Table of contents for 2022-03-31 in Star

TRADE movement Fairplay wants the value added tax (VAT) on some chicken cuts meant for the lower income market to be scrapped to ease the impact of rocketing food prices. According to estimates made in a 2018 report, this could lop off about R1.2 billion in tax revenue. At a roundtable discussion on amongst other things, the impact of the ongoing Russia/Ukraine conflict to food prices, Fairplay said removing VAT from some of the portions popular with the mass market was one of the levers at the disposal of the state to cushion South Africans from the rising food and fuel prices resulting from the conflict. “Chicken (meat) is a national source of nutrition. The poultry industry is a strategic one. “Mothers need protein when they are carrying…

THE DEPARTMENT of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) needs to speed up its management of rehabilitating 6 100 abandoned mines, as they pose serious health, safety and environmental hazards for nearby communities,” Auditor-General (AG) Tsakani Maluleke said yesterday. Maluleke commented at the release of a report on the follow-up performance audit conducted on the department’s rehabilitation of abandoned mines, also referred to as derelict and ownerless (D&O) mines. She recognised the efforts the department had made since the first audit in 2009 but said the government needed to “urgently improve” its rehabilitation efforts as they negatively affected local communities and the environment. The 2021 follow-up audit evaluated the progress the department has made since 2009 and whether issues in the previous report still exist. Most of the 6…

Award-winning storyteller Pilani Bubu has finally released her highly anticipated EP, Lockdown Lovestory. It was written and recorded at the height of the pandemic, in real time as this story unfolded for Pilani during her time in quarantine, in South Africa’s unprecedented hard lockdown from March to August 2020. Bubu began working on her EP in March 2020, when she wrote As We Lay. The song described her feelings about a long-distance relationship that started just as the pandemic began. “The entire EP is based on a true story of how the relationship unfolded from beginning, middle and end. The end being August 2020. It was short-lived,” Bubu explains to IOL Entertainment. “Every song, from As We Lay to Desire, Pendulum Swing, Missed the Mark (Stay) and Ghosted, I wrote…

Would a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians be in anyone’s interest? A strange question, given that for over 70 years the search for peace has dominated much of the world stage. But after a little analysis of the question, some would say no, it’s not in the interest of many of the players. Firstly, a peace deal would rob Hamas of all legitimacy and their hostility would be shunned by the world. The leadership would have to forgo their opulent lifestyles, living in luxury in Qatar with all trimmings of private jets and enormous wealth, monies siphoned off from aid donations. The same would also apply to the Fatah leadership in Ramallah. Organisations like the BDS coalition and their various support groups would likewise have no further cause…

MARCH, the National Water Month, is coming to an end, but this doesn’t mean that we must take the foot off the pedal in terms of water conservation and wise water use. South Africa, after all, is a water-scarce country where every drop counts for water security. With population growth comes increased demand for water as people and the economy require water for survival. Water loss is one of the major challenges in our country and we can only address this challenge through responsible behaviour. We need to be responsible and fix all leaks in our households, report and push municipalities to prioritise pipe bursts and leaks in the bulk lines to prevent the loss of precious water. Most parts of the country received good rains over the rainy season…

IN PREPARATION for the lifting of the state of disaster and bringing back some normality in South Africa, the Ministry of Employment and Labour has introduced a new code of practice to manage the exposure to Covid-19. The new code was printed in the Government Gazette on February 15 this year, under Number 46043. The code will be an addendum to the Occupational Health and Safety Act and its regulations. Once the state of disaster has been lifted, the employer will use the regulations and incorporate its standards which will require the employer to provide and maintain, as far as reasonably practicable, a working environment that is safe and without risks to the health of workers, and to take steps that are reasonably practicable in order to limit or mitigate…

South Africa is blessed with a unique composition of cultural groups, each of them having its own distinctive cultural identity. Together, they form part of a powerful and colourful tapestry, demonstrating how different communities can co-exist side by side in a panoramic South African Society. At present, South Africa has developed afresh in many spheres. There has been improvement in all sectors of society. Since that great miracle in 1994, people are free to participate freely in their cultural, religious and linguistic endeavours. South African society is becoming more and more vocal when it comes to the preservation of their cultural identity and human rights. To overcome the material, emotional, aesthetic and psychological destructiveness of apartheid and to encourage the holistic development of individuals and communities, the cultural dimension must…

