Índice para 2021-06-11 em Star

Dineo Faku dineo.faku@inl.co.za AS THE GOVERNMENT prepares to launch a Steel Master Plan to improve the competitiveness of the industry, downstream fabricators and manufacturers have called for the relaxation of tariffs to help them stay afloat. Marketing manager at Duferco Steel Processing, Nico Van Wyk, said for the industry to become competitive, the downstream suppliers had to be the focus of the government’s efforts to revive it. Van Wyk said the 18 percent duties on hot rolled coils steel was squeezing the downstream steel sector. He said Duferco, which competes with South Africa’s primary steel producer ArcelorMittal SA (Amsa), relies on hot rolled coil imports to sustain its export market. “The government does allow us to import hot roll coils, convert them, and export them without paying duties,” Van Wyk…

SUPER Group expects headline earnings a share to between 248 to 303 cents for the year to June 30, 2021, representing an increase of 64 to 100 percent over the previous year, the group said in a trading update yesterday. Revenue was expected to be R36.8 billion to R43.8 billion, an increase of 6.4 to 26.5 percent over the previous year. Operating profit was expected to increase by between 20.8 to 46.5 percent. Revenue reflected strong sales performances in Fleet Solutions and Dealerships UK in particular. The historically underperforming South African consumer and convenience businesses and the European supply chain operations continue to show significant financial improvement. Cash generated from operations had been good. All capital projects that were delayed as a result of the lockdowns in South Africa…

THE INDONESIAN, South African and Mexican finance ministers expressed support yesterday for an overhaul of international tax rules to make companies pay their fair share in a more globalised and digitalised business world. In a joint article with US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz, Indonesia’s Sri Mulyani Indrawati, South Africa’s Tito Mboweni and Mexico’s Arturo Herrera Gutierrez endorsed changes proposed by the Group of Seven (G7) advanced economies. G7 finance ministers agreed on Saturday on a system to make multinational companies pay more tax in countries where they operate, alongside a minimum global corporate tax rate of at least 15 percent. “This year, nations have a historic opportunity to end the race to the bottom in corporate taxation, restoring government resources at a time…

Liam Karabo Joyce liam.joyce@inl.co.za South African media personality LootLove is taking over as the new host of Africa Now Radio on Apple Music 1, beginning this Sunday. Africa Now Radio, Apple Music radio’s first global African music radio show, recently celebrated its first birthday. Over the past year, the show has featured exclusive interviews with Davido, Nasty C, Tiwa Savage, Rayvanny and many of the biggest and brightest artists spanning the African continent. The show has also launched more than 250 new releases and introduced Apple Music subscribers around the world to over 50 of Africa’s hottest new artists, from Omah Lay to Tems. Based on the Africa Now playlist, Africa Now Radio with LootLove will continue to showcase the latest African sounds, be they amapiano, Afrobeat, highlife, alte, house,…

Chulumanco Mahamba chulumanco.mahamba@inl.co.za SEVERAL Gauteng schools temporarily closed down this week after learners and school staff tested positive for Covid-19 amid rising infections in the province. The Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) spokesperson Steve Mabona confirmed on Wednesday that there is a cluster outbreak at Pioneer Primary School in Benoni, Ekurhuleni, which resulted in the hospitalisation of the school’s principal and deputy principal. Mabona said two learners had also tested positive at the school from the cluster outbreak. “The school is closed. Note that the GDE only closes schools on the expert advice of the Gauteng Department of Health,” Mabona added. The outbreak at Pioneer Primary School comes at the time where primary school learners are set to return to school full time at the beginning of the third term…

