Índex per 2022-12-22 a Star

THE FW de Klerk Foundation has expressed concern over what it termed were plans to eliminate the Afrikaans language, despite the fact that it is one of South Africa’s most-spoken languages. The foundation’s Tyla Dallas said about 7.4 million people in South Africa spoke Afrikaans. It was also the third most-spoken language in the country. Dallas claims that deliberate attacks on Afrikaans have occurred since the dawn of democracy. The language was seen by many as the language of the oppressor; its growth and importance were fuelled by the National Party, which ensured the language’s use in government offices and schools. “The erosion of Afrikaans is gathering momentum despite the protection that all South Africa’s official languages are supposed to enjoy. Section 30 of the Constitution assures South Africans’ rights…

The Public Servants Association (PSA) has found itself embroiled in a dismissal scandal involving an employee who worked for the union, was fired, and now has to return to work following a Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) ruling. Maxwell Sebati was fired as the union’s deputy general manager only a few days into his job. The Star understands that Sebati had not been seeing eye to eye with the union’s president. The two even had an altercation that became public because of its intensity. Sources close to the matter said a battle for jobs had erupted at the PSA and that union leaders wanted to place their preferred candidates in certain positions. The Star has seen a CCMA ruling that Sebati should return to his position as he…

TO THE architect of “Thuma Mina”, we sadly say “Hamba Kahle” as the nation braces itself for a political hurricane of immense proportions. It was former French president Charles de Gaulle who once said, ”There can be no power without mystery. Nothing more enhances authority than silence”. The Section 89 independent panel found prima facie evidence against the president. Phala Phala was the Achilles heel that led to a Shakespearean tragedy. Everyone directly and even peripherally involved in the Phala Phala debacle will be remembered in history for this sordid saga. The puzzling aspect of this scandal is the behaviour of the president, a highly-accomplished man of tremendous intellect and great potential, a multi-billionaire (Forbes Magazine, June 2022, $450 million), who put his presidency and his reputation at risk for…

With reference to the article, “Netcare warns of dire shortage of trained nurses” (The Star, Business Report, December 19), I agree that it is a matter of great concern, for both public and private health-care sectors. According to Netcare, there is a shortage of between 26 000 and 62 000 registered nurses in South Africa. I have no idea how these estimates were reached, but one thing that is clear is that we are faced with a dire situation, and unless serious steps are taken urgently to correct it, there will be a catastrophe in the health services, with many lives at risk. For the first time in the history of this country, there have been reports of doctors and trained nurses who are languishing at home unemployed, because there…

For the Ribcanha steak: 1 Steakhouse Classic Ribcanha Olive oil Salt and freshly ground pepper 4 sprigs each of rosemary and thyme ½ jar Forage and Feast preserved figs, drained and figs sliced thinly For the green olive salsa verde: ¼ cup (60ml) olive oil 6 Forage and Feast anchovy fillets ½ onion, finely chopped ½ clove of garlic, minced Juice and zest of 1 lemon 1 jar Forage and Feast pitted Kalamata olives, drained and roughly chopped ½ cup (125ml) flat leaf parsley, chopped Method Preheat the oven to 190°C. Drizzle the Ribcanha with a little olive oil and season well with salt and pepper. Sear in a hot pan until well browned on both sides then remove and place on a roasting tray. Sprinkle the chopped rosemary and…

A TRIP to purchase groceries shortly before Christmas five years ago ended in disaster for Mabopane resident Christina Mthembu and her husband at the local Big Save Store. She fell down a ramp as she left the store and severely injured herself. Mthembu turned to the North Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, where she claimed damages against the owners of the store. It is not at this stage known how much she is claiming, as this will be revealed later when the court deals with the actual damages she suffered. The incident occurred when she exited the store via a descending slope. It was argued on her behalf that the angle of the slope and its uneven surface were potentially dangerous and caused her to slip and fall. She said…

Now that the dust has settled on the bruising ANC elective conference which saw President Cyril Ramaphosa retain his presidency and Paul Mashatile elected the party’s deputy president, the incoming national executive committee has its work cut out before the 2024 national elections. The list presented by ANC electoral committee chairperson, Kgalema Motlanthe, at the close of the conference in Nasrec yesterday has a generational mix, something the “young lions” have been advocating. The biggest loser is Deputy President ‘DD’ Mabuza, who is likely to be recalled. Others who did not make it include former ministers, mostly octogenarians, Pravin Gordan, Dr Naledi Pandor, Dr Blade Nzimande, Thulsa Nxesi, Jeff Radebe, former National Assembly speaker Baleka Mbete, and her successor Nosiviwe Mapisa-Ngcakula. Others who did not make the cut include former…

