Tabla de contenidos para 2022-03-29 en Mercury

Edward West edward.west@inl.co.za THE GOVERNMENT-owned Central Energy Fund (CEF) plans to invest R1 billion into the Virginia Gas Project, South Africa’s only onshore petroleum production right, via the acquisition of a 10 percent stake in Renergen subsidiary Tetra4, which owns 100 percent of the project. Renergen’s share price closed 9.71 per- cent up at R43.15 on the JSE yesterday. The transaction follows hard on the heels of a strategic shareholder agreement signed between Renergen and Canada-based Ivanhoe Mines two weeks ago, and the share price has surged 36 percent over three weeks. Proceeds from the CEF subscription will be used to further the development of Phase II of the Virginia Gas Project by Renergen, with Phase I expected to start this month, a statement said…

THE NATIONAL Treasury has increased the allowance for retirement funds to invest offshore from 30 percent to 45 percent and simultaneously collapsed the 10 percent African allowance. This is a big change for the asset management industry, which, excluding Africa, had moved its offshore allowance from 15 percent to just 30 percent in the first 25 years of democracy. What, if anything, does the change in foreign exchange regulations mean for your investment strategy? Surprisingly, in the short term, perhaps not much. Post the regulatory change, we engaged 14 asset management companies in the multi-asset mandates we make use of, and none intended to increase their foreign exposure in the short term, given their view that valuations still favoured South African assets. We suspect, though,…

Dieketseng Maleke dieketseng.maleke@inl.co.za CAPITAL Appreciation, whose investments include the GovChat platform, saw a “pleasing“ performance from each of its business units in the past year, boosted by an acceleration in commercial activity. The group said in a pre-close update for the year ended March 31, that earn- ings per share (Eps) and headline earnings per share (Heps) were expected to increase by between 25 percent and 35 percent when compared to the prior year. “Eps are expected to increase to between 12.85 and 13.88 cents per share and Heps are expected to increase to between 12.93 and 13.96c per share for the 2022 financial year,” the group said in a JSE regulatory notice. The company’s management said the results were achieved through strong top-line growth and good…

A team of scientists have for the first time demonstrated that plastic particles from our day-to-day lives such as water bottles, grocery bags, toys and disposable cutlery, among others, can end up in our bloodstream in detectable levels. The research, published in the scientific journal Environment International, shows that miniscule pieces of plastic from our living environment are absorbed into the human bloodstream. Polyethylene terephthalate (Pet), polyethylene, and polymers of styrene were the most common types of plastic found in the blood samples, followed by poly(methyl methacrylate). Polypropylene was also analysed but the concentrations were too low for an accurate measurement. Pet is commonly found in soda and water bottles; containers; polyethylene in bottles for milk and household cleaners; blow-extruded grocery bags, caps, and toys; while polymers of styrene are…

DUNCAN DU BOIS | Bluff THE reason The Mercury editorial of March 28 claims “the vaccine debate is not over yet” is because open debate on the subject is being suppressed by the mainstream media. If the stark realities of the subject were laid bare, a very different narrative would emerge. In recent weeks, the very institutions tasked with monitoring Covid deaths and the effects of the vaccines have made highly significant admissions. The UK Mail on Sunday noted that only 6% of deaths in the US in the period up to February 22 were from Covid. In Italy, the Covid death rate has been revised down to 2.9%. For its part, the CDC has conceded that “coding errors” resulted in deaths ascribed to Covid being greatly exaggerated.…

| Mercury Correspondent The national Department of Health said 80 000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine were set to expire by the end of the month. National Health Department spokesperson Foster Mohale said the department was exploring strategies to increase vaccine uptake especially among people in the 18 to 34 age group. According to statistics, only 30% of people in this category have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19. He urged people to vaccinate before the anticipated fifth wave. “We don’t know when and how it will hit. As a country we cannot afford to lose lives again like before during the Delta and Beta variants which claimed more lives because we didn’t have protective weapon like vaccines. “The more we vaccinate and boost in numbers, the more we prevent the…

