Supervisor of Dept of Home Affairs right fit for People of Drakenstein?

The Department of Home Affairs Paarl has been criticized repeatedly for poor performance. Citizens from the Boland area must wait outside in long queues, to be assisted and then only to be advised they should come back the following day.

Government institutions are important to the functionality and operations of society. It is the actions of these institutions that either add to the prosperity or devastation of the nation, and the people of Drakenstein have had enough and are beginning to speak up and demanding better services from the Department of Home Affairs Paarl.

Carlo Small says “The facts are that up to 80% of people in Drakenstein are Afrikaans so for such an important entity as the Department of Home Affairs, officials are needed that understand the community and can accommodate all visitors in their home language”.

The operations and performance of any departmental institution mainly depend on the managerial capabilities of managers. It is known that the staff at the Home Affairs office lack the ability to communicate and assist the people in their native language. In the case of the Department of Home Affairs Paarl, the Supervisor’s abilities are questioned with citizens saying he is known for poor communication and management. 

“Upon my visit to the Home Affairs office in Paarl on 16 February, I noticed, that language is also a huge concern, the supervisor was assisting an elderly woman who could not speak proper English, and the supervisor insisted the lady explain her problem in a language that she barely understands, and when the woman’s son come to intervene, the supervisor refused to listen to him.”

There have been constant calls from the community of Drakenstein for the Supervisor to be replaced by someone more capable of managing the offices in Paarl. Citizens also say that someone more suitable who can manage properly and also provide innovative solutions to the question of efficient service delivery is needed.