Pretoria – The Postbank on Tuesday announced that all outstanding South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) grant payments have been paid.
Thousands of beneficiaries have been complaining about partial or non-payment of their social grants.
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However, on Tuesday the Postbank said it, “wishes to provide SASSA beneficiaries and the public the assurance that, according to our records, all outstanding SASSA grant payments to recipients that were impacted by the system incident of the 5th and 6th of September have been made”.
The Postbank added: “The process of reversing funds into all affected beneficiaries’ accounts has been completed.”
The Postbank said many SASSA Gold Cards beneficiaries who had outstanding payments have been able to access their money through channels that include ATMs and retailers.
Social grant beneficiaries that still wish to make inquiries relating to their social grant payments can contact Postbank on:
Tel: 0800 53 54 55
Email: PBbalancingSaswitch@Postbank.co.za (The email and WhatsApp customer contact point responses are automated, therefore only send the beneficiary details):
WhatsApp: 073 806 1631
“We have also encountered some attempts to defraud the system by individuals who would have received their funds trying to get double payments,” said Postbank spokesperson, Dr Bongani Diako.
“Our systems are very thorough and the people that are making these attempts will not be successful.
“Instead, what these people are doing is clogging the system and denying people that need genuine assistance from being helped.
“We condemn this behaviour which will be reported to law enforcement agencies as it also perpetuates the incorrect notion that there are still large numbers of SASSA beneficiaries that have not been paid.”
Meanwhile, the Democratic Alliance (DA) on Tuesday lodged a complaint at the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) against Social Development Minister Lindiwe Zulu, the Department of Social Development, SASSA, and Postbank for their part in the ongoing social grant payment failures.
“Not only is the minister continuing to fail millions of vulnerable grant beneficiaries each month, but her department has also returned more than R15 billion to the National Treasury in unpaid social relief of distress (SRD) grants,” the DA said in a statement.
“This is while the DA is inundated every month by SRD grant beneficiaries struggling to gain access to their funds.
“These ongoing failures have resulted in an alarming human rights violation, with mothers being compelled to abandon their babies due to their inability to feed them, creating a tragic and heartbreaking situation.”
