Indice dei contenuti per 2022-08-11 in Mercury

The future of work is more than just a job: Standard Bank’s universities’ partnership builds a new generation of entrepreneurs Standard Bank’s investment in the Universities South Africa (USAf) Entrepreneurship Development in Higher Education (EDHE) programme has led to the establishment of Economic Activation Offices (EAO) at 10 South African public universities. EAOs prepare university students for entrepreneurship, helping young South Africans identify independent business opportunities and reducing dependence on the country’s constrained job market. “The creation of small businesses across South Africa can help unlock our country’s economic potential, combating persistent unemployment,” says Ben Pretorius, the head of the Education Sector at Standard Bank. Currently, however, “the resources available to entrepreneurs are often not suitable for start-ups, or just too expensive, or unsupported, in the ideation phase,” he adds.…

OPPOSITION parties in eThekwini Municipality have slammed a move that would see the city fork out an additional R24 million to purchase recycling bags, saying the delivery and collection of the bags was almost non-existent. The demand for the additional amount comes just a year after the contract came into effect. The contract was advertised in July 2019 and was awarded to two companies, effective from January 2021. The municipality recently tabled a report before council and the executive committee, for it to note the price increase for the supply and delivery of orange and clear recycling bags for 36 months. The report said the suppliers had written to the municipality in February, requesting the price increase. While the report was only presented to council and exco for noting as…

Through blistering heat waves and drought that have parched the French countryside in recent weeks, one group has emerged a reluctant winner: salt farmers in the north-western region of Guerande. Guerande’s snow-white Fleur de Sel (flower of salt’), which crystallises on the water’s surface, is one of the finer salts on world markets, retailing in the US at over $100 (about R1 650) a kilogram. As temperatures climbed in recent months and almost non-existent rainfall turbo-charged salt water evaporation in the region, production has soared. “We’re heading towards record production,” said producer Francois Durand, who has worked on the salt marshes for more than 20 years. Sea salt production over the last 10 years had averaged around 1.3 tons per salt pan but this year the yield was nearly double…

In September 2017, president Zuma signed the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), saying: “We are making a clarion call to all member states of the UN to sign and ratify the ban treaty in order to rid the world and humanity of these lethal weapons of mass destruction.” This treaty was ratified in 2021, where the South African Department of International Relations and Co-operation (Dirco) proudly stated: “The total elimination of all weapons of mass destruction remains one of South Africa’s key foreign policy priorities.” Naledi Pandor, the South African foreign minister, is quoted as saying: “We are committed to promoting South Africa’s national interests and values, a better South Africa, a better Africa, a better world for all.” And continues: “We continue to stress that dialogue,…

From ancient times, cultures all over the world have revered the dead. The Egyptians believed that death was merely a journey to the other world and so they glorified life after death by going to elaborate lengths to preserve the bodies of the pharaohs. Though Hindus cremate the dead, they don’t ever forget them and have prayers to remember and honour them. The Europeans build tombstones and visit the graves of their loved ones regularly to lay flowers. In the African community, too, the dead are treated with much respect and dignity. They mourn the dead for days and spare no amount of money on making sure their loved ones are given a proper send-off. In fact the funeral business is booming in the black community who think an expensive…

International Relations and Co-operation Minister Naledi Pandor has told her visiting counterpart, Zimbabwe’s minister of foreign affairs and international trade Frederick Shava, that Pretoria is grateful for the supportive role played by the neighbouring country in arresting illegal migration. “Dear Minister, I’m sure you are aware that effective management of immigration has been an ongoing challenge for our government,” Pandor said in Pretoria where she co-chaired the mid-term review of the Bi-National Commission (BNC). “We’ve recently established a border-management agency and we hope it will vastly reduce illegal migration and improve efficiency. I must thank you and your government for the support you have given us in this endeavour,” she said. Pandor said the review meeting gave the two neighbouring countries an opportunity to “reboot and reset our programmes, to…

