Dylan Bettencourt
Several South African Post Office branches have not yet paid social grants beneficiaries for the month of June.
According to civil society organisation Black Sash, some branches have been unable to process the payments due to connectivity issues, cash shortages and security concerns.
Black Sash claims that this is not a valid excuse as receiving grant payments from the Post Office is a legally guaranteed option.
Black Sash found grant payment issues at Post Office branches in Standerton in Mpumalanga, Kariega in the Eastern Cape, and in Pietermaritzburg, Howick and Amanzimtoti in KwaZulu-Natal.
Beneficiaries have had to endure additional costs to travel to a different source to withdraw their grant payments.
The South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) said that around 5% of its recipients are affected by the delays.
Sassa spokesperson Paseka Letsatsi said beneficiaries are able to collect payment from a variety of sources.
“The beneficiaries can access their funds when it is convenient for them,” he told GroundUp.
Letsatsi said of the seven million beneficiaries that receive the social grant, around 500,000 receive their payment from the Post Office.
Post Office spokesperson Johan Kruger confirmed that the branch in Amanzimtoti was closed as a security concern but it had since been reopened.
“There are more than 1,200 post offices nationally so problems do occur at some of these points,” said Kruger.
“The Post Office has a national system that oversees service levels and takes action to rectify matters when problems occur.”
The Post Office also announced last month that they would stop paying out the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant in an attempt to reduce queues at their branches.
Image source: @GroundUp
