As the Department of Social Development fumbled to avoid hiccups in the payment of social grant beneficiaries on 1 April ? after its inaction caused widespread panic ? it has been revealed it spent over R120 million on local and international travel during the 2015/2016 financial year.
In a parliamentary response regarding the total amount spent on travel during the financial year in question, the department was required to provide a breakdown of how much money was dedicated to flight tickets, accommodation (including which hotels were used), and the cost of special vehicles or chauffeur-driven transport.
According to the department, R105.4 million was spent on local travel, while international travel cost R16.1 million.
The international destinations included Canada, New York, London, Thailand, Russia, Ethiopia and Zimbabwe for one or other conference or summit.
The delegation on the international trips included a mix between minister Bathabile Dlamini, deputy minister Hendrietta Bogopane-Zulu, former DG Zane Dangor, SA Social Security Agency (SASSA) CEO Thokozani Magwaza, ministerial advisors, department officials, as well as agency officials.
Although the parliamentary response states R105.4 million was spent on local travel, the department does not provide any financial breakdown.
Self-created problem
The department and its entity SASSA have been in the dog-house for how they mishandled the social grants issue.
Having full knowledge the invalid contract with Cash Paymaster Services (CPS) would expire at the end of March, the department and SASSA failed to timeously find a suitable replacement for the payments provider.
The contract was declared invalid by the Constitutional Court (ConCourt) in 2013 after it emerged irregular tendering processes were followed in the awarding of the tender. The ConCourt suspended the invalidity declaration pending the contract's expiration.
Last month, the ConCourt was required to intervene once more when it permitted the extension of the current invalid social grants payments contract for another 12 months so that social grants could be paid on 1 April.
The extension of the invalid CPS contract was based on the failure of Dlamini and SASSA to keep their promise to the court and the people of SA, the ConCourt said at the time.
With the 12-month contract extension, the department and SASSA have been given time to either bring social grant payments in-house or find another suitable payments provider.
Yesterday, at The New Age business briefing, Warwick Metcalfe, lead consultant for banking and payments for the SASSA Change Programme, said over the next 12 months, lots of work will have to be done to ensure the agency takes over payment.
SASSA systems will make fraudulent deductions difficult and this has to be built in, he said.
"In 12 months, a significant chunk of the process will be internalised to prevent fraud in the system. The technology and infrastructure is world-class and SASSA is better set up to avoid corruption," said Metcalfe.
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