By ‘Maleruo Leponesa
The Eastern Cape SASSA has finally appointed a new CEO, Themba Matlou. During a media engagement session to present him to the public, the new CEO said he wants to ensure transparency with the public purse.
SASSA’s mandate is to award social grants and protect any activity that is against the law in relation to this funding, however there are still a lot of challenges that SASSA still faces, such as identity theft, for which SASSA is strengthening its verification process in collaboration with the Ministry of Home Affairs as well as the mobile service providers. The CEO said regular meetings to integrated systems are held in order to prevent identification cloning.
Also, SASSA is aware of cases in which child support grants are collected by beneficiaries who are not caregivers. He pleaded with the members of the public to report cases that they come across in their communities.
Responding to questions about a recovery plan for R4,3 million lost, Bandile Maqetuka, the executive manager said, “We are working with law enforcement and with the Hawks.” Then SASSA loss and control committee follows up to recover the money.
