID or do anything for that matter at your local Home Affairs office.

Firstly, you need to take an entire day’s leave to pick up an ID. You cannot collect anything in your lunch break as the queues extend outside and onto the pavement.

There are no chairs or benches outside and no relief from the harsh Zululand heat.

People just sit for hours on the concrete floor, including children and senior citizens.

So, how are we supposed to collect IDs or conduct any business at a department where professional planning is obviously nonexistent?

If only there was another system where we all didn’t have to queue in one line and those who needed to collect IDs could do so separately.

Can that not be arranged so the 2 571 outstanding IDs can be picked up?

In the run-up to next year’s national general elections, there will be major backlogs for applications and collection of IDs resulting in longer queues.

Authorities should come up with a plan quickly so people can easily pick up their IDs without delay.