Tabla de contenidos para 2022-01-25 en Mercury

Banele Ginindza banele.ginindza@inl.co.za CIVIC society’s call for the social relief of distress (SRD) R350 grant to be turned into a basic income grant (BIG) along the Food Poverty Line of R624 is a Catch-22 for South Africa’s economy, knocked by two years of Covid-19 state of emergency restrictions, which struggles to grow, or create jobs. In a meeting last week with Presi- dent Cyril Ramaphosa and some members of Cabinet, the Institute for Economic Justice, Black Sash, Studies in Poverty and Inequality Institute, Amandla.mobi and #PayTheGrants proposed extending and improving the R350 SRD and creation of policy pathways for implementing a BIG. They hold the SRD's existence as reliant upon regulatory powers provided under the State of Disaster, which faces the growing possibility of cancellation. “Therefore, if the SRD lifeline…

Zelda Venter zelda.venter@inl.co.za A FULL Bench (three judges) has once again made it clear that Correctional Service’s policy that prisoners studying while in jail may not use their personal laptops – minus a modem – in their cells constituted unfair discrimination. The groundbreaking judgment for the rights of prisoners who were studying was sparked by three of the so-called Boeremag members, Dr Lets Pretorius and two of his sons, Drs Johan and Wilhelm Pretorius. A judge earlier overturned the department’s policy that inmates may not use their laptops in their cells. According to the department, there were study halls in prison, where inmates could use their laptops. Unhappy with the earlier ruling allowing inmates the use of their laptops in their cells, the department appealed against the judgment before three…

Threats cut across political divide, claims speaker – and include him and the mayor Sibusiso Mboto sibusiso.mboto@inl.co.za TWO-THIRDS of eThekwini Municipality councillors, including mayor Mxolisi Kaunda, have received death threats since assuming office almost two months ago, council speaker Thabani Nyawose claimed yesterday. Speaking to The Mercury after the killing of councillor Minenhle Mkhize on Saturday, Nyawose said the threats were not limited to ANC councillors, but cut across the political divide. He blamed a group of thugs he said had created a market as hit men targeting public representatives, especially councillors. “Since I became a councillor in November I have been threatened by a person who claimed there was a price of R100 000 on my head, and demanded that I pay him R80 000 to spare my life.…

George Bernard Shaw HEY, you fat armadillo! It sounds like a term of abuse and ridicule directed at chubby fellows and gals, but at a zoo in England the keepers are using it to encourage a pair of armadillos named Patsy and Eddie to get rid of the post-Christmas flab. The armadillo is the South American version of what we would call the scaly anteater and, according to the BBC, the zookeepers at Drusillas Park, in Sussex, have put Patsy and Eddie on a post-Christmas diet – go easy on the ants! – and a bit of exercise, to get them back into trim. After all, the last thing visitors to a zoo want to see is overweight armadillos. How many thousand ants a day have been trimmed from their…

TISETSO MAGAMA | Africa4Palestine SOUTH Africa’s (former) Chief Justice, Mogoeng Mogoeng, has been ordered to apologise for his pro-Israel comments, following his failed appeal against a legal complaint by #Africa4Palestine, WCG (Women’s Cultural Group) and others. According to the 66-page decision, made public by South Africa’s Judicial Conduct Committee (JCC), the controversial judge, who stepped down late last year, has 10 days to issue his apology. Paragraph 95 of the Judicial Service Commission’s JCC decision reads: “To sum up, the appeal (by Chief Justice Mogoeng) against the decision upholding the complainants’ complaints based on Articles 12(1)(b) and 14(2)(a) of the Code, is dismissed. The Chief Justice was correctly found to have breached these Articles.” According to the JSC’s conduct committee’s decision, the remedial action imposed on the…

STEVE COOKE | Cowie’s Hill Duncan du Bois’s letter published on Friday refers. Du Bois has now repeatedly quoted the following from a letter written by Dr Jacqueline O’Shaughnessy, acting chief scientist at the US FDA to Pfizer: “There is no adequate, approved and available alternative to the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine which has not been approved by the FDA but has been authorised for emergency use under a EUA.” This double negative serves to cause confusion. The fact is that the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is approved. On August 23, 2021, the FDA announced the first approval of a Covid-19 vaccine. The vaccine has been known as the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine, and will now be marketed as Comirnaty, for the prevention of Covid-19 in individuals 16 years of age and older.…