The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) has secured orders to preserve five luxury properties in upmarket Joburg suburbs belonging to two Transnet officials who allegedly defrauded the rail freight company of millions of rand. The SIU and Transnet also froze more than R1.8 million of pension funds belonging to Zakhele Lebelo. In the order, the Special Tribunal barred Lebelo and his wife, Alletta Mokgoro Mabitsi, as well as Phathutshedzo Brighton Mashamba and his wife, Matlhodi Phillicia Mashamba, from selling, leasing, donating or transferring title (to) their luxury properties in Rosebank and Dainfern. The ruling followed an SIU investigation that revealed that the acquisition of the properties were allegedly funded by money received from service providers contracted by Transnet. Therefore, the SIU argued before the tribunal that the luxury properties constituted proceeds…

Seven illegal miners arrested during raids in Krugersdorp appeared in court yesterday where they were charged with rape, following the gang rape of eight women in the area. The men are among 80 zama zamas arrested during raids which were launched after residents went to abandoned mines and raided the areas. The seven accused were initially charged with being in the country illegally, but are now facing additional charges including multiple counts of rape, and robbery with aggravated circumstances. More suspects are expected to appear today in relation to the new charges. Two of the suspects who appeared yesterday are 18 and 15 years old. The 15-year-old is expected to appear today for age assessment. He’ll appear with the additional suspects. The case against the remaining suspects has been postponed…

THE election of Nomusa Dube-Ncube as the first woman to serve as KwaZulu-Natal’s premier is a historic step for a province that has traditionally reserved senior posts for men. The move could not have come at a more pertinent time, especially for the ANC, which has paid lip service to the advancement of women and placing them in strategic positions. One just has to look at the recent provincial conferences to see how far the party is from achieving gender parity. Dube-Ncube failed to make the cut during the recent KZN conference, leaving Nomagugu Simelane as the only woman in the province’s top leadership. This status quo is replicated in other conferences. That is why Dube-Ncube’s election to replace Sihle Zikalala, who quit last week, should be a start in…

Kenyans yesterday were waiting for the results of the country’s presidential election after a largely peaceful poll, with preliminary results on television suggesting a tight race as low turnout pointed to growing frustration with the political elite. Deputy President William Ruto and Raila Odinga, the veteran opposition leader now backed by the ruling party, have vowed to maintain calm following Tuesday’s poll, but the memory of past election-related violence remains fresh for many Kenyans. With pressure building on the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), which has to declare the results by August 16, officials worked overnight to count votes under the watchful eye of observers. The complicated process of verifying and tallying votes is expected to take days, and IEBC chairperson Wafula Chebukati urged Kenyans to be patient, keen…

London: Around one million children in London will be offered a polio booster vaccine after the virus was detected in sewage samples across the capital, health officials said yesterday. “Following the discovery of type 2 vaccine-derived poliovirus in sewage in north and east London,” a targeted booster would be offered to children between 1 and 9, said the health ministry. There have been no confirmed cases of the disease, but it has been found at an increasing number of sewage plants across the capital. It was first detected at an east London treatment works earlier this year. Polio can cause paralysis. | AFP…

AN uninformed observer would have been forgiven for thinking the World Cup was already here during the opening ceremony of the National Netball Championships on Tuesday. There was the reveal of a huge flag emblazoned with the logo of the 2023 Netball World Cup tournament that South Africa will host in Cape Town next July and August. As if that was not enough, the reveal was accompanied by a rendition of Vicky Sampson’s ‘My African Dream’ by the Potchefstroom-based Dutch opera singer Amira. And then Netball SA president Cecilia Molokwane introduced six of the Proteas players who will be part of the World Cup squad to rapturous applause. Molokwane excitedly spoke about their state of readiness for next year’s tournament, revealing the upcoming developments in the build up to the…

INDEPENDENT banks analyst Corrie Kruger has said South African banks are extremely selective as to how they treat the clients they deem to be a risk to their reputations and there is often no reason for their decisions when it comes to closing their accounts. Speaking about how the banks have cited media reports and made reference to the Mpati Commission of Inquiry to justify their discriminatory actions against Sekunjalo-related companies, including Independent Media, Kruger said the banks continued to view the Public Investment Corporation Commission Report as a sword hanging over the company’s head even though nothing had been tested or proven in court. “What is intriguing is that with all the corruption that state-owned entities have been accused of over the years, none of the banks has ever…

