Pension Payout Delay - Very Bad Service

Good day,

I'm writing thi on behalf of my mother, Mrs Jo-Anne de Beer. We are now on day 126 of our fight with the government pension fund and she has yet to receive her payout. I've included various financial and ***** investigation departments as recipients in this email, as we have now reached our limit and are willing to escalate this matter to the highest authorities available.

For your convenience, I've included all her details below:

Name: Jo-Anne de Beer REF no: ********** 6 ID: ********** 141082 Employee No: ********** 4

After decades as a loyal SARS employee, Mrs de Beer had her last working day on the 31st of January 2018. By law she has to receive her resignation lump sum benefit from the government pension fund within 60 days. As I've mentioned, we are now on day 126.

I've detailed a timeline below, for ease of reference:

On the 11 January 2018 she handed all her documentation in at the SARS Bellville HR Department, where she was told that all her documentation was complete and correct. Her documents was then sent to SARS HR Head Office where Mr Andy Phepello received it. On 21 February she phoned the GEPF call centre to inquire about the status of her payout. She was told to wait. On 1 March she phoned the call centre again. She was told that her application is at the legal department to check her divorce papers. She asked to speak to a manager. Her call was cut off. On 5 March she phoned the call centre yet again and was told that her decree of divorce was missing. On 6 March Mr Phepello from SARS HR Head Office, re-submitted all her documentation, including a certified decree of divorce. On 4 April she visited the GEPF office in Cape Town. They told her that her application was at the legal department and she'll have to wait. On 18 May Mr Phepello personally handed yet another set of Mrs de Beer's completed documents in at the GEPF office. On 25 May she phoned the call centre yet again and was told that there's a note on the system saying that they received her completed forms on 5 April. On the same day, the state attorney told her lawyer that she must wait. To summarize, between 21 February and 25 May she has phoned the call centre a shocking total of 19 times, to no avail. Mrs de Beer then decided to contact Mr Pierre Snyman, who is on the GEPF Board of Trustees and he connected her with Thabisa Poo at the GPAA office. Mrs de Beer then emailed another copy of her decree of divorce and ex-husband's affidavit to the GPAA office. On 4 June, Mrs de Beer was told her decree of divorce has been received. And that's the last feedback we've received.

So, you can imagine that we are extremely frustrated. I'm not sure if this is as a result of a lack of effort or sheer incompetence at the GEPF, but it's starting to look like victimization to me. I trust that her case will receive the attention it deserves from now on.

Should we not receive satisfactory feedback by the end of this week, I will contact my various connections in the public media so that the government employees of South African can be made aware of how the pension fund, that is keen to take their money for DECADES, will treat them once they retire.

Eagerly awaiting your response,

Renda Harding