SASSA Grants Policy – Opposition Parties Criticized Hardly
In South Africa, elections were held on 29 May 2024. After two weeks, Cyril Ramaphosa announced their presidency during his second term. Before the elections, there was uncertainty about the future of SASSA grants because the biggest opposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA), had negative views regarding the SASSA grants policy. But now, the DA has made an alliance with the ANC. For the first time, the ANC lost their seats on a large scale, and they were unable to declare a president.
So, they were compelled to ally with the DA. DA conducted visits to SASSA offices across the country to get reviews regarding the actions of the government of The African National Congress (ANC)’s on SASSA grants before elections. Now, it will help to reform the policies of SASSA because the DA strongly promotes job creation instead of grants in its manifesto before that alliance.
They broadly and openly said in election campaigns that if the Democratic Alliance wins the elections, it could change the SASSA grants policy. Now, what’s happened? Wait until new decisions are made. Currently, the ANC and DA are responsible for managing social grants under the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA).
Reviews Conducted by Democratic Alliance
Democratic Alliance conducted visits to the SASSA office in May 2024 across the country to learn the real picture of the disbursement of SASSA grants. Consequently, they found that people were destitute because of the long queues in front of the SASSA offices. The beneficiaries also criticized the ANC for closing Cash Pay Points without any notification. The clients of SASSA commented that they had to go away from their homes to fetch the grant due to closures.
The Democratic Alliance strongly believes that they can improve the SASSA grants policy administratively & financially if they succeed in getting the throne. Mr Bridget Masango, Social Development Shadow Minister, claims that they will continue the SASSA grants. On the other hand, fake news is being spread by ANC that DA wants to phase out the SASSA grants completely, he said. He asserted that it is not true; it is a party political act by the ANC.
According to “The Social Assistance Act (2004),” social assistance is preserved in the constitution of South Africa. Hence, they can’t phase out the social aid, but DA can reform the SASSA grants policy, which is why they started the inspection from Gauteng. At the same time, the inspection in other provinces by the other DA officials was carried out to obtain the actual results, he said.
Why does ANC Stop the SRD R350 (Real or Fake)?
The primary people in the survey complained about the SASSA grants policy like “Why Government (ANC) Stop the Social Relief of Distress R350”. SASSA disbursed the SRD R350 grant to 8 million people out of 19 million recipients overall. It is a huge percentage, which is why most beneficiaries have criticized the government (ANC). But in reality, ANC didn’t stop. Nevertheless, they extended the Social Relief of Distress Grant up to R370 from R350 in the latest budget speech but did not announce the disbursement of this specific grant, Mr. Bridget Masango explained in his final verdict. Now, disbursing will also start in April 2024.
The finding of the Inspection of DA
Here are some common findings that DA officially released.
What Should DA do to upgrade the SASSA Grants policy?
Here are some key points from DA that will help upgrade the SASSA grants policy.
SASSA GRANT SRD R350: A Criticism
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant was introduced when unemployment was high due to the lockdowns that occurred worldwide. The African National Congress (ANC) planned to help citizens in this situation. But DA criticized harshly distributing assistance & SASSA grants policy. The opposition party, the Democratic Alliance, believes that the SRD grant should not be extended because, at the time of the election, it looks like an election campaign.
They suggest that the grants should be given to individuals while they are looking for a job, but only with proof that the recipients are genuinely seeking work. They recommend that the money allocated for the grant should be spent on industry so that permanent employment can be created. Moreover, the Democratic Alliance opposes increases in taxes to support SASSA grants and proposes spending money to help the public sector.
The Freedom Front Plus desires to extend the SRD grants, but they support continuing the old age, disability, care dependency, child support, and foster grants according to the schedule. They believe that these core grants should be increased except for Social Relief of Distress Grant R350. Furthermore, Freedom Front Plus’s position on SRD R350 is that it should be an alternative to independent job seekers or an alternative to self-employment.
RISE Mzansi believes that SASSA grants like SRD should be stopped over the next year. The party believes that the SRD grant is insufficient, unsustainable, and a poor substitute for meaningful jobs. Mzansi should also clear out the SASSA grants policy over the next fiscal year, 2025/26.
Opposition Policy to CORE GRANTS
The Democratic Alliance (DA), the largest party, believes that the African National Congress (ANC) committed massive corruption while disbursing grants. Therefore, it is the biggest threat to the sustainability of South Africa’s economy. The allocated The Budget of R39.6 Billion for SASSA grants must be secured and best utilized, and how it could happen if corruption, waste, and bad governance are eradicated, the DA believes.
During a press conference, a journalist asked the spokesperson of the Democratic Alliance a question: What would be the policy regarding SASSA grants if they came into power? He responded that they would support an increase in the old-age, child support, and disability grants to match the official food poverty line. Currently, the Democratic Alliance is considering doubling whatever amount the beneficiaries get.
The other opposition party, FF Plus, believes in enhancing core grants such as old-age, disability, and childcare grants and wants to launch a voucher-based system. According to its manifesto, economic growth is the key to creating wealth and jobs on a national level.
RISE Mzansi’s spokesperson, Tebogo Moalusi, said in a political statement that they would maintain the core SASSA grants except for Social Relief of Distress Grant R350 if our party wins the election and derives to government. He says that the measure of a successful government is to develop a thriving economy so that, over time, social grants are no longer needed by the citizens.
Criticism Abstract
The Democratic Alliance (DA), the largest party, believes that the African National Congress (ANC) committed massive corruption while disbursing grants. Therefore, it is the biggest threat to the sustainability of South Africa’s economy. The allocated R39.6 billion for SASSA grants must be secured and best utilized, and how it could happen if corruption, waste, and bad governance are eradicated, the DA believes.
During a press conference, a journalist asked the spokesperson of the Democratic Alliance a question: What would be the policy regarding SASSA grants if they came into power? He responded that they would support an increase in the old-age, child support, and disability grants to match the official food poverty line. Currently, the Democratic Alliance is considering doubling whatever amount the beneficiaries get.
The other opposition party, FF Plus, believes in enhancing core grants such as old-age, disability, and childcare grants and wants to launch a voucher-based system. According to its manifesto, economic growth is the key to creating wealth and jobs on a national level.
RISE Mzansi’s spokesperson, Tebogo Moalusi, said in a political statement that they would maintain the core SASSA grants except for Social Relief of Distress Grant R350 if our party wins the election and derives to government. He says that the measure of a successful government is to develop a thriving economy so that, over time, social grants are no longer needed by the citizens.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did the Democratic Alliance conduct reviews?
Democratic Alliance conducts the reviews to get the actual pictures of the SASSA grants policy of the African National Congress (ANC). The opposition party believes ANC don’t justice with the social assistance program.
Will SASSA grants SRD R350 be terminated?
No, it’s not because SRD R350 was postponed for some time. The budget will be allocated, but dolling out dates have not been announced yet.
What is the latest on the Sassa grant?
The SASSA grants were enhanced to R100 in March 2024 but started being distributed in April 2024 in two installments: R90 and R10.
What is SRD R370 SASSA grant?
Social Relief of Distress R370 is the extended version of R350. R20 was increased in the latest budget in February 2024.
Has SRD R370 started yet?
Yes, the African National Congress, the government political party, announced that it had just increased and allocated the budget, but it started in June 2024.
Will all SASSA grants be terminated?
No, it can’t be terminated because the social assistance program was introduced according to the “The Social Assistance Act (2004)” Consitution of South Africa.
