The Democratic Alliance (DA) said on Tuesday it was concerned by reports from social grant beneficiaries across the country of systems glitches which had resulted in many of them failing to cash their monthly payouts.

The DA said the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) and the South African Post Office (Sapo), which has been appointed preferred payment channel for all social grants, appeared to have been ill-prepared for the changes to the payment system which came into effect on July 1.

An apology issued by Sassa acting CEO Abraham Mahlangu on Monday citing system failure for the problem was not good enough, the party said, noting that 2.8-million South Africans depended on the payouts to put food on the table.

"Until pay points change to the new system, beneficiaries will not be able to access their funds," DA shadow minister of social development Bridget Masango said.

"Neither Sassa or Sapo can say for certain when they expect this to happen which means millions of people will go hungry for an indefinite period because of Sassa’s negligent behaviour."