Ukraine yesterday accused Russia of shelling a city where it had promised de-escalation, dampening hopes of any resolution to a conflict that has killed thousands and displaced millions. Ukraine and Western powers had already cast doubt on Russia’s pledge to reduce military activity around Chernigiv and the capital, Kyiv, made during face-to-face talks in Istanbul on Tuesday. “Chernigiv was shelled all night,” regional governor Vyacheslav Chaus said. There were frequent explosions coming from the direction of the suburban town of Irpin to the north-west of Kyiv. Ukrainian forces have said they are in control of the town but emergency services said it was still too dangerous for civilians to access. Russian officials had pledged to “radically” reduce attacks because of progress in negotiations on “the neutrality and non-nuclear status” of…

SOUTH African households and businesses’ appetite to take out loans grew to a one-and-a-half year high in February as general economic conditions broadly normalised under Adjusted Level 1 Covid-19 lockdown. However, economists have warned that the ongoing interest rates hiking cycle could make consumers wary of piling up more debt as employment prospects also become fickle with the rising jobless rate. The SA Reserve Bank (SARB) yesterday said private sector credit extension rose to 3.62 percent year-on-year in February, from a revised 3.11 percent increase a month before. This reading was above market expectations, marking the eighth straight month of increase in private sector credit and the strongest rise since August 2020. The SARB said that credit extended to corporates, which comprises over half of the total, continued…

IN AN ENVIRONMENT fraught with controversy, but which has until recently been regulated to make the process as fair and transparent as possible, public procurement has now descended into a free for all that is threatening gains that have previously been made in the protection of local businesses and local jobs. A series of court rulings by the Supreme Court of Appeal and now the Constitutional Court in a case brought by Afribusiness NPC against the National Treasury has left uncertainty and confusion for public entities who need to procure all manner of items for their operational needs. The crux of the case lies with B-BBEE regulations and the permissibility of pre disqualification of any bidder for a government tender that does not fulfil the minimum 51 percent black…

Europa Metal advanced its Toral pro- ject in Spain in the six months to De- cember 31, but its share price dropped almost 6 percent on the JSE yesterday. Its shares were trading at R85 yesterday after the interim results for the European focused lead, zinc and silver mining company were announced Europa said its net loss reduced to A$1.36 million (R1.49 billion)compared with A$1.65m a year previously. The company completed an independent updated resource estimate and did metallurgical tests at its wholly- owned lead, zinc, and silver project. This attributed to its Toral project an indicated resource of about 5.9 million tons at 7.1 percent zinc equivalent, within a total resource of 20 million tons at 6.3 percent, it said. The group said it…

It is tragic and hypocritical that it took the blood bath in Ukraine to propel the words “war crimes” into the global lexicon. For the past 70 years the world has witnessed war crimes and crimes against humanity on a daily basis without a murmur. Today’s shouts about war crimes, sanctions and the illegal seizures of property on a global basis are a smokescreen for regime change. Any regime change in the periphery of Europe and Asia is a nuclear powder keg that could destroy all human life on earth. These hypocrites were conveniently silent when Muslims were butchered on a global scale over the past 30 years in both hemispheres. The leaders of the club of nine nuclear powers are clueless about the consequences of unconstrained nuclear war. These…

IT’S known that labour tenants and farm dwellers are part of the forgotten minorities when it comes to the provision of shelter and basic services. The Paardeplaats and Rietfontein farm community are among that minority group left to fend for themselves. The community, comprising farm dwellers and labour tenants, were destitute and living in informal makeshift structures on a commercial farm in Belfast, in Emakhazeni Municipality. The community of six labour tenants and 59 farm dwellers had successfully applied to the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development to have their land claims settled in terms of the Labour Tenants Act. The act gives rights to labour tenants to apply to the department for subsidies with which land can be purchased for their benefit. It was a great gesture…

Performers Mzameleni Sangweni and Nkanyiso Ntshangase, known as The Vigilants, have overcome several challenges to succeed in their music careers. The pair from Midrand said they knew that if they were to succeed in the entertainment industry they had to develop their craft in every way possible They say their intent is to produce songs that are meaningful and purposeful. They believe every song should have a profound message that listeners can learn from. Their latest offering, Imali, is currently on 1 million airplay impressions on the radio. They say this song touches on their background and what they epitomise as musicians. Sangweni and Ntshangase say they have always been firm believers in being different from the rest by producing a unique sound. “We were proud to know that people…

