Mercury的2023-03-14目录

The State’s first witness in the Durban Solid Waste (DSW) R300 million fraud case involving former eThekwini mayor Zandile Gumede, told the Durban High Court yesterday that one of the leading investigators from the City Investigations Integrity Unity (CIIU) had received death threats and eventually resigned from eThekwini Metro. Her resignation, Mbuso Ngcobo testified, prompted the decision to outsource the investigation to an independent forensic investigator. Gumede and her co-accused, who include former Durban city manager Sipho Nzuza; former exco member Mondli Mthembu; Robert Abbu, who was DSW’s deputy head; and Sandile Ngcobo, the former deputy head of supply chain management; face charges, including conspiracy to commit corruption, corruption, fraud, money laundering, racketeering, and contravention of the Municipal Finance Management Act and the Municipal Systems Act. Ngcobo, the head of…

It is mind-boggling how the costs of old-age grant recipients are calculated compared with the useless criminal element. And they are kept incarcerated for years without showing any reform or remorse tendencies. It is reported online that the cost of keeping a criminal in prison amounts to between R10 000 and R16 000 a month. How ridiculous and disgusting can this government be? This while elderly citizens, who have worked themselves to a standstill, to contribute positively to the state tax coffers, get a pittance. Failing to pay your taxes back in the day could see you in serious trouble. Today good for nothing criminals get treated like royalty while the elderly must be content with a mere pittance. R1 990+R90 per month increase which the finance minister announced with…

this whole week and over the weekend the two truck accidents in uMhlanga made the headlines. One was the multi-vehicle incident, the other an incident in which a prominent human rights lawyer died. We have seen photos of the driver from the first incident, even graphic descriptions of what he was wearing. However, has any mention been made of the company which owns the truck? Any mention of who the owners are by name? No. Why not? What was the truck carrying? One mention was made of chromium and somewhere else of coal. We have the right to know what company was responsible. It needs to be out in the open.…

FINANCE Minister Enoch Godongwana said his department was not aware about non-compliance regarding the business rescue practitioners at the national carrier, SAA. “The National Treasury is not aware of any non-compliance to any legal prescripts in relation to SAA’s business rescue process as regulated by the Companies Act and the Public Finance Management Act,” Godongwana said. He was responding to parliamentary questions from DA MP Alf Lees, who asked whether he had found that all legal prescripts were followed by the Department of Public Enterprises, the board and executives of SAA and the business rescue practitioners in the business rescue process SAA was subjected to since December 2019. Godongwana said the purpose of the business rescue process as per the Companies Act was to provide for the efficient rescue and…

FORMER Limpopo head of the Health Department, Dr Thokozani Mhlongo, has lost her bid to have a tribunal unlock her pension. The Special Investigations Unit (SIU) froze her pension benefits after her resignation following the personal protective equipment scandal that rocked the province last year. Last year, the public protector investigated allegations of maladministration and procurement irregularities in the awarding of tenders for the supply of equipment at the height of the Covid-19, revealing that the department had not followed due processes in the awarding of the tender. It was also revealed that Mhlongo’s conduct was in contravention of the Public Finance Management Act and constituted maladministration. She was further accused of failing to ensure there was an appropriate procurement and provisioning system that was fair, equitable, transparent, competitive and…

Izinduna in KwaZulu-Natal told President Cyril Ramaphosa at his 2024 election campaign launch in Pietermaritzburg on Sunday they were fearing for their lives after yet another traditional leader was killed on Friday night in Ulundi. Mbangiseni Mbuyisa, 70, a member of the KwaNobamba Traditional Council, was an adviser or iso lesilo (eye of the king) to amaZulu King Misuzulu kaZwelithini. Mbuyisa’s nephew, Khaya Ndwandwe, said his uncle was shot outside the business premises where his wife works. KZN SAPS spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda said Mpungamhlophe police were investigating cases of murder and attempted murder following an incident in which a 70-year-old man was gunned down by unknown attackers on Friday in Ezibindini. “It is alleged that the deceased and his wife were leaving the business premises when they were ambushed…