KWAZULU-NATAL Premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube yesterday said her office would play a much more assertive role in providing leadership and co-ordinating key government programmes. Dube-Ncube was sworn in as the premier in a special sitting of the KZN Legislature yesterday. Delivering her maiden address, Dube-Ncube said the Office of the Premier would monitor and evaluate all provincial government departments, public entities and municipalities in relation to service delivery. “Let me hasten to point out that we are not intending to usurp any functions, roles or responsibilities of other line function departments, but we need to have our finger on the pulse of this province and must be able to intervene where necessary. “It is against this context that I am expecting the Provincial Planning Commission to monitor our progress, not only…

THE South African government should feel embarrassed that the UK imposed a three-year ban on its government contracts with Bain & Company because of its role in the state capture of one of the world’s best revenue collecting agency, the SA Revenue Service (Sars). It seems our present government does not have the appetite to prosecute individuals or business entities that were instrumental in destroying state-owned entities. It is extremely obvious that senior government officials would be implicated, therefore the lack of appetite to investigate or prosecute, although these prosecuting institutions should be independent organs of state. The lack of action by the government will be regretted come the 2024 elections. From Eskom and Denel to Prasa, Sars etc, it seems no consulting companies have been prosecuted, except when President…

Was the looting and arson during the July 2021 unrest an apercus of lawlessness in our land? Since then there has been more looting, rape, gender-based violence, service-delivery protests, murder and reports of a lacklustre police service. The latest de rigeur in our local taverns is “spill and kill” as sporadic shootings continue to rock the nation. Is South Africa now becoming ungovernable and stirring uneasily like a lamb before an encroaching storm? A worrying factor among a string of societal deficiencies is the increase in gangsterism, turf and territorial wars that govern drug sales and merchandising and gangland slayings that are wreaking havoc in affected communities. People are living in fear and have become prisoners in their own abodes. Life is becoming too cheap in SA, where you leave…

KARPOWERSHIP SA has been sent back to the drawing board after Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment Barbara Creecy dismissed its appeals in relation to its plans for ship-mounted, gas-fired power plants at ports across the country. Karpowership SA won a bid to supply the government with about 1 220 megawatts of electricity over two decades. The company proposed to locate three powership projects at the ports of Richards Bay in KwaZulu- Natal, Ngqura in the Eastern Cape and Saldanha in the Western Cape, to generate electricity from natural gas to be evacuated via transmission lines to substations linked to the national grid. Environmental activists and local fishing communities have, however, been up in arms over potential harmful effects on the environment. On June 23, 2021, the Department…

INDEPENDENT Media has appointed award-winning journalist Viasen Soobramoney as its new internal press ombudsman. Soobramoney takes over from Yogas Nair who has moved to take up the position of Executive: New Business Development. “I am fully cognisant of the weight this role plays within our own organisation as well as that of the South Africa media industry. The responsibility is not to be taken lightly. I would like to thank Yogas for her contribution to the office of the ombudsman, our colleagues and Dr Iqbal Survé for the opportunity,” Soobramoney said. Taking a hiatus in 2014 to pursue his studies in Digital Convergence at the Thomson Foundation in the UK, Soobramoney was appointed Team Leader: Mobile Journalism, on his return, developing and leading Africa’s first mobile journalism newsroom that trained…

A Durban mother charged with the murder of her toddler daughter has abandoned her bail application and will be sent for a psychiatric assessment. According to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), the woman made an appearance in the Durban Magistrate’s Court yesterday. The 33-year-old is accused of assaulting her 3-year-old daughter on the face and head with a wooden rolling pin. The incident allegedly took place at an apartment in the Durban CBD on May 31. Police said that on arrival they found the body of a 3-year-old girl with strangulation marks and later saw her other injuries. The woman was arrested shortly after the alleged incident and was remanded. The provincial spokesperson for the NPA, Natasha Kara, confirmed yesterday that the accused had abandoned her application for bail. Kara…

