Calls for extension as February 28 deadline looms Social Development Minister Dina Pule has confirmed that more than 350,000 social grants will be reviewed in the 2026/27 financial year, a drive the department says will save around R1.5 billion for the state. Beneficiaries at the Chatsworth Sassa offices.
SOMEWHERE in this country, right now, a pensioner is standing in a queue that started before sunrise, holding an SMS she doesn't fully understand, wondering if the only income she has will still be there next month. That image, more than any press briefing, is what this Sassa story is actually about.
Social Development Minister Dina Pule has confirmed that more than 350,000 social grants will be reviewed in the 2026/27 financial year, a drive the department says will save around R1.5 billion for the State. To ease the strain on overcrowded offices, Pule has announced that more than 1,000 contract workers are being recruited nationally to help with applications, reviews and other frontline work. On paper, it sounds sensible. In the queues, it feels like something else entirely.
Let me be blunt about where I stand. I have no sympathy for anyone gaming a system built for the poorest people in this country. Pule is right that Sassa is legally required, under the Social Assistance Act, to confirm that beneficiaries still qualify. Her stated goal - the right grant to the right person, at the right time - is not controversial. It's the bare minimum taxpayers should expect.
