Dear bloggers,
My handbag was stolen in Johannesburg in January of this year.In it was my passport among other things.I applied for a new passport on 30 January 2009 at the Zambian Embassy offices in Pretoria South Africa. Up to now every time I call the embassy, I am told it is not ready and that they are expecting passports at the month end. This has been going on for the last two months.
Now I am living in fear of authorities in South Africa declaring me as an illegal immigrant and yet I had a valid work permit in my stolen passport. The embassy knows about this but they act as if they can’t be bothered.
I am not sure if this is just a problem with me or others are facing the same problem with the embassy.Please help to bring this to attention of the relevant people.
Isn’t their job to help citizens out in such situations? Is it acceptable that a passport they said would take a month is now
taking indefinitely because they are not sure when it will actually happen, if it does?
Could someone please advise me what to do.I am so frustrated and fearful at the same time.
Yours,
Zambian lady in South Africa
Where is MMD Chiefbootlicker to answer the charges.He claims to be doing a job there.
If its hard to get a passport pa zed wat more kwa SouthAfrica.I agree with the writer the zambian embassies do not help their citizens fully
Embassy in moscow is another crap.Thats what happens when you send caders to serve in foreign missions.The MMD Chiefbootlicker can attest to this coz he himself has confessed on this blog being a cadre.Sad Indeed.Dambisa come to Zed please!You are beautiful and intelligent.
Forget about Zambian embassies wherever you go. They could be in developed countries but their actions are still Zambian, mind you. Even just being courteous by replying to an email you send them informing them about your stay once you arrive in any country. I wonder if they even have time to sit on the internet. Once you visit them they look like they have arrived in life, bragging in their talk and walk- rubbish. Infact, instead of being resource centres in terms of development ideas, they are just a bunch cost centres. What purpose do they serve anyway, to receive the President when he/she visits that particular country? What if he/she does not go there for two years in row.
This story is not real!
Why that our embassies are not able to issue temporal passports.? Every country does that.
Govt must seriously look into the issue of embassies. In a foreign country where I am for school, the embassy asked me if I know someone at the passport office so that that person can push for the execution of my new passport. I was shocked to hear that coz I thot the embassy had the powers to ensure that passport for Zambians abroad are done in the shortest possible time. I thot one of their roles is to serve a Zambian abroad. It seems workers at the embassies dont know their powers (authority) and most probably dont understand their duties. Its like embassies dont exist if you ask a common Zambian abroad.
Somehow I gree jazzie jazzie. I dont support the incompetence of our embassy but if you leave in SA you wont be using this blog to address your problem. We should give credit werer its due. The current staff at the embassy are very helpful. They are very honest about the delay in getting a passport through there office. Lets not just complain. See how best the system can work for us!
#4 I agree with you. They all have the same Zambian mentality! just look at the way the zambian emabssy in Russia handled Cardson kabwe’s case…. crap!!! Goverment should look into this matter without fail!
zambian embassies r a disgrace
The story teller should have ‘filmed’ the incident on her mobile phone or something. I think a video can make things more interesting and your issue would get addressed much faster. Alternatively phone the embassy and record what is discussed so that u can use it as reference. A few paragraphs on LT is not good enough for me. If u want to find back, u have to hit a bit harder against the system. That will put staff under pressure everywhere and they will be careful how the address issues directed at them.
This is what happiness when u sends cadres to serve in foreign missions
Just pay the High Commissioner 1000 rands u see the passport will come in just weeks
Let us get organised by using our associations and signing petitions to state house. The services we are receiving are unacceptable. WE should say no to mediocre staff at embassies and missions abroad.
Welcome to the club sister. That house called the “embassy” is just a house (yes JUST a house) with a Zambian flag on it and nothing more.
Sorry for that incident my dear. Just ask a relative or friend in zambia to get you a new passport. That same embassy told me last year to just go to Zambia myself and get the passport.Ofcourse they don’t always have forms for a travel document,they have not learnt how to use fax machines let alone scanners and the use of the internet. To come to think of it I’ve never heard of someone who got their passport via the embassy! RB please recall embassy staff, when you visit SA you can come to my place for Nshima and Zambian hospitality just tell your entourage to bring some kapenta, bream and chibwabwa. Who needs embassies anyway.
That embassy is not even a house its a toilet………..
My Sister contact Muvi TV and tell them your situation. They will so a story in you and this will force the people to do some tyhing. That is the way they get things done in the civilised world when they feel they are not getting anywhere.
I advise that you chronicle the correspondance that you are having with the Embassy so that a time line can be established and look up the law on what it says are the roles of the Embassy in the event of a person like you loosing their passport.
Call the Minister of foreigh affairs Zambia, do what ever you can but i suggest you contact Muvi TV as well. have faith! Those who set the regulations up had the people on thier mind and were real civil servants!