Motorists who apply to renew their driver’s licences before the deadline of March 31 will have their licences remain valid for a further three months. This is on condition that they remain in possession of their expired driving licence cards and have proof of payment for the application to renew their licence in the form of a receipt.The regulation is also applicable to those who have applied to renew their driving licence cards from February 25, 2022. With concerns mounting over the looming deadline and the number of outstanding driving licences in production, the national Department of Transport has announced that it was well on track to meeting the deadline of clearing the remaining outstanding licences. The Road Traffic Management Corporation reported that as of February 1, there was a…

THE Department of Correctional Services has launched an investigation after an inmate was killed at Pieter- maritzburg Medium A Centre. The inmate died on Friday. Department of Correctional Services spokesperson Sechaba Mphahlele said a scuffle broke out after inmates attacked officials at the centre. “Inmates, classified as maximum risk, attacked correctional officials at the centre around midday, critically wounding one official who suffered eight wounds to the head and two in the left arm. He was admitted to hospital, where he is receiving treatment. The other official was left with a swollen eye, after he was repeatedly punched.” Mphahlele added that an inmate died during the scuffle. “Circumstances that led to his death are under investigation. A case has been opened with the SAPS, and the incident has been reported…

The Covid-19 pandemic has had an unprecedented negative impact on the health and nutrition of Africa’s population, and also on its economies, livelihood and agriculture sector. According to the AU and international organisations such as the UN’s Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO), it affected food systems in many ways by disrupting the input and output markets, as well as the production of the various commodities mostly undertaken by smallholder farmers consisting of mainly women and youth. The effect on Africa’s food systems has also been compounded by other shocks in this period, such as locust outbreaks, extreme weather patterns due to climate change, and rising security challenges in various parts of the continent. The current conflict in Ukraine could also add to the increased risks of food security as it…

THOSE who are behind the movement Operation Dudula could raise the pertinent issues affecting South Africans without apportioning blame to foreign nationals from the African continent. Operation Dudula has been making headlines in Gauteng by forcefully shutting down businesses owned by foreign nationals. Last week its leader, Nhlanhla “Lux” Dlamini, was arrested when he led a similar activity. The movement was due to launch its KwaZulu-Natal wing on Sunday, but the march was cancelled by eThekwini Municipality as it failed to meet certain requirements. Observers have described the movement as xenophobic, while its leaders believe that their struggle is growing in popularity because it has echoed the sentiments of many South Africans. It is true that the issues being raised by Operation Dudula will definitely find fertile ground with the…

The recent statement of US President Joe Biden about Russian President Vladimir Putin is “alarming”, and Moscow will continue monitoring such statements, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said yesterday. Wrapping up his European tour, Biden said during his Saturday speech on Ukraine that Putin “cannot remain in power”. Later, a White House official said Biden’s words were not endorsing a regime change in Russia. “This is a statement that, of course, is alarming. We will continue to closely monitor the statements of the US president. We carefully record them and will continue to do so,” Peskov said. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Nato did not have a goal of implementing a “regime change” in Russia. “This is not the objective of Nato, nor that of the US president”, Scholz said in…

Israeli authorities have arrested five suspects following an attack claimed by the Islamic State (IS) group that killed two policemen, the police said yesterday. The officers were shot dead on Sunday in the northern Israeli city of Hadera as the Jewish state hosted a landmark meeting of top US and Arab diplomats. Five people were also wounded when the gunmen opened fire at the police and passers-by in Hadera – the second attack since last Tuesday linked to the jihadist group. The police officers killed were identified as Shirel Aboukrat, a French- Israeli citizen, and Yazan Falah. They were both 18. Their funerals were to be held later in the day. A security source said the two gunmen were Israeli Arabs from the northern Arab-populated town of Umm al-Fahm. Police…

KINSHASA: Several army positions have come under attack by March 23 Movement (M23) rebels since early yesterday in northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), according to local security sources. M23 rebels have launched several attacks on positions of the DRC Armed Forces (FARDC) in the Rutshuru territory, north of Goma, capital of North Kivu province, since 3am local time, military sources told Xinhua. Heavy fighting lasted several hours and residents have fled, attempting to cross into Uganda. The M23 is a group of former rebels of the National Congress for the Defence of the People.…

