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NSFAS Pays Deceased Beneficiaries

Statement by Dr Delmaine Christians MP – DA Spokesperson on Higher Education and Training:

The DA will write to the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Higher Education to request a dedicated follow-up briefing from the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) and the Department, including clear timelines for corrective action and accountability measures.

This after deeply concerning revelations by the Minister of Higher Education, Buti Manamela during a press briefing that NSFAS continued to pay bursaries to at least 822 deceased individuals.

During the NSFAS presentation to the portfolio committee yesterday they indicated that all was running smoothly, but just after the meeting the Minister, Buti Manamela revealed that this was not the case.

This shocking failure exposes a systemic breakdown in NSFAS’ verification, data management, and oversight systems. At a time when thousands of qualifying students are excluded from funding or face delayed payments, it is unacceptable that scarce public funds are being misdirected to ineligible or non-existent beneficiaries.

This is not an isolated administrative error, but a clear indication of weak controls and a lack of consequence management.

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