ActionSA has called on the government to stop the “gross abuse” of ratepayers' funds following revelations by Minister of Home Affairs Leon Schreiber that nearly R200 million has been spent deporting undocumented foreigners since 2022.
ActionSA’s Member of Parliament (MP) Lerato Ngobeni had asked Schreiber about the total number of deportations since 1 January 2022, the number of pending deportations per return country, and the overall cost of these deportations.
In a written response, Schreiber revealed that 83,731 illegal foreigners were deported during this period.
“The number of pending deportations at Lindela Holding Facility and across the country stands at 2,483,” Schreiber added.
He further disclosed that the department spent close to R200 million on deportations since 2022.
Ngobeni criticised the government for spending such a significant sum while deporting only 83,731 individuals, a figure she noted is significantly lower than the previous decade’s average of 133,000 deportations per year.
“This shocking disparity exposes the grim reality of our government’s incompetence in securing our borders and enforcing immigration laws,” Ngobeni said.
She also pointed out that only 19,750 illegal immigrants were deported in the last five months, despite the average cost of deportation being R2,700 per individual. She described this as “a slap in the face to law-abiding citizens,” reflecting the damaging consequences of porous borders and ineffective law enforcement.
“South Africans are not only footing the bill for deportations. Taxpayers are forced to cover the cost of clothing, feeding, and housing illegal immigrants, in addition to providing free healthcare to those who have brazenly violated our laws,” Ngobeni added.
She also highlighted the financial burden of providing foreign language interpreters during court trials for immigrants accused of crimes.
“This is a disgrace. These costs should be borne by the foreign missions of their home countries, not hard-working South Africans.”
Ngobeni labelled it a “national scandal” that the government is spending R2,700 to deport an illegal immigrant, while allocating only R2,180 for old-age pensions and R530 for child support grants.
“This reveals the government’s warped priorities—catering to those who break our laws while neglecting the needs of our most vulnerable citizens,” she stated.
Ngobeni called for an immediate halt to this “gross abuse” of taxpayer funds.
“It is unacceptable for South Africans to bear the financial brunt of the government’s failure to protect our borders and uphold our sovereignty.”
She further noted that ActionSA had written to Schreiber, urging him to recover deportation costs unfairly imposed on South African taxpayers. Ngobeni also called on Ronald Lamola, Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, to pressure foreign missions to curb the flow of illegal immigration.
“Enough is enough,” Ngobeni declared.
She concluded by stating that ActionSA would continue to hold the coalition government accountable for its failure to protect South African citizens and enforce immigration laws.
On 22 October, IOL News reported that the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) raised concerns over the revelation that the Department of Home Affairs had spent more than R52 million in five months deporting over 19,000 undocumented foreigners.
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