SASSA’s Umlazi office declared unsafe, shuts down

Some SASSA beneficiaries in Umlazi now have to spend time and money to travel to offices like the Durban Station branch in the city centre after their office was shut down last week. Photo: Joseph Bracken

• Last week, SASSA closed its Umlazi office in Durban after it was declared unsafe by labour department inspectors.
• Concerns identified during the inspection included loose cables coming into contact with water and structural roof collapse, according to the labour department.
• Beneficiaries from Umlazi now have to travel further and pay more for transport to get to other SASSA offices.

SASSA’s office in Umlazi was forced to close its doors last week after a labour department inspection found the building to be unsafe.

Last month GroundUp reported on the long queues and deteriorating conditions at the office.

On 21 October, SASSA announced that inspectors had found the office unsafe and ordered its immediate closure. SASSA said in a statement that it was “at the advanced stage in securing alternative office accommodation”.

The closure follows findings from an inspection conducted earlier in October after the department had received complaints from “various stakeholders” regarding unsafe working conditions, said Nhlanhla Khumalo, provincial labour department spokesperson.

Concerns identified during the inspection included loose cables coming into contact with water and structural roof collapse, said Khumalo.

The building belongs to the provincial public works department and was allocated to SASSA. Public works spokesperson Steve Bhengu said assessments and repairs would be conducted by SASSA.

Umlazi staff will be absorbed by other SASSA offices around Durban until a new office is found.

Grant beneficiary Janette Mncadi, 83, said she is too old to travel to an office further away. She said SASSA should have found alternative offices sooner.

“It is going to be difficult for most of us because we don’t have money to go to [other] SASSA offices,” said Mncadi.

Following its closure, Umlazi SASSA beneficiaries were given a list of the nearest branches, including Chatsworth, Lamontville and Durban Station.

When GroundUp visited the Chatsworth and Lamontville offices on Wednesday, they were mostly empty. Some people in line said that they had been waiting for over two hours. People we spoke to at the Durban Station branch had been waiting even longer.

A mother, who was holding her newborn, said that she had been waiting in line since 3am. Although she had arrived early, she had still not been helped by 1pm. She wanted to apply for a child support grant.

“When I arrived, there were already people camping outside the offices. I have been turned away three times for no reason. Sometimes they will just tell us that the system is down,” she said.

Sibongiseni Mkhize, who was applying for a disability grant, said the process had become much harder since the closure of the Umlazi branch. Mkhize said he spent R16 to get to the Umlazi office but now has to spend R28 for a taxi to the city centre and then walk another 30 minutes to the offices. Without a grant, the journey has become unaffordable for Mkhize, who has had to return several times.

Thulisile Mngadi, an informal trader outside the Umlazi office for more than 20 years, said traders were shocked when some SASSA beneficiaries told them the office had closed.

“We knew the offices were going to be relocated … because many SASSA beneficiaries and workers were complaining about the deteriorating infrastructure and broken toilets, but we were not expecting they would move them so quickly,” said Mngadi.

“Before covid, I used to make a profit selling many items, but after 2021 everything started to change in such a way that I was only coming to help the community who were hungry,” she said.

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