People with face masks seen at a Sassa building in Cape Town. Picture: Gallo Images/Nardus Engelbrecht
The South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) has slammed an announcement that it has approved the payment of R700 grant payments to all citizens of South Africa as fake news.
This comes after a statement with a Sassa logo was released by an unknown source calling on South African citizens to apply for an additional R700 grant.
“55,000 citizens received R350 fund grant in 2020/2021 due to Covid-19. In 2022, over 375,000 citizens will received R700 payment, this is part of Sassa 2022 budget to support all South African citizens.
“Application has begun and citizens that have applied have started getting their R700 payments. Only South African citizens can apply,” reads the statement.
But Sassa says it is not offering any additional R700 grant apart from the ones already announced by the agency.
“Please note that the below advert is fake and does not come from Sassa. No additional grant type is offered apart from the ones announced by Sassa,” said the agency on Monday.
The agency said last week urged residents in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) who are affected by the floods to apply for SRD grant vouchers.
The vouchers are meant to provide temporary relief to people affected by the floods – mainly those “who are unable to meet their family’s most basic needs”, the agency said.
Sassa is providing food vouchers worth R1,200 per family, as well as additional grants for families who lost loved ones due to the natural disaster.
Furthermore, school uniforms will also be provided to learners in need. Those in need of assistance should submit their contact details to the ward councillors or social workers at their nearest municipality.
Sassa said the vouchers will be made available for one month, as most residents’ lives “will normalise”, and the R350 SRD grant will still be available.
ALSO READ: Sassa SRD Disaster relief: Here’s how to apply for your R1,200 voucher
Additional reporting by Cheryl Kahla