Government silence is met with public silence and a growing sense of resignation Amid the various threats faced by our beleaguered country, there is one many people seem oblivious to but which has the potential to speedily and decisively send us over the precipice: civil society’s attitude of accepting rampant corruption, crime, and economic degradation as if it is something inevitable and unavoidable. The culture needs to be urgently exposed and addressed. And higher education institutions have a definite role to play in preventing its destructive potential. References to a “culture of acceptance” most often conjure up a positive connotation, especially in our South African context with its unfortunate history of “non-acceptance”, prejudice, and discrimination. The term usually refers to an attitude of embracing a diversity of views, backgrounds, and…

Cyclone Freddy, packing powerful winds and torrential rain, killed at least 70 people in Malawi and Mozambique on its return to southern Africa’s mainland, authorities said yesterday. More than 60 bodies were found during the day in southern Malawi where heavy downpours triggered flooding, according to the Red Cross. “Sixty-six people have died in Malawi, 93 injured and 16 people are missing due to Tropical Cyclone Freddy,” tweeted the humanitarian organisation, which is helping with search and rescue operations. Four more died in neighbouring Mozambique, local authorities said. An assessment of the damage was still underway, with the Mozambique National Institute for Disaster Management (INGD) saying the fallout from the storm’s second landfall in the country was worse than expected. “The number of affected people was above the forecast,” INGD…

Fierce fighting is raging for control of the centre of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine, the longest-running and bloodiest battle of Moscow’s invasion, Russian and Ukrainian forces said yesterday. Ukraine said Russia’s Wagner mercenary group, which has claimed to be leading Moscow’s charge for the industrial city, was pushing forward in the city that has been the epicentre of fighting for months. Analysts are divided over the strategic significance of Bakhmut as a military prize but the city has gained important political stature, with both sides pouring significant resources into the fight. Wagner head Yevgeny Prigozhin also acknowledged that his forces were coming up against determined resistance as they sought to wrest control of the city’s centre. Ukraine has said its strategy with the defence of Bakhmut is to degrade…

LONDON: Britain’s BBC reinstated its highest-paid presenter Gary Lineker yesterday after a move to take the sports host off air over his criticism of the government sparked a near mutiny at the public broadcaster. The corporation was forced to axe much of its sports coverage over the weekend after presenters, pundits and commentators refused to work in a show of solidarity with Lineker, who had criticised the government’s immigration policy. The decision to suspend Lineker led to accusations from staff, opposition politicians and commentators that the politically neutral BBC had bowed to pressure from the government. It also renewed the focus on the chairperson of the corporation, Richard Sharp, who failed to previously declare that he had facilitated a loan for former prime minister Boris Johnson before he was appointed…

Riyadh: Saudi Arabia has executed a Jordanian man who activists say was tortured before he signed a document confessing to smuggling narcotics, in what his sister had called an “unfair trial”. Hussein Abo al-Kheir, a driver in his late 50s, was put to death in the northwest province of Tabuk. Saudi Arabia has carried out 11 executions in the past two weeks. Rights group Amnesty International identified Abo al-Kheir as a father of eight and said his family had not been notified before the execution. He was arrested in 2014 while crossing into Saudi Arabia, where he worked as a driver. Rights group Reprieve said he did not have access to a lawyer. | AFP…

Rassie Erasmus and the Springboks should do everything in their power to convince Welsh refereeing legend Nigel Owens to join their camp in preparation for the Rugby World Cup in France later this year. Erasmus last week revealed that he’s been in contact with Owens about joining the Bok camp with the process still ongoing. The Springboks, though, look set to get the green light for this appointment as Erasmus places a high value on getting the best help for the national team ahead of defending their world title. Owens appeared in four World Cup tournaments as a referee from 2007 to 2019 and officiated in the final in the 2015 edition. Few teams in world rugby can say that they’ve had problems with him over the years and that’s…

AYO Technology Solutions’ (AYO) partnership with British Telecom South Africa (BTSA), and their different interpretations of the agreement between them in 2017, fell under the spotlight on the third day of the Public Investment Corporations’ (PIC) legal action against AYO yesterday. The PIC, the state-owned asset manager that invests mainly the Government Employee Pension Scheme funds, is attempting through the Western Cape High Court to recover about R4.3 billion it invested for a 29% stake in AYO, as part of a private placement prior to AYO listing on the JSE in December 2017. The PIC led the evidence about the BTSA relationship through most of yesterday, about the transfer of customers and shareholdings between the parties, as it sought to prove that AYO had overstated its relationship with BTSA, thereby…

