Tabla de contenidos para 2023-12-29 en Mercury

Legendary musician and playwright Mbongeni Ngema, 68, whose work “touched and moved audiences around the world”, died in a car crash while returning from a funeral in the Eastern Cape on Wednesday. Born in Verulam, north of Durban, Ngema, also a composer and choreographer, was best known for writing the award-winning musical Sarafina! which debuted in 1988 and was made into a movie in 1992. Minister of Arts and Culture Zizi Kodwa said Ngema received Tony Award nominations for Asinamali and Sarafina!, and Grammy Award nominations for his work in Sarafina! and The Lion King. He also acted in the film adaptation of Sarafina! and the Oscar-nominated film Yesterday. Locally, he said Ngema received several accolades such as the South African Music Awards Lifetime Achievement Award…

eThekwini mayor Mxolisi Kaunda says the tourism industry is booming in Durban, with hotel occupancy at 75% compared with 72% last year. The mayor said there were 112 101 visitors in Durban over the December 16 long weekend, and the projected total number of visitors for the festive season would be close to 800 000. Kaunda said statistics for the Day of Reconciliation weekend from December 14 to 17 showed of the 112 101 visitors in the city, 72 866 were overnight visitors and 39 235 were day visitors. “The direct spend was R211 million, with over 1 000 direct employment opportunities created.” Kaunda added that projections for the Christmas Day extended weekend from December 22 to 26 also indicated a positive impact on local tourism. “This demonstrates that our…

THE Treasury is considering using contingency reserves to reduce government debt and fund public sector salaries. This calls for public outrage, given the excessively bloated nature of the executive and governance structures, and their profligate spending which led to the debt, when so many people cannot find jobs and do not receive taxpayer-funded services from the fat cats. To make matters worse, the political structures show contempt for our Constitution, with core principles such as transparency and administrative justice having been replaced with a culture of secrecy, classification of information, and non-accountability of staff in government departments most of whom – particularly in senior positions – probably do not deserve the salaries which could be topped up by contingency reserves. The government is also trying to push through an ineffectual…

The Airports Company South Africa (Acsa) has announced that the technical issue that affected the baggage-sorting system in the domestic terminal at OR Tambo International Airport in Joburg has been successfully resolved. Due to the issue, several domestic passengers’ suitcases were left behind when some aircraft departed from the airport on the morning of December 22. Several flights then had to be delayed to allow for baggage to be loaded as Acsa made arrangements with the respective airlines to enable affected passengers’ bags to reach their owners. Acsa said that on December 22 and 23, OR Tambo International Airport processed 77 569 bags of which 31 118 were domestic and regional, and around 4 500 were short-shipped. This corresponds to a two-day short-shipping rate of 19% for domestic bags and…

Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan has ordered several state-owned enterprises falling within his portfolio to formulate and implement turnaround plans as part of his department’s solutions to address mismanagement of the entities. “I have directed the boards of several state-owned companies in my portfolio to formulate and implement turnaround plans. These plans aim to enhance operational efficiency and significantly improve the overall performance of the respective companies,” Gordhan said when responding to parliamentary questions from IFP MP Mzamo Buthelezi. Buthelezi asked whether Gordhan’s department has any short-term step-by-step solutions to address the mismanagement of state-owned entities. According to Gordhan, Eskom was making strides towards ensuring energy stability and sustainability. “The generation recovery plan has already recovered 1 535 megawatts between April and September 2023, contributing to Eskom’s goal of…

A North West church leader has been sentenced to two years’ imprisonment in the Rustenburg Regional Court for contravention of Section 22 of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Act. Zoliswa Menziwa, 36, was arrested after she was found with five adults who were naked, together with 11 children in a house in Sondela Boitekong outside Rustenberg last June. The provincial police spokesperson, Captain Sam Tselanyane said the children were aged between four and 12. The case was transferred to the Rustenberg Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences unit for further investigation. “The accused was found guilty as charged while the other five accused were acquitted. Menziwa was sentenced to two years’ imprisonment which is wholly suspended for a period of five years on condition that…