Zintle Mahlati A FORMER Glencore executive has denied accusations that the mining giant was reliant on President Cyril Ramaphosa’s shareholding to leverage negotiations with Eskom over a coal supplier agreement (CSA). Clinton Ephron yesterday returned to the witness stand at the Zondo Commission. He had previously testified at the inquiry in 2019 on Glencore- and Gupta-related matters. His testimony yesterday focused on Glencore’s purchase of Optimum Coal Mine (OCM) and the mine’s ultimate placement under business rescue. Glencore took acquisition of OCM in 2013 following its purchase, along with other interested parties, of Optimum Coal Holdings, which holds a 100% stake in OCM. When Glencore took over OCM it sought to renegotiate a coal supply agreement with Eskom. At the time, a contract signed in 1993 was in place and…

FOLLOWING a raid on the Cleveland, Jumpers informal settlement at the beginning of the month, the Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA) said illegal mining has been identified as a national threat. Already, these illegal activities have started eroding some city roads, causing them to cave in. JRA chief executive Selemo Monakedi said: “This is another form of vandalism of critical infrastructure. The city is one of the cities in South Africa that is badly affected by the spike of illegal mining. “The effects of illegal mining can be dire, as the activity is currently causing the desecration of road reserves. It is further posing a health threat in that untreated mercury infused in water used in gold processing, is not contained for safe disposal. “This polluted water ends up in our…

Anna Cox anna.cox@inl.co.za THE heritage Rissik Street Post Office, which has been under renovation since 2012, has again been invaded by squatters after the city spent millions of rands on its upgrade. The city had completed three phases of the restoration but had no budget to complete the fourth. Security failed and 15 people have now taken “occupation”. DA councillor Neuren Pietersen said the extent of the damage in the historic interior, under restoration by heritage experts, was unknown. “The city has wasted millions on this project which is probably all money down the drain,” he said. The Johannesburg Property Company (JPC), which manages the site, said a court order had been taken against the squatters who had won the right to stay. JPC chief executive Ruby Mathang said the…

FAROUK ARAIE | Benoni THE terrorist carnage in the Canadian city of Ontario must be condemned by all of humanity. Four innocent souls were snatched by a fascist just because they were Muslims. Words fail to describe such mindless slaughter. Those who perpetrate it, whoever they are, personify the embodiment of evil and sheer cowardice. The mindless slaughter of men, and children is an affront to humanity. Terrorist is a label that jumps easily into the headlines when the perpetrator is Muslim, but is often handled with caution or tossed out when the perpetrator is white. Global media stigma has real and devastating impacts on the lives of Muslims. Every day there are more Muslims dying, either by these terrorists, in the name of terrorism must insist, as…

STAFF REPORTER IT WAS a case of beauty versus beauty when one of the world’s most popular personalities in 2019, former Miss Universe Zozibini Tunzi, roamed a luxury Northern KwaZulu-Natal holiday resort this week. The world-famous St Lucia area competed with Zozibini in the beauty stakes and each emerged a winner in their own right. Zozibini said she did not have to think twice when the offer came up to visit KZN. “I just had to make sure I had my Spotify music playlist music ready to jam too,” she said with a twinkle. The attractive and gentle 27-year-old had some down time away from the hustle and bustle and stayed at Makakatana Bay Lodge. She said during a game drive she was most happy being on South African…

Country is emerging from the devastation wrought by the pandemic President Cyril Ramaphosa is participating in the G7 Leaders Summit in the UK, which starts today, with two overarching priorities – to shore up investment in South Africa and to canvass G7 nations to support the temporary waiver of Intellectual Property Rights at the World Trade Organisation to ensure equitable access to Covid-19 vaccines. Ramaphosa was invited alongside the heads of state of India, Australia and South Korea. The president has said that South Africa was invited to the G7 summit because the G7 countries acknowledged the country’s role in driving the continental response to Covid-19. The global recovery from Covid-19 is likely to dominate the agenda, as well as the urgency in tackling climate change. South Africa and India…