The doom and gloom among South Africans of all hues and ages is ubiquitous. The socio-political climate is pulsating with despair. “Quo vadis South Africa?” is the question on everyone’s lips. Unspoken words of despondency equate to an inability to find solace amid darkening skies. But South Africans are a resilient and talented people who, like cream, will rise to the top if given the slightest opportunity. Last week I experienced a great moment when the University of the Witwatersrand as part of its centenary celebrations, presented the South African premiere of Oh, to Believe in Another World, a film by William Kentridge. In a masterful partnership with the newly emerged Mzansi National Philharmonic Orchestra, a brilliant orchestration of the arts, music and film came together to the delight of…

Rainwater everywhere on the planet is unsafe to drink due to levels of toxic chemicals known as PFAS that exceed the latest guidelines, according to a new study by Stockholm University scientists. Commonly known as “forever chemicals” because they disintegrate extremely slowly, PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) were initially found in packaging, shampoo or make-up but have spread to the entire environment, including water and air. “There is nowhere on Earth where the rain would be safe to drink, according to the measurements that we have taken,” said Ian Cousins, a professor at the university and lead author of the study published in Environmental Science and Technology. A compilation of the data since 2010 that his team studied showed that “even in Antarctica or the Tibetan plateau, the levels in…

THE Proteas were given a hint of the kind of aggression they can expect from England next week, as the England Lions got stuck into the South African bowlers on day two of their tour match in Canterbury yesterday. A scoring rate of 4.5 an over for the first 20 overs, 15 boundaries and strikes rates above 70 for a couple of the England batters, offered a taste of “Bazball” which Dean Elgar’s team expect to encounter in all its glory from next Wednesday at Lord’s. England coach, Brendon McCullum, was on hand to witness the first day’s play on Tuesday, and had, according to Craig Overton, told the Lions, to replicate what the senior England team had been doing in the Test arena recently. Overton picked up five wickets…

Environmentalists and fishermen have raised concern over the state of Isipingo Beach lagoon and river mouth after thousands of dead fish washed up over the weekend. The eThekwini Municipality said yesterday that clean-up operations and an investigation into the cause of the death of the fish have commenced. Desmond D’Sa, co-ordinator of the South Durban Community Environmental Alliance, said that the stench at the Isipingo beach and river mouth was unbearable. He suspected the fish deaths were linked to a sewage spill. “I have no doubt a sewage pump collapsed, causing the sewage to blanket the Isipingo lagoon and causing scores of dead fish to wash up ashore.” D’Sa added that this posed a health risk. “This is not the first time this has happened, it happened at North pier…

I have always known something about the power within – the human will to survive. My life had frequently demanded I tap into my own reserves of resilience and I was made quickly aware that each of my sons had as much will to survive and as much resilience as any healthy person on the planet. Long before there were thoughts of babies in my future I had read being born is among the most challenging and dangerous of all challenges we all must face. It was apparent that each boy had already got an A+ for that. I knew this to be true about my first son because I was there. I was the only non-medical person in the birthing theatre and I saw up-close all it took to…

A TOKYO clothing manufacturer has teamed up with vets to create a wearable fan for pets to help them get through the hot summers. The device consists of a small, light, battery-operated fan that is attached to a mesh outfit and blows air around the animal’s body, according to Sky News. It is also attached to cats. Fans attached to the backs of small animals – is there any chance of their becoming airborne? The tense situation in the South China Sea could surely become one of dangerous confusion with the arrival on the radar screens of swarms of airborne, fan-propelled chihuahuas and kitty cats. Golf cart arrest A FLORIDA woman has been arrested for driving drunk in a golf cart on the American state’s busiest highway. An open bottle…

According to reports, Bheki Cele, referring to the brutal gang rape of eight women in Krugersdorp, remarked he could not imagine a beautiful woman with a zama zama, and to be raped only once was a lucky break. Such reckless comments must be condemned as it can reinforce the skewed belief that women are “commodities”. I cannot imagine the deep trauma these innocent victims of sexual sadism are going through and we have the minister of police making such absurd statements. Beyond swift justice for rape victims and the need for harsher punishment for perpetrators of rape, urgent strategic approaches need to be put into place. Sexual assault and rape inhibit women’s lives. The aim of the intervention should not be about just reducing rape occurrences, but tackling the root…

