ActionSA has confirmed through its party leader Herman Mashaba that it has written to the Department of Home Affairs and the South African Revenue Service (Sars) requesting their urgent intervention in Temba, Hammanskraal, where the party discovered illegal foreign nationals conducting “dubious and unlicensed businesses”.
This comes hot on the heels of discoveries of military training camps in Mpumalanga and Limpopo, where in matter of just a week, there have been reports of unlicensed military training camps operated by illegal foreigners.
According to its member of Parliament Lerato Ngobeni, on their arrival in Hammanskraal during an oversight visit last week, an ActionSA team of officials found more than 20 homes occupied by illegal foreigners.
“Upon our arrival and inspection of just two blocks in Temba, we discovered 23 homes, many occupied by illegal immigrants that had been converted into spaza shops, restaurants, and wholesalers selling counterfeit goods, with some structures even found to be connected to illegal electrical transformers,” said Ngobeni.
Ngobeni indicated that their involvement in the matter comes on the back of a petition signed by concerned residents of the area, and as an intervention the party has written to Home Affairs and Sars requesting that they intervene.
“With the mandate of residents who signed the petition for our intervention, ActionSA has stepped up and written to the Home Affairs minister to formally request raids on the 23 homes for which we have provided the exact locations. We have also written to National Treasury and Sars requesting an investigation into the compliance status of each business with relevant laws and regulations,” she said.
Ngobeni revealed that the party will also pursue the matter with the City of Tshwane to institute an investigation into the flouting of municipal trading and zoning by-laws concerning the 23 identified homes.
“ActionSA believes that in any self-respecting country where the rule of law is obligatory and not merely suggestive as some might believe, lawlessness should never be allowed to prevail to the extent we are witnessing in South Africa. It cannot be that South Africa is blackmailed into being the exception, where the proliferation of drugs, counterfeit goods, and the hijacking of buildings are met with leniency instead of a decisive crackdown,” Ngobeni said.
Furthermore, with the country battling to contain the scourge of crime and illegal immigration, Ngobeni said ActionSA has drawn the line and will use every legal avenue at the party’s disposal to protect South Africa and its people from the ills that continue to destroy communities, whether perpetrated by foreign nationals or South Africans.
“ActionSA will therefore continue to fight for the residents of Temba and communities across South Africa ravaged by lawlessness and the impact of illegal immigration. We are committed to leveraging our representation in all three spheres of government to restore the rule of law; uphold the integrity of our immigration system; and ensure that the interests of South Africans, especially the most vulnerable are protected,” Ngobeni said.
The Star