Kailene Pillay kailene.pillay@inl.co.za Former DA member and Midvaal mayor, Bongani Baloyi, has joined the highest ranks of ActionSA. The party, headed by Herman Mashaba, made the announcement in Johannesburg yesterday. Baloyi who became South Africa’s youngest mayor for Midvaal in 2013 at age 26, resigned from the DA after 14 years in December last year. Addressing a media briefing, Baloyi said he was very excited and enthused by his latest political move. “From the outset, I want to state that my joining ActionSA is not out of anger or disappointment. It is actually because of the hope they (ActionSA) invoke in me,” he said. Baloyi said this was a very significant moment in South Africa as he believed it was the start of a realignment of the country’s politics, and…

Karen Singh karen.singh@inl.co.za Three people died and seven others were injured in a drive-by shooting in KwaMakhutha, outside eManzimtoti, on Sunday. Provincial police spokesperson Colonel Thembeka Mbele said the shooting occurred at 4pm. She said police officers received a report of a shooting on Bra Mbatha Lane in the KwaMakhutha area and proceeded to the scene. “Upon arrival at the location, police witnessed the bodies of three men, aged between 24 and 28, with gunshot wounds to the body,” she said. Mbele said all three were rushed to a nearby clinic, where they died of their injuries. “It is alleged that a group of men were sitting under a tree when an unknown vehicle drove by. The occupants of the vehicle opened fire at the group, killing three of them…

| Mercury Correspondent PASSENGER rail service operator Metrorail has said that it’s investigating a collision between two trains which occurred outside Soshanguve station in Tshwane yesterday morning. The accident led Metrorail to close a line between the Soshanguve and Mabopane stations. Metrorail spokesperson Lillian Mofokeng said the technical team was attending to a fault when the set that was being worked on rolled back into another train set, causing a collision. She added that there were eight staff members aboard the train but no other commuters. The first Metrorail train from Mabopane to Pretoria was delayed by 30 minutes and all other trains were operating on schedule. “The estimated cost of the damaged new rolling stock is not yet known and accessors are at the scene to make the determination,”…

Itumeleng Mafisa COSATU has slammed the government for not enforcing labour laws, resulting in the exclusion of young South Africans from the economy. This comes after several demonstrations by political parties such as the EFF, Patriotic Alliance (PA) and other lobby groups demanding that South Africans be given preference at work places and in the hospitality and retail sector. Cosatu spokesperson Sizwe Pamla said there was no excuse for hiring foreign nationals over South Africans. He said the government was simply not implementing its own laws, and this would result in a situation similar to the unrest that occurred in July last year. South Africa’s unemployment stands at more than 46%. “We have laws that clarify these issues. In terms of the ratio at the workplace there are laws. It…

The flag for electoral support for the ANC is at half mast AS HE delivered his closing address at the ANC NEC lekgotla on Sunday, President Cyril Ramaphosa looked totally spent. With its tired promises, yesteryear vision, and plume of self-correction, the ANC appears to be finally running out of steam. Forecasts of sunnier days ahead, for both the ANC and South Africa, are a blue sky that we are unlikely to see in the near future, if ever. Rather, increasingly it looks as if we are heading into the eye of a storm; a storm that no rainbow, no matter how exquisite, will be able to soothe. Simply put, the outlook is bleak. During his address, Ramaphosa spoke of how unemployment is at its highest levels yet. The president…

Mutinous soldiers detained the president of Burkina Faso after gunfire erupted at military bases across the West African nation in an apparent coup d’etat, making him the third head of state overthrown in this region in the past eight months, say an Western official and army officer in the country. Authorities initially denied that President Roch Marc Kaboré was taken into military custody, asserting that the situation was calm even as soldiers battled for control of several barracks. Then the mutineers reached the presidential palace late on Sunday, Reuters reported, and Kaboré was physically removed from office less than 24 hours after the uprising began, said the Western official. A Burkinabe counterterrorism officer also confirmed Kaboré’s detention yesterday, saying the president “is in good hands”. The officer, speaking on the…

