Johannesburg – Only 10 of the 300 Ghanaian nationals processed for repatriation at OR Tambo International Airport were in South Africa legally, Home Affairs Immigration and Law Enforcement Head Stephen van Neel has revealed, as the first repatriation flight out of Johannesburg faced hours of delays before eventually departing.
Van Neel confirmed the figure as officials worked through the night verifying documents ahead of the scheduled 4:00 a.m. departure, which was pushed back by several hours.
“Of the three hundred individuals that were on that list we only found 10 of them being legal in the country, the rest of them are illegal without documents or actually not complying or have overstayed but there are some sanctions that needs to be taken and the department of Home Affairs will indeed make that those are implemented,” van Neel said. 
Those found to have overstayed their visas face being banned from re-entering South Africa under the country’s Immigration Act.
Ghana’s High Commission confirmed that fewer than 300 citizens ultimately boarded the chartered flight to Accra, with some turned away because their papers were not in order. Those individuals will be given a second chance to travel on another repatriation flight scheduled for Sunday. Home Affairs officials said they hoped to have the next list verified by Saturday at the latest to avoid a repeat of the overnight delays.
The repatriations are unfolding against a backdrop of growing protests against undocumented migrants in South Africa, driven by movements including March and March.
Ghana’s High Commissioner in South Africa, Benjamin Kofi Quashie, was firm in his response, making clear that Accra had no plans to retaliate.
“Ever since this whole March and March and Dudula started, have you seen any Ghanaian in the streets of Accra going after any South Africans, no. You know why? The state institutions in Ghana work,” Quashie said.
He added that the repatriation of any foreign national must remain a matter for state institutions rather than individuals or vigilante groups.
“We believe that if there are any South African that’s needs to be repatriated to SA, it’s not an individual responsibility to do, it’s the responsibility of the state institutions. We are living in a very law-abiding environment, a law-abiding society.”
Quashie was equally direct on the question of reprisals.
“So we believe that if there will be no reprisal attacks, my ministry of foreign affairs has stated time without number, do not expect any reprisal attacks from Ghana. Ghana is bigger and would ensure that we continue to work together with the spirit of pan-Africanism.”
