Era of porous border posts gradually coming to an end: Schreiber

Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber says the era of porous border posts is gradually coming to an end.

He addressed the media together with the Border Management Authority (BMA) Commissioner, Dr Michael Masiapato, in Pretoria following a major drug bust at the Beitbridge border post in Limpopo on Wednesday.

Schreiber says the country has the capability to digitally verify the identities and biometrics of foreign nationals and suspicious goods before they enter the country.

Authorities seized drugs worth close to one billion rand in a cross-border operation.

Three suspects from Malawi and Zambia, respectively, have been arrested on charges of drug smuggling.

Schreiber warned criminal syndicates that South Africa is not a free passage for drug trafficking.

He says, “If we look at the border posts themselves, we recently also announced this massive public-private partnership, a R12.5 billion project to physically rebuild our border posts. So that will help in securing those border posts. The electronic travel authorisation that I mentioned, where we are for the very first time using biometrics in our immigration system so that we can identify people ahead of time and we can know when they haven’t left, and all those kinds of issues, that is being rolled out in a phased approach. You know, if you look at the focus on enforcement, the BMA has prevented hundreds of thousands of people from illegally entering South Africa in the 1st place, which is the best outcome.”

OFFICERS COMMENDED

Schreiber commended the officers for intercepting the drug consignment.

He says, “Today I want to commend every official involved in this operation, but I also want to emphasise that this interception is not an isolated event or a matter of luck. This was not a coincidence; it is the product of sustained reforms that are steadily rebuilding the capability of the South African state to secure our borders and restore the rule of law.”

Schreiber says, “They are exactly the kind of people we need in law enforcement in South Africa. I think if you look at the diligence they displayed, the way in which they were proactive in identifying this issue, the way they refused to look the other way, and I think the way they worked, until they completely dismantled this thing was built with steel into the truck, and they did not stop, they did not give up, and they saved the people of South Africa.”

Masiapato says an eight-hour operation based on targeted intelligence resulted in the arrest of three suspects travelling in a Malawian-registered truck.

He says the vehicle, which entered through the North Gate, was flagged and subjected to advanced high technology screening equipment, ultimately revealing a large consignment of methaqualone concealed inside.

Masiapato says, “It was very much clear that this is one of those serious busts that has unfolded. The minister has spoken about almost a billion in terms of the actual estimated street value, and the actual figure is 998 million, which is basically just a few thousand below a billion, and that is basically the essence.”

VIDEO | Home Affairs and BMA media briefing:

COURT CASE

The case against three Malawian nationals, who were arrested in connection with the intercepted drug consignment, has been postponed to Friday next week.

The matter in the Musina Magistrate’s Court has been postponed for profiling and securing a Chichewa language interpreter.

The prosecution has requested more time to establish the identities of the accused, their addresses, as well as their migration status.

The accused Maguchi Gayo Nwenda, Philip Chanje and Thandi Phiri made their first appearance after their arrest on Wednesday.

They were travelling from Malawi to South Africa when their truck, carrying drug manufacturing substances, was flagged by the BMA.

Additional reporting by Baatseba Mabowa.