Cold-blooded pension delays

2003-06-18 21:55

Cape Town - Slow blood circulation in the fingers of elderly people could be a reason for long delays in Eastern Cape pension queues, a pension payout company official suggested on Wednesday.

Mazwi Yako, national chair of Cash Paymaster Services (CPS), gave the explanation during a grilling by MPs on the June 10 death of 32-year-old TB sufferer, Kuselwa Mzazi, while trying to collect her disability grant at a pay point at Mqanduli in the Transkei.

She was pushed to the pay point in a wheelbarrow by her father, and died after reportedly waiting there for hours in bitterly cold conditions.

Yako, along with officials of the provincial social development department, was appearing before the National Assembly's social development portfolio committee.

The committee was told that CPS was supposed to be at the payout point at noon, but arrived only at 19:45, over four hours after Mzazi died.

Yako said CPS was "quite comfortable" about giving an explanation, and said he rejected suggestions that CPS was uncaring or performed below par.

However, one problem was that about 35% of pensioners moved to a different pay point every month, an issue CPS had raised with the provincial government.

Another reason for delays, and one which he could not find a way of explaining "in any scientific manner", related to the fact that it was winter, and that the cold slowed the blood circulation of old people in particular.

Under these circumstances it took relatively more time to read fingerprints for payout identification, and one might get a reading only on the third attempt.

"I'm not yet convinced it's blood circulation," Yako added. "I don't have enough scientific knowledge if it's winter."

He also said CPS had devoted 40% more equipment to the province than it did to any other province where it operated, and had in addition decided since Mzazi's death to bring in another 50 work stations, bringing the total to 198.

Yako also confirmed that the CPS provincial manager in the Eastern Cape, Claude Chetty, would be moved to another province when the current payment cycle ended on Friday.

He said it was clear Chetty lacked communication and planning skills.

'Best possible service'

CPS had agreed to contribute to Mzazi's funeral costs.

"But we would like also to point out that she was receiving a disability grant because of her state of health," he said.

"As a company we are extremely committed to ensure we deliver the best possible service in all provinces and in particular the Eastern Cape."

Manny da Camara, a Democratic Alliance member of the committee, said that while he did not entirely accept CPS' explanation, nobody had voted for the company in an election.

The government should be held politically accountable, and it was the duty of the Eastern Cape department of social development to enforce service agreements and contracts with CPS, or anyone else.

However, this was rejected by the province's director of social services, Bandile Maqetuka, who told the committee that if CPS had arrived at the paypoint earlier, Mzazi would not have died.

CPS was insensitive, arrogant and cared only about maximisation of profits.

"They do as they like in our province," he said.

"CPS is not delivering on their mandate and we are paying them for this... they must take full responsibility for their incompetence."

- SAPA