There are growing concerns, confusion and some frustration among recipients of the R350 grants following the recent change in the eligibility criteria by SASSA. The Department of Social Development announced that recipients of the COVID-19 Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant must reapply as it will now be paid out under a new legislative framework. The grant's new framework has new additional qualifying and assessment criteria. Also, very worrying; is that some post office workers in various rural villages in Mpumalanga are working in cahoots with security guards and cashiers, are charging distress grant recipients R50 to jump long queues to collect their R350!

We have spoken to some of the grant recipients who have confirmed this trend, and in fact say that it is very widespread among many other villages too in Limpopo. We spoke to Johan Kruger, Spokesperson for The South African Post Office AND Fanie Sethokga; General Manager: Operations at SASSA.