Índice para 2021-09-27 em Cape Times

Siphelele Dludla siphelele.dludla@inl.co.za THE SOUTH African Reserve Bank (SARB) has remained bullish about this year’s economic growth prospects, in spite of the prolonged lockdown and negative impact of the July riots. The SARB, on Thursday, revised upwards South Africa’s gross domestic product (GDP) to 5.3 percent, from a previous forecast of 4.2 percent, despite the much larger negative effect on output. SARB Governor Lesetja Kganyago, said the July events – widespread looting and violence in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng – and the pandemic, were likely to have lasting effects on investor confidence and job creation, impeding recovery in labour-intensive sectors hardest hit by the lockdowns. However, Kganyago said, the risks to the medium-term domestic growth outlook were assessed to be balanced, as most of the bounce-back from the recovery…

Gerry Cupido geraldine.cupido@inl.co.za The longer and ever-so-slightly warmer days are a sure indication that spring is in the air. With spring comes a renewed sense of vigour. Nature’s changing landscapes injecting bursts of colour to inspire a change in our everyday lives. From décor to fashion, colour trends change with the season. This season bold, bright colours are taking centre stage. Pantone’s Fashion Color Trend Report accurately predicted this for spring 2022 New York Fashion Week. “Colours for Spring 2022 bring together our competing desires for comforting familiarity and joyful adventure, through a range of soothing and timeless colours, along with joyous hues that celebrate playfulness. As we enter this new landscape, one where fashion rules no longer apply, hues for Spring 2022 allow us to mix and marry as…

From page 1 Ramaphosa said the party’s manifesto would speak of how the ANC would build vibrant and safe communities. “It is these candidates, once elected, who will be our builders, to correct the mistakes of the past, and, working together with national and provincial government, to build strong municipalities that involve and serve all residents. “We have just over a month left before we must all go out to cast our vote. “We call on the voters of this country to engage with these candidates about the ANC manifesto and their plans to improve people’s lives. And, on Monday, the 1st of November, let us go out in huge numbers to vote ANC and give these candidates a clear and overwhelming mandate to build better communities and achieve a…

Lisa Isaacs lisa.isaacs@inl.co.za A GRAAFWATER farmer who is alleged to have exploited vulnerable workers and defrauded the UIF Covid-19 Temporary Employer/Employee Relief Scheme (Ters) fund, is expected back in court next month. The Dagbreek Farm farmer was granted R5 000 bail during a brief appearance at the Clanwilliam Magistrate’s Court last week, following his arrest on September 16. The Department of Employment and Labour had worked with police to track down the farmer who allegedly defrauded the fund of R109 376.39, claiming Ters for seven employees for the period of March 27 until September 15, without their knowledge. Former Graafwater police officer Jim Swartz and Rural and Farmworkers Development Organisation Executive Director Billy Claasen had raised the alarm with authorities in November last year. Swartz said his brother who worked…

Okuhle Hlati okhule.hlati@inl.co.za A LACK of representation, being undermined, and intimidation without safety protection are some of the issues women in politics have to bear while serving communities and ahead of local elections. Gugulethu PR councillor Belinda Landingwe said female councillors were still faced with a lot of difficulties and stereotypes. “The new process of community voting is where it's difficult for women to emerge due to them still being misjudged and undermined. In some spaces if a woman gets elected they receive threats and remarks that she is not fit enough, it's her first time so she would not be able to participate– which is all not true. “This is why we still have a lot of male councillors, especially in areas like Khayelitsha and Gugulethu. I remember in…

Staff writer THE Independent Allocation Vaccine Group (IAVG) continues to be “concerned by the low supply of vaccines to Covax”, and has reiterated a need for the sharing of information about manufacturing capacity and supply schedules. IAVG was established by the World Health Organization (WHO) in January 2021 and is composed of 12 members who serve in their personal, independent capacities to review and assess among other things, the volumes of vaccines that should be allocated to each participant under COVAX within a given time frame. “The IAVG continues to be very concerned about the evolution of the pandemic, and its health, social and economic impacts, and offers its full support to COVAX Partners to ensure that critical messages are channelled to the relevant fora to raise the awareness…

Odwa Mkentane and Chevon Booysen A THIRTEEN-year-old may have saved lives and property after she witnessed a 4am shack fire and alerted others about the danger. Nine people died in various house fires over the long weekend, including a family of three in Tafelsig. The Tafelsig family lost their lives on Heritage Day morning. City Fire and Rescue Services spokesperson, Jermaine Carelse, said they were alerted to the wendy house fire at 1.45am. “On the scene, firefighters found two informal dwellings ablaze and the bodies of the father, mother and their daughter were discovered among the debris. “The fire was extinguished at 3.08am and the scene was handed over to the South African Police Service,” said Carelse. Yesterday in the Covid-19 informal settlement in Mfuleni, another three people were killed…

