Sassa making backup grants plan after Post Office’s provisional liquidation

The South African Post Office (Sapo) may not be closing its doors just yet, but just in case it does, the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) – which relies heavily on the services Sapo provides – has expressed that it has a back-up plan for issuing grants.

According to a government statement, on 9 February, Sapo was temporarily liquidated due to a court application from a creditor who was owed rent.

Media reports have indicated that the entity owed more than R4.4 billion to creditors, and its debt was R4 billion more than its assets.

ALSO READ: Post Office provisionally liquidated again

Sassa has a plan

Currently, most grant beneficiaries receive their Sassa grants via the Post Office’s services. Many have expressed worry over the news that SAPO would be out of commission soon.

But Sassa spokesperson Paseka Letsatsi has reassured beneficiaries that they would make arrangements ahead of time to ensure that beneficiaries still received their payouts.

In a radio interview, Letsatsi said that engagements over a plan for the future was already taking place between Sapo and Sassa.

“The COO of Sassa and the Post Office are supposed to meet this afternoon to iron out some of the hiccups,” he had said.

Concerns over liquidation

Meanwhile, Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies, Mondli Gungubele, has expressed concerns over the provincial liquidation of the Post Office.

He has since asked the Board and Management of SAPO to furnish him with a comprehensive report regarding the events that resulted in this situation, the actions taken by the Board to tackle the problem, and the strategies that SAPO plans to employ to resolve the matter expeditiously.

The significance of SAPO as a vital service platform for the government, serving millions of citizens, was underscored by Minister Gungubele.

ALSO READ: Post Office ‘continues to act in the interests of stakeholders’

“The Department and SAPO are obliged to work assiduously towards transforming the Post Office into a self-sustaining and profitable entity for the welfare of the nation’s people,” he said.

 The minister has reassured the public that all essential measures will be taken to guarantee uninterrupted delivery of social services, prompt grant disbursements, a competent workforce, and harmonious dealings with SAPO’s creditors to secure favorable results.