Corrupt SASSA officials have cost the country R50 million
Social Development Minister Lindiwe Zulu has admitted that corrupt SASSA officials have looted R50 million from the needy.
It’s a sad state of affairs when corrupt SASSA officials prey off poor South Africans. But according to Social Development Minister Lindiwe Zulu, speaking in parliament last week, there are more than 700 suspected cases of corruption, reports Business Tech.
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CORRUPT SASSA OFFICIALS
That’s correct, it appears corrupt SASSA officials are running rife in the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA). Worse still, government has very little recourse and allegedly cannot collect misappropriated funds.
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Delving into the Social Development Minister’s findings for the last two years. There were 700-plus suspected cases of fraud, accounting for R50 million. Fraud cases ranged from collection of grant funds for child support and the deceased, as well as the submission of disability grant applications with falsified medical records. 84 corrupt SASSA officials face disciplinary investigations across the country.
ANTI-CORRUPTION STRATEGY
The Minister said the detection in the number of fraudulent cases was attributed to SASSA’s improved anti-corruption strategy. Bizarrely, SASSA regulations preclude financial recovery of a loss which occurred as a result of fraud that may have arisen through the conduct of corrupt SASSA officials.
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Some of the fraud cases are being investigated by third parties like SIU, Public Protector, National Treasury and SAPS, said the Minister. But it appears these officials will come away with little more than a slap on the wrist.
SASSA grants are a lifeline for many in the country. What do you think of corrupt SASSA officials siphoning funds from the needy for their own personal gain?
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