The EFFâs Julius Malema is back on the campaign trail with another big promise for South Africaâs elderly: a monthly grant of R4,500 for pensioners. EFF leader made the vow at the unveiling of the partyâs provincial manifesto in Emalahleni in Mpumalanga where he framed the proposal less as an economic policy but more of a moral responsibility owed to grandmothers who had quietly held black households together for generations.
It is a stunning figure and it is already going viral on social media and WhatsApp groups. But before anyone begins to see it as a fait accompli or an imminent payout, itâs important disentangling what Malema has claimed from what the government has actually budgeted because right now those two sums are a very long way off.
Malemaâs statement
Speaking to a large crowd of EFF supporters ahead of the partyâs provincial manifesto launch, Malema said there is more than enough money in South Africa to properly look after its pensioners. The problem is, he said, that itâs being stolen or misused instead of being redirected to the people that need it most. His appeal was very emotional, describing pensioners especially grandmothers as the backbone of black families, those who raised children when parents were working, migrating or just not around. The increase in the payment to R4 500 is not a freebie, he maintains, but long overdue recognition of unpaid work that has supported whole homes for decades.
This isn’t a one off comment. This version has been consistently pitched by Malema. At the EFFâs last rally in Limpopo, during the 2024 national elections, he vowed to pensioners âmore than R4,000â a month once he becomes president. Around the same time, the partyâs manifesto launch in Durban and a rally in East London saw the EFF propose a plan to literally double the Older Personâs Grant from roughly R2,090 to R4,180 and similar promises to double the disability grant and the child support grant. The figure of R4,500 that has been mooted in Emalahleni is simply the latest, rounder version of a promise that the EFF has been repeating for at least two years now, repackaged for the 2026 local government election campaign.
What Pensioners Are Really Getting Today
And thatâs where the fact check truly counts. Older Personâs Grant Government for the 2026/27 financial year which started on 1 April 2026 is as at the actual pensioners aged 60 to 74 R2,400 a month pensioners aged 75 and older R2,420 a month. These figures came from Finance Minister Enoch Godongwanaâs budget speech in February 2026, which raised the old age grant by about 3.7% a shade higher than the roughly 3.5% inflation rate at the time but nowhere near double. In contrast, the child support grant received the biggest proportional increase of any grant this cycle, increasing from R560 to R580 a month. The temporary R370 Social Relief of Distress grant has remained unchanged since April 2024, despite years of lobbying by civil society groups to increase it closer to the food poverty line.
So the gap between what pensioners are currently receiving (R2 400-R2 420) and what Malema is proposing (R4 500) is not a small one. So itâs not quite doubling the grant, but about an 87â88% increase. It’s consistent with the EFFâs longstanding âdouble all grantsâ attitude, not a fresh number conjured out of thin air.
Money for What?
But Malema’s key point, that the money is there but being squandered, not that the state just can’t afford it, is a political argument not a costed one. And it hasn’t been presented with a public breakdown of which “misappropriated” funds would be diverted, and how much would be realistically recovered. To put that into perspective, the National Treasury allocated roughly R292.8 billion for the entire social grants system for all grant types for the 2026/27 financial year. On top of that, there’d be a major new line item in the form of a boost to the old age grant alone, which reaches millions of beneficiaries, by almost two-thirds. That would have to be funded by higher taxes, deep cuts elsewhere in the budget or new borrowing, none of which the EFF’s manifesto speeches have spelled out in detail.
This is hardly new ground for the party. The question of where the money would come from was asked by several commentators and rival parties when the EFF first proposed doubling all grants in 2024, and it is being asked again now. The party has responded largely by tackling corruption, nationalizing land and mineral assets and reforming the tax system, which is attractive politically in some circles but independent economists have repeatedly pointed out that they are either inadequate in themselves or would take years, not a single budget cycle, to implement.
It should also be mentioned that the pensioners themselves, and organizations that represent them, have lobbied government separately to raise the grant to R5,000 a campaign that the Department of Social Development responded to earlier in 2025 by saying it was âbetween a rock and a hard placeâ when it came to funding.
That response indicates that the pressure to substantially increase pension grants is coming from many quarters, not just the EFF, although the governmentâs actual scope for action is limited.
A cautionary note about viral claims
Note too, there is some bogus stuff going around online saying that SASSA has âofficially confirmedâ an R4,500 old age grant, plus a disability allowance top up, to purportedly be rolled out from May 2025, alongside actual reporting on Malemaâs address. That assertion is not supported by a budget speech, treasury document or SASSA statement on record. The old age grant for 2025/26 was confirmed at R2,310-R2,330, which later increased to R2,400-R2,420 in April 2026 nowhere near R4,500. The more a politician makes a promise that gets headlines, the more this kind of disinformation spikes. Readers should be suspicious of any communication saying that SASSA has âconfirmedâ a big grant increase, unless it is from a bona fide government or Treasury source.
The broader political context
Malemaâs pledge for pensioners comes just ahead of South Africaâs 2026 local government elections when the EFF is mounting a hard campaign against failing to deliver services and what it perceives as ANC mismanagement. It is a classic electoral ploy to promise pensioners, a sizeable and reliable voting bloc, direct cash relief and is consistent with the EFFâs general modus operandi of making dramatic welfare announcements at rallies rather than in the budget process in parliament where they would have to be negotiated and approved.
Also of relevance is the fact that Malema himself has been having serious legal troubles of late. He was convicted of hate speech in 2025 for a speech in 2022 in which he targeted a man who had attacked EFF members and is appealing the conviction. In October 2025 he was also found guilty of several crimes including illegal possession of a firearm and reckless endangerment after opening fire with a weapon on stage at an EFF demonstration in front of thousands of supporters. In April 2026 he was condemned to five years imprisonment. Under the South African Constitution, he would be prohibited from sitting as a Member of Parliament if an appeal upholds a sentence of that length a prospect that casts serious uncertainty over his political future even as he continues to campaign and pledge policy.
The Bottom Line
Malema did say pensioners should get R4 500 a month, and it is in keeping with promises the EFF has made on more than one occasion since 2024 to roughly double social grants. What has not happened is any government commitment, budget allocation or change of SASSA policy that brings that figure closer to reality. Currently, in the 2026/27 financial year, pensioners are receiving R2,400-R2,420 per month a real, above inflation rise, but still less than half of what Malema is promising on the campaign trail. As with similar commitments in earlier elections, there is a question whether that promise survives touch with a real national budget.
