Elderly get only E1 000 grant
MBABANE – Elderly grant recipients were each paid E1 000 last week. Some of the elderly grant recipients questioned the E500 shortage from their quarterly grants disbursement from the Deputy Prime Minister’s (DPM) Office.
The grant recipients said they were shocked to receive E1 000 instead of their usual quarterly E1 500 disbursement.
Mbulawa Mkhatshwa (68) from the Manzini Region said he was shocked when he saw the E1 000 payout and asked himself where the E500 had gone to.
He said by the time they received the grant, they already had debts awaiting, hence the E500 shortage was a huge blow. He said it was a challenge for them as grant recipients who were getting it quarterly.
“It’s actually a transfer after collection as we already have created debts that need to be repaid,” said Mkhatshwa.
He said when he received his grant he was so stressed and had no one to explain what had happened.
Mkhatshwa also disclosed that he was even ashamed to ask what had happened to the E500 as he felt it was a shame to create a scene.Enquiries
However, Mkhatshwa, after hearing other recipients voicing the same problem, he decided to plead with the press to make enquiries.
Mkhatshwa said it was a challenge getting the right answers from the people who were tasked with disbursing the elderly grants.
“Imagine fighting for a gift which might be taken away from you, so it’s better to silently take your grant and go,” said Mkhatshwa.
Meanwhile, Mkhatshwa said the challenge was that the officials made sure that the grant was associated with a name than being an official government grant.
However, he failed to substantiate his allegation but alleged that the grant was refferred to as ‘Mshamndane’s money’ now it is called the ‘DPM’s money’.
He said the people disbursing the money should not intimidate them with names to instill fear but must promote the fund for all elderly people like him to be proud of the little they receive.
A number of recipients from the Manzini Region confirmed receiving only E1 000 as grant this month .
“We are not sure if the government has decreased the grant to E1 000 as there was an announcement of monthly disbursements instead of the quarterly ones ” said another recipient, who preferred not to be named.
*Thuli said they were concerned that they received E1 000 without an explanation.
Thuli said she used her grant mostly to buy electricity units since they were introduced to the rural electrification.
Unrest
She also said a larger portion goes to her grandchildren’s survival as she had to take care of them. Thuli said she was a victim of the unrest, where two of her children died in Matsapha during the June 2021 riots.
“I pray that such a situation should not return while I’m still alive,” said Thuli.
Meanwhile, early these year, government announced the disbursement of monthly elderly grants. The grant announcement was disclosed by the Prime Minister, Cleopas Sipho Dlamini, at the end of the Cabinet retreat, where they deliberated on the country’s challenges and their possible solutions.
The premier disclosed that as Cabinet, they agreed that with immediate effect they had to begin the monthly disbursement of elderly and disability grants. Worth mentioning is that the premier said government would introduce a new and cost-effective system of disbursing elderly and disability grants.