Post Office unable to pay stokvel members
They saved up all year to be able to have a comfortable festive season, but when women from about 40 stokvels tried to withdraw their money from the KwaNobuhle Post Office, they were told there was no money.
Since last week, these women have been turned away at the door of the branch at the Shoprite complex because it had run out of money.
The stokvel members have accused the branch manager of taking them for fools by constantly telling them to come back the next day – only for them to leave empty-handed again because the Post Office outlet never had enough money to meet the demand.
The stokvels, whose members had gathered outside the branch on Monday, have saved more than R1m among them, which they wanted to withdraw.
Sindiswa Belesi, 50, who was meant to host her grandson’s umgidi – a celebration that follows the initiation of young men – said she did not know how she would be able to do so because she had still not received her money.
Belesi said her grandson’s coming-home ceremony, which is meant to take place on Saturday, might have to be cancelled if she did not receive her money on time.
“My grandson doesn’t understand that things could be cancelled.
“He does not want to accept it,” she said.
“I’ve already sent out invitations, I don’t know what I’m going to do.
“My grandson is not even eating the food he’s supposed to there in the bush.
“He’s eating bread and drink-o-pop because I don’t have the money to buy proper food.”
Bongiwe Mahlati, 26, the treasurer of her stokvel, said it had given notice at the KwaNobuhle Post Office in November that its members would withdraw their money from the branch on December 5.
However, when she arrived to collect the money, she was told to return the next day – and it had become the trend every day since.
“I came here on Tuesday and was told to come back on Thursday.
“When I came on Thursday, I was told to come the next day or try on Saturday because ’imali iphele esithubeni’ [‘the money was depleted along the way’],” Mahlati said.
“On Saturday, they said they had money but there was no network so they couldn’t hand it out. Today [Monday], we’re told again that there’s no money.”
Mahlati said Post Office officials had then contacted the police and they were kicked out.
“We don’t save our money with the police, we save our money at the Post Office,” she said.
Some of the women start queueing at the KwaNobuhle branch from 5am, hoping to be first in line to receive money.
Agnes Naika, 57, fears going home because her stokvel members would not believe that she had, once again, not been given the money.
Naika said she did not know what she would eat for supper because she had hoped to have her money by now.
“My cupboards are empty. I don’t know what we’re going to do,” she said.
“When I left the house, I told my grandchild to get ready because when I returned I was going to go buy her Christmas clothes.”
Ntombizanele Nginase, 33, said: “This is our money. It does not belong to the government.
“We saved all year only to starve now because we’re being told there’s no money.”
Luxolo Tsawo, 25, said: “We starved ourselves throughout the year, saving money, hoping to end the year on a good note – and now this is happening.”
Post Office Eastern Cape regional general manager Nombulelo Ngubane said the demand for money exceeded the cash that the branch had.
Ngubane said the branch manager had catered for a certain number of people, but the number in need of money exceeded the money available at the KwaNobuhle branch.
“On Saturday, we arranged for another big amount of money to be dropped off, but even then the money was depleted.
“We’ve now started to redirect them [to other branches] while we’re dispatching more money to the branch.
“We’re just unable to anticipate what the demand is going to be because people come in numbers and we’re unable to assist them.
“It’s not an issue of there being no money, but rather the [size of the] demand when it’s required and in the time it’s required,” Ngubane said.
The Post Office did not want to hold large amounts of cash at any of the branches because there had been 14 robberies at branches in the province since the beginning of December.
Ngubane said branch managers should prioritise those who had given prior notice rather than walk-ins.
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