Citizens who receive social grants to which they are not entitled have until the end of March to apply for indemnity or face possible jail time, the government said on Monday.
”Even those who are committing these crimes out of need — if they continue to do so they will be arrested,” Director General of Justice Vusi Pikoli told reporters in Pretoria. ”Crime is crime.”
Minister of Social Development Zola Skweyiya said about 37 000 people are suspected to be enjoying benefits beyond their entitlement.
These included about 1 000 foster-care parents receiving grants for children older than the eligible age, and more than 10 000 others currently under investigation for receiving old-age grants before the official retirement age.
”The Department of Home Affairs has also informed us that there are over 14 400 cases of children who, according to the [department’s] records, are indicated as deceased, but people continue to collect the child-support grant.”
Fraud, corruption and maladministration in the social-grant system cost the government about R1,5-billion a year, the minister said.
He said untested information has recently revealed that about 50 500 government employees or beneficiaries of the government pension fund are also receiving social grants.
”We are in the process of verifying the information related to this,” he said.
Skweyiya announced that un-entitled social-grant beneficiaries can apply for indemnity up to March 31 next year.
”Failure to do that would leave the government with no choice but to take drastic measures.”
Pikoli said syndicates and other groupings involved in the organised defrauding of the social security system can also have their assets seized.
The government spends about R50-billion on providing social security to more than nine million beneficiaries every year. The money is intended for the poorest of South Africans, and having it defrauded ”is totally unacceptable and will not be tolerated any longer”, Skweyiya said.
”We remain even more resolute to ensuring that the right amounts, for the right people, in the right way and at the right time are disbursed as social grants.”
The government has introduced several measures recently to curb fraud and corruption, including the creation of compliance units to detect wrongdoing, the introduction of a reporting hotline, and improved information technology systems to detect irregularities and leakages.
Skweyiya said a special social-security agency will be operational from next April to take over the function of grant administration from provincial administrations, in a bid to improve service delivery.
Several successes have been achieved so far, with 1 194 syndicate members prosecuted in the past two years and millions of rands recovered.
”In the Eastern Cape alone, we have managed to realise savings of over R300-million this financial year,” the minister said.
More than 100 government officials have been prosecuted.
Skweyiya said the government has learnt that fraud syndicates mostly work in cahoots with corrupt government officials. Also, there are medical doctors providing false medical reports to people seeking to access disability grants.
He warned syndicates and fraudulent public servants to expect harsh action.
”Working with other law-enforcement agencies, we have already started prosecution and civil actions against syndicates and public servants in provinces such as the Eastern Cape. We will intensify those efforts.”
People wishing to apply for indemnity can do so at their nearest office of the Department of Social Development, or call a toll-free number: Tel: 0800 601 011. — Sapa