NGCOBO J designation as “citizens” for the purpose of qualifying for benefits under the Act or request that the five-year residence requirement be waived and thus expedite their naturalisation under the South African Citizenship Act and ultimately, entitlement to social welfare benefits. [133] It is inconceivable that the statutory exceptions that would allow a permanent resident to have access to social security benefits would be invoked in circumstances where there is a sponsor who is able and willing to provide for the permanent resident. It is only when the permanent resident has no sponsor or is unable to support him or herself, that the statutory exceptions could be invoked. Properly understood, therefore, the Act requires a permanent resident to look in the first instance to his or her own resources, or his or her sponsor for support and permits a claim on the security system only if that fails. The main judgment accepts that a statute which requires a permanent resident to look to the sponsor or his or her own resources in the first place and permits a claim on the social security system only if that fails, is not unreasonable. [134] Weighing up the competing considerations, in particular, having regard to the fact that the limitation in issue here is neither absolute nor permanent, I am satisfied that the limitation imposed by section 3 of the Act is reasonable and justifiable under section 36(1) of the Constitution. 81