ANC WELCOMES CONCOURT DECISION ON GRANTS 

The African National Congress welcomes the decision of the Constitutional Court today to extend the contract relating to the payment of social grants for 12 months - ensuring that beneficiaries will be paid on the 1st April 2017 and uninterrupted for a period of a year.

The ANC holds the view that the regrettable events over the past few weeks were unnecessary and should have never happened. Accordingly, we call on the Department of Social Development to immediately initiate a process to right the wrongs committed and fully comply with the directives of the Constitutional Court and the prescripts of the law.

The ANC further calls for harsh consequence management as a deterrent to a repeat of this matter. Government must thoroughly investigate actions of those involved and act decisively against those responsible for this embarrassing and undesirable situation. It is unacceptable that such a critical aspect of our social security net, affecting the security and livelihood of the most vulnerable in our country, was not dealt with much better in a speedy manner to avoid the unnecessary panic and anxiety caused. 

Statement issued by Zizi Kodwa, African National Congress, 17 March 2017