Frustrated residents from Retreat and Lotus River said they are fed-up after being turned away despite waiting several hours in the cold for their Sassa grants at the Retreat Civic Centre.
Ward 72 councillor Kevin Southgate indicated to People’s Post that since the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) decentralised its grant disbursement points, particularly to Retreat and Lotus River civic centres, he noted how these facilities were struggling to accommodate all the beneficiaries.
“We find that the demand cannot be met by the supply. Sassa clearly has insufficient staff and hence take 75 beneficiaries at Retreat.
“I have received reports of people queueing outside Retreat Civic from as early as 02:00 in the morning, and because the gates are closed the queue forms outside the facility. People are desperate so they bear the Winter weather.”
He said on Thursday 10 July people queued from Retreat Civic Centre into Retreat Road.
“When the civic opened it took a quota of 75, and the rest were turned away. This is unacceptable. I eventually had to request the assistance of law enforcement to tell people Sassa would not take any more people and they had to go home. We need the help of the media to highlight this plight.”
Lotus River resident Mariam Hamze said she had experienced similar frustrations trying to obtain her 85-year old aunt’s social grant at the Lotus River Civic Centre.
“When we waited there we had to turn around as there were more than 75 people already, and my aunt struggles with chest problems. I really don’t know what to do for my aunty anymore if we keep getting turned down.” The Retreat Civic Centre is a City owned facility.
Asked if it was aware of complaints from residents saying they were being turned away, the City referred People’s Post’s queries to Sassa.
“My office has engaged Sassa on the matter, and we were informed it was receiving attention,” Southgate said. “While I understand the frustration I want to appeal to residents to respect the staff as they are doing their best to assist.”
SASSA manager, Clive Jansen says Lotus River, Fish Hoek, Hout Bay and Retreat mobile service sites operating hours are from 08h30 to 15h00.
“The mobile service team consists of 07 staff members (with one staff member conducting enquiries while the other staff members manage screening and applications). Based on staff capacity and to avoid turning away beneficiaries, a limit of 75 beneficiaries per day was set. However, demand also outweighs capacity at sites. Grant type days and an appointment system have been introduced to mitigate long queues and over- crowding,” said Jansen.
An implemented strategy will be monitored by SASSA Wynberg Office Management over the next few weeks to measure the impact, he added.
“Beneficiaries may also access the SASSA Online Application System as an alternative to physically accessing a SASSA Office for services,” he said.
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