Sassa blew millions in fruitless preparation to take over grant payments

The South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) spent millions of rands preparing for the takeover of social grants as far back as 2015 even though there was no prospect of the takeover happening anytime soon.

Sassa was supposed to take over social grants when the illegal contract of Net1 subsidiary Cash Paymaster Services (CPS) expires at the end of March but was not ready to do so and had to ask the Constitutional Court for permission to extend the contract.

Social Development Minister Bathabile Dlamini said in a written reply to a parliamentary question by DA MP Leonard Basson that Sassa seconded 14 senior managers to its regional offices in an acting capacity from April 1 2015 to end-January 2017 and four from end-January 2017 to date as part of a two-phase approach to the takeover "to gain more experience and strengthen their managerial capabilities in preparation for the transitional period".

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All were accommodated in hotels and furnished apartments at a cost of R3m with two being provided with transport at a cost of R213‚782.

The total amount paid out in acting allowances to date was R927‚390.75‚ the minister said. Three senior managers were seconded to fill vacant funded positions outside their residential provinces from April 1 2015 until January 31 2017.

From February 1 2017 to date‚ three senior managers were seconded to vacant funded posts outside their residential provinces.

Four senior managers were seconded to fill positions to gain more experience and strengthen their management capabilities and such secondments ended on the January 31 2017‚ Dlamini said.

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Five executive managers were seconded outside their residential provinces. It also emerged from a reply to a question by DA MP Karen Jooste that R506‚000 was spent to send a Department of Social Development and Sassa delegation to a meeting of the International Social Security Association (ISSA) World Security Forum in Panama in November last year.

– TMG Digital/BusinessLIVE