Weird muthi ritual at Sassa office spooks workers

Sassa employees found needles pinned into their office chairs and scattered on the floor two weeks ago, but they did not think much of it until the following day when more needles were seen in other corners of the office. 

The incident happened at eMkhondo (formerly Piet Retief) South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) offices in Mpumalanga on April 17.

The peculiar incident, which was court on CCTV camera on April 12, has since led to the suspension of a supervisor and manager in what the agency described as "unfamiliar actions".

"We were all shocked when we saw [on CCTV] two of our colleagues and a person that looked like a sangoma sprinkling stuff on our desks and on the floor. We immediately suspected that the two employees were casting bad spells on us.

"We immediately spoke with our seniors and told them that we are not coming back until the entire office is cleansed and fumigated," said an employee, describing the fear that gripped their office leading to its closure for two weeks. 

"The manager behind this is normally a bubbly person who doesn't have issues with other colleagues. We suspect that she and the supervisor were casting bad spells on us and we do not know why because we all thought we were getting along," said the employee. 

Workers have been rendering services from a local community hall out of fear of returning to their office, which accommodates about 16 workers who process social grant applications. 

"We have also removed the work cars from the office and we are now parking them at the police station," said the worker. 

Another employee said he found some of the needles pinned into her office chair. "We were all scared because in the footage the man was holding a snake and went to all the desks to pour muthi," she said. 

In the footage, the two employees could be seen arriving at their offices in a bakkie and one of the unknown men is seen carrying a backpack while the manager has a bucket with liquid inside. They then proceed to the door while another employee unlocks the gate, oblivious to the CCTV cameras watching them.

At some point the man in a black gown is seen kneeling and burning something under one of the desks and sprinkling more liquid on other stations as he walks around the tiny office. 

Sassa spokesperson in Mpumalanga Senzeni Ngubeni said the two officials involved have since been suspended pending investigations.

"We have found out that two of our officials were involved in the incident. As it stands, they have been suspended. Investigation into their conduct is underway. We were shocked to learn about the unfamiliar actions of the officials.

"We have arranged with the [Mkhondo local] municipality to use the community hall while we clean and fumigate the office. Members of the public have been informed to use the community hall," said Ngubeni.

Sowetan reached out to the manager yesterday but her cellphone remained off. 

Sowetan understands that Sassa district office managers are expected to meet with the concerned employees and give feedback on what actions will be taken going forward.