Ramaphosa’s right-hand man excluded from newly elected line-up of highest decision-making body in the ANC PUBLIC Enterprises Minister and President Cyril Ramaphosa’s ally, Pravin Gordhan, has been booted from the recently elected National Executive Committee (NEC) at the party’s 55th national conference held this week at Nasrec. The five-day conference which housed over 4 000 delegates, adjourned on Tuesday but the party was forced to announce the 80-member additional list yesterday because of delays. The most glaring exclusion from the highest decision-making body was Gordhan, given his proximity to Ramaphosa, deputy president David “DD” Mabuza and National Assembly Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula. Delegates voted late into yesterday morning, with the electoral committee chairperson Kgalema Motlanthe announcing the list at a press briefing. The delegates elected more youthful members to form part…

There seems to be no end in sight for President Cyril Ramaphosa’s woes. Despite a convincing win at Nasrec this week, the Phala Phala matter does not appear to be going away, with the ATM filing a Western Cape High Court application requesting the court grant the party an opportunity to challenge the recent decision by National Assembly Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula denying the Section 89 report a secret ballot. On the other hand, the Hola Bon Renaissance (HBR) Foundation says it opposed Ramaphosa‘s application to the Constitutional Court to have the Section 89 report set aside. The foundation said it has been observing developments around Ramaphosa’s application following presentation of the report by the chairperson of the independent panel, former chief justice Sandile Ngcobo, and Ramaphosa’s application. HBR said it…

WHILE the cat is away, the mice will play –and so do criminals who take advantage of unoccupied homes during the holidays when the owners are away. According to the 2021/22 Governance, Public Safety, and Justice Survey, the number of housebreaking incidents in December 2021 totalled 146 000. This was more than 60% higher than the previous year, when 90 000 incidents were recorded. Statistics South Africa revealed that housebreaking incidents peaked in June and December during the 2018/19 period and June, September and December in 2019/20. These coincided with school holidays. The police said criminals sought opportunities to steal in peace when people were away on holidays. Many houses are left unattended and people return in January to find their valuables missing from houses and their yards. Some people…

President Cyril Ramaphosa continues to be at the helm … of a questionable party, with a dismal track record of governance. It was hilarious to watch the likes of Mantashe and Bra Mbaks continuing to be part of the “inner sanctum”. What is going to change? While driving through the streets of Ekurhuleni, I took note of the following, and shed a tear of frustration. All the intersections have been invaded by beggars … the roads are full of potholes … filth litters the streets … some corners have dozens of people waiting for someone to give them a job … the railway stations and all their infrastructure have been looted. Criminal activity is on the rise … The police are nowhere to be seen. Electricity is almost non-existent ……

Eskom, as a state-owned monopoly, with centrally controlled oversight and direction, is not the best structure for the supply of electricity in South Africa, a critical energy source without which no nation can grow and prosper. Better structures are those that have evolved under competitive circumstances in the EU, US and small, forward-looking countries such as New Zealand. South Africa will have a robust electric-power supply system only once its electricity generation, transmission, distribution and control functions, are separated and independently run. The security of short-term and long-term supplies demands that government changes the current faulty structure. World experience reveals that the best operating electricity supply systems have several characteristics in common, one of which is that customers have a choice of buying from competing electricity retailers. If they are…

After giving almost unanimous support to US booster shot guidance a year ago, health experts are now split over when people should get them and who will actually benefit. Bloomberg polled 13 vaccine specialists, infectious-disease doctors and public health experts on the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendations about getting the new booster shots from Moderna and the partnership of Pfizer and BioNTech SE. Not even half of those surveyed fully endorsed the CDC’s latest guidance. Some said people should consider waiting longer than the two months recommended between doses, while others thought only higher-risk people should get another shot right now. Those ideas will likely come up in discussions between health regulators and independent advisers next month when they meet to decide whether vaccine and booster…

Lionel Messi set yet another record on Tuesday after his Instagram post celebrating Argentina’s World Cup win became the most-liked on the platform, breaking a nearly four-year-old record held by a photo of an egg. Having led Argentina to their first World Cup in 36 years with victory over France on Sunday, Messi proceeded to make more history off the pitch with his photo gallery on Instagram, which racked up more than 69 million likes at the time of writing. The previous record was famously held by a stock image of an egg on a white background with 55.7 million likes, posted by the account @world_record_egg in January 2019 in an intentional bid to become the most-liked Instagram post of all time. Messi, 35, scored twice before converting in the…

