South African President Cyril Ramaphosa’s immigration measures are being debated, with others saying the president’s five-point proposal is not achievable within the June 30 deadline for illegal immigrants to vacate South Africa.
Among the those drawn to the debate is former diplomat Dr Kindsley Makhubela who stated that the president spoke about people utilising illegal immigrants as a political tool and dealing with the sources of migration in the long run, which was an important point to address, but did not reveal the names of his preferred envoys to be sent shortly.
“I think the speech was quite fantastic. However, he did not provide the details with respect to the envoy that he’s going to send around,” he said, adding that the president must use the available diplomatic mission to be able to communicate these issues. 
“It’s fast, efficient, and it provides detailed analysis about where this country stands. The envoys will go there not understanding the detail needed for issues. They may be given a brief, but they will not understand the details in integrity. I think that’s one issue that came out very hard for me, that the president needs to really rethink about it,” Dr Makhubela said.
He also highlighted that the envoy deployment had been done in 2019 when there were tensions, but still there was violence, “and it was unfortunate at that time that what was happening on the streets was really just quite an eyesore.”
He also said South Africa may not know for certainty where all undocumented migrants are from when the country is planning to send envoys.
The president was supported for spelling out what the government is doing including the decision that has been taken by the cabinet to strengthen the question of illegal migration but it may be losing grip on its sovereignty.
“This president will be creating an expectation that each time Africa passes laws, it must go and justify and explain to foreigners,” Dr Makhubela said.
