Bathabile Dlamini, SASSA Constitutional Court deadline looms

Constitutional Court Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng has issued directives to both the minister and SASSA to provide answers regarding plans to pay social grants to 17 million of the country's poorest come 1 April 2017.

The highest court in the land is expected to hear the application for leave to intervene on Wednesday.

The court wants SASSA to explain who was responsible for determining on behalf of SASSA whether the agency itself would not be able to pay the grants, when the responsible person first became aware that it would not be able to pay the grants itself by the end of March and why the court was not informed.

The court also wants to know whether SASSA informed the minister and whether an agreement has been reached with CPS.

Mogoeng also wants to know whether Minister Dlamini and/or SASSA have any objections to independent monitoring of any agreement SASSA may have entered into with CPS.

Here are the questions:

1. In view of the fact that this Court's order of 25 November 2015, discharging its supervisory jurisdiction, was based on SASSA's decision not to award a new contract and on SASSA's progress report of 5 November 2015 setting out the information relating to its own ability to assume paying the grants at the end of March 2017, the following information is required:

(a) Who was the person responsible for determining on behalf of SASSA whether SASSA itself would be able to pay the grants by the end of March 2017?

(b) The date when the responsible person on behalf of SASSA first became aware that it would not be able to pay the grants itself by end March 2017;

(c) The exact date when the responsible person on behalf of SASSA became aware that the respective time frames set out in paragraph 13 of its progress report to the Court could not be fulfilled;

(d)The reason why this Court was not immediately informed of this fact and who made the decision that it was not necessary to do so;

(e) Whether the Minister was informed that SASSA would not be able to pay the grants itself by end of March 2017 and, if so, when this happened.

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2. In relation to the legal opinion attached to the follow-up report and SASSA's assertion that it has taken steps to act on the advice contained in it, as well as SASSA's intended course of action, the following information is required:

(a) Has SASSA entered into any agreement with Cash Paymaster Services (Pty) Limited (CPS) in relation to the payment of grants from 1 April 2017?

(b) If so, full details of the agreement are required. If in writing, a copy is required;

(c) Is it SASSA's contention that this agreement is lawful and in compliance with the requirements of the Constitution and applicable legislation? Full details are required of the steps taken in compliance with applicable procurement legislation.

(d) Full details are required of the steps taken, or envisaged, to run a competitive bidding process again to have a new contractor or contractors appointed for the payment of grants, and the exact timeframe within which this will occur.

(e) Full details are required of the steps to be taken to ensure that SASSA itself will become capable of administering and paying the grants in future, and the exact timeframe within which this will occur.

3. In view of the Minister's and SASSA's acceptance of responsibility for delays in identifying and redressing deficiencies in the plan since the last report to the Court on 5 November 2015 to date, the following information is required:

(a) Do SASSA and/or the Minister have any objections to independent monitoring of any agreement SASSA may have entered into with CPS for the payment of grants from 1 April 2017?

(b) If so, the content and nature of the objections must be set out;

(c) Do SASSA and/or the Minister have any objections to independent monitoring of the steps taken or envisaged to run, again, a competitive bidding process to have a new contractor or contractors appointed for the payment of grants?

(d) If so, the content and nature of the objections must be set out;

(e) Do SASSA and/or the Minister have any objections to independent monitoring of the steps to be taken to ensure that SASSA itself will be capable of administering and paying the grants in future?

(f) If so, the content and nature of the objections must be set out;

(g) If SASSA and/or the Minister do not have objections to independent monitoring in relation to any or all of these processes, they are invited to propose practical measures as to how and by whom the independent monitoring will be done.