The Citizen Justice Network (CJN), a community justice project of the Wits Centre for Journalism, has helped a South African police officer uncover and remedy a costly administrative error that had drained more than R60,000 from his salary in maintenance payments for someone else’s child.
This case, which had gone unresolved for nearly two years despite repeated attempts by the officer to seek help from court officials, highlights both the challenges many South Africans face navigating complex government systems and the critical role that community-based legal support can play in the pursuit of justice.
CJN paralegal Innocent Moloi in the VOW FM studio during his weekly segment.
“In South Africa, the Maintenance Act provides that once a child reaches the age of 18 and becomes independent, maintenance obligations should cease,” says CJN coordinator Bukeka Mkhosi. “In some cases, the parties involved must apply for a discharge order to formally terminate the maintenance arrangement. However, that process did not unfold as it should have.”
Seeking assistance, the officer, who wishes to remain anonymous, visited a local courthouse to request help in applying for a discharge order. Instead of receiving guidance, he was turned away by court officials. He later contacted the court manager via email and was assured that the issue would be addressed, but no help followed.
Then in 2024, while on duty and listening to Wits University’s campus radio station VOW 88.1 FM, the officer heard the Citizen Justice Network’s weekly radio feature Voice of Justice, where CJN paralegal Innocent Moloi was on air discussing a range of issues relating to child maintenance. The officer contacted the station to get in touch with Moloi directly.
“After hearing his story, I immediately took up the case and assisted the officer in applying for a discharge order, but the maintenance deductions continued to appear on his payslip,” says Moloi. “Concerned, I visited the courthouse to request financial statements. My request was denied, but I was still allowed to examine the maintenance file.
“What I discovered was alarming. The file contained documents belonging to other individuals, and a reference number belonging to another person had been linked to the officer’s PERSAL number – a system-generated 8-digit identifier for public service employees. This error meant the officer had unknowingly been paying maintenance for a child who was not his.”
For over a year, the Citizen Justice Network attempted to engage with court officials to resolve the matter, but despite repeated assurances, little progress was made. The case was finally escalated to the regional office of the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development in 2025.
“Investigations revealed that the officer had indeed been paying maintenance for an unknown child and that more than R60,000 had already been deducted from his salary due to the administrative error, or possibly deliberate misconduct,” says Moloi.
Further evidence came from the mother of the officer’s daughter, who confirmed that she had last received a maintenance payment of approximately R150 in 2014, which she had collected directly from the courthouse. She provided bank statements and a signed affidavit confirming that she had not received any funds deducted from the officer’s salary in the years following.
The Department of Justice confirmed that it would conduct a full investigation to determine the exact amount owed to the officer. Thanks to Moloi’s continued efforts, the court processed a cash repayment of R49,000 to the officer on 8 April 2026, after deductions were made for the payments still owed to his ex-partner which were not fulfilled due to the error.
“We are pleased that through persistence and advocacy, the case has finally gained the attention it deserves, and that the officer was reimbursed for the money wrongly deducted from his salary,” adds Mkhosi. “This case serves as a powerful reminder of the importance of community-based legal support in seeking accountability within public institutions.”
Follow this link for more information on the Citizen Justice Network.