SOCIAL Development Minister Sisisi Tolashe is set to probe a fraudulent scheme in which hundreds of Worcester and Rawsonville residents, mostly 18-year-olds, were allegedly unknowingly registered for a R370 monthly poverty grant but never received any payments.

The alarm was raised by GOOD councillors in the Breede Valley Municipality who uncovered the alleged fraud while working with community activists on a programme to help destitute residents apply for the South African Social Security Agency’s (Sassa) Social Relief of Distress Grant (SRD).

“GOOD submitted a complaint to Sassa and the Hawks together with a dossier of 34 separate affidavits from victims of the scheme and a list detailing more than 300 additional victims.

“In its submission to Sassa and the Hawks, the GOOD Party suggests that the fraud is being committed by an individual or individuals with access to information about recipients of Child Support Grants. The modus operandi appears to use the ID numbers of children when they turn 18, and no longer qualify for the child grant, to apply for the SRD grant. The scale of the fraud is impossible for GOOD to determine. GOOD only became aware of it because its Councillors and party activists were working with the community in the Breede Valley region. The same type of fraud could be occurring across the province or the country,” GOOD secretary-general and MPL, Brett Herron said.

The pattern they picked up showed that where hundreds of applicants should qualify for the grant, many of whom recently turned 18-years-old, they had their applications declined on the basis that their ID numbers were already linked to the grant. In other words, according to Sassa’s system, they are already receiving the grant.

According to the applicants, they have never applied for or received the grant. Many report in their affidavits that telephone numbers on Sassa’s system linked to their ID numbers don’t belong to them.

“While the investigation may take some time, GOOD calls on Sassa to make urgent interim arrangements to ensure that people qualifying for grants are not denied them due to Sassa systemic weaknesses.”

Sassa did not respond to several requests for comment on the matter.

Sandi Mbatsha, spokesperson to Tolashe confirmed she would look into the matter.

The Hawks said they were assessing the case.

Hawks spokesperson, Siyabulela Vukubi said: “The Hawks are aware of the matter but still need to ascertain if this falls with our mandate. At this stage there is nothing to report.”

Last year, Stellenbosch University students uncovered a similar trend: a survey of 60 students found that 58 had active SRD grant applications in Sassa’s system, yet 56 said they had never applied, suggesting widespread fraud.

The students also analysed data from Sassa’s public portal and found nearly 75 000 applications for people born in February 2005, despite StatsSA showing only about 82 000 births that month, which pointed to a suspicious 91% application rate. Further analysis revealed that while the average application rate from those born between 1960 to 2006 was 52%, it jumped to 90% for those born between 2002 and 2006, the age group turning 18 since the grant was introduced in 2020.

It raised concerns not only about who was receiving the money, but also about eligible individuals potentially being excluded from the support they need.

Tolashe earlier this year said a full investigation would be launched into vulnerabilities across all social grants, after irregularities were uncovered in the SRD system.

Tolashe did not respond to further requests for comment on the status of the investigation and what measures have been implemented to curb the incidents.

Cape Times

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