DESPITE efforts from political parties, the campaigning ahead of the local government elections could spawn super-spreader events and increase the number of people infected with Covid-19. The elections must go ahead, and while the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) tried to postpone elections to next year, there is no doubt that the dangers of the pandemic would have still been prevalent. The IEC is now faced with the task of holding the elections with as little damage as possible to society. For political parties, Covid-19 has presented a challenge of getting their message out to the masses without the masses being present, as has previously occurred at mass rallies. The launching of manifestos, often seen as a grand and exuberant opportunity to talk policy, is now more subdued in…

Amid an exceptionally busy Atlantic hurricane season, Sam has become the latest ferocious storm. Now a Category 4 hurricane with 140mph (225km/h) winds, it is predicted to intensify even further. By Sunday, the National Hurricane Center predicts its peak winds will increase to 150mph, not far from Category 5-strength. The intense though compact storm is expected to be a very long-lived hurricane, churning over the Atlantic for at least another week. While subject to change, forecast models generally keep Sam over the ocean, rather than threatening land areas during this time. At 5pm Saturday, Sam was about 1 000 miles east of the Leeward Islands over the open Atlantic, headed to the west-northwest. The latest forecast track from the Hurricane Center keeps it far enough north of the Lesser…

| Reuters TOKYO: The frontrunner to become Japan’s next prime minister yesterday said he supported same-sex marriage and that the issue should be discussed in parliament, in contrast to long-standing unease over the issue in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party. Taro Kono, the minister in charge of Japan’s vaccine rollout and one of four contenders to become the next head of the party, made the comment in a debate broadcast live online. Rival Seiko Noda also said she supported recognising same-sex marriage.…

KHARTOUM: Sudan’s military said yesterday that it had repelled an attempted incursion by Ethiopian forces in the border area between the two countries. The Ethiopian forces had been forced to retreat from the Umm Barakit area. The head of Sudan’s military, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, said the incident on Saturday showed how the military was protecting the country in the wake of a coup attempt in Khartoum last week. Colonel Getnet Adane, Ethiopia’s military spokesperson, did not immediately comment. Tensions along the border between Sudan and Ethiopia have escalated since the outbreak of a conflict in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region last year that sent tens of thousands of refugees into eastern Sudan. | Reuters…

LONDON: Britain said yesterday it had collected evidence of multiple ships from various nationalities apparently breaching United Nations sanctions against North Korea which ban the sale of fuel to the country. British frigate HMS Richmond has been taking part in UN sanctions enforcement operations in the region. “HMS Richmond’s deployment in the East China Sea identified ships acting in suspected breach of UN sanctions and tracked vessels which had previously not been flagged to the Enforcement Coordination Cell,” defence minister Ben Wallace said. The statement did not detail those thought to be in breach of the sanctions, but said “multiple ships of various nationalities” had been identified. | Reuters…

MR MARKET is now more often than not spooked by the word “taper”. Since the start of the coronavirus pandemic last year, the Federal Reserve Bank (Fed) supported the US economy. Interest rates were slashed to near zero percent while the Fed is purchasing $120 billion (R1.8 trillion) of government bonds monthly. The economy has recovered to such an extent that the Fed is considering tapering of these asset purchases. On Friday, Cleveland Federal Reserve Bank president Loretta Mester said the Fed should start reducing its support for the economy in November and could start raising interest rates by the end of next year. Tapering of asset purchases, specifically of long-term bonds, is likely to lead to rising long-term interest rates and therefore to a steepening of the…

From page 1 “There was no shelter I could place them in, so they slept in my house. Not that men don’t go the extra mile but more often it’s us who have to go the extra mile because of the motherly instincts that place us in danger. So this job requires you to give yourself.” Abraham said the salaries they received didn’t equal the risks and what made their jobs even more dangerous was that communities had the narrative that they earn a lot. “As soon as you get your salary you have to give to soup kitchens and volunteers. When residents are hungry they knock at your door, your house becomes a police station and all other factors out of your job description. If you don’t do that…