Bogota: Thousands of people took to the streets in several cities across Colombia in fresh protests against President Ivan Duque. Dozens of people have been killed in protests that erupted around the country on April 28, initially against a tax hike that would have mostly affected the middle classes, but which have morphed into a major anti-government movement. The protests were peaceful and colourful during the day but after nightfall deteriorated into clashes with police in the capital Bogota, Medellin in the northwest and other cities around the country. The demonstrators demanded an end to police repression and more supportive public policies to alleviate the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has plunged more than 40% of the country’s 50 million inhabitants into poverty. “We need opportunities, and for…

MIAMI: Still in recovery from a serious single-car crash in February, Tiger Woods declined an invitation to provide commentary for the June 17-20 US Open at Torrey Pines Golf Course in San Diego. News that Woods was offered and rejected the assignment came during a conference call with NBC sports broadcasters who will call the action at the third major tournament of the year. “... Who better, if he couldn’t be there to play it, to voice it and have him a part of the show,” NBC’s Dan Hicks said. “But we were rebuffed.”…

london: About 100 guests at the Falmouth Hotel in Cornwall were evacuated by police and staff at 4.55am yesterday after a suspicious package was found outside the hotel. Guests and staff at the Falmouth Hotel in Cornwall, UK were evacuated from a G7 hotel the day before the summit because of a reported bomb scare, the Mirror wrote. Police assessed the device and declared it “not viable and therefore safe”. Residents and staff were allowed to return to their rooms, and the cordon placed in the area was being removed, the Mirror wrote. Until the object was removed, some security measures would remain in place, police said. Authorities have launched a criminal investigation, as police believe this was a hoax.…

Steinhoff Investments, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Steinhoff International Holdings, said yesterday that it expected headline earnings per ordinary share for the six months to March 31 to be 4 600 to 5 400 cents compared to the headline loss per share of 23 716.3c in the previous period. Earnings per ordinary share were expected to be between 4 500 and 5 000c per share compared to the loss per ordinary share of 24 187.2c in the previous corresponding period. Steinhoff Investments financial results for the six months ended March 31 this year are expected to be released on or about June 18. |…

EDWARD WEST edward.west@inl.co.za MULTICHOICE Group added 1.4 million 90-day active subscribers in the year to March 31, a 7 percent growth year-on-year, while earnings growth was robust, despite the pandemic. In a year that required careful navi- gation of Covid-19 challenges, the group ended the year with 20.9 million subscribers, with 57 percent in rest of Africa and 43 percent of them in South Africa. Growth rates improved due to better consumer demand, continued penetration of the mass market and easing of electricity shortages in southern Africa, the group said in results yesterday. Revenue increased 4 percent to R53.4 billion, with subscription revenues accounting for R44.7bn. The dividend was held at 565 cents. Core headline earnings, the board's measure of performance, was up 32 percent at…

Alyssia Birjalal alyssia.birjalal@inl.co.za A sizzling new high-fashion drama, House of Zwide, is set to take the place of e.tv’s Rhythm City from Monday, July 19. The channel announced its decision to axe the long-running daily drama in November last year as part of its a business strategy. The show’s last episode will air on July 16 at 7pm, marking the end of an era for the much-loved daily. House of Zwide, produced by Bomb Productions and VideoVision Entertainment, will introduce viewers to an ambitious Joburg family and the drama that surrounds them as they rise in the cut-throat fashion industry. While the full cast has not been named yet, e.tv says it will feature some of South Africa’s most loved and award-winning actors with a generous dash of new talent.…

ANNA COX anna.cox@inl.co.za CHAOS reigns in Joburg as residents are not only being subjected to load shedding but also enduring electricity and water outages, with many councillors reporting the largest number of complaints in years. City Power and Rand Water are convening a number of meetings to find solutions. City Power chief executive Mongezi Ntsokolo said a meeting had been urgently convened by executives and depot managers to find solutions to the outages across Joburg. The meeting follows the increase in outcries and concerns about outages, some of which have taken over five days to resolve. The management, he said, also focused on the backlogs, including Region G which is serviced by the Lenasia depot. “While the backlogs are primarily due to the blockade of our depot in the past…

