‘The pension is too little’: Cape Town pensioner asks Ramaphosa to increase old-age grant
An 80-year-old Rylands resident asked President Cyril Ramaphosa to increase the Older Persons Grant during an ANC campaign visit. His reply that “something would be done” has raised questions about whether he was making a policy commitment.
An 80-year-old Cape Town resident met President Cyril Ramaphosa during his campaign for the November 4 local government elections. She asked the president to increase the Older Persons Grant, which she felt was too little. Ramaphosa assured her that something would be done about it. The meeting was captured in a 54-second video on MyANC's Facebook page, where Ramaphosa visited Rylands, Delft, Mfuleni and Khayelitsha, focusing on issues like voting, the taxi industry and service delivery.
The pensioner's request comes after pensioners across the country protested, demanding a grant increase to R5,000 a month. SASSA acknowledged the challenges faced by senior citizens but emphasized that decisions on grant increases lie with the government. The Department of Social Development is running various programmes to assist elderly people facing financial difficulties.
ActionSA's Dereleen James, a National Assembly member, has called for a review of the grant, including measures to protect the elderly from fraud and exploitation.
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