Beneficiaries meant to receive money from the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant were livid last week when Postbank hit a snag in the roll-out of payments that were due.
The challenge was attributed to a glitch in the system at Postbank during the processing of payments, meaning retailers (where beneficiaries can collect their payments) such as Pick n Pay, Boxer, Usave, Shoprite and Checkers experienced a delay.
"It's estimated that 70,000 transactions were not successful yesterday, so this morning we will do a quick review of the transactions which did not go through. It's also difficult to tell which areas are impacted but we will engage with our various retailers," said Postbank interim CEO, Lucas Ndala in response to the situation.
The delay of grant payments last week comes after amendments were made to the qualifying criteria applicants need to meet in order to receive the money.
These amendments are actually expected to result in less people gaining approval for the grant, leaving those with little to no other options wondering when their next meal is going to reach their tables.
The government has announced that they will be raising the income eligibility threshold, going from R350 to R624, which is where the poverty line rests.
Dr. Kelle Howson from the Institute for Economic Justice says raising the income eligibility threshold is a welcomed development, as it's what they have been advocating for.
"It's a step in the right direction, the direction we've been advocating for, but what we've been asking is that the income eligibility threshold actually [be] raised to the upper bound poverty line because there are millions of people in South Africa who are living in poverty, who don't have any other means of survival, of assistance and social protection."
Earlier in the year, there was also a delay in the roll-out of the grant, leaving beneficiaries out in the cold for a few months.
In a Parliamentary meeting, it was revealed that the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) could not make the R350 grant payments due to the Department of Social Development's (DSD's) work to finalise a functional verification process and to ensure all systems are in place for the disbursement of the grant.
The verification process is meant to assist the Auditor-General when it comes to monitoring the grant application process, and to ensure that only "deserving" individuals receive the grant.
Dr. Howson says that people are starting to give up on the system, despite being in the thick of poverty and needing the financial assistance.
Part of the reason for that loss of hope is because the new administrative system put in place has multiple barriers that make it difficult for those applying.
"We saw the number of applications between March and April drop by about half, some of that is due to this demoralization. Some of it is due to a confusing application form which asks people unnecessary information, asks people potentially leading questions, and also the fact that the application system is now only available online," says Dr. Howson.
Following the transition of the grant to the new administrative system, the government failed to process any applications in April or May.
While April and May payments are still to be disbursed, this is of little consolation to the 10.9 million previous beneficiaries who had been relying on that income.
At least 7 million beneficiaries who received grants in March did not benefit in June (given that only 3.7 million were paid). This comes at a massive cost to households experiencing extreme poverty, poor mental and physical health and other social stresses under-developed communities are facing.
