Indholdsfortegnelse for 2023-01-03 i Mercury

The huge price drops for petrol and diesel, which will be implemented tomorrow, have been widely welcomed. Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe announced on Friday that there would be decreases in the prices of both grades of petrol, as well as diesel. The price of petrol (93 and 95 ULP & LRP) will drop by R2.06/litre, while the price of diesel (0.05% sulphur) will drop by R2.68/litre and diesel (0.005% sulphur) will drop by R2.80/litre. The AA, economists, SA National Taxi Council (Santaco) and Road Freight Association (RFA) welcomed the announcement. Gavin Kelly, RFA CEO, said: “The decreases in these price ranges is very good news, both for the consumer directly and indirectly, and for the economy.” Kelly said that with the fuel price drop there would be a marginal…

It is now history that President Cyril Ramaphosa will be at the helm of the ANC for his second term. His re-election victory at the 55th conference has proved that he managed to sail through a number of first-term battles and emerge anew. All such brutal battles should have nurtured, shaped and prepared him for the battles that lie ahead. His stewardship needs to quickly grasp that whatever power he has gained through re-election has to be spent prudently and without fear or favour. He is again at the peak of his power and must ensure that his stewardship benefits from it as ANC leader and South Africa’s president. His re-election for a second term must put him back to where he wanted to have started his ANC presidency, had…

A nation in search of a scapegoat is sliding on the slippery slope of lawlessness and contempt for the judicial process. There was nothing untoward in the “provisional release” of the truck driver vis-à-vis the gas truck explosion incident in Boksburg on Gauteng’s East Rand. There’s not enough evidence to warrant arrest. Interests of fairness and justice require prima facie proof, and evidence has to be gathered to ensure a successful prosecution, not guilt but to hold him accountable. Dear SA, stop the lynch mob mentality. I have no intention to go into the merits as I, like your readers, don’t know enough. The explanation that the driver has given and the steps that he took confirmed by witness statements from people in the vicinity satisfy the “reasonable…

OUTGOING head of eThekwini Municipality’s economic development and planning unit Phillip Sithole has detailed his successes over the years, saying his unit had been able to attract billions of rand in investment for the city. Sithole was on a five-year contract which came to an end on December 31. He said yesterday that he had not made up his mind about whether to reapply for the position when it was advertised. But sources in the council have said Sithole faces an uphill battle in returning to the post, as there is “political interest” regarding the matter. “I can tell you now that his chances of returning are slim. He is qualified. But there are areas where he falls short, and the position is now mired in political squabbles, with…

Msunduzi Municipality has condemned attacks by members of the public on its staff who were carrying out repairs on electricity infrastructure around the city. Msunduzi Municipality spokesperson Ntobeko Mkhize cited a range of problems as the cause of the power outages – ageing infrastructure, trees falling on overhead lines and private vehicles knocking down electricity poles. “This had a negative impact on customers in the following areas: Copesville, Whispers Water Pump Station in Wartburg Road, Willowton and Tucker roads, Mountain Rise, Roberts Road, Victoria Country Club, Montrose Drive, Lovedale Road, Cinderella Park, and parts of Northdale areas.” Mkhize conceded that while power in most of the areas was restored within a short period, in some areas the outages extended beyond 48 hours. Mkhize expressed the city leadership’s disappointment with the…

AS THE Department of Basic Education prepares for the start of the 2023 school year, it should seriously address the challenge of overcrowded classrooms by employing more teachers and school principals. It is crucial to deal decisively with the critical shortage of teachers in our schools. If this looming educational crisis is not addressed urgently, poor educational outcomes will be the order of the day. According to the findings of the Teacher Demographic Dividend project, a growing number of teachers have retired or are facing retirement by 2029. According to the study, in 2013 a total of 7 300 teachers retired compared with 12 500 in 2021, while 17 300 educators are due to retire in 2029, which will leave the education sector critically short of staff in…

Tens of thousands of people paid their respects yesterday to former pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican, at the start of three days of lying-in-state at St Peter’s Basilica before his funeral. They began queueing before dawn to view the German theologian’s body, which was transferred early yesterday from the monastery in the Vatican grounds where he died on Saturday aged 95. “I arrived at 6am, it seemed normal to come and pay homage to him after all he did for the church,” said an Italian nun, sister Anna-Maria, near the front of the queue that snaked around the edge of the vast St Peter’s Square. Benedict led the Catholic Church for eight years before becoming the first pope in six centuries to step down in 2013, citing his…

About a dozen countries have slapped fresh travel regulations on travellers from China, as the world’s most populous nation faces a surge in Covid-19 cases following its decision to relax strict virus restrictions. As of Thursday, the US will require negative Covid-19 tests taken within two days of departure – or documentation proving passengers have recovered from the virus within the last 90 days – for all entries from China. Acceptable tests include “a PCR test or an antigen self-test administered and monitored by a telehealth service or a licensed provider”, according to the US Centers for Disease Control. The rules include those travelling from Hong Kong and Macau. Starting on Thursday, all those arriving in France from China must present a negative PCR test result, or a rapid antigen…

