JOHANNESBURG, March 17 (ANA) – Opposition parties were unanimous on Friday in welcoming the Constitutional Court ruling which temporarily resolved the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) debacle that threatened millions of welfare grants.
The Constitutional Court on Friday, ordered that Cash Paymaster Services (CPS) should continue paying welfare grants to some 11 million South Africans for another year, on the same terms set out in its current contract that expires in two weeks.
The court said the executive had failed in its constitutional duty, and ordered that Social Development Minister Bathabile Dlamini furnish the court with reasons as to why she should not be held personally liable for the cost of the case.
The court also placed the Sassa back under its supervision, some 18 months after releasing it from oversight. The agency will have to report to the court every three months on its progress in developing the capacity to take over grant payment.
Democratic Alliance (DA) spokesperson for social development, Bridget Masango, said Dlamini and others should be held accountable for the situation that nearly collapsed the payment of social grants, while Net1 chief executive Serge Belamont be investigated should be investigated.
Masango said Dlamini had failed spectacularly and had been directly responsible for this crisis, which Masango believed Dlamini had purposefully manufactured to ensure CPS would continue to distribute grants for her own personal gain.
“The Minister needs to either resign or be fired by the President because she has failed to execute her duties as the Minister who is responsible for social security agency,” Masango said.
“So we have already put in place a situation where we’ve written to the Speaker of Parliament to set up an ad hoc committee to investigate the roles of this Minister, as well as this current CEO of Sassa and former CEOs, in order to look at the entire thing from the time the contract was signed in 2012 to when it was declared invalid up to now, as to what has been the roles of each of those people to bring us where we are today.”
The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) also welcomed the judgement, but said that the African National Congress (ANC) government had pushed the country to accept an illegal contract with a foreign white-owed USA company.
“This is a clear demonstration of non-commitment to radical transformation. In addition, it means they are committed to defy court orders and their own laws to hold on to corrupt and illegal contracts,” the EFF said in a statement.
“In the process, the Court took exception to the incompetence of the Minister of Social Development in relation to ensuring that Sassa replaces CPS with a legal contract and a service provider who meets the transformative requirements of our constitutional order.”
The EFF said the reinstatement of the court’s supervisory role on Sassa demonstrated that “we do not have a head of the executive in this country”, saying that to any self respecting government, the observation by the highest court in the land should be embarrassing, to say the least.
Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) also welcomed the court ruling.
Member of Parliament, Liezl van der Merwe, said: “The IFP welcomes Court ruling. But answers needed. IFP requested the Speaker on Tuesday to establish an Ad Hoc Committee to probe crisis.”
Dlamini apologised for her role in the welfare grant debacle while speaking at a stakeholder engagement meeting in Kempton Park earlier on Friday.
Even though the African National Congress welcomed the ConCourt ruling, it said that the regrettable events over the past few weeks were unnecessary and should have never happened.
In a statement, the ANC said it was unacceptable that such a critical aspect of social security net, affecting the security and livelihood of the most vulnerable in the country was not dealt with much better in a speedy manner to avoid the unnecessary panic and anxiety caused.
“The ANC further calls for harsh consequence management as a deterrent to a repeat of this matter. Government must thoroughly investigate actions of those involved and act decisively against those responsible for this embarrassing and undesirable situation.”
– African news Agency (ANA)