It’s nearly “stumps” for 2023, and it was a year to remember for South African sport. Of course, our superstar Springboks will be feted the most for their remarkable Rugby World Cup triumph, but there were many other success stories from Mzansi on the global stage. But let’s celebrate Siya Kolisi’s world champions once more, as they deserve every bit of adulation coming their way. Not only were they in the “Pool of Death” alongside Ireland, Scotland, Tonga and Romania, but they managed to clinch the Webb Ellis Cup after losing to the Irish – emulating their 2019 achievement when they lost a group game to New Zealand. As if that wasn’t hard enough, the Boks had to face hosts France in the quarter-final, and thus began a series of…

Thousands massed yesterday in the Iranian capital for the funeral of senior Revolutionary Guards commander Razi Moussavi, three days after he was killed in what Tehran says was an Israeli strike. The crowd in Tehran’s central Imam Hossein square chanted “Death to Israel” and “Death to America”. Many waved yellow flags imprinted with the message “I am your opponent”, a reference to Israel, in both Persian and Hebrew. Israel has long fought a shadow war of assassinations and sabotage against arch foe Iran and its allies, but Moussavi’s killing in Syria came at a time of sharply heightened regional tensions over the Israel-Hamas conflict since early October. Some of the mourners in Tehran carried pictures of Moussavi together with the revered Qasem Soleimani, a former commander of the Islamic Revolutionary…

The death toll from a petrol tanker explosion in central Liberia has risen to more than 40, the country’s chief medical officer said yesterday. The tanker carrying petrol crashed and tipped into a ditch along a road in Totota, about 130km from the capital Monrovia on Tuesday. President George Weah sent his “profoundest sympathy” to the families of victims. “So far more than 40 deaths have been recorded since a tanker transporting fuel had an accident and later exploded,” the presidency said. “There were lots of people that got burned,” said Prince Mulbah, deputy inspector-general for the police. Another police officer, Malvin Sackor, said that after the crash, some locals had begun to collect leaking petrol when the tanker exploded, killing some and wounding others. Witness Aaron Massaquoi said that…

Beijing: China was taking proactive measures to counter new Covid-19 cases caused by the JN1 variant of the virus, which was spreading globally, China’s health authority said yesterday. “China is routinely monitoring Covid-19 infections to determine the trend of infection spread and virus mutation,” said Li Zhengmao, an official with the national administration of disease prevention and control. Li noted that infections in China were at a low level. He said the variant exhibited increased immune escape and spreading capability but did not appear more pathogenic, and that vaccines targeting the XBB variants were still effective. | IANS…

San Francisco: Social media giants like Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Tik Tok, X (formerly Twitter) and YouTube collectively made nearly $11 billion in advertising revenue from US-based users younger than 18 years of age in 2022, a new study has revealed. In 2022, YouTube had 49.7 million users under the age of 18, Tik Tok had 18.9 million, Snapchat 18 million, Instagram 16.7 million, Facebook 9.9 million, and X 7 million, the study found. YouTube derived the greatest ad revenue from users 12 and under ($959.1m), followed by Instagram ($801.1m) and Facebook ($137.2m). | IANS…

THE Cabinet has approved a framework for a high-speed rail with a feasibility study prioritised for the Johannesburg to Durban corridor. This was revealed by President Cyril Ramaphosa when responding to a parliamentary question from DA leader John Steenhuisen, who enquired about the details of the progress made in delivering the bullet trains and smart cities he promised during the State of the Nation Address in June 2019. Ramaphosa at the time gave his vision of a South Africa where the first entirely new city constructed in the democratic era would emerge, featuring skyscrapers, schools, universities, hospitals and factories. “We should imagine a country where a bullet train passes through Johannesburg as it travels to Musina and it stops in Buffalo City on the way from eThekwini to here in…

It’s time for New Year’s resolutions. The louder and bolder mine are, the less likely they are to last. I tend to follow through on silent, private resolutions. Before I make hopeful decisions about the coming year, I try to elucidate three learnings from the previous year. Repeated questions gave shape to 2023, a tough year, for my family and for me: “What kind of person do you want to be?” I asked myself almost daily. Answering it, trying to live according to my answers, saved me much pain and expense. The joy of the question is that it removes others from the equation. It removes elements of blame, and the desire for pay-back. It removes any trace of victim thinking or victim living. “How would you like your sons…