The festive season is over and the league is back in full swing and stuttering Cape Town City will be looking to get into the top eight when they meet revived SuperSport United at the Cape Town Stadium today (5pm kick-off). Matsatsantsa have been much-improved this season under the guidance of veteran coach Gavin Hunt and are third in the league. The team from Tshwane are seven points adrift of league leaders Mamelodi Sundowns and are in the hunt for the title. Also today (7.30pm kick-off) Royal AM (11th) host eighth place TS Galaxy at the Chatsworth Stadium. The Rockets will be looking to get better at converting draws into wins as they have only lost three league games this season but have drawn seven which is the joint…

THE next deputy mayor of eThekwini could emerge from the bloc of smaller parties that are in a coalition agreement with the ANC to govern the municipality. The Mercury understands that NFP councillor Zandile Myeni is the front runner for the position which became vacant late last year after the sacking of deputy mayor Philani Mavundla. However, Myeni’s ascendancy to the position could be disrupted by other political developments which include the negotiations between the ANC and the EFF at national level. Mavundla’s chances of returning to the post were dashed after a court dismissed his application to challenge his removal. The court found that the municipality had complied with all the legal processes when it ousted him. Mavundla had previously stated in the media that his agreement with the…

China is now the epicentre of the new Covid-19 wave and a new variant that is raging across that country. Covid-19, five letters, two numbers, invisible but potentially on everyone’s hands. The deadly and ferocious impact of this escalating new wave seems indelible. The incredulous faces of men, women, children, caregivers and patients are relayed in 3D across the world in real time as the Earth’s inhabitants quiver and shake at the approaching viral storm. The most sophisticated detection systems on Earth cannot detect its silent footsteps and its invisible trajectory. The entire world is in trepidation as this new wave is bound to sweep across all continents, and threaten to engulf both hemispheres in a viral tsunami. Apocalyptic scenes emerging from all parts of China are disturbing. The entire…

I’m six feet tall and I’m awfu’ shy, The lassies call as I go by, ‘Donald whaur’s yer troosers?’“ SCOTLAND can be a complicated country. The men wear skirts, especially in the army or when they’re doing manly things like tossing the caber, swinging the hammer or putting the shot. They have to march on to the parade ground over a mirror, a sergeant-major watching with eagle eye, to make sure they’re not wearing something untoward under the kilt – or not wearing anything at all – the offence depending whether there’s a queen or a king on the throne. You can’t get more complicated than that. And now the Scottish devolved government has introduced legislation to allow the wee laddies and the wee lassies to decide for themselves whether…

South African men need to play a greater role in the campaign against gender-based violence (GBV), the Nazareth Baptist Church in eBuhleni said yesterday. As the church members embark on a seven-day pilgrimage to the holy mountain of Nhlangakazi, Shembe church spokesperson Thokozani Mncwabe expressed concern over the number of incidents of abuse of women and children, calling on men to lead the fight against the scourge. “Part of what we will be praying for is an end to this problem of abuse, especially the rape of women we are seeing in the country,” said Mncwabe. The spokesperson emphasised the role that should be played by men to protect women. “Women are the greatest gifts and should be provided with all the protection and that is the gospel we are…

LOOKING back, 2022 was a challenging year for education in South Africa and the continent. It began on a sad note for South Africa’s matriculants as many faced the prospect of a bleak future after being spewed out of a school system that continues to fail millions of pupils. On the flip side, private schools have continued to get a lousy rap amid stubborn silence from the Independent Schools Association of SA (Isasa) on various issues affecting its members. Some 45% of parents struggled to keep up with the exorbitant fees for their children at private schools. At the same time, Isasa’s leadership allows its members to escape without transforming; their silence on bullying at several schools over the past year is shocking, along with other unsavoury practices that have…

Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva took office this week for a third term as Brazil’s president, vowing to fight for the poor and the environment and “rebuild the country” after far-right leader Jair Bolsonaro’s divisive administration. The 77-year-old veteran leftist, who previously led Brazil from 2003 to 2010, took the oath of office before Congress, capping a remarkable political comeback for the metalworker-turned-president less than five years after he was jailed on controversial, since-quashed corruption charges. Lula was driven through the ultra-modern capital in a black convertible Rolls-Royce, accompanied by First Lady Rosangela “Janja” da Silva and Vice President Geraldo Alckmin. Giving a blistering overview of the past four years under Bolsonaro, who snubbed the ceremony, Lula said his government would work to undo a legacy of economic decline, surging…

Hanoi: Hundreds of rescuers in Vietnam yesterday battled to free a 10-year-old boy who fell into a 35m-deep hole at a construction site two days ago. The boy, Thai Ly Hao Nam, fell into the shaft of a hollow concrete pillar just 25cm wide, sunk as part of a new bridge, apparently while looking for scrap metal. Rescuers had tried drilling and softening the surrounding soil to try to pull the pillar up. Authorities said the boy had stopped interacting with rescuers, though oxygen had been pumped into the hole. Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh asked rescuers to join efforts by local authorities to save the boy. | AFP…