RE-ELECTED ANC chairperson Gwede Mantashe has admitted live on television that he knew of people who were buying votes or soliciting the use of money to influence the election of officials during the 2022 ANC national elective conference. The conference started on December 16 and concluded on Tuesday, with a new crop of Top 7 officials elected and announced. On Tuesday morning, Mantashe was given a 16-minute television interview on eNCA, where he answered questions from news anchor Tumelo Mothotoane about rumours that President Cyril Ramaphosa’s re-election campaign ran into the millions. This came against the backdrop of the ANC’s electoral committee issuing strong warnings against any advertising and branding of T-shirts, caps, vehicles, pamphlets, posters or other printed material to promote a candidate or group of candidates. Notably, the…

From page 1 Some of the ministers who have been excluded would also have to vacate office, to make way for those who are in the NEC. Mbalula said he was impressed by the list because it included mostly the youth, saying the party was now showing that the future of the ANC was with the young people. He singled out names like Pule Mabe, Zizi Kodwa and Ronald Lamola, who he worked with during the ANC Youth League days. The total eligible voters were 4 436, while only 4 029 caste their votes, with 133 spoiled. The top 10 of the list included Sihle Zikalala, who made it to number one, Mduduzi Manana, Lamola, Mdumiseni Ntuli, Bheki Cele, Senzo Mchunu, Malusi Gigaba, Mabe, Kodwa and David Makhura. Nkosazana Dlamini…

When I got to know about the ANC – what it was all about, what it stood for and who it stood for – there was no doubt in my mind, young and formative as it was at the time, that I could identify with the organisation. Talk about fantasies and dreams. Having succumbed to the noble principles as espoused by the ANC, when it was once a liberation movement seeking the freedom of a nation on a ticket of non-racialism, I am now in a quandary because it is now being principally perceived as an organisation of thugs, thuggishness and thuggery. Forget about the boast of what it has done to liberate South Africa before 1994. Look at what it has done to this beautiful country since 1994. The…

The mother of a boy born more than 10 years ago at an Eastern Cape hospital may proceed with her R29 million damages claim against health authorities after it transpired that her son suffers from cerebral palsy. The woman, who cannot be named to protect her son’s identity, for years never imagined that her son’s condition was related to the treatment rendered to her and the baby following his birth at the St Barnabas Hospital. It was only years down the line, when she met another mother with a child suffering from the same condition and heard her story, that she began questioning whether the hospital staff were perhaps negligent during birth, which resulted in her child’s condition. On the mother’s advice, she went to see a lawyer, who agreed…

AS MOST people prepare for road trips with their families, friends and loved ones, Keletso Mpisane, head of Car Insurer MiWay Blink, shares important tips to ensure that your car is up to the task and safely transports you to your destination. Your car battery It is essential to check that your car battery is in good working order. It provides power for starting your vehicle, as well as for the lights, windscreen wipers, car radio and air conditioning. “Keep your battery charged by taking your car out at least once a week for a longer drive – an hour if you’re driving in town or 30 minutes on the highway – so the alternator has time to fully recharge the battery,” advises Mpisane. If your car’s lights seem dim…

Huge Chinese lending to Africa has created a dilemma where China will struggle to recoup its money while maintaining its image as a friend to developing nations, researchers at Chatham House said. Africa’s external debt rose fivefold to $696 billion between 2000 and 2020, with Chinese lenders accounting for 12% of that, according to a new report by the London-based think tank. While Chinese lending to Africa has been criticised by the US and other Western nations as opaque and designed to seize African assets offered as collateral, the researchers said this isn’t the case. “Far from a sophisticated strategy to expropriate African assets, profligate Chinese lending in its early phases may have created a debt trap for China – deeply entangling it with obdurate and increasingly…

The Lions are on a four-match unbeaten run and should be full of confidence with the momentum they have built, but now they must do something they have not achieved in over a year – claim a South African franchise scalp. The Joburgers’ last victory over an SA team in the United Rugby Championship (URC) was on December 4 last year when they travelled to Cape Town and beat the Stormers handsomely 37-19. Since then, they have failed on every occasion, losing to the Cape-based side, the Sharks twice, and the Bulls three times. In the next week or so, they will have two opportunities to put that bugbear to bed when they first face the Sharks and then the Stormers. To do so, they will have to show their…