AHEAD of the 10th anniversary of the Marikana massacre on August 16, it is hoped most of the civil claims instituted against the government in the latest round of litigation will be amicably settled by then. This is according to the legal team acting for the miners, who were back in the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, this week. Deputy Judge President Aubrey Ledwaba had set down three weeks to attend to the Marikana matters. At the time, he expressed his satisfaction at the progress made thus far. Legal teams representing the government have over the past two weeks made settlement offers to the legal team representing about 54 miners during this round of litigation. The miners were injured when the police opened fire at them in Marikana. They also include…

Members of the portfolio committees on mineral resources and energy and police are set to conduct oversight visits at illegal mining hot spots in Gauteng, after the arrest of more than 100 people in the past week. Police management conducted operations at several places in Randfontein and Krugersdorp. The accused face charges including contravention of the Immigration Act, illegal mining and theft. Last week, Kagiso residents went on a rampage, declaring war against illegal miners. A building, believed to house several zama zamas, was also torched. Police Minister Bheki Cele said as part of police efforts to combat illicit mining and associated crimes in the West Rand, police will step up police operations and deploy necessary resources and specialised units to keep residents living in the epicentre of illegal…

Well-known businessman Roshan Morar’s death has been described as an immeasurable loss to the business community and the residents of Pietermaritzburg at large. Morar was the founder of Morar Incorporated, an accounting firm that has its head offices in Pietermaritzburg and has grown to eight offices around the country, with 200 employees. He founded the company in 1995. His death came after he took ill two months ago. Last year he had undergone a serious operation. His funeral service yesterday was attended by a number of business people and prominent government officials, including the former director-general of South Africa, Cassius Lubisi. Former premier Sbu Ndebele, who did not attend, sent his condolences through Lubisi. Delivering his remarks, Lubisi said it was still hard to believe that Morar was no more.…

Three people arrested in connection with the shooting of seven people in Savanna Park, Mariannhill, have yet to be charged with the murders. This emerged yesterday when two of the three suspects appeared in the Pinetown Magistrate’s Court. Their case was postponed to September 16 for a possible bail hearing. Seven men were shot dead at a tuckshop and liquor outlet, Siqhopholozi Tuckshop, on July 30 in Savanna Park. According police reports, it is alleged a group of men opened fire, killing six men aged between 30 and 65. The seventh died in hospital. The deceased were Duncan Mzobe, the tuckshop owner and his nephews, Sbusiso Mzobe, Siyabonga Khenisa and Sanele Khenisa, his friend, Alfred Mpithimpithi, and local man Siyakudumisa “Rasta” Mtshengu. The seventh man was not named. Even though…

KZN’s first female premier is a landmark in the fight for equality In his address to a conference in 1973, the late Mozambican president, Samora Machel, wrote thus about the importance of liberating women in society: “The emancipation of women is not an act of charity, the result of a humanitarian or compassionate attitude. “The liberation of women is a fundamental necessity for the revolution, the guarantee of its continuity and the precondition for its victory. The main objective of the revolution is to destroy the system of exploitation and build a new society which releases the potentialities of human beings, reconciling them with labour and nature. This is the context within which the question of women’s emancipation arises.” It is against this backdrop that, as the ANC Women’s League…

Ukraine yesterday accused Russia of carrying out rocket strikes that killed 13 civilians in areas near a nuclear power plant, as the G7 warned that Russian control of the facility “endangers the region”. The overnight strikes in the Dnipropetrovsk region in central Ukraine also injured 11 people, with five reported to be in a serious condition. “It was a terrible night,” regional governor Valentin Reznichenko wrote on Telegram, urging residents to shelter when they hear air raid sirens. “I am asking and begging you ... Don’t let the Russians kill you,” he wrote, adding that Russia had fired a total of 80 rockets at the area. Most of the casualties were in the town of Marganets, just across the Dnieper River from the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Europe’s biggest. Regional…