Passport backlog finally cleared
The festive mood is slowly setting in and it’s only proper to focus on the positive despites spending long hours without electricity.
As you’ll know if you read last week’s column, Zimbabwe has been hit hard by the power crisis and no sector has been spared in the 18-hour long cuts.
The current regime has found it easy to blame the late former President, Robert Mugabe for the crisis, saying he failed as a leader to think ahead and put measures in place to avoid such situations.
Interestingly, almost everyone serving in the current regime worked closely with Mugabe during his time and always praised him for being a good, visionary leader. But now that there is this prolonged blackout, they point fingers at a dead man!
Anyway I don’t want to dwell much on this issue as I did so in detail last week.
As indicated, I want to focus on a win; which is the fact that the Registrar General Office has reportedly cleared the passport backlog which stood at 200, 000 at the beginning of the year.
Getting a passport in Zimbabwe has been a nightmare over the last couple of years but the introduction of e-passports this year seems to have eased the situation.
I am talking from experience because last year I had to drive 1, 000km to apply for a passport at a place where I knew someone with influence.
But last month I was able to assist my South Africa based sister get an e-passport here in Bulawayo without any hassle, besides of course having to be in the queue before the crack of dawn.
According to media reports, for the first time in many years Zimbabwe currently has no passport backlog. I truly believe it’s something worth writing home about considering how hard it was getting this travel document in the past.
The other good thing is that the service has been decentralized such that passport seekers will now just walk into the nearest passport office and apply for the document and have it within the stipulated time.
Plans are also underway to extend the service to Zimbabwean embassies across the world to serve Zimbos in the diaspora.
This is how things should be anyway, to get such services without any nightmares. We have suffered long enough as a people for these services hence we will dance and ululate when things eventually fall into place.
Of course the regime will also use this win for its campaigns but who cares as long as we the masses are benefitting, after all it’s the right of every citizen to have a passport if they so desire.
Fingers crossed for more positive news next week.