WEALTHY states, alongside corporate titans, drove global inequality deeper, with most African countries left struggling to recover from Covid-19, partly due to the unequal distribution of vaccines, Amnesty International revealed in its annual human rights report. On Monday, Amnesty International launched the report, titled Amnesty International Report 2021/22: The State of the World’s Human Rights – its annual assessment of human rights around the world. The report found that inaction by wealthy states, alongside corporate giants resulted in most African countries being left to struggle to recover from Covid-19 due to high levels of inequality, poverty and unemployment, aggravated by the unequal distribution of vaccines. “Covid-19 should have been a decisive wake-up call to deal with inequality and poverty. Instead, we have seen deeper inequality and greater instability in Africa…

A lack of staff and training led to the deaths of at least 201 babies and nine mothers at the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital in Shropshire, England, from 2000 to 2019, an independent report published yesterday found. A five-year inquiry said some babies suffered skull fractures, broken bones or developed cerebral palsy after traumatic forceps deliveries, while others were starved of oxygen and had brain injuries. There was a “culture” that favoured natural birth over Caesarean sections. | Sputnik…

EDINBURGH have opted for the smash and grab approach this weekend, according to head coach Mike Blair. The Scottish outfit face the Lions on Saturday at Emirates Airline Park (kick-off 4pm), but have decided to base themselves in Durban this week as they prepare for the United Rugby Championship (URC) clash on the Highveld. With temperatures in the high 20s all week on the KwaZulu-Natal coast and with Johannesburg 1 700m-plus above sea-level, Blair and Co’s biggest concern this week might not be a buoyant Lions, but the manner in which their squad is managed to avoid heat and altitude fatigue. “It is a really fine balance, isn’t it?” Blair asked rhetorically earlier this week. “The initial research that we looked into was basically either you do 24-hours in Johannesburg…

FITCH Solutions has warned that sub-Saharan African countries who are heavily reliant on Russian imports could soon be faced with political instability due to rising fuel and food prices. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last month has added pressure on global supply chains, resulting in sharply rising costs for energy and food, and adding a new dimension to the inflation picture. Fitch Solutions global head of country risk, Cedric Chehab, yesterday said the direct impact of Russia’s war on African economies was limited, but secondary effects would be larger. Chehab, however, said rising energy prices were going to be painful for economies that were dependent on fossil fuels to generate electricity, as energy costs would hit markets hard. As a result, Fitch Solutions downgraded South Africa’s economic growth forecast from 1.8…

THE AUSTRALIA-based property investment company Irongate Group (IAP) board, after rejecting several initial offers, has unanimously recommended the company’s security holders vote in favour of the Charter Hall PGGM Industrial Partnership No 2 offer. Through schemes of arrangement, security holders of IAP, formerly Investec Australia Property Fund and which is also listed on the JSE, will receive A$1.90 (R20.80) per IAP share cash, as well as the company’s distribution to March 31, 2022, of up to A$4.67 per security. The share price traded at R20.62 on the JSE yesterday morning, but the deal strike price represents a 21 percent premium to the closing price of A$1.57 on January 28, 2022, the last trading day prior to announcement of the offer. The offer also represents an 11.8 per- cent…

Social media challenges have been a saving grace these past two years of Covid. They have somehow made these unprecedented times a little easier by adding a dose of laughter and joy, bringing people across the country and the world together. Whether you joined in the fun by recreating some of the viral challenges, or watched them over and over again in your home, the craze of viral challenges found you somehow. In marking two years of the life-changing Covid-19 pandemic, it’s only right to acknowledge some of the social media challenges that got everyone through the lockdown. Jerusalema Challenge Master KG’s hit song Jerusalema, featuring vocalist Nomcebo, was a global TikTok sensation in 2020 and sparked the mother of all viral challenges. The challenge gave much-needed cheer to…

THE City of Cape Town’s refusal to waive policy-stipulated physical fitness requirements and promote a permanently disabled employee to senior firefighter did not amount to unfair discrimination, the Constitutional Court has ruled. Yesterday’s ruling went against Adam Damons, who suffered career-limiting injuries when he was dropped during a firefighting drill in 2010. He was employed as a firefighter on February 1, 2001. His permanent injuries were so severe that he cannot carry anything heavier than 10kg. Damons submitted at the apex court that the City of Cape Town had not changed his firefighter rank after the accident. He was merely transferred to finance and billing, and then to the fire and life safety education section. But 11 years later, he remained with no prospects of career advancement. His applications for…

