Unauthorised grant deductions
Ramaphosa appears to be the DA’S death knell
MY GRANDFATHER relies on his pension for an income and my 4-year-old niece relies on her disability grant for her medication and other necessities.
When they went to collect their grants at the beginning of this month, my grandfather received R1680 instead of R1690 and R40 was deducted from my niece’s grant. She only received R1650.
I understand thousands of other beneficiaries had similar problems.
We tried to phone Net1, the company responsible for paying out grants, but its lines are constantly engaged and we cannot get through to find out why the money is being deducted.
We had a similar problem about two years ago when money was deducted from my grandfather’s pension for airtime. He does not even own a cellphone.
Can Sassa please explain why deductions are being made from social grants without beneficiaries having signed any documents authorising them. And what recourse do grantees have to recover their money? RAKSHA PRITHIPAUL Avoca
Consider the waste before you shop
MANY of us buy too many groceries because they’re discounted or we don’t want to run out during the month.
As a result, unused groceries expire and need to be disposed of. This is a waste of your hardearned money.
In the 2017 World Wide Fund for Nature South Africa’s “Food loss and waste” report, it was revealed that 10 million tons of food is wasted every year – which means a third of our food ends up in dump sites.
To reduce food wastage, we can implement the first-in, first-out rule by consuming before buying more. Store food properly in airtight containers and freeze items for extended preservation.
It would be ethical to donate food near expiry to charities or the needy rather than dumping it.
Change your thinking. Don’t buy more than your family can consume. Think about this the next time you go on a shopping spree: according to the fund, the world wastes 1.3billion tons of food every year, while 925million people go hungry. Waste not, want not. VELISA NAICKER Chatsworth
DJ Black Coffee needs to step up
DJ BLACK Coffee needs to join the many voices of protest and call on the Israeli government to reconsider claims for asylum and protection and stop its deporting of asylum-seekers to places where they are exposed to violence, torture and the threat of death.
Thousands of African refugees in Israel have to accept being deported or they are detained.
Israel has a black African population that it desperately wants to expel or ignore. There are about 46000 asylum seekers in Israel, mostly from Eritrea and Sudan. They face institutional racism from the government, judiciary, army and public.
From the top down, prominent Israeli parliamentarians have fanned the flames of racial hatred.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described African migrants in Israel as “illegal infiltrators… threatening our existence as a Jewish and democratic state”.
Hundreds of Israelis have signed up to hide migrants in an “Israeli asylum” campaign. MAHMOUD RANGILA Isipingo Hills FOR THE RECORD: Incorrect captions to these pictures were published last week, for which we apologise. Here are the correct ones.above:veteran librarian Des Moodley listens to a device describing the life and times of struggle stalwarts, including Nelson Mandela, at the South Africa In The Making exhibition at the Moses Mabhida Stadium. DENNIS Pather’s piece headed “Has the DA lost the plot?” (Sunday Tribune, April 1), refers.
It cannot be denied that the DA has been weakened by the political changes in the ANC. The removal of Jacob Zuma has dealt a major blow to the DA’S ambition to wrest power from the ANC in 2019.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has ushered in a new sense of optimism. He has already demonstrated his willingness to do the right thing, winning over many South Africans who would have ditched the ANC in next year’s poll had the status quo remained.
The clean-up at Eskom, the removal of Gupta stooges from cabinet, and the suspension of the SA Revenue Service commissioner Tom Moyane have restored public confidence in the ANC.
The DA’S predicament does not end there. The party’s jewel, the City of Cape Town, is marred by instability in the attempts to remove mayor Patricia de Lille, who embarrassed the DA when she survived a motion of no confidence by her own party.
De Lille will eventually be expelled but the DA will live to regret it, because she enjoys significant support, especially in the coloured community. Whatever De Lille decides to do after her removal, she is bound to take with her a huge chunk of support.
There is also a predicament in Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality in Port Elizabeth. The EFF, which played king-maker in three metros, is in conflict with the DA.
As it tries to recover the moral high ground, the DA is alienating voters sitting on the fence.
Unfortunately, the DA’S prospects of winning more votes in the next general election fade every time our new president speaks.
Ramaphosa is the magic wand that will help the ANC surpass every poll record the party has set. JAYRAJ BACHU Clare Estate