The Minister of Home Affairs, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, announced that the department intends to revoke the passport of Dr Nandipha Magudumana.
Here’s why Home Affairs revokes Dr Nandipha passport
This decision comes as a result of the financial costs incurred by the department due to her deportation from Tanzania, which involved a chartered flight that cost the taxpayer approximately R1.4 million.
Addressing the media, Minister Motsoaledi reiterated that Magudumana’s deportation was carried out lawfully and refuted her claims of being abducted or kidnapped, as stated in her court application seeking release from prison.
He clarified that department officials formed part of a multi-disciplinary delegation that went to Tanzania to bring both Magudumana and Bester back to South Africa after they were declared illegal immigrants and instructed to leave the country within three days.
Minister Motsoaledi expressed his objection to the non-inclusion of the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) as a respondent in Magudumana’s court papers.
He highlighted that a letter dated Sunday, 21 May 2023, was sent to her attorneys by the director-general of the DHA, challenging the application and demanding its removal from the urgent roll. The minister deemed the omission of the DHA from the court papers as suspicious.
Dr Nandipha’s plan to avoid prison revealed
Magudumana has filed an urgent application in the Free State High Court, seeking a declaration that her arrest in Tanzania and subsequent deportation to South Africa were unlawful.
The court will hear the matter on Thursday, 24 May 2023.
Furthermore, Minister Motsoaledi retracted his previous statements regarding the affidavit from celebrity doctor Mmereka Ntsani, also known as Dr Pashy, claiming that her passport had been stolen.
He clarified that Ntsani informed the police in 2019 that her passport had been stolen but later disclosed in March 2023 that she had actually given her passport to Magudumana to assist with obtaining a work visa in the United States.
Dr Pashy has sent a cease-and-desist letter to the Minister, demanding a retraction of his comments and a public apology.
Thabo Bester gets his first-ever ID at 36
In a separate development, Thabo Bester has been issued a South African Identity Document (ID) by the Department of Home Affairs. Minister Motsoaledi confirmed that Bester cooperated with officials during the ID issuance process, which involved investigation, interviews with his mother, and verification of his birth at the hospital.
The Minister emphasised that Bester had never previously applied for an ID and that the department’s involvement was part of establishing his identity.
The issuance of Bester’s ID took place on Wednesday, 17 May 2023, and the Minister obtained permission to showcase it publicly.
Bester, whose attempts to challenge his arrest on the basis of his identity have, thus far, been unsuccessful, is due back in court on 20 June 2023, alongside Magudumana’s father, Zolile Sekeleni.
His accomplices, five former G4S employees, will learn of the fate of their bail applications on Tuesday, 23 May 2023.