Tarryn-Leigh Solomons THE DEPARTMENT of Human Settlements yesterday told Parliament’s portfolio committee on human settlements, water and sanitation that irregular expenditure in the departments had hit the R10 billion mark. Minister Lindiwe Sisulu and the chairperson of the new advisory committee on the stabilisation of the water sector, Susan Shabangu, discussed the status of investigations and disciplinary actions against officials implicated in corruption and wasteful expenditure. The total figure for irregular expenditure for all water boards stands at R4.9bn. In May, disciplinary action against officials who were implicated in forensic investigations reports included 101 officials who were found guilty; 25 resignations; 14 dismissals; 39 officials received final written warning letters; and 30 officials faced suspensions. “When an official has been disciplined and has been dismissed, details of the dismissal are…

THE HARASSMENT of residents by people outside the Panorama garden refuse site has led Pikitup to close the facility until further notice. This has been done, said the utility, to safeguard residents and their property from a group of people who congregate outside the site, intimidating them. People had been intimidated by loiterers demanding money from residents to dispose of their waste. The site was temporarily closed from March 4 while Pikitup worked with various stakeholders, including law-enforcement agencies, to seek a permanent solution. However, said Pikitup spokesperson Muzi Mkhwanazi, the solution has not yet been found because law-enforcement agencies do not have enough capacity to patrol the site on a 24-hour basis to ensure the safety of residents and staff. In the interim, he said, Pikitup was working on…

THE world marked World Environment Day on June 5 and will be marking World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought on June 17. These are reminders and global calls for action to care for, and to protect, the earth that we share. One has to remember that the future prosperity and the peaceful co-existence of peoples will greatly depend on the conservation and responsible use of our natural resources. Major environmental challenges, such as climate change, deforestation, soil erosion, plastic pollution and water shortages are affecting millions of people worldwide. We can now see the impact of climate change, for example, through increasingly severe weather patterns. According to a report from UNDP, the consequences of even a two degree Celsius increase in global temperature will include: coastal flooding displacing 180…

KEVIN GOVENDER | Joburg “CLOTHES maketh the man” means people will judge you by the clothes you wear. The statement has quite an impressive pedigree from Twain to Erasmus to Quintilian. However, Mark Twain went on to pen: “Naked people have little or no influence on society”. Now try throwing that 18th century rhetoric at the likes of Zodwa Wabantu, whose dishabille dress sense has been raising eyebrows and tongues clucking, and you are bound to get a blow back of epic proportions. Even the late SA nudist colony pioneer , Beau Brummel , will turn in his grave. Earlier this year, Israeli schoolgirls demanded to wear shorts to schools during a heatwave. There was much opposition from the effete conservative flanks but the girls won in the…

Itumeleng Mafisa THE FAMILY of the slain victim of gender-based violence, Tshegofatso Pule, is demanding answers from the Department of Correctional Services following the discovery of a cellphone with data in the prison cell of Pule’s killer. Pule’s uncle and the family spokesperson, Tumisang Katake, told The Star yesterday that the family felt betrayed by the country’s justice system. The family questioned how Muzikayise Malephane, who was convicted for Pule’s murder in February, was able to update his Facebook from prison. This comes after The Star revealed that Malephane was active on social media, a move that led to his cell being searched and the cellphone seized. “We are not saying that people who go to prison should be slaves, as if they are not human, but my understanding…

ON MAY 24, Malian interim Vice-President Assimi Goïta – the leader of the August 18 coup d’état that removed President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta from power last year – sacked President Bah N’Daw, Prime Minister Moctar Ouane and Minister of Defence Souleymane Doucouré. Despite the militarisation of the government, armed attacks continued unabated across Mali. In April this year, “heavily armed terrorists” attacked the base of the UN Mission in Mali at Aguelhok, killing four peacekeepers and wounding others. In March, 33 soldiers died and 12 were wounded during an attack on a military post at Tessit. On June 6, about 160 people were killed by armed men at Solhan village in northern Burkina Faso. Last year, 4 000 people were killed in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger. The conflict in…

