Still awaiting replacement mobile device after 8 weeks

I purchased a Samsung Galaxy A51 in December last year and it started to slow down dramatically and continuously froze for several minutes at a time from the beginning of January 2021. My contract is with Telkom and I was advised by their technicians to take the device directly to Samsung as it was well within the warranty period.

I submitted the device to the Samsung Smart Care Centre on Nandi Drive in Durban on 12/01/2021 for the issues to be investigated by the technicians. I was informed later that week that the device needed to be replaced and I was directed to call the Samsung Head Office to follow up. Upon calling Samsung, I was informed that the replacement of the device was authorised on 15/01/2021 and that a consultant would contact me regarding stock availability and delivery. To this day I have not received a call from Samsung regarding this. I have been calling the call centre every week and sometimes more than once a week but I keep receiving the same feedback that Samsung will contact me regarding the delivery of the device. It is now 8 weeks since I initially submitted my device to the Samsung Smart Care Centre and I am without a device.

I attempted to escalate the matter with Telkom to process a refund, but this was denied as the device was submitted to Samsung directly. The Samsung Smart Care Centre on Nandi Drive informed me that they have recommended an upgrade due to the device availability and are awaiting feedback from the Head Office. I have been calling the Head Office Customer Care Centre almost every day from last week and the Exchanges department was due to call me from last week but to date I have not received any feedback.

I need my device for my daily business operations operations and to contact members of my team who are on the field. I receive a cellphone allowance from my company but I do not have a phone to show for this and it is becoming a serious concern to my manager. This has been a major inconvenience. I have been calling the Samsung Call Centre but there is still no stock. I do not understand how the Samsung Head Office does not have access to stock after almost 9 weeks. I have been paying for this phone from December but I have been without a phone for 2 months now. An upgrade has been explicitly approved and recommended by the Smart Care Centre but they say they do not have stock of any devices, I find this hard to believe after 8 weeks.