Staff writers THE battle to win the hearts of voters ahead of the November 1 local government elections intensified at the weekend with the country’s “big three” setting out their plans for the next five years should they be voted into power. While thousands of people gathered at Gandhi Square in the Joburg CBD yesterday to listen to EFF leader Julius Malema detailing how they planned to tackle challenges confronting South Africans in their municipalities, the DA opted for a virtual launch on Saturday while ANC president Cyril Ramaphosa took to the streets of Ekurhuleni before presenting a preview of the ANC manifesto, which he is set to launch today. The EFF also used the occasion to mark what would have been the 85th birthday of late Struggle icon…

Staff writer THE Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) says it is encouraged by the downward trend of Covid-19 cases. This is as a number of countries are experiencing a fourth wave of infections. As of September 23, 8.1 million cases had been reported in the different member states, accounting for 3.6% of the Covid-19 cases reported globally, the Africa CDC said. “The continent is still going through a severe third wave –78% of our member states are currently going through the third wave. “And of these, 32 are experiencing a severe third wave. Seven countries, including Algeria, Benin, Egypt, Kenya, Mauritius, Somalia, and Tunisia, are currently experiencing the fourth wave. “Of that number, four of them are going through a fourth wave,” Africa CDC director…

“A ROBUST economic performance and stronger-than-expected fiscal revenue in recent months mean that South Africa’s budget deficit in the fiscal year ending March 2022 will be smaller than the government’s February 2021 projections. Economic growth in Q2 2021 was stronger than we expected at 1.2% quarter-on-quarter, and the government has also revised up earlier quarterly growth rates,” says Fitch Ratings in its latest take on the South African economy. Rating agencies sometimes have a tendency to speak with a forked tongue. The very next observation was: “Nevertheless, the (South African) government will continue to face substantial challenges as it seeks to stabilise debt by FY2025/26.” Whether it’s any consolation for Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana is a moot point. Last Tuesday, at a book launch, he eloquently rolled out the now…

Iceland yesterday became the first country in Europe to have more women than men in parliament, a day after a general election that left the future of the left-right coalition in doubt despite winning a clear majority. Of the 63 seats in the Althing parliament, 33 were won by women, or 52%, projections based on the final results showed yesterday. No other European country has had more than 50% women lawmakers, with Sweden coming closest at 47%, according to data compiled by the World Bank. Five other countries in the world currently have parliaments where women hold at least half the seats, according to the Inter-Parliamentary Union: Rwanda (61 percent), Cuba (53%), Nicaragua (51%) and Mexico and the United Arab Emirates (50%). Unlike some other countries, Iceland does not have…

Several hundred demonstrators gathered in Tunis yesterday under a heavy police presence to protest against Tunisian President Kais Saied’s seizure of governing powers in July and called on him to step down. Saied this week brushed aside much of the 2014 constitution, giving himself power to rule by decree two months after he sacked the prime minister, suspended parliament and assumed executive authority. “The people want the fall of the coup,” they chanted in the centre of Tunis along Habib Bourguiba Avenue, a focal point of the demonstrations that ended the rule of former president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali on January 14, 2011. The crisis has endangered the democratic gains that Tunisians won in a 2011 revolution that triggered the “Arab spring” protests and has also slowed efforts to…

Actor Michael K Williams died earlier this month from “acute intoxication by the combined effects of fentanyl, p-fluorofentanyl, heroin and cocaine,” the New York City chief medical examiner’s office said. His death has been ruled accidental. Williams, best known for his career-defining role as Omar Little on The Wire, was found dead on September 6 in his Brooklyn apartment. He was 54. Tributes poured out on social media immediately after the news broke, many of them expressing their gratitude to Williams for bringing the troubled character to life with such empathy and nuance. The “passion” of Williams’s performance is what convinced the series creators to keep him on. “He gave us an astounding gift – an act of faith from a magnificent actor who could have played his hand very…

Dineo Faku dineo.faku@inl.co.za CLICKS has appointed Bertina Engelbrecht as its first female chief executive. Engelbrecht, 58, an admitted attorney and the group’s corporate affairs director, has been appointed as chief executive-designate. She starts in January, making her South Africa’s first black female to lead a JSE-listed retail group. Engelbrecht will take the top post after the resignation of Vikesh Ramsunder, who held the position for three years after taking the helm of the beauty, health and pharmaceutical retailer. Ramsunder will step down at the end of December to take up the post as a chief executive at an Australian listed company, Clicks said last week. Ramsunder is expected to continue as a strategic adviser to the group until the end of August, next year. Engelbrecht joined the group in 2006…