WHILE Deputy President David Mabuza is convinced that the fifth administration of the ANC-led government has made considerable strides to assist military veterans, an organisation of former Umkhonto We Sizwe combatants seems to disagree. This as South Africa’s outgoing second-in-charge may soon be replaced by ANC former treasurer-general Paul Mashatile, who was elected deputy president of the governing party last month. Mabuza declined a nomination from the floor for him to contest for re- election as ANC deputy president. During a recent interview in which he reflected on his tenure as President Cyril Ramaphosa’s deputy in government, Mabuza listed helping military veterans as part of progress made in the past few years. “Through interactions with these military veterans, I just realised that we’ve abdicated our responsibility to these very important…

Whereas resolutions and predictions are always the feature of a new year, one certainty of 2023 is the continuation of the media information war. Expect fresh exposure of globalist collusion in suppressing dissent to their anointed narratives. The electronic media has become the most powerful means of population control. It is evident from the fact that six months since the rescinding of the mask mandate, thousands continue to wear masks despite the proven fact that masks do not impede viral penetration. But then, the mass media has never purveyed that fact. The Biden regime has authorised $475 million expenditure urging the US population to get booster shots despite the mounting evidence that those shots are harmful to health and have already caused tens of thousands of deaths. But then the…

Therapeutic content with a client begins to be exchanged the minute first contact is made between client and therapist. An experienced therapist keeps much of the following in mind: A rude or abrupt first encounter on the phone or in person lets the therapist know that the would-be client is probably this way with most people. There is pain, hurt, and probably a lack of trust. The therapist is probably in for a degree of conflict if he or she takes this person as a client. A new client will have a “presenting problem” and it is what the client will want to talk about. Presenting problems, or what the client thinks is the issue, is seldom the issue. Patience and kindness and a listening ear spread over a few…

CHILDLINE KwaZulu-Natal says that the government’s awareness and educational programmes aimed at curbing teenage pregnancy are not effective enough to deal with the problem. The NGO was commenting after the KZN Health MEC Nomagugu Simelane and Premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube raised concerns about teen pregnancies after visiting hospitals to meet mothers who gave birth on Christmas and New Year’s Day. The KZN Department of Health said there were a total of 341 New Year babies, while 99 babies were born on Christmas Day. According to the department, the province’s youngest mother is a 15-year-old who gave birth to a baby girl at Port Shepstone Hospital on the South Coast. Childline KZN acting director Adeshini Naicker described the rate of teenage pregnancy as shocking and said it was sad to see young…

We owe it to our people to create better opportunities for them to lead better lives SINCE the dawn of democracy, South Africa, at various stages, has faced the problem of people migrating to cities, towns and hamlets in increasing numbers in search of better opportunities for livelihoods. The problem of shacks/land now covers every inch of the soil in the urban and peri-urban landscape to such an extent that for its resolution, it calls to mind two mega-plans developed in the world to resolve mega-problems such as the one facing South Africa today. The first one is what is called the Marshall Plan/European Recovery Programme, which was a US programme provided to Western Europe following the devastation of World War II. It was enacted in 1948 and…

Metro and bus traffic in Tunisia’s capital ground to a halt yesterday after employees of state transport company Transtu held a strike over delays in payment of wages and bonuses. The strike in Tunis highlights the financial problems faced by public companies on the verge of bankruptcy while President Kais Saied’s government contends with its worst financial crisis. The union, with 1 million members, has approved a two-day strike by air, land and sea transport workers on January 25 and 26 to protest against “the government’s marginalisation of public companies”. Hundreds of Transtu workers staged a protest in Kasbah Square, near the prime minister’s office, demanding payment. The travel chaos provoked an angry response from the thousands struggling to move around the capital. In the poor Intilaka area, people blocked…

LONDON: Britain’s Prince Harry said his troubled relationship with the royal family “never needed to be this way” and he wants to get his father King Charles and his brother “back”, in an excerpt from an interview with broadcaster ITV released yesterday. “They’ve shown absolutely no willingness to reconcile,” he said. “I would like to get my father back; I would like to have my brother back,” he said, Harry and his wife, Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, stepped down from royal duties in March 2020, saying they wanted to forge new lives in the US. They have since criticised how they were treated as members of the royal family, including an accusation by Harry that his brother William, Prince of Wales, screamed at him at a meeting…

ERIK ten Hag is confident Luke Shaw can thrive at centre-back if the Manchester United left-back is asked to play out of position again. Shaw helped United to wins against Nottingham Forest and Wolves over the festive period after Ten Hag opted to deploy the England international in the centre of his defence. The 27-year-old could again start alongside Raphael Varane at centre-back when United face Bournemouth at Old Trafford in their first match of 2023 tonight. Argentina World Cup winner Lisandro Martinez has resumed training and may be available but if the centre-back needs more time to rest, Ten Hag has no hesitation about calling on Shaw again. That would be another blow to United centre-back Harry Maguire, who has struggled to hold down a place in Ten Hag's…