Dieketseng Maleke dieketseng.maleke@inl.co.za PRECIOUS metal producer Sibanye- Stillwater yesterday announced that it had terminated a R15 billion deal to acquire two mines in Brazil due to a geotechnical event, which would have a “material (effect) and (be) adverse to the business” in a blow to its battery material ambitions. Sibanye had planned to buy Santa Rita, one of the top nickel mines, and Serrote copper mine, as well as a 5 percent net smelter royalty over potential future underground production at Santa Rita. The dissolving of the contract comes just over two months since Sibanye signed definitive agreements with Appian Capital Advisory in October. It said it was advised by Appian Capital Advisory that subsequent to the signing of the Atlantic Nickel SPA and the MVV SPA, a…

| Yogashen Pillay, Reuters and AFP A STOWAWAY was found alive in the wheel section under the front of a Cargolux freight plane on Sunday that landed in Amsterdam. Royal Netherlands Marechaussee Staff Commander for Cluster Communication, First Lieutenant Mike Hofman, confirmed the incident to The Mercury. “We found a stowaway at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol on a flight arriving from South Africa. After he was found, it was discovered that he was still breathing. Therefore, a medevac helicopter was called in to provide medical care. He’s currently in the hospital, conscious and able to communicate.” Hofman added that at this stage, they were not able to share any personal information. “We’re investigating the case.” He added that it was rare that stowaways survived. “In the past five years, we…

Joshua Martinangeli, 7, is too ill to go to school. But the German pupil can still interact with his teacher and classmates through an avatar robot that sits in class in his place and sends a blinking signal when he has something to say. “The children talk to him, laugh with him and sometimes even chitchat with him during the lesson. Joshi can do that quite well, too,” Ute Winterberg, headmistress at the Pusteblume-Grundschule in Berlin, told Reuters. Joshua cannot attend classes because he wears a tube in his neck due to a severe lung disease, said his mother Simone Martinangeli. “We are the only district in Berlin that has bought four avatars for its schools,” said district education councillor Torsten Kuehne. “It does happen from time to time that…

LET’S spend a few years (months, weeks) paying off all our debts, getting our finances in order, reducing costs, increasing giving, supporting others. We have enough to help people who are in need. Let’s spend a few days or a few hours of each week – where we both decide – to be off our phones and screens and just focus on talking to each other. I don’t want us to be constantly distracted when we are together. Let’s not text each other about important things; let’s talk about important things face to face. It doesn’t matter if it’s easier. What’s really difficult is hearing something from someone you love in an impersonal and abbreviated message. Let’s stop buying so much stuff and be satisfied with all we already have.…

SABER AHMED JAZBHAY | Newlands West Yes, now may be the time for a female president but Lindiwe Sisulu as proposed by Mfezeko Bunu (The Mercury, January 24) is ill-advised considering her utterances that rubbished the judiciary, and trashed the Constitution. We are too fixated by the politics of the ANC and any outsider tuning in to this debate would get an impression that South Africa is a one party state. It is a constitutional democracy with a multi-party make up. As for Sisulu’s remaining in President Ramaphosa’s Cabinet is worrisome because her presence undermines good and effective governance. We need a resolute leader like Mandela who didn’t hesitate and fired Winnie Mandela when her actions served to undermine confidence in our fledgling constitutional democracy. The dynamics may…

Zelda Venter zelda.venter@inl.co.za VICTIMS of Gauteng serial rapist Takalani Mulaudzi, 30, are relieved that the man who made their lives a living hell by repeatedly raping them, was handed seven life terms last week. While the victims are hoping that Mulaudzi will remain in jail for a very long time, they are still struggling to come to terms with what he subjected them to. The Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, sentenced Mulaudzi, from Tshafhasi in Nzhelele, Limpopo, to 173 years’ imprisonment for rape, robbery with aggravating circumstances, kidnapping and grievous bodily harm. Mulaudzi was convicted on 15 counts of rape, five counts of robbery with aggravating circumstances, three counts of kidnapping and one count of grievous body harm. The court heard that Mulaudzi started committing the offences in 2015 in…

