Dlamini to face off with former DG

Social development minister Bathabile Dlamini is set to face tough questions from former SA Social Security Agency (Sassa) director general Zane Dangor on Thursday.

Dlamini is appearing at an inquiry that is investigating her role in the social grants crisis. She has maintained throughout the week that she cannot be blamed for the saga.

Dlamini has been described as "unresponsive and evasive" when she was pressed on her decision to set up work streams to handle the payment of social grants.

She told the inquiry that her decision to set up the work streams was supported by Sassa's executive committee‚ which included former Sassa chief executive Thokozani Magwaza.

However‚ Magwaza has accused Dlamini of telling him to not get involved in the work streams and instead focus on the day-to-day running of the agency.

Dlamini denied Magwaza's claims‚ saying there is no way she would have told a chief executive to back off from the work streams.

As the inquiry resumes on Thursday‚ Dlamini will go head to head with Dangor. Dangor and Magwaza will also testify.

The Constitutional Court last year ordered that an inquiry be established to set out Dlamini's roles and responsibilities as social development minister. The court ordered that all parties involved in the matter appoint a judge to investigate whether Dlamini should be held liable for the grants saga.

Retired judge Bernard Ngoepe is heading the inquiry‚ which started on Monday.

The Black Sash Trust approached the court in March last year after Sassa acknowledged it would not be able to pay millions of grants from April 1‚ despite promising the court in November 2015 it would do so.