IT’S the festive season yet back in Old Blighty, the scriptwriters of The Downing Street Follies have taken no rest. Sky News has put together a collage of extraordinary incidents. • The Glitter Bombing. As Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer is about to start his closing speech, he is showered in glitter by a protester. • Rude remarks and swearing during Prime Minister’s Questions in the Commons. Home Secretary James Cleverly is accused of describing the constituency of Labour MP Alex Cunningham as a bleep! s***hole (though it’s denied by Mr Cleverly). Then a source close to the minister says Cleverly has not slagged Cunningham’s town of Stockton, the bleeper applies to Cunningham himself. • When Prime Minister Rishi Sunak heads for California on holiday, Greenpeace environmental protesters climb onto…

South Africans experienced rolling blackouts almost every day this past year, with more than 6 700 hours of load shedding recorded over 335 days. This year was worse than the 15 previous years, cumulatively, according to experts, as UPS units and other back-up power supplies such as generators became essential for residents and businesses – and the economy continues to count the costs. Insights from the load-shedding monitoring app EskomSePush indicate that the country spent 45 days in Stage 6 load shedding and, all told, experienced 408 390 minutes without electricity this year. According to Eskom, there were 335 days and 6 778 hours of load shedding in 2023. “From April 1 to December 18, 2023, UCLF (unplanned capability loss factor) was about 33% which equates to just less than…

South Africa is set to get its 11th medical school. This after the North-West University (NWU) received a green light from the Minister of Health, Dr Joe Phaahla, for its “innovative medical school project”, marking a significant development for South African health-care education. NWU said it was launching a medical programme that integrates primary health care from the outset, revolutionising how future doctors are trained. It said the minister’s backing came as a result of the persistent efforts by the NWU Medical School Task Team, led by Bert Sorgdrager, chairperson of the NWU Council, and supported by NWU vice-chancellor Prof Bismark Tyobeka and chancellor Dr Anna Mokgokong. The collaboration with the North-West provincial government, under the leadership of the premier, has been instrumental in reaching this milestone, the university said.…

Insufficient political attention to challenges is an indictment on all parties THE excitement of ending one year and entering another invariably wears off as you get older, but it does not mean we cannot find some magic in the transition from 2023 to 2024. If 2022 was novel – like the unprecedented life challenges brought about by the coronavirus pandemic – then 2023 took on a danker, darker tone. The severe impact of the pandemic, corruption, climate change, political killings, dysfunctional government and associated restrictions to socio-economic development all continued to apply a blowtorch to many aspects of our public and private lives. The shapes that emerged from the heat were often not pretty. But despite it all, we found a way to live, love and watch sports. Political journalists…

The rapid advance of Sudanese paramilitaries has intensified calls on civilians to carry arms, raising the spectre of the eight-month conflict between rival generals transforming into a full-blown civil war. The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have seized most of Sudan’s southern Al-Jazira state including its capital Wad Madani and begun pushing further south into Sennar state in their war against the army. Amid growing claims of abuses by RSF fighters, groups of civilians have called for “armed popular resistance” across the Sudanese states of White Nile, River Nile, Gedaref, North, Kassala and the Red Sea. The RSF meanwhile has ordered inhabitants of areas brought under its control to provide the paramilitary force with volunteers who would be armed to “protect their territory”. The fighting since April 15 pits army…

Cell and gene therapy (CGT) will have the greatest impact on the pharmaceutical industry in 2024, according to a report yesterday. The report by GlobalData, a data and analytics company, is based on a survey of 115 healthcare industry professionals. It revealed that 18% of industry professionals were convinced that CGT will dominate as the most important trend in pharma next year. This was followed by personalised/precision medicine (16%). “These therapies promise life-changing treatments for a broad spectrum of complex diseases ranging from genetic conditions to cancers,” said Urte Jakimaviciute, senior director of Market Research at GlobalData. Although GlobalData anticipates cell and gene therapies to become an established treatment modality in the years to come, higher development and production costs, the risk of clinical trial failures, and intensifying pricing and…