Edward West edward.west@inl.co.za ADvTECH, the private education group, is likely to continue its robust growth trend and good cash generation after reinstating its dividend payment ratio in the year to December 31 to the same level as before the disruption caused by Covid-19, chief executive Roy Douglas said yesterday. A final dividend of 31 cents was declared, bringing the full year dividend to 50c (2020: 20c) a share. The group lifted normalised earnings per share by 35 percent to 121.5c after good enrolment growth, a signifi- cant improvement in collections and better efficiencies. Douglas said ADvTECH had delivered strong results, reinforcing a consistent performance and highlighting its robust business model. “We continue to benefit by revising structures, improving systems, enhancing our technological capability and strong financial management,” he…

FAROUK ARAIE | Johannesburg IT IS tragic and hypocritical that it took the bloodbath in Ukraine to catapult and propel the grim words “war crimes” into the global lexicon. For the past 70 years, the world has witnessed war crimes and crimes against humanity on a daily basis without a murmur. Today’s screams about war crimes, sanctions and illegal seizures of property are a smokescreen for regime change. Any regime change in the periphery of Europe and Asia is a nuclear powder keg. These hypocrites were silent when Muslims were butchered on a global scale over the past 30 years in both hemispheres. Selective amnesia was their foreign policy posture. The nine leaders of the club of nine nuclear powers are clueless about the consequences of unconstrained nuclear…

JAIRAM REDDY | Musgrave Of great concern is the purported political interference and the lack of transparency in the appointment of the critical post of city manager for the Durban/eThekwini Municipality. On the one hand the mayor, Mxolisi Kaunda, assures us that all is above board and the selection panel will soon present a report to the Council on the outcomes of its selection process. Given the dysfunctional state of the majority of local councils, the damning findings of the Zondo Commission on SOEs, the blemished ANC cadre deployment strategy, and the inappropriate implementation of the employment equity policy in some cases have led to a parlous state of leadership, management and governance at local government level. The mayor needs to provide the citizens of the city with…

Chevon Booysen chevon.booysen@inl.co.za TROPHY hunting quotas for black rhinos, leopards and elephants in South Africa for 2022 have been suspended after an application was brought in court by animal welfare organisation the Humane Society International (HSI). The HSI had brought an application to review the quotas set by the Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment Barbara Creecy. HSI said in a statement that the court has granted interim relief pending the final determination of the matter. In a statement in February, the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) said the quotas had been set at 10 leopards, 150 elephants and 10 black rhinos. HSI/Africa argued that the DFFE failed to comply with the consultative process prescribed by National Environmental Management Biodiversity Act 10 of 2004 when making…

Sibusiso Mboto sibusiso.mboto@inl.co.za THE lawyers for Prince Simakade Zulu, of the Zulu royal family, have written to the Presidency to ask President Cyril Ramaphosa to provide the reasons that prompted his decision to announce King Misuzulu kaZwelithini as heir to the Zulu throne this month. In the lawyer’s letter, a request is also made for Ramaphosa to release the report on the mediation process undertaken by the government following disagreements in the royal household after the death of King Goodwill Zwelithini last year. The prince is the late king’s first-born, and some had suggested that he should be considered his successor. In a letter dated March 18, the prince’s legal representatives Hammann-Moosa Incorporated gave the president 14 days in which to respond to their client’s demands. Attorney Johann Hammann…

LVIV: With peace talks between Russia and Ukraine set to take place in Turkey this week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy insisted on the territorial integrity of his country after earlier suggesting he was ready for a compromise. Zelenskiy said in his video address to the Ukrainian people that in talks due to take place in Istanbul his government would prioritise the “territorial integrity” of Ukraine. But in comments made to Russian journalists earlier in the day Zelenskiy adopted a different tone, saying Ukraine was willing to assume neutral status and compromise over the status of the eastern Donbas region as part of a peace deal. In the video call that the Kremlin pre-emptively warned Russian media not to report, Zelenskiy said any agreement must be guaranteed by third parties and…

