While no issues had been reported in the Eastern Cape despite “glitches” in the Sassa payment system, Buffalo City Metro residents wanting to lodge grant complaints found the agency’s office in the East London CBD closed on Monday because no personal protection equipment (PPE) had been delivered.
Sassa communication and marketing director Sandy Godlwana said on Monday there had been payment glitches in some parts of the country where beneficiaries had not been able to access their grants.
“Sassa has identified and resolved the glitch and the implication of this is that funds will be released to beneficiaries’ account after 3pm [on Monday]."
Sassa has implemented staggered social grants payments to comply with state of disaster requirements.
To this end, two payment files have been created — the first for old age pension and disability grants, and the second for all other grant types.
To date, the disbursement of Sassa grants has been anything but smooth sailing.
NGOs and academics monitoring the assistance system have warned that the planned R350 social relief of distress (SRD) grant for unemployed people is riddled with potential implementation holes.
They also warn that increasingly long payout queues and the postponing of grant pay dates would endanger the lives of millions.
People who had queued since dawn at the Sassa offices in the East London CBD were left bitterly disappointed when they were turned away on Monday.
Unemployed Zoliswa Mcoso, 40, from Scenery Park, said she had not received the child grant for her two children since February.
“I was in the process of changing my children’s surnames to my maiden surname after my divorce.
“I had submitted all the necessary details before lockdown.
“I left crying children at home. I have no food in the cupboard and thought I’d come back with something,” she said.
Mcoso and her family have managed to eat only because of the kindness of their neighbour, who is also unemployed.
Sisima Mandondo, from New Life outside Mdantsane, said she had been at the offices since 4am waiting for assistance for her son Libhongo, 18, who had not received his grant.
“He has multiple disabilities and was on a care dependent grant before he turned 18.
“I had to borrow R1,000 with interest to pay rent and risk being evicted. They [Sassa] never said their offices would be closed,” Mandondo said.
Eastern Cape Sassa spokesperson Luzuko Qina said the agency hoped to open offices soon and it was in the process of procuring all necessary PPE to comply with hygiene regulations.
While confirming that Eastern Cape beneficiaries were not affected by Monday’s glitch, Qina said: “Our office is not open yet and our intention is to open as early as possible.
“We would have liked to start today. We have acquired some PPE but the process is slow because suppliers have been closed,” Qina said.
“We plan to indicate which days will open for queries for the different grants. So far, the queues have been long but we’ve observed that a lot of people are adhering to the regulations.”
He rejected rumours on social media that old age grant beneficiaries in the OR Tambo district had been told they would not receive their money after May 5.
Criticism of Sassa has increased since the lockdown started, especially over the postponement of payout dates by up to a week and the agency closing its offices.
Black Sash national advocacy manager Hoodah Abrahams-Fayker said the R350 Covid-19 grant fell way below what was needed.
“The grant will barely buy more than a loaf of bread to eat every day,” she said.
For Sassa inquiries, call 0800-6010-11 or 043-707-6300/6335. — Additional reporting by TimesLIVE
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