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By Kwanele Sibiya | 2024-10-22
A woman who visited the ministry of home affairs to seek clarity on how she could go about divorcing her husband, was shocked to discover that she was not married at all.
The woman was informed that marriages that took place before the introduction of Personal Identification Numbers (PINs) in 2002 were considered null and void by the ministry.
After the introduction of the pin, the ministry invited couples to submit their old marriage certificates and their pins, so that the certificates could be re-registered in the new system.
However, a source at the ministry disclosed that very few couples showed up to renew their marriage certificates, resulting in many marriages declared null and void without their knowledge.
Challenges
The source said most couples whose marriage certificates did not have pins were in danger of losing their inheritance in the event their marriages end in divorce.
This is because, according to the source, such marriages were as good as non-existent as they were not registered at the home affairs ministry.
According to *Sindi, who preferred anonymity, she and her husband encountered marital challenges, which prompted her to seek a divorce.
“Because I didn’t know the processes of getting a divorce, I decided to visit the ministry of home affairs to get information.
“I got the shock of my life as I was told that they had no record of my marriage,” she said.
Communications Officer at the Ministry of Home Affairs Mlandvo Dlamini confirmed that marriages before the introduction of the pin were not registered in the system.
He said at first, the marriage certificates were renewed free of charge but upon realising that most couples were dragging their feet in this regard, government then introduced a certain fee that the couples were supposed to pay as a form of a penalty for their inability to respond promptly.
Dlamini then invited couples affected by this to visit the ministry so they could be assisted.
“The ministry will soon announce a deadline for the renewal of these certificates after which those who fail to come will be left out. We do avail these services during the ongoing mopping exercise so couples must do the right thing and register their marriages,” he said.
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