Lebanon’s cash-strapped leaders are bribing their base with free Covid-19 jabs ahead of next year’s elections, in what observers say is the latest variant on an old corruption trick. The “vaccine for vote” system builds on decades-old patronage practices that have seen leaders buy their way into office by offering voters money or public sector employment. But with state resources stretched to their limit by a severe economic crisis and international aid dwindling due to a failure to deliver promised reforms, politicians are turning to Covid jabs to stock up on political capital. “Political forces are trying to directly or indirectly make themselves a part of the equation with regards to the vaccine campaign, primarily because it is a profitable investment,” said a member of the state-run National Vaccination Committee,…

NEW DELHI: Lucknow and some other districts in Uttar Pradesh witnessed heavy rainfall yesterday. In the state capital, several main roads, including the one leading to the Vidhan Sabha, were water logged. Power disruptions were reported from parts of the state capital and trees were also uprooted. Telecom services were also disrupted and traffic jams were reported from parts of the state capital. The India Meteorological Department has forecast thunderstorms with light to moderate intensity rain in various parts of Uttar Pradesh for the next few hours. Light to moderate intensity rain will occur in parts of the state during the day, the MeT office said.…

ST PETERSBURG: The recent blockage of the Suez Canal underlines the importance of developing the Northern Sea Route as an alternative means of transporting goods between Asia and Europe, Mads Qvist Frederiksen, president of the Arctic Economic Council, said at the St Petersburg International Economic Forum. The Ever Given container vessel ran aground in the Suez Canal in March, holding up freight traffic through one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes for almost a week. “I think we saw with the Suez Canal that we cannot be dependent on just one supply chain. We need to diversify… and I think the Northern Sea Route will be a supplement to the other places, but we still need to develop the infrastructure along the route,” Frederiksen said.…

HERMAN GIBBS Comment THE Premier Soccer League (PSL) have brought football into disrepute by undermining the independence of its own judicial tribunal when it challenged the decision to award Sekhukhune United three points after Polokwane City were found guilty of contravening the rules of the GladAfrica Championship. Instead of accepting the outcome, the PSL executive decided to challenge the decision by saying “it is the view of the League that it is not correct”. This bewildering statement raised eyebrows in the football fraternity. The Championship ended just over a week ago, but the winners were not declared. Initially, the PSL disciplinary committee found Polokwane had contravened the competition rules against Sekhukhune. Polokwane were found guilty. It did not award the match points to Sekhukhune, who later appealed. The PSL turned…

Siphelele Dludla siphelele.dludla@inl.co.za PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa yesterday announced that independent power producers (IPPs) would now be allowed to generate up to 100 megawatts (MW) of electricity. Ramaphosa said the government approved the amendment of Schedule 2 of the Electricity Regulation Act for the energy sector, increasing the licensing threshold for embedded generation projects from 1MW to 100MW. The business industry has been calling for the government to increase the threshold on embedded power generation from 1MW to 50MW. North West Business School economist Professor Raymond Parsons said while the intervention would not offer immediate relief with load-shedding, it would help to lay a solid foundation for future power security. “The government now recognises the extent to which the failure of Eskom to guarantee electricity supply has posed the most…

UNION leaders at state-owned South African freight logistics group Transnet said they planned to pursue a strike after their members rejected a 4 percent across-the-board wage hike offer. The United National Transport Union (Untu) and the South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (Satawu) said their members had rejected the offer, which was one percentage point higher than Transnet had put on the table. “We have just sent communication now to the bargaining council to say we’ve had quite a bit of response and the response was to reject the offer,” John Pereira, a deputy general-secretary of Untu, said yesterday. “Both unions have rejected the mediator’s recommendation of 4 percent and the unions want one thing only and that is a certificate to strike,” said Jack Mazibuko, the…