I agree with #14 we need to organise ourselves and sign petitions. Can LT help us to come up with a petition that we can send to state house? If it takes 21 days for a passport in Zambia, why must it take 3mths thru the embassy? Let us hold these people accountable and not just accept that they are inefficient and ineffective. #5, only when such happens to you will u realise and appreciate the severity of this. I have also been to the embassy in pretoria the staff are ‘nice’ becoz they will talk to u but not help u. Wake up man!
# 5, it may sound not to be real but these things are happening. I’m here in China and it has happened to me. My passport is not stolen but i applied for the new passport in december of last year and until now believe it or not i have not gotten mine. i am not thge only one here, they are other who can testify to that. instead i have recieved this letter from the embassy that mean nothing as it is not directly wrutten to the authorities here. in short, i understand what the sister is going through and the fear that she is bearing. i have a sister here too and i don’t know what will happen to her when finally she get the passport.
Lt, how come my posting is missing?
Just fire them all and send them back to Zambia, they have no purpose but to be human scarecrows that are living off tax payers.
This might be an isolated. In general the Zambian embassy here in Pretoria is very helpful.
The embassis are not fit for purpose, they think they are on holiday instead of doing their job. These pipo need to be kicked out.
This might be an isolated case. In general the Zambian embassy here in Pretoria is very helpful.
mic check…1..2
believe me, its not just in SA, we have the same problem here in Germany. its been 2 months since i applied for a new passport and yet still no news!
Zambian lady in South Africa, while you are still waiting for your katupa, go to the police in SA and report the case, then go to the imgration offices in SA and get a document , then go to the zambian Emba in SA, show them the case number, then they will push for your passport.
Acording to reearch, 85% of road accidents are cause by ilegal drivers. By ilegal i mean not authorised to drivie, the other problem is Drink driving., under the influence.
Zambians should start applying for foreign passports! Get rich or die trying LOL
my best advice: go there at the embassy at the month-end they are saying your passport will be ready. don’t leave the offices until they make calls to Zambia, and if they don’t then you too don’t leave the embassy even if it takes you sleeping there. they surely won’t let you stay at the embassy alone.
It is very sad that our people continue to experience these kinds of troubles all the time.
I must say that folk at the UK High Commission handled by passport renewal in record time. They said within three months I should check back with them, and true to their word, my passport was ready.
For obvious reasons, they could not post it to me, I had to arrange for its collection. I must have delayed close to a month to pick it up, but even then there was no trouble.
My experience is not to say others have not had trouble, but to say that if people will commend the people who work at Embassies, the staff there must keep up the good work, improve on it and work efficiently. If there are…
Dear LT,
I hope you will respond to this appeal. You did not respond to my earlier appeal.
Can you please increase the number of characters for posting on your site? It is frustrating to write so much, and only to see the contribution cut down to just a few incomplete lines. I know we are not paying to post, but the idea is to have good dialogue, or is it not?
LT weekend pics weh,but not ifyama SANGOMA
Sorry for you. Try harder.
Has anyone ever been helped by our embassies abroad? We need career diplomats not people appointed for political favors.
I dont aggree with what many of you are sayin, espcially when you say that you can not rely on the zambian embassy abroad her where i am Geofrey simasiku happens to be our ambassador if you like High commisioner.Though with the new appointments by RB he is no longer. He helped much even the release of some Zambian guys from prison who did very embarring staff stuff.He also helped a lot on helping Zambians get new passports. And everything has ben well. The problem is not becuase one has Zambian mentallity, What is zambian metallity?. The thing depend how hard working your ambassador is,are there good leaders. my passport got collected from Kabwe in february it took 21 days, and that the tim
Sometimes passports take long i think possible they would like to send them in bulk may be since you are in South Africa may be not many are applying from the embassy there.Others have told me that there passports even within Zambia have taken long like two month. I would know exactly what. If you are desparately needing it you can get a traveling document from the embassy, it should take the same day then travel to Zambia tell them you want to collect it yourself.Then travel go to Lusaka if they used lusaka, with you barcoded reciept. Tell you what you cant not be arrested if you have a work permit, it in the immigration system.If they arrested you you can take them to court they dont want.
I feel for you my sister and I know how hard it is in South Africa to move/live without an ID. Shame on the officials in Pretoria.
And about other embassies, Cardson Kabwe’s case is a good example as to how inefficient/incompetent these chaps can be.
34 Zoe, hi Ba C , mwitipata, you dont even say hi these days why .?
Tell me which Zambian Embassy has a positive report of ever helping a Zambian for once. Most of the people in our Embassies are not there for us. They are there for themselves. When they get the jobs to represent us they spend most of their time going to school. They are never there for the people they represent during office hours. In the evenings they attend parties and dinners with other foreign embassies. We need career diplomates who are trained and educated for the very reason of representing and standing up for us. Cadres have destroyed Zambia’s image abroad. Can this be the only this we know best? Selfishness.