Jolene Marriah-Maharaj jolene.marriah@inl.co.za KwaZulu-Natal police are investigating a case of robbery after four female mourners were robbed after a funeral in a church parking lot in Durban. The incident took place on Saturday at about noon. According to Pastor Desmond Kisten of Bethshan Church, he had just conducted the funeral service for a 95-year-old woman and was headed to the crematorium when the incident took place. “It seems these four women had been talking in the parking lot when armed robbers travelling in a red VW Polo accosted them. “They were assaulted and robbed of their belongings, which included jewellery, cellphones and bank cards.” Kisten issued a warning on Facebook, urging people to be vigilant when entering and leaving the parking lot.…

Robin-Lee Francke robin.francke@inl.co.za A JOINT crime-combating operation in the Western Cape resulted in the seizure of drugs and the confiscation of counterfeit goods worth more than R400 000. Those participating in the integrated operation included the police, provincial and municipal traffic departments, the SA Revenue Service, nature conservation officials, private security companies, the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, and force multipliers such as community police forums and neighbourhood watches. According to provincial police spokesperson Captain Malcolm Pojie, the operation was held from January 19 to 21. “Successes achieved include the arrest of five suspects … members managed to confiscate 3 963 bundles of khat, more than 5kg of dagga, small quantities of crystal meth (tik) and Mandrax tablets. “They also confiscated a substantial amount of illicit/counterfeit goods to…

More than the impact of being infected with Covid-19, children are facing many indirect effects of the pandemic in terms of health and wellbeing. In a research review from the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, paediatrician Professor Sharon Goldfeld said children are facing a “generation-defining disruption” with public health restrictions and interventions, The Guardian reported. These include online learning, social distancing, increased screen time, reduced access to health care, less community sport and less outside play, and all have repercussions. “The public health measures have resulted in positive benefits for some, while others have been adversely and inequitably impacted,” Goldfeld was quoted as saying. “Children and adolescents experiencing adversity before the pandemic have been disproportionately affected, potentially leading to a widening of disparities in child health, well-being, and developmental outcomes.” The…

THE Bible reminds us earthlings that there are two afterlife roads – individuals have to choose their destinations. Right through our murky history our country had countless forks in the road. The 1994 fork at the dawn of our democracy came with a painful birth, bringing forth a monster, a Frankenstein, or a beautiful South Africa. Either one of two South Africas was going to emerge, the one Tony Leon’s, the other Nelson Mandela’s. Leon was the leader of the Democratic Party, that morphed into the DA. Already their “Fight Back” election posters, later interpreted as “Fight B(l)ack!”, screamed out what they envisaged. Madiba’s South Africa was one of peace, unity, friendship, forgiveness and reconciliation. His hand for a government of national unity was slapped away by the forces of…

A prominent Cuban dissident was arrested with three other women in the capital Havana, her husband said. Berta Soler, who leads the Ladies in White protest movement, was held ahead of a demonstration in support of political prisoners, former dissident Angel Moya confirmed. Long considered the only opposition group the Cuban government allows to march regularly, the Ladies in White movement is made up of the relatives of jailed dissidents, campaigning for their release. Along with Soler, Ladies in White members Lourdes Esquivel and Gladys Capote, as well as Barbara Ferrat, were arrested by plainclothes police, Moya said. Ferrat’s son, Jonathan Torres, 17, was earlier arrested for participating in historic July 11 protests that flared in 50 Cuban cities. A government crackdown against the anti-government revolt left one dead, dozens…

Zaahier Adams zaahier.adams@inl.co.za Quinton de Kock was widely regarded as the best wicket-keeper batsman of his generation across all formats. The only problem with that statement is the fact that De Kock no longer plays Test cricket after his sensational retirement last month. It was a decision that sent shock waves through South African cricket due to De Kock’s relatively young age of just 29 and the fact that he had led the Test side earlier in the year. However, now that everyone has recovered from the initial surprise, Proteas coach Mark Boucher believes it may indeed be a blessing in disguise after De Kock returned to the white-ball team in storming fashion with a Player of the Series performance that drove South Africa to a 3-0 clean sweep over…

