Update

GEORGE NEWS - A burglary at the George Post Office on Sunday 3 December again turned the spotlight on the precarious position of its clients.

Following the incident, this only post office branch in George was closed for two days (Monday and Tuesday, 4 and 5 December) and clients were left in the dark as to what to expect next. 

Concern was expressed on social media and directly to George Herald about the collapse of services, parcels that were allegedly stolen, and anxiety among Sassa beneficiaries.

In response to a query about the burglary, Louise Brugman, spokesperson for the South African Post Office's (Sapo) joint business rescue practitioners (BRPs), said burglars had gained access to the building and ground open the safe. 

An undisclosed amount of cash was stolen. No postal items were stolen and/or violated, as had been rumoured. 

"The branch was closed for the two days due to the smell inside the office."

On Wednesday 6 December, the office was reopened, coincidentally on the same day that Sapo's creditors agreed to the proposed business rescue plan of the BRPs, Anoosh Rooplal and Juanito Damonsan, who announced the roll-out of the plan the following day.

Brugman said the security at all post office branches will hopefully be addressed during the roll-out of the plan. Only Gauteng branches currently have proper security. "We are also looking to moving to a completely cashless system," she said.

There are however concerns over the impact of the rescue plan on unemployment figures as 5 000 staff members will lose their jobs and 420 more post office branches will close. Since 2020, 396 branches have closed down. It has impacted people who are dependent on Sapo's services. Sapo itself has stated that its postal services in remote areas are often the only access to communications and government services for rural communities.

Public trust eroded

Public trust in Sapo's abilities has eroded. A George resident who wishes to remain anonymous, said he recently received a letter by mail that was posted in January 2022. He expressed concern about the impact this level of service is having on industries and people who are relying on Sapo's services.

Most businesses have resorted to using courier and private mail service providers because of the inconsistent service of the post office.

"Dr Dennis Farrell of Business Café said if there are any businesses still using postal services, they must be few and far between. "The current challenge is fishing licence applications, but apparently these are now available online."

Salome van Wyk, a director of Millers Attorneys Inc, said using postage is the exception in their firm. Many attorneys are members of the Docex which operates as a privately run post office and moves documents overnight between members. "Otherwise, we make use of couriers."

In June this year, George Herald reported that the delivery of mail in the George area was put on hold. Residents could not access their mail due to the landlord locking the George central branch and George Industria premises due to outstanding rental from Sapo.

Modernisation and digitisation

Sapo has received R2,4-billion through recapitalisation from the Department of Communications and Digital Technology (DCDT). A further R3,8-billion allocation from government is required "to support the turnaround strategy", according to the BRPs.

In the BRPs' announcement on 7 December, Rooplal said their plan is to rationalise costs to enable Sapo to operate sustainably and without total reliance on government funding. It will be rolled out in two phases over a two- to five-year period. Phase 1 will involve stabilising the business, reducing the branches to about 600 and the staff to about 5 000 (from 11 083), up-skilling current staff, and employing additional digital specialists and leaders to help modernise and digitise the organisation. 

"The fleet is to be increased to deliver letters and parcels timeously. "New digital products will be considered and launched to increase revenue streams, while automating more of the daily tasks," said Rooplal.

Sapo property might also be sold off and over-the-counter payment services and cash pay points, such as Sassa payments, will be phased out.

If the rescue plan is successful, creditors will be in a better position as they will receive 12 cents in the rand in stead of the six cents they would receive should Sapo be liquidated.

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