A FORMER McDonald’s employee learned the hard way – spitting in a customer’s ice cream and using a video clip of the act to get money from your employer can be expensive. He was yesterday sentenced to 10 years imprisonment for spitting in a McFlurry ice cream and using this to extort money from the food chain outlet. Clement Othusitse Seothaeng, 27, originally from Pampierstad in the Northern Cape, was sentenced by the Pretoria North Magistrate’s Court after his conviction on charges of malicious damage to property and extortion. The court sentenced him to a total of 15 years on these two charges, but ordered that he serve an effective sentence of 10 years. Seothaeng was sentenced to 10 years for extortion and five years for malicious damage to property.…

LOCAL medical graduates who studied at Chinese universities have taken to court to fight for their qualifications to be recognised as equal to those of their Cuba-educated counterparts. The South Gauteng High Court on Tuesday heard an urgent application by five medical graduates who accused the Health Professions Council of SA (HPCSA) and the Medical and Dental Professions Board of dragging their feet in recognising their alma mater and qualifications. “It’s an application that involves five doctors who are qualified in China and spent the last year of their qualification at the University of the Free State,” advocate Chris Georgiades, their counsel, told the court during a virtual hearing. The five, most from QwaQwa, stood to lose their eligibility to start internships next month. They studied at universities in China,…

They say wisdom comes with age. The young are too immature to make wise and reasonable choices in life. They are too impulsive, irrational and hasty. But age does not necessarily mean wisdom. US President Joe Biden is an old man who leads the most powerful country in the world. He needs to show exemplary leadership qualities as a huge responsibility rests on his shoulders. But Trump–like he blundered in Poland. It seems the emotion of the Ukraine crisis got the better of him (Biden) when he blurted out that Putin was a butcher who cannot remain in power. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and the White House jumped to deny that it was US policy to call for regime change. Yet the world knows that wherever the US…

Will Smith’s mother says when he struck Chris Rock it was “the first time” she had seen him do something like that. Carolyn Smith called her 53-year-old son “a very even, people person” and said she was surprised to see him smack the 57-year-old comedian – who made a joke about Will’s wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s alopecia – on the same night he picked up his Best Actor statuette at the 94th Academy Awards on Sunday for his role in King Richard. After they watched the broadcast at their home in Philadelphia, the matriarch told 6ABC: “ I’ve never seen him do that.” Carolyn admitted to being proud of her son. “I am proud of him being him.” She shared how she began the day – before the drama and…

It is appropriate that as Human Rights Month (March) has just passed and we are now on the dawn of our Democracy Month (April), we share the beautiful story of an Afrikaner family, Kosie and Lize van Zyl, in a small town called Napier, near Caledon in the Western Cape. In Kosie’s lineage, from his great-grandfather to his grandfather to his father, the family never owned their farm, but were managers of other people’s farms. So when he graduated with a BSc in agriculture from the University of Stellenbosch, he was looking forward to being employed as a farm manager. But fate would have it otherwise. Out of the blue, an old man who knew him and lived in the neighbourhood popped up with a question that changed his life…

Sri Lanka yesterday began imposing nationwide 10-hour daily power cuts as it ran out of hydro-electricity on top of a severe shortage of fuel, and hospitals suspended routine surgeries. The nation of 22 million people is in its worst economic crisis since 1948 because of a shortage of foreign currency. More than 40% of Sri Lanka’s electricity is hydropower, but reservoirs are running low because there has been no rain. The main fuel retailer said there would be no diesel for at least two days. | AFP…

History will judge Lewis Hamilton as being one of the greatest things to happen to Formula One and modern-day sport. I say this as someone who has a liking for the underdog Formula One team Haas and Daniel Ricciardo, particularly due to the strong performances of McLaren’s Ricciardo and Haas team manager Günther Steiner in Netflix’s Drive to Survive series. Recently amidst his poor performances in the new year, many critics of Hamilton have been overjoyed with excitement with seemingly implicit “told you so” comments, implying that Hamilton had only been winning all these years by virtue of having the best car on the grid. Unsurprisingly, these comments most often come from people who have a soft spot for right-wing causes and yearn for Formula One to return to earlier…