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Seven years warming Home Affairs benches

Ask any person who has been to the Department of Home Affairs offices and they will tell you the place is hell on earth.

Ask any person who has been to the Department of Home Affairs offices and they will tell you the place is hell on earth.

Mzwakhe Vilakazi, 27, of Kliptown in Soweto, has been to Home Affairs to apply for an ID so many times that he has been mistaken as one of the staffers.

But he always leaves empty-handed.

"The first time was in 1994, just after the elections. I applied for the ID when Home Affairs officials visited our school. But I did not get it because I did not have a birth certificate," he said.

He was instead given forms to apply for a birth certificate before getting an ID. Thirteen years later he still has no ID.

Vilakazi then decided to apply for the ID from different Home Affairs offices. That also yielded no results.

"Waiting for an ID for 13 years is a long time. We will do a thorough investigation to find out what really happened," said department spokesman Mantshele wa ga Tau. - Mfundekelwa Mkhulisi

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