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SASSA dismisses 65 officials for misconduct since April 2025

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The South African Social Security Agency says its anti-fraud strategy is delivering results. The Eastern Cape had the most dismissals, with 19, and the agency says it will recoup defrauded money from the pension funds of dismissed staff.

SASSA received 134 cases of alleged misconduct and fraud by officials since April 2025. It finalised 106 cases and 28 are pending. In 16 cases the agency withdrew the charges, and four officials were found not guilty.

Mpumalanga and Gauteng each recorded 13 dismissals, and KwaZulu-Natal recorded 11. In Gauteng, four officials lost their jobs over the fraudulent administration of social grants.

SASSA CEO Themba Matlou said the agency is strengthening systems and closing loopholes. He said officials handling misconduct cases have received death threats.

Spokesperson Paseka Letsatsi said the agency has a way to recover stolen funds. He said it will find out how much pension money dismissed staff have and recoup the defrauded amount.

Key facts

Who
Themba Matlou (CEO of the SA Social Security Agency (Sassa)); SA Social Security Agency (agency that dismissed 65 officials for misconduct); Paseka Letsatsi (SASSA spokesperson); Jerome Bele (Black Sash representative)
What
Sassa says it has dismissed 65 officials since April 2025 after finalising misconduct and fraud cases, with the Eastern Cape recording the most dismissals (19). CEO Themba Matlou said the anti-fraud strategy was delivering results and he expressed concern about death threats against officials.
When
26 October 2026
Where
Eastern Cape, Mpumalanga, Gauteng
Status
Reported

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