MINSK: The Russian girlfriend of a Belarusian dissident arrested with him when their plane was forced to land in Minsk, went on trial yesterday facing up to six years in jail, Belarusian media said. Sofia Sapega, 24, was detained with Belarusian opposition activist Roman Protasevich, 26, last May when their Ryanair flight from Greece to Lithuania was grounded as it passed over Belarus. A court in Belarus yesterday started a closed-door trial against Sapega, who faces seven criminal charges including “inciting social hatred” and “violence”.…

The EU’s criminal justice co-operation agency Eurojust yesterday said it assisted in freezing some €120 million (R1.9 billion) of Lebanese assets linked to a money-laundering investigation. The properties and bank accounts, linked to five people suspected of embezzling around $330 million (about R4.8bn) were seized in France, Germany, Luxembourg, Monaco and Belgium, Eurojust said in a statement. It did not identify the suspects. A Eurojust spokesperson declined to comment further and declined to name the suspects. Eurojust has been involved in co-ordinating meetings between countries probing Lebanon Central Bank governor Riad Salameh, who Swiss prosecutors suspect of embezzling some $330m along with his brother, Raja, according to a letter the Swiss attorney general sent to Lebanese officials last year, which was seen by Reuters. At least four other nations, including…

Banele Ginindza banele.ginindza@inl.co.za PARLIAMENT is likely to only receive a warbled response on its demand from the Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) on the South African Airways (SAA) equity partnership deal with Global Airways that saw the Takatso Consortium taking a major stake in the national airways. The deal has been mired in controversy since it was announced in July last year. Parliament’s Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) last week instructed the DPE to provide details on the processes or lack thereof, leading to the uplifting of the Takatso Consortium as the preferred majority partner for SAA. Industry insiders said over the weekend that the deal was unlikely to be consummated as expected, because Global Airways, the majority partner in Takatso, had been doing “free shopping”, expecting the State…

Thami Magubane and Sibusiso Mboto DISAGREEMENTS over who should be the next eThekwini city manager are said to have reached fever pitch at council, raising questions about the state of the ANC-led coalition in KwaZulu-Natal’s biggest municipality. The appointment of the city manager has become a thorny issue after rumours circulated recently alleging the involvement of KZN Premier Sihle Zikalala on who would be the next city boss. Today, mayor Mxolisi Kaunda is expected to present a report before executive committee (Exco) members on how the selection process for the city’s top post has gone. He had said at a meeting last week, that the report would show that there was no interference with the selection process. Among the candidates rumoured to be in the running for the job are…

MANHUNT! Police in Dorset, England, are searching for a bearded fellow wearing only his underpants and socks. A police helicopter has joined the chase. He escaped from a court prisoner transit van in the town of Poole, according to Sky News, after having assaulted security officers. How he escaped from the van and why he was wearing only underpants and socks is not explained. Are prisoners perhaps stripped before being transported, to discourage them from trying to escape? We’re not told. The police describe the escapee as 32 years old with dark hair and a beard. They give no description of his underwear or socks, which is surely a material omission. However, they do believe he may have altered his appearance since going on the run. He could have shaved…

PEACE, goodwill, listening, kindness, generosity, respect, safety and mercy – all these wonderful community builders, things that make life around us richer and more trustworthy and enjoyable, begin with you and me. They are inside jobs. We cannot expect the world to deliver to us that which we are not willing to offer. It is irrational to want something in the broader community that you and I are not willing to pursue first within ourselves. If you want to live in a generous world, be generous. If you want to live and know mercy and kindness, express both to all you know. Show what is possible in your every encounter. If I am harbouring anger and resentment towards another, how can I wish for a world where people are kind…

Jolene Marriah-Maharaj jolene.marriah@inl.co.za One of the most important lessons Muhammad Rayhaan Ismail Sooliman has learnt from his father, Imtiaz Sooliman, is to remain humble while helping others. Imtiaz, the director of the Gift of the Givers, has been widely lauded for his humanitarian work locally and abroad. He was named Social Justice Champion of the Year 2021 for the role his organisation played during the lockdown. His son Rayhaan, 34, director of Operations at Gift of Givers, shares his father’s passion for helping people. “When responding to people afflicted with disasters, put yourself in their situation. Ask yourself ‘What would you want people to do for you?’ Then do that.” He said one of the greatest lessons his father taught him was gratitude. “We should be grateful that…

