Cape Town – Minister of Social Development Lindiwe Zulu has issued a warning about corruption within the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) following the implication of 40 officials in corruption cases totalling R50 million.
According to IOL, investigations over the past two years have revealed instances of corruption, including the fraudulent collection of grants intended for deceased beneficiaries, false disability grant applications with fabricated medical information, and the illegal collection of child support grants.
Replying to a written parliamentary question from EFF MP Laetitia Arries, Zulu said:
“For the period under review, approximately 701 suspected cases of fraud cases were detected, investigated, involving 40 Sassa (officials) who were implicated to the potential loss of R50,515,541.34. It is important to note that this figure represents a cumulative potential loss documented for the said period involving various other parties not limited to Sassa officials.
“These cases ranged from fraudulent collection of grant funds intended for deceased individuals, the submission of disability grant applications with falsified medical information, and the illicit collection of child support grants.
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“Of the total suspected cases of fraud detected for the period in question, 698 were finalised while three are still under investigation. A total of 37 cases were referred to law enforcement agencies for criminal investigation and prosecution. The notable surge in detection of fraudulent cases can be attributed to Sassa’s anti-corruption strategy.”
Sassa has faced pressure recently due to delays in old-age grant payments.
Meanwhile, the Postbank has reported a net loss of two billion rand for the 2022/23 financial year, citing the costs associated with paying social grants as a significant factor.
According to its annual report tabled in Parliament this week, the bank, which took on the responsibility of paying social grants to over seven million recipients a year ago, faced financial challenges related to this contract, EWN reported.
In the annual report, Postbank’s CEO, Nikki Mbengashe, said that substantial financial resources were allocated towards manpower and supplementary services to facilitate physical cash payments.
She emphasised the considerable expenses incurred in ensuring that both post offices and more than 1 000 payment locations had adequate cash reserves to process the payments.
Despite the reported loss (compared to a profit of R302 million the previous year), the bank asserts its solvency based on the value of its assets.
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
