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Herald Reporter
Registrar-General Mr Tobaiwa Mudede yesterday warned Zimbabweans to be on the look out for bogus passport agents who are swindling unsuspecting passport applicants of their money using unscrupulous means.
This follows reports that many people have been duped into paying top up fees on passport applications after receiving messages ordering them to send money via the EcoCash platform.
In a statement yesterday, the RG said his offices did not use the EcoCash facility to collect passport fees.
“The Registrar-General does not use the EcoCash facility to collect passport application fees. The public is therefore warned not to be persuaded to pay passport fees through any electronic money transfer platform,” reads the statement.
The RG also said ordinary passport fees remained at $53 and all other passport fees were unchanged.
“In case of changes, the Registrar-General would inform the public of the adjustments or changes in civil registration document fees through the public media including newspapers, televisions and radio.” He warned the public to have all their transactions handled within the RG’s offices countrywide as they did not have agents operating on their behalf.
“The Registrar-General has noted with great concern fraudsters operating as agents for the Registrar-General and sending text messages to the unsuspecting public asking for cash as top up money over and above the gazetted passport application fees.
“The Registrar-General does not have agents, middlemen, proxies, organisations or any other entity that collects money on its behalf. All monies are paid physically at the Registrar-General’s office across the country,” reads the statement.
Getting a passport was a mammoth task until the recent computerisation of the RG’s office.
Online Reporter