Zama Ngcoya zama.ngcoya@inl.co.za A FAMILY in Sundumbili, Mandeni, want answers after the death of Siphesihle Duma, a third-year Dramatic Arts student from the Durban University of Technology. The body of the 23-year-old woman was found floating in the sea at South Beach, Durban, last Thursday morning. Duma’s aunt, Zinhle Madela, said the family was notified of her disappearance by a room mate and close friend after she did not return from an outing on Wednesday. “Her best friend called and informed me on Thursday that Siphesihle had not returned to the student residence. She emphasised that this was a red flag because she did not present herself for her practicals and she never misses any class and she is always on time,” Madela said. A missing person poster was created…

A GAUTENG rugby team’s sporting weekend to Durban has been marred by tragedy. Two boys from the Hoërskool Birchleigh allegedly drowned while on a beach trip on Sunday. “The school was in Durban from March 24, where learners were participating in a rugby tournament,” said Gauteng Education MEC, Panyaza Lesufi. He said the pupils had gone to Durban’s North beach. After some pupils experienced difficulty while swimming, they were assisted to the shore by lifeguards. When staff did a headcount, they found that two pupils were missing. Lesufi said teachers searched the vicinity for the missing two and when they could not be found, missing persons cases were opened at Durban Central police station. The boys’ bodies were found yesterday, about 2km north of the beach from where they went…

LOCAL government is where people experience the love or indifference of the state. The dominant narrative in South Africa speaks of a local government that has lost the confidence of the populace by being unresponsive and callous, as evident in the low voter turnout in the November 1 local government elections. What must be done to ensure a more professional approach at the coalface of state delivery? I suggest five things. u The SA Local Government Association (Salga) must support municipalities in implementing the revolutionary Municipal Staff Regulations that will come into effect on July 1 this year. This must be conducted through research that bridges the gap between theory and practice, leading to new knowledge. I am talking about research that disrupts the dominant narratives that liberate people. u…

Zimbabwe’s main opposition leader, Nelson Chamisa, was yesterday hopeful his party will win next year’s general elections after securing two-thirds of the seats in weekend parliamentary and municipal by-elections against heavy odds. “We have done it country-wide,” Citizens’ Coalition for Change leader Chamisa told a news conference. His party, formed just three months ago as a splinter of the former largest and most credible rival to the ruling Zanu-PF, won 19 of the 28 contested parliamentary elections. The vote was prompted by the recalling of members of his former Movement for Democratic Change Alliance, due to the deaths and reassignment of some of the incumbents. The party also won 75 of the contested 122 municipal seats. “You know we had a lot of challenges,” said Chamisa whose party was barred…

LOS ANGELES: Will Smith will not face charges for punching Chris Rock on Sunday. The 53-year-old actor was at the Academy Awards and took offence when Chris made fun of his wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s shaven-headed look (she has alopecia), so he marched on stage to hit him in the face, but the Los Angeles Police Department will not investigate as no complaint has been made. The LAPD said: “LAPD investigative entities are aware of an incident between two individuals during the Academy Awards programme. The incident involved one individual slapping another. The individual involved has declined to file a police report. If the involved party desires a police report at a later date, LAPD will be available to complete an investigative report.” Rock, 57, was presenting the award for…

YOGYAKARTA: Group of 20 major economies chair Indonesia has started talks with members on standardising health protocols for travel, its health minister said yesterday, stressing the importance of harmonising rules and technology as global travel resumes. “Every person who travels ... can do so more efficiently,” minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin told a news conference at a G20 health meeting in Yogyakarta, where standardising requirements is being discussed. Indonesia’s proposal, however, is that standardisation must still adhere to Covid-19 policies of individual countries, including which vaccines, tests, or testing authorities they would recognise.…

BEIJING: Chinese researchers have reconstructed the history of the South China Sea’s sea-level shift using local corals and found the sea level has risen by 150mm since 1900. The study, carried out by researchers from the South China Sea Institute of Oceanology under the Chinese Academy of Sciences and other institutions in the country, focused on Porites coral, a wide-spread coral in the South China Sea with a high growth rate, clear annual growth layer and sensitive response to the change of seawater environment. The study was published in the journal Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology.…