Banele Ginindza banele.ginindza@inl.co.za NIGERIAN Tax authorities have given the entertainment conglomerate MultiChoice until next month to prove its commitment to comply with regulatory directives, until a final decision is made on whether to levy a R4.4 billion fine. The saga which began earlier this year has taken several dramatic twists akin to communications giant MTN, which also a couple of years back faced the censure of Nigerian authorities over disputed regulatory issues, involving the non-disclosure of subscribers. On Thursday, Nigerian media reported that the Federal Inland Revenue Service’s (Firs’) tax appeal tribunal postponed a decision to October 10 for MultiChoice to prove it had deposited the first tranche of the fine, which the group claimed it had paid as part of its statutory tax obligations. MultiChoice is on the…

Viwe Ndongeni-Ntlebi viwe.ndongeni@inl.co.za Actor and Tv personality Siv Ngesi has been on a hectic diet, and he has lost 11kg and looks amazing. In an Instagram post, the star shared how he did it and what diet he followed. He started with appreciating himself: “I am always inspired and motivated by people who set goals, and through passion and determination reach them. I also love to celebrate with them when they see the rewards of their commitment and sacrifice. “So today, I want to shout out and celebrate me, Siv Ngesi, for working my ass and every other muscle in my body off to achieve something very special. “Eleven weeks ago, I started the hardest and most testing physical and mental challenge yet. I set out to totally transform…

Chevon Booysen chevon.booysen@inl.co.za NINE ASYLUM seekers can renew their appeal for refugee status after the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) ruled on how refugee applications must be dealt with and adjudicated. The asylum seekers, who fled Somalia, sought an order reviewing and setting aside decisions of the Refugee Appeal Board (RAB) after they were refused refugee status. As ordered by the SCA, the applicants’ appeals were referred to the RAB for fresh hearings, to commence no later than October 4, with decisions to be made by November 5 this year. The appeal dealt with the legality and fairness of the process adopted by the RAB, including whether it complied with its duty to assist asylum seekers to get evidence and information for decisions it had to take. In their founding…

Okuhle Hlati okhule.hlati@inl.co.za THE artist behind the iconic Shortmarket Street mural which celebrates the life of Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu doubts he will be lodging a complaint with police after a racial inscription defaced the artwork. “Ek is ‘n k****r`` was incribed over Tutu’s glasses on artist Brian Rolfe’s painting, which has been created alongside the murals of Struggle icons, late former president Nelson Mandela and Winnie Madikizela Mandela. Videographers Wesley Fester and Saamwiet Moos made the discovery public at the weekend. There has been widespread anger at the defacing. Rolfe, who is currently travelling on business, said he was made aware of the incident and would be able to address it when he returned. “The words scribbled are very derogatory and I believe this could have been done by…

Nicola Daniels nicola.daniels@inl.co.za THE Bridgetown Theatre Company (BTC) is presenting a new musical called HUMAN that will be performed for free at Western Cape high schools, colleges and universities with the aim of educating young and old about the LGBTQ+ community. Written, directed and choreographed by 24-year-old Mathew “Carter” Poole who also plays the lead, the musical takes place at Glitz High School. All the students are excited about the upcoming matric dance, and Tracy is an openly trans girl who is loved and supported by everyone. Graham is a closeted gay boy hoping to gain the courage to come out and tell his conservative dad. Graham asks Tracy to be his partner for the matric dance and all hell breaks loose. At school; home, scorn from community…

Chevon Booysen chevon.booysen@inl.co.za THE National Council of Provinces (NCOP) has concurred with the three Gender-Based Violence Bills, which were passed by the National Assembly during June. The development of the bills follows President Cyril Ramaphosa’s promise of an emergency plan on the steps of Parliament on September 5, 2019, which included that no parole or bail would be granted to perpetrators of crimes against women and children. Two of the bills – the Domestic Violence Amendment Bill and the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment bill – have since been sent back to the National Assembly, while the the Criminal and Related Matters Amendment Bill was sent to Ramaphosa for consideration. Chairperson for the anti-GBV organisation Ilitha Labantu, Siyabulela Monakale said they welcomed the developments on the Bills,…

Chad Williams Chad.Williams@africannewsagency.com MEET conservationist Bala Amarasekaran and his wife, Sharmila, the Sierra Leone couple who opened a chimpanzee sanctuary on the outskirts of the capital Freetown more than 26 years ago. Back then, according to a recent BBC news report, the pair spotted a baby chimpanzee tied to a tree in a village in a rural part of the country. It was for sale. The chimpanzee was named Bruno. The couple felt that they couldn’t just leave the animal there, so they made the big decision to buy him. Little did the Amarasekarans know that this chance encounter would change their lives forever. In 1995, the then newly-wed conservationists founded the Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary, located in Sierra Leone’s Western Area Peninsula National Park. “We were newly married and we…

