Lawyers for the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) and Social Development Minister Bathabile Dlamini were on Tuesday late submitting their response to a new directive by the Constitutional Court on why they missed a previous deadline to respond to questions by the court.
Two lawyers ran into the Constitutional Court at 3.11 p.m. to submit two thick files of documents to the registrar.
When asked what they were there for by a security guard, they said they wanted to submit Sassa documents.
The court said earlier in its new directive that the previous acting CEO of Sassa Thamo Mzobe, current acting CEO Wiseman Magasela and Dlamini were directed to file affidavits by 3 p.m. on Tuesday on why the directions by Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng were not complied with.
The court had sent Dlamini and the grants agency a set of stern questions on March 8. They were given a deadline of Monday 4 p.m. to make the submission, which Dlamini and Sassa failed to meet.
The department instead filed heads of arguments on Monday and a proposed draft order but did not file affidavits expected to indicate who should be liable for the crisis.
On Tuesday the lawyers did not want to speak to journalists standing outside the registrar's office. However, a clerk confirmed that that the papers have been filed.
She said the judges must see them first before they are made public.