Wynona Louw wynona.louw@inl.co.za With Stormers head coach John Dobson seeing a potential spot at inside-centre for Damian Willemse, could we finally see the talented back settle in one position? His positional drifting has become as much a part of his identity as his unmatched ability to humiliate defences and make ridiculous displays of skill look easy. But is Willemse’s positional musical chairs situation nearing its end with the Stormers? At the weekend, the Stormers came from behind to pull off a 30-26 United Rugby Championship victory over the Bulls at Loftus. Manie Libbok started at flyhalf, while Willemse donned the fullback jumper. Warrick Gelant, who not too long ago returned from the lengthy injury he suffered after returning to the Cape, was on the bench. He made a huge impact,…

Siphelele Dludla siphelele.dludla@inl.co.za GLOBAL oil prices remained elevated at seven-year highs, driven by rising geopolitical tensions, which stoked fears of supply disruptions and saw investors looking for safe havens. The Brent crude price rose above the $88 a barrel mark early yesterday, briefly dipping below $87 (R1 313) in the afternoon, as the world’s biggest oil producers were seemingly on the verge of going to war. High oil prices could spell disaster for South African consumers as the price of petrol could rise back above the R20-mark a litre. Russia’s looming invasion of Ukraine took another step yesterday as the US ordered the departure of family members of staff at its Ukraine embassy, and the voluntary departure of employees. The US is reportedly considering deploying several thousand troops to…

A British-Belgian teenager has become the youngest woman to fly solo around the globe and the first person to do it in a microlight plane after a five-month, five-continent odyssey in her Shark ultralight. Zara Rutherford, 19, landed back at Kortrijk-Wevelgem Airport in Belgium last Thursday after flying 51 000km over 52 nations since her August 18 departure in the world’s fastest microlight aircraft. “I wouldn’t do it again” she confessed. “There’ve been amazing moments, but also moments where I feared for my life,” she added, picking New York and an active volcano in Iceland as her favourite flyovers. After North and South America, Rutherford was stuck for a month in Alaska because of weather and visa delays. A winter storm forced another long stop in far eastern Russia, before…

PAMENLA NGUBANE | General Manager , South African Friends of Israel THE SA Friends of Israel (Safi) is appalled by the Judicial Conduct Committee (JCC) ruling that seeks to censure and silence former Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng for remarks expressing his biblical love for Israel, alongside his calls for a peaceful resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The former chief justice’s utterances were legitimate, fair and non-controversial, and made in accordance with his deeply held religious beliefs that are protected in the Constitution, alongside the Judicial Code. This view was affirmed by the minority judgment. Religious beliefs, and the freedom to express them, do not become controversial when a small, radical group of anti-Israel activists deem them to be. Safi is dismayed that, as was the case under…

EBRAHIM ESSA | Durban There’s looting and there's looting. The word “loot” also appears in the Hindi and Urdu languages and is used, quite often, to mean “overpowering, overwhelming, robbing, destroying dignity and even raping!” Watching Julius Malema questioning proprietors of restaurants on the ratio of local black people to foreign black people made me realise there’s another important statistic that needs to be most urgently researched that can make the July looting seem like a silly joke. That is profiteering, especially as far as all basic food items are concerned. “Basic” is no longer reserved terms for just bread, rice, maize, beans, potatoes, tomatoes, milk and onions, but actually, now with a broader, open, society, should include bread rolls, biscuits, canned goods, tea, coffee, cereals,…

Zodidi Dano zodidi.dano@africannewsagency.com Applicants who applied for National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) funding for the 2022 academic year and were unsuccessful, can now appeal the scheme’s decision. NSFAS announced their appeals process opened yesterday and will close on February 23. NSFAS provides a fully subsidised funding for poor and working-class students at public universities. The bursary covers the full costs of studying including tuition, registration, learning material, meal allowance, accommodation/travel allowance and personal care allowance. The appeals process follows the two-week extension of NSFAS funding applications which ended last week. At the time when it extended the deadline for funding applications, NSFAS said it had received a high number of applications since opening the application period on November 2. “More than 600 000 applications were received from applicants who…

