LISTEN: Minister gives assurance that grants will be paid on time
Tempers flared during this morning's briefing by Minister of
Social Development, Bathabile Dlamini, on the South Africa Social Security
Agency (SASSA) and the payment of social grants.
Minister Dlamini read out a statement - assuring South Africans that all grants would be paid on time.
Her statement, however, did not contain any details about any new deal with Cash Payment Services (CPS) to distribute grants after March 31. She could also not confirm whether the negotiated deal with CPS would be within budget.
Dlamini has reassured beneficiaries that come 1 April 2017, all 17 million of them would be paid on time. The media asked that they be allowe to ask Dlamini more questions, but her spokesperson refused. This led to an angry exchange between reporters and the minister.
The issue of social grants has been in the spotlight the last few weeks. There are fears that some 17 million South Africans will not receive the money they desperately need to survive, due to a lack of planning by die department.
(Edited by: Marius v.d Walt)