Pensioners queue for hours to replace expiring SASSA cards

Hundreds of SASSA recipients have been queuing in long lines in Nquthu, KwaZulu-Natal, in a rush to replace their Gold Cards which expire at the end of February.

For weeks now, SASSA and Postbank have been appealing to social grant beneficiaries to replace their SASSA Gold Cards with the new Postbank Black Cards. But this can only be done at certain service points.

Postbank started replacing the Gold Cards with the new Postbank Black Cards in September 2024. But some beneficiaries had reported difficulties accessing their grants, sparking concerns over how the transition to the new cards would affect payments.

In a joint statement this month, SASSA and Postbank said: “After this deadline, Gold Cards will not function to withdraw cash from ATMs and retailers, and they will also not be allowed for transactions such as balance enquiries, printing of statements or retail purchases as they will be blocked.”

“Our appeal to social grant beneficiaries is that they should not wait for the last minute, or for when their cards stop working. They must get their Postbank Black Cards now at their nearby card replacement site as that will guarantee that they continue receiving their payments,” said Themba Matlou, SASSA acting CEO.

Meanwhile, lines snaked through the Cambridge Plaza on Wednesday as pensioners, disabled people and mothers with babies came to replace their cards. Some people said they travelled from faraway rural villages.

Phayizana Ndlovu, 84, from Qhudeni, 80kms from Nquthu, said she spent R350 on taxi fare. She was accompanied by her daughter and granddaughter because she is blind and struggles to walk.

“I have no choice, because if I don’t change my SASSA card there will be no income in my house. We will die of hunger because my family of 12 depends on my old age grant,” said Ndlovu.

While this reporter was speaking to Ndlovu, SASSA official Siphesihle Mbatha came out to address the people queueing. She told them the office had a backlog of thousands of applications received since January. She urged them to rather go to the nearest post office or retail store as their online systems were “quicker”.

Phayizana Ndlovu, 84 travelled from rural Qhudeni to SASSA in Nquthu to replace her Gold Card which expired at the end of this month.