More than 50 grant beneficiaries reportedly spent the night outside the Bellville SASSA office to secure a place in the queue
By Mapaballo Borotho
More than 50 people, including pensioners, mothers with children and people with disabilities, reportedly spent the night outside SASSA’s Bellville offices in freezing temperatures in an effort to secure a place in the queue.
ActionSA says the scenes highlight serious shortcomings in the social grant system and is calling for urgent improvements.
Phemelo Motene unpacked the issue with ActionSA MP and Cape Town mayoral candidate Dereleen James on Kaya 959’s Point of View.
James visited the Bellville office overnight to witness firsthand what many social grant beneficiaries experience.
She said beneficiaries are often forced to queue for long hours because some offices are unable to assist everyone before closing time. She also raised concerns about queue management and recurring system outages.
“I couldn’t even leave because when I spoke to some of the recipients, they told me that people often come to make TikTok videos or members of the media come to interview them, but nothing changes. This has been their reality for a long time.
The people sleeping on the pavement were disability grant recipients. There was also a mother with her 40-year-old son who suffers from seizures, and another mother lying on cardboard with a child who has Down syndrome,” James said.
James said she attempted to contact the newly appointed Minister of Social Development but was unable to reach her, noting that it was still early in the morning.
She argued that forcing vulnerable people, particularly those with disabilities, to sleep outside overnight because of recurring system failures undermines their dignity and called for urgent intervention.
Tonight, we continue the fight for dignity and justice on Khaya FM.
— Dereleen James MP (@DereleenJ) July 22, 2026
In the early hours of this morning, we visited SASSA and later returned alongside the SABC to once again expose the heartbreaking reality that so many people are forced to endure. Behind every long queue is a… pic.twitter.com/5KCWQNCfy6
SASSA responds
SASSA spokesperson Dr Paseka Letsatsi acknowledged the situation, describing it as a management and administrative challenge.
“One of the things that management has done is deploy additional staff and open a satellite office in Delft so that people from that area do not have to travel all the way to Bellville. They have also implemented a queue management system to reduce unnecessary waiting times,” said Letsatsi.
He added that the measures have already been introduced at some branches and that SASSA has also extended operating hours to assist more beneficiaries.
Listen to the podcast for the full discussion.
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