Durban - The driver's licence printing machine is up and running, and according to Transport Minister, Fikile Mbalula, staff are working day and night to clear the backlog.
Mbalula visited the Driving Licence Card Account (DLCA) facility to monitor operations.
"See South Africa, the machine is working. It has been repaired. We are working on a new system," he said.
Mbalula said he would provide an update on the progress of the machine repair work and backlog.
He said the machine is not a small printer and required lots of staff, with years of technical experience, to operate it. He added that some have been working with the department long before he arrived and had expert knowledge of how to operate the machine.
Mbalula commended staff for their commitment to ensuring that the backlog is cleared.
"We are back in operation, we are rolling, we are doing cards. Hallelujah," he said.
Earlier this month, IOL reported that the department was grappling with a massive backlog of over 400 000 applications and could not issue any new driver’s licences after the machine broke down. At the time, Mbalula confirmed that the machine had been sent to Germany to undergo repairs.
He said the breakdown of the machine occurred before plans could be set in place to replace it, causing a massive backlog.
IOL