Loyiso Sidimba loyiso.sidimba@inl.co.za EFF leader Julius Malema has announced that his party will launch a campaign against some of the country’s biggest financial institutions – which he says are involved in political party battles. At a media briefing yesterday, Malema promised that his party would embark on campaigns against Absa and FNB – two of South Africa’s biggest banks. “Corona disrupted us big time, and the racist financial sector must be thank- ful to corona because we had a clear programme to target the white-owned financial institutions, the majority of which ill-treat our people, exclude them and charge them high interest rates,” he said. Malema said he had no sympathy for Absa and FNB and described them as “the most racist banks”. “Absa and FNB actually fight political battles.…

Itumeleng Mafisa THE Democratic Nursing Organisation of SA (Denosa) said it was shocked that the Gauteng Health Department had spent over R30 million in acquiring the services of Cuban doctors while the province's nurses were running short of work uniforms. Denosa’s national spokesperson, Sibongiseni Delihlazo, said nurses were forced to wear torn uniforms and, in some instances, had to wear their own clothes to work because they had not been given their uniform allowances. Some Denosa provinces had even decided that their members should work in their casual clothes until the government gave them the necessary allowance. Delihlazo said Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal were among the problematic provinces with regard to providing uniforms for nurses. Despite the inability to provide uniforms to nurses, the Gauteng Health Department took R32.5m out…

A WELL-known local jazz band has taken a “leap of faith” by incorporating different music genres such as ‘90s hip hop and R&B, to recreate the Birth of the Cool by American jazz musician Miles Davis. The band Rebirth of Cool launched “The Remix Project” in 2015 which has been growing ever since. DJ Kenzhero, the co-owner of MNM Marketing Solutions alongside Tebogo Moalusi and Tha Muzik, made the project possible. Speaking to The Star, DJ Kenzhero said: “This is a never-heard-of-before concept and material. We’re excited to challenge the norm of what jazz is known for, in the hope of reaching a younger audience.” The band consists of pianist Thandi Ntuli, bassist Benjamin Jephta and drummer Sphelelo Mazibuko. It also features a brass section, H3, which consists of Linda…

Andrew Lee | Insurance industry lead at IQbusiness WITH the local vaccination programme under way, we could be forgiven for wanting to close the book on the pandemic and the damage it caused. However, as Churchill once said: “Those who fail to learn from history are condemned to repeat it.” While our life and funeral insurance industry handled Covid loss of life claims with efficiency and compassion, the general insurance industry struggled with the amount of losses for business interruption compensation, the scale of which was never catered for. The private insurance industry does not have the capacity to carry this risk alone into the future. We will need new mechanisms to build up funds via a state-backed, public/private insurance company that provides cover for such events. If…

Bongani Nkosi bongani.nkosi@inl.co.za JUST 6% of the South African population have university degrees, a new report by the Higher Education Department has revealed. A further 6% had diplomas and 3.4% held technical and vocational education and training (TVET) certificates. The department’s Post-School Education and Training Monitor, published biennially, decries these low levels of tertiary education attainment in the country. The report will inform policy, planning and resource allocation, the department maintained. In real numbers, just over 1.7 million people in the country held degrees. These degrees include bachelor’s degrees, postgraduate diplomas, honours degrees, Master’s degrees and PhDs. The country had seen an increase in the number of citizens with matric, which moved from 24.7% to 32.1% last year. But this improvement was not being mirrored on the higher education front,…