SENTIMENT in the building construction sector is expected to stay depressed for a prolonged period of time as it remained firmly in the contractionary territory in the first quarter of 2023. The FNB/BER Building Confidence Index released yesterday remained stagnant at 33 points in the first quarter of this year due to the negative prevailing economic climate. According to the FNB, this means that almost 70% of respondents were dissatisfied with prevailing business conditions. However, FNB said the downbeat building sentiment belied a noticeable improvement in activity this quarter. Regarding the sub-sectors, quantity surveyors declined by 2 points, main contractors by 3 points, hardware re- tailers by 4 points, architects by 8 points, and building material manufacturers 14 points, while sub-contractors increased by 27…

THE National Education, Health And Allied Workers’ Union (Nehawu) said it was exploring legal options following yesterday’s Labour Court decision to uphold the court interdict by the Department of Public Service and Administration against its strike action. The Department of Health has welcomed the judgment and urged Nehawu members to return to work as sporadic protests took place in KwaZulu-Natal yesterday. Nehawu secretary-general Zola Saphetha said that they had complied with the court judgment and informed their members of the decision. “We will be meeting with our legal team to explore our legal recourse and to see if appealing the judgment is an option,” he said. The Labour Court last week dismissed an appeal by Nehawu against an interdict preventing the strike, but the union ignored the court ruling.…

THANK you, Sibahle, for your beautiful letter and the permission to print it in full: Dear Mr Smith My name is Sibahle Nsukwini. I am a final-year student at Durban University of Technology. As an upcoming journalist, I always follow the steps of people who are the best in the game and who have experience in journalism like you, Mr Smith. I read your article in the newspaper which has a title that says: “Beauty is all around us, in all we meet”. The article inspired me a lot since I have been struggling with myself since high school. The article lifted me as it said all people are beautiful and there is gold to everyone. It gave me strength to continue to love the way I was created and…

ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula is appointing lawyers to challenge De Ruyter, (former) CEO of Eskom, for saying the ANC is corrupt. Mbalula must be very ignorant not to know that almost the whole country is saying the ANC is corrupt. He will run out of lawyers to appoint to deal with all the allegations. Perhaps his crooked ANC comrades have access to the stolen millions with which to pay lawyers. I tend to believe De Ruyter’s claim. A perfect example is that of our past president, Jacob Zuma, who enabled corruption at Eskom via his close friends, the Gupta brothers. Our current lame-duck president, as deputy president to Zuma, was sitting next to him and said nothing about Zuma’s many wrongdoings. It’s difficult to point fingers at anyone if the…

The strike action by trade union Nehawu (the National Education Health and Allied Workers Union) in protest for a wage increase of 10% has already cost lives. By blockading entrances to hospitals and preventing essential services from being conducted, these striking workers, whatever the merits of their demands may entail, deserve absolute censure and condemnation – and the strongest possible action against them by the authorities. It is totally unacceptable, the manner in which so-called protesters conduct themselves when protesting, especially in the industries they represent, where service delivery is as pathetic as it is non-existent at times. Violence and intimidation against innocent citizens, destruction of property, disruption of life in general and the gross disrespect of other people’s rights is now the objective whenever such action is called for.…

AS UCT is expected to announce its interim vice-chancellor this week, the university could not state with confidence that there would be no further disruptive student protest action going forward. The university’s council met last week, with the issue of the institution’s student representative council’s call to lift all fee blocks, and the vacant position of vice-chancellor after Professor Mamokgethi Phakeng left office on March 3, being high on the agenda. Deputy vice-chancellor for research and internationalisation, Professor Sue Harrison, was appointed to act as the vice-chancellor. Council chairperson Babalwa Ngonyama said this state of affairs would remain until an interim vice-chancellor had been appointed. “We are following the process as prescribed by the UCT statute. This requires that if the office of the vice-chancellor becomes vacant, council, after consulting…

