EDITOR – It is a matter of great concern that the South African Security Service Agency (SASSA), in addition to its present woes, has been causing confusion for applicants applying for a disability grant.
The disabled people can produce all their records from hospitals and doctors advising that they require a disability pension. SASSA then sends them a letter (written in tiny print) regretting to inform them that their application has been unsuccessful. They give the reason that the person’s ailments can be treated at their treatment centres, i.e. clinics and hospitals, but not saying how they are to find the funds for living and for bus fare to the aforementioned clinics and hospitals for obtaining medication, orthopaedic equipment and treatment, except by begging from people like me!
Then it states “Should you be aggrieved by a decision with regards to this application (i.e. the refusal of the grant), you or a person acting on your behalf, may within 90 days from date of receipt of this letter lodge a written application to the Agency, requesting the Agency to reconsider its decision in terms of Section 18 (1) of the Act.” They tell the applicant that these words mean that they must not come back to SASSA for three months!
However, the words really mean that they can return and ask for an internal reconsideration (of the rejected material) mechanism.
If they wait for three months their papers will have been discarded and they will have to start all over again.
There are also disabled people who need a pension because their skin colour precludes them from BEE work unless they have a disability grant.
RN Stapersma
Durban