Kyiv: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy yesterday thanked the US for releasing the last remaining package of weapons available for Ukraine under existing authorisation, as uncertainty surrounds further aid to his country. Zelenskiy had warned that any change in policy from the US, Kyiv’s main backer, could have a strong impact on the course of the war. US President Joe Biden has made backing Ukraine a priority and US weapons and financial assistance have been crucial in helping the pro-Western country battle against a far larger attacking Russian force. Zelenskiy said the equipment in the final package “will cover Ukraine’s most pressing needs”. | AFP…

Biarritz: A French star chef has abruptly quit his luxury hotel job after a hazing in which a kitchen hand was reportedly tied up naked and humiliated, the hotel chain said yesterday. Aurelien Largeau, 31, who has a coveted Michelin star to his name, ran the restaurant of the prestigious Hotel du Palais in Biarritz, south-western France, until last week when he suddenly left. A spokesperson for hotel owners Hyatt said the management had been informed of a “troubling incident”, footage of which had been shared online. A kitchen hand was tied to a chair naked for hours with an apple in his mouth and a carrot in his anus. | AFP…

Just like that, we say goodbye to 2023. It has been a year of fish, festivities and plenty of fun. Top tip: Remember the good. It is too easy to focus on dirty water, rubbish on the beach or blank fishing days. This often gets you in a negative spin. There are so many things to be thankful for and positives to focus on. Remember why you go fishing and spend your time focusing on the good. The summer fish have been keeping most of the visiting anglers happy along the coast. The North Coast has seen some good inedible action. Sandies have been the most targeted of the summer fish. These brutes can weigh over 100kg and put your tackle to the test for hours. Most of the summer…

Municipalities owed R2.5bn by government departments Debt owed by government departments to municipalities in KwaZulu-Natal has reached an all-time high. The KwaZulu-Natal chapter of the South African Local Government Association (Salga) is sounding the alarm over the debt and warned it was now R2.5 billion, the highest amount it has ever been. The organisation, which monitors municipalities across the province, addressed the issue recently when it delivered a statement on the state of municipalities in the province. Salga KZN said in a statement: “Government debt for municipal services in KZN has just passed the R2.5bn mark for the first time in history. “When government and businesses fail to pay or delay paying for the water, lights, rates and refuse removal services they receive, municipalities often have to secure commercial…

The conflict in Gaza is definitely not the “most inhuman conflict in recorded history”. There is the Holocaust and the 1989 Tiananmen Massacre of peaceful, pro-democracy protesters in China. The Battle of Stalingrad (1942-1943) that is rated as the “bloodiest battle that had ever taken place”; World War II, one of the biggest and deadliest wars in history; the Taipeng Rebellion and the Rape of Nanking; coupled with the Mongolian Conquests and Invasions – were all deadly encounters. It is extremely difficult to wage a war when the enemy (Hamas) uses schools, medical institutions and civilian areas as military storage facilities, underground war rooms and tunnels, and launch pads for rockets. Religious leaders, once in the forefront of the fight against human abuse, have surrendered to the new left-wing liberalism.…

The bodies of four people who were missing after devastating floods in Ladysmith on Christmas Eve have been recovered. The bodies include a father, his toddler son and a man and woman. Emergency workers have been looking for 12 missing people since the floods, which claimed at least six lives. Heavy rains resulted in the Bellspuit River, which runs under the Mbonontathu Bridge, bursting its banks. This caused water to overflow onto the N11 road near the Limit Hill robots in Ladysmith town. This resulted in severe damage to infrastructure, and several vehicles were swept away. As the search for the missing victims entered day five, emergency workers found two people yesterday. IPSS Medical Search and Rescue spokesperson Samantha Meyrick said the body of a man and a toddler boy…

