By JOSEPH ZULU on October 07,2010
LONHLUPHEKO – An elderly woman has been denied an identity card (ID) because her fingerprints cannot be detected on a scanner.
Joyce Nhlabatsi, who is in her late 60s, said she went to the local immigration office to apply for an ID, but was turned back because the officers failed to detect her fingerprints.
Nhlabatsi said her situation was difficult because she has been struggling to get elderly grants since she does not have an ID card.
"I have now lost hope because I have been told by the welfare officers that I won’t get my grants if I fail to produce an ID card," said Nhlabatsi.
Nhlabatsi said she did not understand why it has been difficult for her fingerprints to be read through the scanner. Lugongolweni Member of Parliament, Joseph Souza said he was aware of the issue.
Assisted
Souza said Nhlabatsi had to obtain a document from an official at the Ministry of Home Affairs so that the she could be assisted in obtaining her grant.
Nhlabatsi lives with two other elderly women at a homestead and all three struggle to walk to the place where their grants are disbursed.
She said they depended entirely on handouts and that, without the elderly grants, she would starve to death.
The Regional Director at Home Affairs, Penny-Jane Dlamini, advised Nhlabatsi to visit her department.
She said this sometimes happened when someone’s fingers were very dirty and cannot be scanned.
Dlamini explained that officers from her department were well trained and would be able to assist her.
"If it happens that they still cannot assist her, we can contact our Mbabane office and they can advise us on what to do," said Dlamini.