The commission said it met the department and Sassa recently to discuss a number of issues including the delay in the payment of grants to a large number of pensioners and people with disabilities. The issues included the precise nature of the switching "glitches" experienced by Postbank, as well as the important matter of whether those switching glitches would affect the next round of social grant payouts, the SAHRC said. It said the two entities had stated: Sassa had experienced no issues in relation to payment into the bank accounts of all grant beneficiaries. Only beneficiaries, pensioners and persons with disabilities who held accounts at Postbank were impacted by the technical glitches experienced by Postbank. Not all who are Postbank clients were negatively impacted as the Postbank payment system had experienced intermittent glitches. Sassa and the Social Development Department were in liaison with Postbank whose staff were remedying the situation on a casebycase basis. Sassa was legally obliged to pay grants into the bank accounts of grant beneficiaries but cannot be legally responsible for what occurs between banks and their clients who are accountholders.

The SAHRC indicated that while it appreciates that Sassa had in a timely manner paid grants into the beneficiaries' bank accounts, it is on the basis that Sassa has a contractual relationship with various banks that beneficiaries approach these banks and open bank accounts. Moreover, Postbank is subsidised by the government to mitigate any bank charges that beneficiaries would otherwise have to pay, thus enabling that bank to be a preferred choice by some beneficiaries. "Consequently, the relevant state organs have a moral, if not strictly legal, responsibility to ensure that vulnerable groups who depend on their grants get access to their money in a reliable manner every month. "The commission will be engaging with Postbank to canvass the matter of outstanding grant payments in relation to the September 2023 payment cycle, and importantly the state of readiness on the part of Postbank regarding the October 2023 payment cycle," it said. It would continue to monitor the situation and issue further media statements over the next few days.

Source: Daily News