NATIONAL NEWS - Sassa has been a target of criminal syndicates lately and various attempts were made to defraud its system.
In a press release on 6 August, Sassa CEO Totsie Memela said Sassa’s anti-fraud strategy has been tested constantly over the years.
“Successful arrests have continuously been made and to cap it all, the justice system always comes to the party, securing significant convictions.”
In a recent case, a couple in the Eastern Cape were handed eight- and 10-year prison sentences by the Mbizana regional court for registering fraudulent social grants on the Sassa system amounting to over R1,2-million. “One of the convicted fraudsters was an employee of Sassa and had access to the Sassa system while the other partner was the brain behind the fraud,” said Memela.
In another case, 23 suspects appeared in the Nelspruit Regional Court for using identity documents of members of the public to register fraudulent grants. Their case has been remanded to 4 September. Still in Mpumalanga, another syndicate was scheduled to appear in court on 7 August, charged with trying to hack the Sassa system with sophisticated gadgets.
Memela said the continuous breakthroughs made by law enforcement agencies bear testimony to the resilience of the Sassa strategy which is anchored in prevention, detection and strengthening internal controls, among others. “This strategy is driven by multi-disciplinary teams of law enforcers who collaborate to detect fraud and unleash the might of the law on those suspected of committing it,” she said. “Sassa has adopted a zero-tolerance approach to fraud and will stop at nothing to root it out at first sight, so criminals, be warned.”
Sassa also works with institutions from the banking industry in the fight against fraud and corruption, and these partnerships should present prospective fraudsters with a mountain to climb.
Memele asked the public to work together to fight corruption and ensure that public funds are not abused by anyone, by reporting cases of corruption to the anti-corruption hotline on 0800 43 43 73.
