Passport nightmare: Scores fail to travel

• Thousands use illegal entry points
• Increased risk of spreading Covid-19
• Over 1000 throng RG’s office daily

By Kundai Marunya and Abel Karowangoro

It has been a nightmarish festive season for thousands of Zimbabweans living in the diaspora and many locals who have been unable to travel for the holidays due to failure to access passports.
The country has virtually stopped issuing travelling documents to ordinary citizens, instead prioritising elites and well-heeled Zimbabweans living in the diaspora.
The excuse given by authorities for not printing adequate passports is that of foreign currency shortages to acquire materials used in making them. Thus, the RG’s office has resorted to issuing the travel documents only to those that can afford to pay in United States dollars.
An insider at the Registrar-General’s office in Harare told Nhau that the office is only printing a maximum of 10 passports a day.
“The documents are mostly reserved for diplomats and the few ‘special cases’ approved by the Minister of Home Affairs,” said the source.
The “special cases” are mostly Zimbabweans in the diaspora and well-connected individuals who have to part with US$318 for an emergency passport.
“The passport office in Harare is currently dealing with about 1000 passport seekers daily who travel from different parts of the country,” said the source.
Zimbabwe has 11 passport offices located at the country’s provincial capitals, with the most recent one being officially opened last week by Minister of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage Kazembe Kazembe in Chitungwiza.
The provincial offices have, however, failed to cater for the growing number of people in need of the all-important documents.
Ironically, during the opening of the Chitungwiza Civil Registry, Kazembe quoted Section 66 (1) (c) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe which says, “every Zimbabwean citizen has the right to a passport or other travel document”.
And speaking at the same event, acting Registrar-General Henry Machiri said additional passport offices would soon be rolled out.
These developments have no immediate impact and will not reduce pressure at the Harare Central Registry offices as all emergency passports have been directed to the main branch.
According to recent reports, Machiri said the centralisation of issuing emergency passports to Harare is to ensure passports are received within 24 hours of application.
“It is not that we are denying them to apply from any offices they wish but if you look at it, you apply for a 24-hour passport and you are in Bulawayo and we take four or more days to give you that passport, that becomes a breach of contract. That’s where the matter is.
“For this US dollar passport, if you give us your application at 9am, you are supposed to get it at 9am the following day,” he said.
The centralisation of issuing of emergency passports has seen many people in need of travel documents spending nights in queues, exposing them to cold, robbers and weather elements.
Some end up bribing touts who operate in league with officials at the office to be moved up the queue.
Nhau spoke to Simbai Muzanenhamo who is seeking to renew his passport.
“My passport expired whilst I was still in South Africa, I tried to apply for it whilst I was there but my efforts were fruitless,” he said.
“I have been coming here (Harare Central Registry) for more than a week but I am not being served because they are only taking 10 people,” he said.
“Touts are taking advantage of us, they are changing US$20 so that I one can be assisted in time.”
Muzanenhamo said his passport expired but the work permit is still valid.
“I heard that this is an added advantage and I will be given first preference but as it is there are just so many people in my situation,” he said.
As desperation takes hold, some travellers have resorted to sneaking in and out of the country through the many porous border points to be with their loved ones during the holiday season.
Those travelling are flouting many laws including forgoing customs checks thus skipping tests for Covid-19, among many other measures recently implemented to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus.
According to reports, Beitbridge, which borders Zimbabwe and South Africa has more than 20 known illegal points of entry. This involves crossing the crocodile infested Limpopo River in rafts.
This is at a time when water levels have rapidly increased due to flash floods, exposing border jumpers to possible drowning.
Some desperate travellers are reportedly being sneaked in in haulage trucks for R1000, while some women are sneaked in and out of the country in exchange for sex.
This desperation to get home is, however, exposing Zimbabweans to a new Covid-19 variant, highly contagious, that has ravaged South Africa over the past few weeks, forcing the neighbouring country to tighten their lockdown restrictive measures. Nhau/Indaba