The Zambian embassies are CRAP! The staff is semi-literate and do not understand that we are their customers !
Zed embassy here in the UK only have answering machines and no people. What a mess. Since November our passports ar still not ready.
The zambian embassy in the UK ir rubbish. I applied for my passport in december last year, and am still waiting. Bwezani na ba lupwa lwakwe bonse fipuba. Mr Chibwa is not running that place properly. Kwaliba ichalo chakuti bonse abamibombela fipuba!! I live in london and I have see Mr Chibwa and his Wife and some of the embassy staff at a lot of functions in london. They are rude and not helpful. Lets petition for them to be recalled!!
THE QUICKEST WAY IN ZAMBIA IS BRIBING THEM. BUT, IF YOU ARE LIKE ME (I DON’T BRIBE OR GET BRIBED), YOU WILL NEVER GET IT. I APPLIED FOR MINE IN 2007 BETWEEN JUNE AND AUGUST LONG BEFORE THE NEW ONES WERE EVEN AN IDEA. I AM STILL WAITING FOR IT. ZAMBIAN EMBASSIES ABROAD DON’T HELP THEIR CITIZENS. TO MAKE MATTER WORSE, THEY DON’T EVEN HOLD MEETINGS WITH PONTENTIAL INVESTORS. THEY ONLY COME ABROAD TO FATTEN, PERIOD.
I got my passport I am holding through the Zambian Embassy in Pretoria. They phoned me and I went to pick up the passport. I was very happy because I received a very excellent service. I became so proud of the embassy in Pretoria.
Boza iwe u jst hav a relative ku embasy. These guys are sleepy like the mutu. They dont knw why they wok there. Jst geting tax free salaries. Petoria is worse the acountant wil b out 2 the bank 4rm 9am to 330pm doing wat in the world of e pipo hav gone electronic n u wil see him wth envelops 4rm 1 ofice 2 the other like a bemba monkey doing chitemene system. Mentality ya mu boma bs
Those who say they have had no problems with all these so called embassies are either corrupt or have friends or relatives working there. They truly are a disgrace. Most of my fellow Zambians I have talked to in regard to getting their passports, they have told me that they had to bribe somebody.
Someone even told me that if you don’t bribe them then you will never have a passport. Now this is disgusting. This is what we call Zambian mentallity.
Zambian embassies or High commissions are just wasting Zambian money. They don’t really serve the needs of Zambians in the diaspora unless if someone knows someone there or puts into the the application form a small brown envelop.
Well I have come late to this thread, but anyway just want to say that am not sure if this story is true. Yes some passports are delayed by some have been issued in time. What I would advise the posters in future is to provide their names and also talk to us at the embassy we are people get to know our names and if you have a problem, yes post your issue to the media and provide full details and names of the people you dealt with on what day and what they said. It will be easy to follow up such issues and quickly resolve your problem. That is all I can say
Nakuno Ku Canada its the same…. Ba Pushi!.. Aba tumpa..
Too bad…the lesson here is that always have certified copies of all your documents.makes life easy.
Te Zambian mentallity, mwe bantu. Mufulo, bukaitemwe, nokukanaishiba incito ba bela mu mission. Is there a training in Zambia to prepare people for Diplomatic Mission? RB, it is time all Dip personnel was called back and send trained muntus.
response to Dube #14: The SOZUSA association in Washington DC last updated thier information on the web in 2005. My cousin sent her passport to the embassy in DC a year ago before the new passports were even a reality. she is scheduled to travel soon and the Embassy doesn’t know were her paper work is. Who does one address matters to when the whole system is corrupt?
Ladies and Gentlemen I think you are missing the point regarding getting passports at Zambian embassies. The bottom line is that the embassies cannot produce passports therefore no matter how efficient they can be their hands are tied because they are still dependent on the passport office in Lusaka. Until embasssies are empowered to start issuing passports this problem will not be solved
55 thats not true. Zambians at embassies have a terrible attitude. They work like they are in Zambia where no one is supervised. When they see people coming in thats when they leave their desks and the way they answer you cant like it. I believe the commisioners have the powers to change the way their offices run. I was surprised when i went to the embassy in the UK i desperately needed a toilet only to be told to go in the park nearby. I felt like firing the government!
It’s the passport off. empoyees who are illiterate, corrupt and plain stupid. I personally travelled to Z to renew my pp and got the shock of my life when my new pp was withheld in exchange for a bribe. I have names but will save them for muvi TV. The Z embassy diplomats seem to not care at all..they have the ” not my problem attitude” yet they get paid to serve zambians living abroad. It’s a shame and unfortunate for us. I agree that something has to be done..we can’t allow this to go on. Lets all unite and fight for our rights as Zambian citizens.