An online auction for a villa in Rome with the only known ceiling mural by Italian baroque artist Caravaggio, has failed to draw any bidder. The property was put on the market following an inheritance dispute and initially valued by experts at €471 million (R8.1 billion), making it potentially one of the most expensive homes in the world. The minimum bidding price was set at €353.25 million, but there were no takers and the sale was called void. The villa will be put up for sale again on April 7, with the price due to be cut by some 20%. Caravaggio painted the ceiling of a room on the first floor in 1597. The 2.75m wide mural depicts the gods Jupiter, Neptune and Pluto representing the transformation of lead into…

Yogashen Pillay yogashen.pillay@inl.co.za THE SOUTH African Farmers Development Association (Safda) has condemned the murder of a 70-year-old man in Howick in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands. Midlands EMS said its Howick Advanced life support paramedics were dispatched to Lions River in Howick yesterday after they received a report. “Upon arrival it was found that one person had sustained fatal injuries and was tied up outside the house. The patient was declared dead by paramedics on the scene.” Midlands EMS added that all local authorities were in attendance. KwaZulu-Natal police spokesperson Colonel Thembeka Mbele said the body of the 70-year-old man was found outside the house with assault wounds on the face and two stab wounds in his back. Mbele added that upon police investigating further, it was discovered that three firearms and…

AS UNIVERSITIES around the country prepare for the start of the 2022 academic year, all the role players in the higher education sector need to work extremely hard to prevent the annual violent student protests. Many of our higher education institutions have to contend with student protests over, among other things, National Student Financial Aid Scheme allocations, historic student debt, academic exclusion and the poor condition of residences. Student protests often turn violent, leading to university property being destroyed, costing taxpayers millions of rand in repairs. The instability that has characterised higher education needs to be brought to an abrupt end to ensure a smooth start to the academic year. This can be achieved through collaborative efforts that involve university management, student leaders of various institutions and the Ministry of…

Brussels: Nato said yesterday it was sending jets and ships to bolster its eastern European defences, as the US and EU looked to co-ordinate a tough response to Russia if it invades Ukraine. Tensions have soared over Russia’s deployment of some 100 000 troops and heavy armour at its neighbour’s borders, despite the Kremlin’s insistence it is not planning a new incursion. The US and Britain ordered diplomats’ families to leave Ukraine – but both Kyiv and the EU said the moves appeared premature amid divided views over how imminent any attack could be. Top US diplomat Antony Blinken was to dial in to a meeting of EU counterparts in Brussels to brief them on his talks on Friday with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, where the two sides failed…

LONDON: UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has ordered an investigation into claims made by Conservative lawmaker Nusrat Ghani that she was sacked as a junior minister in 2020 over concerns that she is a Muslim, a Downing Street spokesperson announced yesterday. “The Prime Minister has asked the Cabinet Office to conduct an inquiry into the allegations made by Nusrat Ghani MP,” the spokesperson said in a brief statement to reporters. In an interview published by the Sunday Times, Ghani said that following her dismissal as a junior transport minister in February 2020, she was told by a Conservative law- maker that her Muslim faith made colleagues “uncomfortable”.…

Wynona Louw wynona.louw@inl.co.za Stormers assistant coach Norman Laker says they have “good plans in place” for their next United Rugby Championship fixture against the Sharks. At the weekend, the Stormers fought back well to bag a 30-26 victory over the Bulls at Loftus. What should have made the result even sweeter for the Capetonians was the mid-week Currie Cup thrashing the Bulls – playing their United Rugby Championship team loaded with Springboks and experience – handed a very green Western Province side. It was a more level playing field at the weekend, however, and while the Bulls did well to come back and even go ahead at one stage, the Stormers scored a stunner of a try late in the match to claim victory. Speaking during a media briefing, Laker…