Parliamentarians are worried about their safety after a bullet was found lodged in an ANC MP’s car stationed in the Pelican Park parliamentary village, prompting an investigation by the Grassy Park police. Police spokesperson Captain FC van Wyk confirmed an ongoing investigation into malicious damage to property. There were no witnesses or arrests, he said. ANC chief whip Pemmy Majodina told the Mercury’s sister paper the Cape Argus that the incident affected an ANC MP. DA MP Samantha Graham said: “The response I received indicated that it was nothing to worry about and that members are safe. But my colleagues believe that getting to the park is dangerous as it is a high gang activity area. A stray bullet is still a bullet and those MPs close to the sides…

A MEDICAL doctor who was shot during a robbery at his practice in Standerton, Mpumalanga, and had his one leg amputated will now be able to prove the damages he had suffered. He got the go-ahead after one of the doctors “liable for the amputation” lost his appeal. Dr Abdus Patel instituted a R11.4 million claim against his colleagues. He said that if Dr Aboo Baker Joosub and Dr Frederick Louw had acted with haste after he was shot, he would have had his leg today. The North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria found earlier that Patel’s colleagues could not be blamed and turned down the claim. Patel appealed to a full Bench, which found that Louw should be held accountable. Louw turned to the Supreme Court of Appeal, which…

THE curtain-raiser of the much-anticipated Public Investment Corporation (PIC) vs JSE-listed AYO Technology Solutions (AYO) court case last week contained explosive testimony from the PIC’s first witness, Victor Seanie, who was dismissed for dishonesty over the AYO deal in 2019. In his testimony, Seanie alluded to the PIC’s lawyers as being “corrupt” and at the bidding of “dictator” Dr Dan Matjila, the PIC’s then CEO and chief investment officer. The PIC is taking AYO to court to reclaim its investment of R4.3 billion in what can be described as a case of “buyer’s remorse” and “regret”. But can an investor change its mind simply because it no longer wants to be in bed with its chosen companion, and ask for its money back? If the PIC was hoping for…

The dawn of democracy raised hope for many previously disadvantaged South Africans. However, the status quo we see today is contrary to what was anticipated. People believed doors of opportunity were going to open to alleviate the burden for many households that lived below the poverty line. What we see today is huge youth unemployment, and this has become our biggest threat and challenge. According to the Quarterly Labour Force Survey (by Statistics South Africa) for the first quarter of 2022, the graduate unemployment rate was relatively low in South Africa compared with those of other educational levels, while youth unemployment continues to be a burden, irrespective of educational attainment, and is seemingly a dangerous threat to democracy. Covid-19 made matters worse, weighing down the levels of employment opportunities even…

Pope Francis marked 10 years as head of the Roman Catholic Church yesterday, celebrating mass with cardinals in the chapel of the Vatican’s Santa Marta Hotel where he has lived since his election. The Argentina-born Francis, 86, became the first Latin American pontiff on March 13, 2013, succeeding Benedict XVI who had become the first pope in six centuries to resign. “It seems like yesterday,” he said in a podcast by Vatican News broadcast yesterday. “Time flies. When you gather up today, it is already tomorrow.” When it was recorded at his residence on Sunday, he asked, “What’s a podcast?” according to Vatican News reporter Salvatore Cernuzio. When it was explained to him, he said, “Nice. Let’s do it.” Former cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio has sought to project simplicity into…

The death toll in Türkiye from last month’s major earthquakes has risen to 48 448, Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said yesterday, as authorities rush to set up container cities to house those left homeless by the disaster. The combined death toll including those killed in Syria has climbed to more than 54 000. Soylu said the toll in Türkiye included 6 660 foreign nationals, mostly Syrians, and authorities were still trying to identify 1 615 victims. The quake and powerful tremors injured more than 115 000 in Türkiye and left millions sheltering in tents or seeking to move to other cities. Soylu said the government planned to set up 115 585 containers for families in 239 sites in the affected region. Already 23 sites had been established…

LONDON: Thousands of junior doctors in Britain walked out yesterday in a three-day strike that will disrupt patient care, as they protest over pay they say can work out at less per hour than a barista. The strike is the latest involving staff at Britain’s state-funded National Health Service (NHS), following walkouts by nurses, paramedics and other workers demanding a pay rise. The NHS said it would prioritise emergency care during the strike, which could come at the cost of routine appointments, surgeries and even some urgent cancer treatments. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is under pressure to help end walkouts by health workers. | Reuters…

