Revelations of malpractice and possible fraud in a Public Centre for Social Welfare (CPAS) have shaken the Brussels municipality of Anderlecht. The Federal Parliament is now organising hearings next week to investigate the matter further.
A report by VRT's investigative programme Pano showed that the Anderlecht CPAS wrongfully granted a minimum income allowance retroactively to two of its incognito members, despite the fact that neither of them lived in Anderlecht.
"We have granted allowances to people we have never seen, who do not even live in Anderlecht. The system is full of holes," one of the eight anonymous social workers who work(ed) there told VRT.
To find out if the situation was as open to abuse as reported, Pano started an investigation more than six months ago. Two of its reporters – Arno (22) and Lina (25), who are both residing in Flanders and are financially well-off – applied to the Anderlecht CPAS for benefits.
Credit: Belga / Siska Gremmelprez
Neither of them expected to actually receive social benefits: their applications were incomplete and their background could easily be revealed with a few simple checks.
To apply for support, a person does not need to be domiciled in the same municipality as the CPAS but they do need a residential address there. One of the reporters wrote down the address of a friend living in Anderlecht, the other chose a random apartment building via Google Maps. He added the building's house number but not the number of the apartment he claimed to live in.
Both reporters were invited by CPAS for their first interview (called a 'social investigation'), but only after 1.5 and two months. The legal term stipulates that an application must be processed within 30 days. For both of them, the investigation remains limited.
Despite it being a requirement, CPAS did not conduct a house visit for either of them. After 3.5 months, Lina received thousands of euros in social support – without an investigation into her income or a follow-up interview. Six months after his application, the same happened for Arno.
After the investigation, Pano contacted the chair of the Anderlecht CPAS for comment, but they never received one.
What is happening now?
Outgoing Minister of Social Integration and Poverty Reduction Karine Lalieux (PS) called the situation "unacceptable" and added that "all political levels must take responsibility to tackle these types of irregularities."
Lalieux told RTBF that she has already taken responsibility. "I already increased the checks at the Anderlecht CPAS before the investigation. This shows that it is not a general problem." She said that around 40 of the 9,000 allowances granted in Anderlecht were randomly selected and have been closely examined by the Federal Government.
But Lalieux said that she would not be able to intervene if any problems were discovered. Although she is responsible for the functioning of the government service, she explained that she is not responsible for the internal functioning of each individual CPAS. "That is a responsibility of the local and regional government."
The Chamber Committee on Social Affairs is organising hearings on the situation next Wednesday (27 November). Lalieux, the inspectors and representatives of the CPAS administration will be questioned. The Pano reporters will also be present.
What is CPAS?
The Public Centre for Social Welfare (OCMW in Dutch, CPAS in French) is a public institution that every Belgian municipality has. CPAS provide social services to citizens. As well as help with housing and legal advice, CPAS provides financial assistance to those without a minimum income.
However, the number of applications for support in the Brussels-Capital Region has increased significantly in recent years, including in Anderlecht. As a result, the workload for social workers is too high: CPAS social workers each handle an average of around 120 files at any given time. In Anderlecht, this reportedly rises to 200 files per staff member.
This means that applicants must sometimes wait months before they receive a decision. Additionally, many applications are insufficiently investigated.
The social workers speaking to Pano acknowledged that some applications are approved even though they know that the people in question are not entitled to an allowance.
The decision to approve an application is not made by the social workers but by the "special committee for social services" of the CPAS, which consists of local politicians. The law dictates that they can decide autonomously and can therefore ignore the reports of the social workers.
