Cape Town — Despite the extension for beneficiaries to switch from the SASSA Gold Card to the Postbank Black Cards, there is still an overwhelming feeling that the deadline is insufficient.
The original deadline of 28 February 2025 was extended to 20 March 2025 in an attempt to ensure all beneficiaries would be able to make the switch effortlessly and on time.
According to EWN, Minister of Social Development, Sisisi Tolashe slammed Postbank for its failure to resolve glitches in the system when it came to issuing the new Black Cards.
She said the current situation was “nothing short of a crisis” and was concerned about the fact that beneficiaries queued for hours and could not receive help due to Postbank’s slow pace in issuing new cards.
During a briefing in front of the portfolio committee on Social Development, she revealed the issues facing SASSA as well as the ongoing investigation of the vulnerabilities in the social relief of distress (SRD) grant application system.
She conducted an oversight visit to Grabouw and Paarl where she illustrated Postbank’s problems.
“Even around town, they are so scattered. If not, their tellers have no clue what they are doing. If they do, their system provides 12 cards in four hours,” the minister said.
Minister of @The_DSD Ms Nokuzola Tolashe conducted an oversight visit to Postbank card replacement sites in Eesterivier and Paarl Shoprite in the Western Cape earlier today. She got a first hand experience of the process to replace SASSA Gold Cards to Postbank Black Cards. pic.twitter.com/3APX5zeo7z
— SASSA (@OfficialSASSA) February 20, 2025
As reported by The Citizen, Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Social Development, Bridget Masango revealed a meeting was held to discuss the latest happenings and said that Postbank was not transparent with the committee when it came to information on the ground.
“At the end of that meeting, this portfolio committee asked for information to be shared with it. I am partly happy to say that the department sent the information as requested, and the entity Sassa sent the information as requested, but we have not received anything from Postbank,” she said,
Minister Tolashe acknowledged the crisis and supported the call for Postbank to appear before them. She revealed the distressing situation on the ground as some elderly people are sleeping at distribution points overnight as they are wirried their grants will be cut off if they do not switch in time.
“The anxiety that we have created is so bad. Even when I personally spoke to them, they could not hear me because from where they sit, if they don’t swap the cards, they will not get their cards; therefore, there will be no grants,” she explained.
Even Tolashe acknowledged the 20 March deadline was unrealistic and said Postbank to appear before it to account for the ongoing issues with the card switchover process.
[IN PICTURES]
Minister Tolashe’s oversight visit to Western Cape Region@The_DSD@nda_rsa@Postbank_ZA#SASSACARES pic.twitter.com/G21HNrcHdR
— SASSA (@OfficialSASSA) February 24, 2025
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Compiled by Matthew Petersen
