Home Affairs Pledges Swift Action To Resolve 300,000 Remaining Blocked IDs

The Department of Home Affairs has vowed to speed up the process of unblocking identity documents (IDs) still under review, following renewed protests in Pretoria. Deputy Director-General Thomas Sigama made the commitment to demonstrators outside the department’s head office on Monday afternoon.

The protest was organised by the civil movement Soil of Africa, which accuses the department of unfairly blocking thousands of IDs. The department had previously flagged over two million IDs for potential fraud, leading to widespread frustration among affected citizens.

Last month, Soil of Africa submitted a memorandum outlining their grievances and demands. After claiming that the department ignored their submission, the group returned to the streets to demand urgent action.

Court Ruling Exposed Flawed ID Blocking Procedures

The issue of blocked IDs has persisted for years. In January last year, the Pretoria High Court ruled that the department acted unlawfully by failing to follow due process before blocking IDs.

The court ordered Home Affairs to review and re-legitimise the affected documents, while also giving individuals a chance to make representations.

According to the department, the ID blocking saga dates back to 2005, linked to historical data errors in the National Population Register. Following the court’s 2023 order, the department was granted two years to resolve the matter.

Over 2 Million IDs Unblocked, 300,000 Cases Remain

Addressing protestors, Sigama revealed that substantial progress had been made.

“But today we are happy to inform you that we have already unblocked more than 2.1 million,” Sigama said.

Despite this, approximately 300,000 South Africans remain without access to their IDs — a situation that continues to affect their daily lives, from accessing banking services to seeking employment.

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Sigama assured the crowd that work on the remaining cases would begin on Tuesday, marking the next phase of the department’s clean-up process.

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