NEGOTIATOR Mohamed Yehia Dicko of Gift of the Givers has been hailed for “leaving no stone unturned” in the efforts to reunite South African Gerco van Deventer, who was held hostage in Mali for just over six years, with his family. In a statement, the humanitarian organisation thanked the multiple intermediaries in Mali, Morocco, Mauritania and Niger for their “incredible support” in securing an unconditional release for Van Deventer, who was finally reunited with his family. “We thank Algerian State Security for accepting Gerco – it wasn’t possible through two other countries. We thank SA State Security who have been extremely helpful and co-operative in the entire process. “Our greatest thanks go to the real hero without whom the release would never have been possible, Mohamed Yehia Dicko, Gift of…

Five public infrastructure projects were stalled due to interference by construction mafia syndicates since 2019 for periods ranging between a few days up to four months at a time, Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Sihle Zikalala said. “There have been a total of five public infrastructure projects that have been halted due to interference by the construction mafia since 2019, one in Gauteng and four in KwaZulu-Natal,” Zikalala said. He was responding to questions from DA MP Sello Seitlholo about the total number of public infrastructure projects across the country that have been suspended and stopped due to interference by construction mafia since 2019 as well as the total cumulative costs of the disruptions to the economy. Independent Media reported in June that Zikalala said there had been more than…

On December 21, I attended a funeral in Gqeberha. It was the farewell to the greatest music voice I have ever listened to – Kholisile “Kotla” Booi – the father to a young man, Likhwithemba “Likhey” Booi, who plays the role of Sivuyile in Gqeberha the Empire. Not only did God bless him with a powerful voice that could handle high notes with ease, but he also composed music. According to his fellow group member in Inspiration Ministries, Luvuyo “Milo” Magalela, “Kotla was more effective when he wrote music for his group and other groups”. He was a lyrical genius. What moved me the most at Kotla’s funeral and sent torrents down my cheeks were the two tributes by his children. Great speakers stood and spoke well of Kotla…

MEXICAN and US officials said yesterday they had made progress this week in emergency talks on curbing a surge in migration – a major headache for US President Joe Biden as he enters an election year. Secretary of State Antony Blinken paid an unusual Christmas week visit to Mexico City as the rival Republican Party presses Biden for a migration crackdown in return for agreeing in Congress to one of his key priorities – support for Ukraine. The day trip was announced last week after Biden spoke by telephone with Mexican President Andres Lopez Obrador, who met for more than two hours with Blinken and other officials. Lopez Obrador, writing on X, said “important agreements were reached”. A senior US official said Mexican leaders told the US delegation about…

WASHINGTON: US House Republicans are investigating whether US President Joe Biden tried to influence or obstruct his son Hunter Biden’s co-operation with the House impeachment inquiry, Congressmen James Comer and Jim Jordan said in a letter to the White House. The letter asks the White House to provide by January 10 all documents and communications sent or received by employees of the executive office of the president regarding Hunter Biden’s deposition. The White House said that Biden was aware of what his son planned to say when he defied a House subpoena to testify behind closed doors about his business dealings. He said he would only answer questions at a public hearing. | Sputnik…

BRUSSELS: Türkiye’s parliament is unlikely to hold a full vote on Sweden’s bid to join Nato before mid-January, parliamentary sources said yesterday. Sweden’s accession to the US-led Western alliance was approved by the foreign affairs committee on Tuesday, bringing an end in sight to a 19-month stand-off that drew the wrath of Türkiye’s Western partners. It must now be voted by the full 600-seat parliament, where President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling alliance holds the majority. The president would then need to sign it into law. Although Erdogan’s party could call for a special session to discuss the measure, it appears likely it will wait until after parliament’s scheduled return on January 15. | AFP…

The Stormers are on the verge of extending their record at home against the local teams and ending another year unbeaten against them in the United Rugby Championship. Only the Sharks stand between them and a second consecutive year without bowing the knee to the three SA franchises. The last time the former URC champions lost against a domestic side was against the Lions back in December of 2021. Since then, they have swept their local competition aside, and will be looking to follow the same path in the coastal derby at Cape Town Stadium tomorrow (7pm kick-off). It seems like the Stormers have found their attacking rhythm just in time for this Sharks battle, as the Durban side have some prolific World Cup winners in lock Eben Etzebeth, wing…