NAIROBI: Rwandan President Paul Kagame yesterday said there were discussions about “resolving” the fate of Paul Rusesabagina, who was portrayed as a hero in the Hollywood film Hotel Rwanda and is serving a 25-year sentence in Rwanda on terrorism charges. Rusesabagina was sentenced in September 2021 over his ties to an organisation opposed to Kagame’s rule. He denied all the charges and refused to take part in the trial. Washington has designated him as “wrongly detained”. Rusesabagina has US permanent residency rights. Kagame said his country would not be bullied over Rusesabagina, but suggested that there was room for compromise. | Reuters…

SOUTH African stocks traded lower for the fifth consecutive day yesterday, weighed down by choppy global risk sentiment and domestic weak economic outcomes triggered by intensified load shedding. The JSE All Share Index fell by 1.7% to more than a two-month low of 75 126 points, the fifth consecutive session of losses in line with major bourses. Contagion fears in the financial sector remain after US authorities stepped in to cap the fallout from the sudden collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), while traders reduced bets that the Federal Reserve will take a less aggressive monetary path. SVB is the largest US bank to have failed in over a decade. Its collapse added to worries that the already tighter lending environment and the upwards interest rate cycle could cause…

OPPOSITION councillors in the eThekwini Municipality are outraged following revelations that more than R60 million meant for service delivery had been diverted to pay performance bonuses to some of the City’s workers. Opposition parties in the council said it was hard to justify such payments in light of the poor service delivery in the City, that has left ratepayers fuming. A budget adjustment report tabled recently showed that the City had set aside R66 million to pay performance bonuses. It was not immediately clear whether the bonuses had already been paid and councillors said they also did not know whether these had been paid. The latest developments come shortly after eThekwini Municipality allocated R71 million to pay performance bonuses to staff to avoid a wildcat strike by employees in December…

OLD Blighty was in crisis. Sixty years of football tradition were trashed last Saturday when the BBC’s Match of the Day went on air without presenters, pundits or commentators. The reason? Well, seldom has there been such a tangle of issues totally unrelated to football. Match of the Day presenter Gary Lineker said in a private tweet that the government’s language as it launched measures against illegal cross-channel immigration reminded him of Germany in the 1930s. The BBC announced Lineker would be “stepping back” from Match of the Day until there was an “agreed and clear position” on his social media use. At which all the pundits and commentators involved themselves pulled out. And the BBC’s other programme Football Focus also took a nosedive. ’Twas a real mess. Blighty’s favourite…

Increasing unemployment causes a lot of devastation in society, such as poverty, increased crime rates and suicide. Unemployment is also derived from a lack of skill sets and illiteracy, not overlooking the lack of opportunity for those who have required skills. As much as we can continually blame the government for not deliver ing on most of its promises, there are efforts that government departments are making to try to bridge the unemployment gap. In order to make a dent in youth unemployment, the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DALRRD) introduced ways to support and capacitate rural communities through the National Rural Youth Service Corps programme. Through this programme, the department equips rural youth with skill sets ranging from leadership skills and civic engagement to social interaction.…

There is no denying the fact that uMngeni Municipality has become a beacon of hope in KwaZulu-Natal as mayor Chris Pappas and his team lead the way when it comes to proper service delivery. Won by the DA during the 2021 local government elections, this small municipality in the KZN Midlands area is going from strength to strength, with ground-breaking initiatives on an almost daily basis. In terms of transport operations, the mayor recently opened a dedicated traffic department and vehicle pound establishment – a first for uMngeni. This department consists of 15 traffic officials comprising of a chief officer, two controllers and a receptionist. Added to this is the municipality’s recent installation of back-up power system traffic lights at six different locations. These traffic lights will remain operational during…

A Mangosuthu University of Technology (MUT) study has identified that strengthening tutoring is key to students’ academic success. The study was co-authored by Dr Phiwayinkosi Gumede, the acting senior director of the Teaching and Learning Development Centre at MUT, and Mashango Sithole who is the co-ordinator of the Peer Assisted Learning and Foundation Provision. The report said tutoring was helpful in an attempt to stop the revolving door syndrome in higher education, where students drop out. Researchers explained that what could help support students was a “sustainable and effective tutorship programme, characterised by qualified and well-trained tutors, stable policy, adequate resources, effective co-ordination of the activities, and co-operation among key role-players”. “The development and implementation of the tutor policy is the bedrock of implementing a tutorship programme, as it ensures…

