Sassa boss considers disbanding internal fraud unit
The beleaguered agency's Western Cape manager threatened to replace staff for leaking information related to suspected misconduct.
Western Cape manager of the SA Social Security Agency (Sassa), Henry de Grass, recently responded to his staff’s expressions of fear and distrust of the work environment at the agency by threatening to disband their unit and replace them with “fresh people.”
This came after a staff meeting in which he allegedly called out investigators for leaking information about the disappearance of files linked to a fraud syndicate operating in the organisation, reports TimesLive.
The investigators told TimesLive that they believe that one of the many syndicates they bust in recent years for illegally claiming benefits may be responsible for this as they may be trying to cover the tracks of Sassa officials they are working with.
Sources who attended the meeting reportedly told the publication that De Grass tried to isolate those he suspected of leaking information by naming them during the meeting and telling the room “if you lose your integrity as a person‚ then you’re worthless.”
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His tirade was reportedly about a Times Select report that revealed that Cape Town ANC councillor Nolufefe Mbombo was reported to the unit for not declaring social grants she received for more than a year after being elected in 2016.
“Who has an interest in reporting the matter on the councillor? Because these are all questions the journalist is asking‚” said De Grass.
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He also reportedly had qualms with the fact that the unidentified journalists who contacted him knew that files stolen in August from the unit’s Bellville office, linked to investigations into “ghost children,” were prosecution ready.
His response to queries about this were that the unit has no intention of rebuilding the case files because they had “no merit.”
When asked for comment, both De Grass and Sassa spokesperson Shivani Wahab insisted that staff meetings were confidential.
“Please note that all Sassa internal meetings are per policy‚ strictly confidential. We unfortunately cannot comment on the content of any staff engagement. That said‚ our failure to comment herein should not be construed as an admission thereof,” said Wahab.
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