The need to find creative and innovative ways to celebrate their extraordinary lives TODAY, we commemorate 52 years since the death of Imam Abdullah Haron in apartheid detention in Cape Town. Imam Haron had been incarcerated in solitary confinement for 123 days at the then-notorious Caledon Square police station in the city centre. An apartheid police report claimed Imam Haron had died from a fall from a flight of stairs at the Maitland police station. The first public protest against the Imam’s death calling for an independent inquiry into the cause of his death was launched exactly 50 years ago by an Anglican priest, Reverend Bernard Wrankmore. In August 1971, two years after Imam Haron’s death the Reverend Wrankmore, an Anglican priest at the Mission to Seamen in the Cape…

AACHEN/POTSDAM: Germans went to the polls yesterday in a national election too close to call, with the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) mounting a strong challenge to retiring Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives. Merkel, 67, has been in power since 2005 but plans to step down after the election, making the vote an era-changing event to set the future course of Europe’s largest economy. A fractured electorate means that after the election, leading parties will embark on more formal coalition nego- tiations that could take months, leaving Merkel in charge in a caretaker role. Running against the Christian Democrats’ (CDU) Armin Laschet is Olaf Scholz of the SPD, the finance minister in Merkel’s right-left coalition who won all three televised debates between the leading candidates. Scholz, 63, has seen his party’s lead…

PANAMA CITY: Up to 4 000 migrants, most of them Haitians, have passed through the treacherous jungles of the Darien Gap in Panama on the Colombian border as they make their way north to the US, two Panamanian government sources said. An impromptu camp arose in recent weeks on the US-Mexican border that included Haitians, adding to US President Joe Biden’s migration policy headaches. At its peak on September 18 there were some 15 000 people there as Haitians flee economic, political and social chaos in their homeland. The camp was cleared of thousands of Haitians by Friday, with most remaining in the US for now and others expelled on deportation flights or returned to Mexico. Between 3 500 and 4 000 migrants are passing…

An Amtrak passenger train carrying more than 150 people derailed in northern Montana in the US on Saturday, killing three people and sending emergency officials scrambling to get dozens of injured people to hospitals across a rural part of the state where medical resources are thin. Liberty County Sheriff Nick Erickson said three passengers were killed, and estimated that as many as 30 people were injured in the derailment, based on the number of people who had been taken to hospitals. Erickson said most of the injuries were minor. There were “approximately” 141 passengers and 16 crew members on the train, a statement by Amtrak said. Passengers and crew were among those injured. | Washington Post…

BRIGHTON: Labour’s deputy leader Angela Rayner has described Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s cabinet as “scum” for its views and accused it of abandoning poorer people during the Covid-19 pandemic. Speaking to Labour members at the party’s conference in Brighton, Rayner called the Conservative government “a bunch of scum, homophobic, racist, misogynistic, absolute pile… of banana republic ... Etonian ... piece of scum”. Rayner refused to apologise on Sky News yesterday, saying: “What I was trying to get across… is the anger and frustration that people feel when you have a prime minister (Boris Johnson) who has not apologised and said racist things that are misogynistic, that are homophobic.” | Reuters…

ATHENS: A Delta airliner with 248 passengers and crew on board landed safely in Athens yesterday after the pilot reported an indication of a problem in the hydraulic systems, Greek authorities said. Emergency protocols were deployed and the aircraft landed safely at Athens International Airport. “The plane landed without any problem… they are all safe. The indication was false,” an airport official told Reuters. The Airbus 330 was an route from Atlanta to Athens. “A technical inspection of the aircraft will follow,” another airport official said. | Reuters…

Herman Gibbs herman.gibbs@africannewsagency.com Kaizer Chiefs produced yet another anaemic performance in a 0-0 draw against Marumo Gallants in yesterday’s Premiership clash at Peter Mokaba Stadium. Gallants midfielder Katlego Otladisa produced the first-half’s best scoring attempt in the 14th minute with a powerful header but was denied by Chiefs aerobatic goalkeeper Daniel Akpeyi who parried the effort after a full-length dive. On the half-hour mark, the Gallants No 10 Celimpilo Ngema, who plays behind the team’s lone striker, rifled a long-range shot that struck Akpeyi on the chest. Ngema tried his luck again just ahead of the break when Akpeyi was well off his line, but his shot ballooned hopelessly wide. Towards the end of the first half, Chiefs were playing the percentage game but to no avail. They couldn’t induce…