LIMPOPO serial killer Prince Willard Themba Dube, 36, has been found guilty of seven counts of murder, kidnapping and robbery. Dube, a Zimbabwean national, was convicted by the Limpopo High Court in Polokwane for the murder of seven women who were kidnapped, raped and extorted. He was also found to have contravened the Immigration Act because he was in the country illegally. The bodies of the victims were found randomly dumped around Polokwane between August and October of 2021. He had lured the women by promising them employment. He would assault, rape and kill them, and afterwards, contact their families for ransom. Dube will soon hear his fate. | Mercury Correspondent…

THE failure of the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health to interdict striking workers is a political move that prioritises the needs of the ANC above those of poor patients desperate for medical care. The national strike organised by the National Education, Health and Allied Workers Union (Nehawu) started last week and has been marred by incidents of violence, intimidation, the blocking of access to health facilities and widespread disruptions. Nehawu is demanding a 10% wage increase, a R2 500 housing allowance and a bursary scheme for members’ child- ren. However, the government is offering a 4% pay hike and the two parties are no closer to breaking the stalemate. We believe government employees deserve the 10% increase they are demanding. It must be noted that public servants did not receive any…

US President Joe Biden declared the US banking system “safe” and vowed stiffer bank regulation, after US regulators were forced to step in with a series of emergency measures after the Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank collapse, threatening to trigger a broader crisis. “Americans can have confidence that the banking system is safe. Your deposits will be there when you need them,” Biden said. The managers of the banks will be fired, Biden noted, and investors will lose money. “They knowingly took a risk, and when the risk didn’t pay off, his adjusters lose their money. That’s how capitalism works,” he said. Biden also promised new regulation after the biggest US bank failure since the 2008 financial crisis. Some of the Dodd Frank law passed after that crisis to…

MOSCOW: The Kremlin said yesterday that the award of an Oscar to a documentary about jailed Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny showed “a certain element of politicisation” by Hollywood. Navalny, which won the Academy Award for best feature documentary, shows the Kremlin critic recovering in Germany from being poisoned with a nerve agent in Siberia in 2020, and working with the investigative news outlet Bellingcat to unmask those responsible. In the film, Navalny pinned responsibility for the poisoning episode on a team of agents from the state security service. Russia denied this. | Reuters…

Ciudad Juárez: Hundreds of people tried to storm the US-Mexico border at the weekend, after a rumour that migrants would be allowed to cross into the US. A large crowd of mainly Venezuelans began to gather near the entrance of a bridge connecting Mexico’s Ciudad Juarez to El Paso, Texas in the southern US. The Biden administration has been hoping to stem the record tide of migrants and asylum seekers undertaking often dangerous journeys organised by human smugglers to get to the US. In January, the White House proposed expanding a rule to allow border guards to turn away more would-be migrants if they arrive by land. | AFP…

TUNIS: Tunisia yesterday inaugurated a new parliament largely stripped of its powers, after a vote that saw a paltry turnout amid boycotts following President Kais Saied’s July 2021 power grab. The new assembly, elected in two rounds in December and January that saw a voter turnout of just over 11%, held its first session at the legislature’s traditional home in Bardo, a suburb of the capital Tunis. Under the new constitution, it is almost impossible for parliament to hold the government to account, and the president cannot be impeached under any circumstances. Ten MPs will be needed to propose bills, and those put forward by the president will be given priority. | AFP…

The Currie Cup started with a bang this past weekend, which saw three teams score convincing wins away against tough opposition and only one home side claiming a victory. The competition is set to go up a notch this weekend, starting with two action-packed clashes in Mbombela and Pretoria, respectively. Reigning champions the Pumas are set to welcome the Lions for a catfight at Mbombela Stadium. After thrashing the Bulls away from home, winning 63-15, Jimmy Stonehouse’s team, will be looking to kick on from that performance. Being in front of their home crowd for the first time will only motivate the team more. And playing their natural brand of rugby - with big forwards and a backline full of running - it will be a tough ask for the…