Chevon Booysen chevon.booysen@inl.co.za WESTERN Cape High Court Judge Siraj Desai has not yet been served with the complaint the South African Zionist Federation (SAZF) said they had lodged, alleging that his conduct was “unbecoming of a judicial officer”. The SAZF said yesterday that they directed a complaint to the Judicial Conduct Committee (JCC), wherein they claim the actions of Judge Desai “over many years are plainly in breach of the Code of Judicial Conduct”. Judge Desai’s spokesperson, Usuf Chikte, said he had not yet been served with the complaint, but they would be “studying it in terms of its veracity, authenticity, origin and source”. “We note that some of the documents are stamped and notarised in Apartheid Israel, well known for forgeries and falsification of evidence...It is nevertheless a matter…

The chilling confession by 29-year-old Aubrey Manaka on how and why he killed Capricorn TVET student Precious Ramabulana has highlighted the struggle of women and young girls in this country in their fight against gender-based violence and femicide. On Wednesday, Manaka, through his lawyer, gave the Polokwane High Court in Limpopo a detailed account of why he had abruptly ended the young woman’s life. According to him, he went to Ramabulana’s home in the wee hours of November 24 last year and told the 21-year-old that he had feelings for her. When she wouldn’t open the door, he forcefully gained entry through a window and spoke to her. When she would have none of it, he raped her and then stabbed her multiple times – all because she rejected…

Hong Kong customs announced their biggest ever bust of a speedboat gang smuggling luxury goods into the mainland yesterday, unveiling a haul that included watches, handbags and shoes, endangered animal parts, cosmetics, wines, whiskey and cigars. The massive seizure – valued at HK$120 million (about R210m) – is a window into the thriving smuggling networks that operate along the border between Hong Kong and China. Simple economics makes the trade hugely lucrative. Semi-autonomous Hong Kong has no sales tax, making it one of the cheapest places in the world to buy luxury goods. But over in China, punitive taxes often mean that luxury items cost up to double the price, providing a powerful smuggling incentive. A vast cornucopia of items get trafficked over from Hong Kong. Two bizarre recent operations…

TOKYO: Japanese corporate 2020 Olympic sponsors have hired consulting firms to advise them on whether to push ahead with Olympic-themed marketing plans or limit their association with an event that could damage their brands, the Financial Times reported. The consultants include Kantar Group from Britain and two Japan-based firms, Macromill Inc and Intage Holdings, the FT said, citing unidentified people. More than 60 Japanese companies, such as Toyota and beverage maker Asahi Holdings, have together paid more than $3 billion to sponsor the Tokyo Games. Most Japanese want the Games cancelled or delayed again amid concern that tens of thousands of foreign athletes and Olympic officials could bring new coronavirus variants.…

MIHLALI BALEKA @Mihlalibaleka THE “proposed new dawn” got off to an ideal start for Bafana Bafana. The South Africans, who are turning a new leaf with a youthful selection, came from behind to beat Uganda 3-2 at Orlando Stadium yesterday. Even without new Belgian coach Hugo Broos, who he had to go back home to get his second jab of the Covid-19 vaccine, Bafana turned it one in icy conditions. Senior players including Percy Tau and assistant coach Cedomir Janevski were ruled out of the match after testing positive for Covid-19, meaning that assistant coach Helman Mkhalele had to hold the fort. The latter’s approach was quite bizarre, starting with six defenders. Mkhalele’s starting line-up, which included seven debutants, had only two experienced players in Ronwen Williams and Innocent Maela.…

BOXING operates in a weird space in my consciousness, which admittedly I find rather depressing. While growing up, my grandfather was a massive fan of the sport, so it was not uncommon to hear him having raging discussions on the fighters of the day. Brian Mitchell, Dingaan Thobela, Jacob “Baby Jake” Matlala, Gerrie Coetzee and Corrie Sanders were names he often dropped, and held in high regard. He is no doubt turning in his grave at the current state of the sport. Don't misconstrue my words - there are pugilists in South Africa currently who are passionate about their craft, and work day-in and day-out to make it big and who aspire to fasten a world championship belt around their waists, but in recent years they have been overlooked by…