Gogo ‘too rich’ for old-age grant still fighting SASSA

Meet old-age grant recipient, Anna Mampe Ndlovu, from Vereeniging. She’s 80 years old and recently told a media outlet that she hasn’t received her government pension for several months. That’s because, according to the agency, she’s ‘too rich’ to continue receiving it.  

Allegedly, after an old-age grant review, income from a cash investment left by her late husband pushed her over the eligibility limit. The thing is, according to the gogo, he never named her as a beneficiary, so, she says she has seen none of it. “I’m not receiving a cent. I’m suffering,” said Ndlovu.

GOGO ‘TOO RICH’ FOR OLD-AGE GRANT

Meanwhile, the South African Social Security Agency tells a different story. Spokesman Lungelo Mkamba says its system shows payments were processed from July 2025 to March 2026. Ndlovu’s old-age grant has not been terminated and someone else must be receiving her money. Therefore, he urged her to visit her nearest SASSA office to rectify the situation. The Auditor-General’s recent findings peg ineligible SASSA payments at R1.33 billion last year, including R211 million to so-called deceased recipients.

Nevertheless, the dispute is a good reminder of how the system works and what elderly beneficiaries can do to stay aligned. Just this month, on 9 October, the agency confirmed it was intensifying grant reviews, eLife certification and biometric enrolment. It reminds old-age grant recipients that the money, “is not an unconditional entitlement.”

WHAT TO DO IF YOU’RE EVER IN THIS SITUATION

If you find yourself in a similar situation, what can you do?

• Make sure your contact details are up to date and respond to every SASSA request.
• If contacted for a review, eLife certification or biometric enrolment, go on the date given.
• Tell SASSA about changes to income, assets, marital status, address or bank details. Inheritances and investments can count against you in your means test.
• Check your payments. If your grant is missing, ask SASSA immediately to confirm bank details, and when the last payment was made.
• Watch your account for deductions you don’t recognise (typically unauthorised funeral policy debit orders).
• Keep all paperwork. Retain ID, bank statements, estate documents and reference numbers.
• Visit your local SASSA office or phone 0800 601 011. Don’t wait to ask questions that could rectify the matter.

But what do you think? Have you had your old-age grant reviewed recently? How did the process go? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below …