SASSA beneficiaries are being turned away from Post Offices when going to collect their SASSA grant money, even after an SMS was sent for them to come collect.
It's often found that the Post Office will run out of cash to disburse to beneficiaries in days where snaking queues of people wanting to collect their grants are seen outside offices.
SASSA's CEO, Totsie Memela, has said that she is working to make sure that those beneficiaries who aren't getting paid, will.
It's a challenge that we've had for a while but it's a challenge we believe is resolvable in instances where we've actually advised people to go get the payment, except in instances when the cash is not available.
The agency has also been engaging with the Post Office and creating structures to ensure that they clear all backlogs.
After facing many delays with paying beneficiaries their grants, SASSA has claimed it is making progress to get to the backlog.
Memela has confirmed that SASSA is working to pay all grants it owes to qualifying beneficiaries by June 2021.
SASSA also has a call centre specifically for R350 grant beneficiaries and can be reached by calling 0800 60 10 11.
Beneficiaries who have not received their money at their Post Office and had their money paid to their account are encouraged to call this number.
SASSA introduced the Special Relief of Distress (SRD) grant when the pandemic hit and economic strugglles escalated. This R350 grant is targeted towards unemployed individuals who have no other form of income and receives no other grants or funding.
