Social Development
Question by:
Hon Fransie Kamfer
Answered by:
Hon Jaco Londt
Question Number:
15
Question Body:
- Whether his Department has received any complaints from constituents regarding the implementation of the new verification and review process for social grants of the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa); if so, (a) how many complaints have been received to date and (b) what are the most common complaints;
- whether his Department has engaged with the national Department of Social Development and Sassa to address complaints and systemic issues arising from the new process; if so, what are the relevant details;
whether any formal appeals have been lodged by beneficiaries in the province against Sassa decisions that resulted from the new process; if so, (a) how many appeals have been made, (b) what were the outcomes and (c) what is the time frame for resolutions?
Answer Body:
- (a): 15
(b): Complaints from beneficiaries:
- Grants being stopped after income verification, including cases where income was captured incorrectly.
- Delays in appeal decisions, especially where medical reports or documents were already submitted.
- Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant applications not being approved, with applicants not receiving clear reasons.
- Problems updating phone numbers or banking details, which then prevent payment.
- Poor communication about the outcome of verification or review processes.
- Our office has reached out to the regional SASSA office in the Western Cape on several occasions to resume our quarterly meetings. We have yet to receive confirmation of their availability. Our last meeting was held on 30 May 2025 and our most recent requests to meet were on 12, 20, and 26 February 2026.
- (a): From the cases assessed in the correspondence we reviewed, one confirmed formal appeal was lodged (disability grant appeal). Other matters involved disputes, suspensions, and verification challenges, but only one case explicitly reflects a formal appeal being processed. SASSA may be best placed to answer exactly how many appeals it has received in this regard.
(b): No outcome has yet been communicated to our office in the above matter that we are aware of.
(c): Our understanding is that it varies from case to case, with some cases taking longer than a month to resolve.
It is important to note, SASSA is a national entity, we can only communicate on what reaches us and more detailed responses should come from them.
Date:
Friday, February 20, 2026
