Indice dei contenuti per 2023-05-25 in Mercury

WHILE it is reassuring that Standard Bank’s business banking fees compared favourably in a recent media review of South Africa’s cheapest business accounts, small businesses should look further than fees when assessing the true value of a business account. Standard Bank is fully committed to supporting small businesses because we recognise and understand that small and medium enterprises are the backbone of the communities and geographies in which we operate. “Businesses might start small, but they aspire to a larger vision that involves growth; they are a big deal,” explains Jenine Zachar, the head of Enterprise and Direct Banking Propositions at Standard Bank South Africa. While affordable fees are important, especially in the start-up phase, a banking partner able to support business growth is, arguably, even more important. After all,…

DURBAN residents are urged not to turn on their geysers in the first 10-20 minutes after the electricity has been restored following load shedding, to avoid a power surge that might cause outages for prolonged periods. Head of electricity in eThekwini Municipality Maxwell Mthembu said power outages as a result of this surge would leave residents without power for longer as the only solution was for city workers to go to each individual substation and restore the power. Mthembu issued the warning when he spoke to The Mercury about the new load-shedding schedule that comes into effect today and which will see the City load shed from Stage 1 onwards. The municipality had been exempted from the normal schedule used in the rest of the province and country, after its…

How to be extraordinary in three easy ways: Say “please” and “thank you” and “well done” and “nice to see you” and look people in the eyes when you say these golden words. Make this a practice and you’ll be a one-in-a-million kind of person and others will consider you extraordinary. Not only that, your lens with which you see the world will shift to see beauty and kindness where you formerly may have missed or ignored it. Evaluate and solidify your core values and then perhaps decide you will return to no one evil for evil or unkindness for unkindness. Rather, you will respond to selfishness and deceit and indifference with engagement and generosity and offer goodness. This will make you extraordinary and enhance your days and bring you…

The views expressed by Narendh Ganesh, The Mercury , May 8, must resonate with many of us. If Ms Shamila Batohi is unaware of our anxiety, a reader who has contact with her should draw her attention to our appeal to hear from her. We would like to hear about her challenges. She cannot work alone so was she able to identify suitably competent people from those available to her? Are reports being made to her regularly on the progress of all those corruption cases? Incompetence at that level is intolerable. Investigations should surely be undertaken by senior experienced police officers to avoid blunders. Senior and experienced prosecutors are expected to guide the police investigators. Those who allow incompetent people to handle matters of high importance must surely be held…

The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) could soon conduct an investigation into procurement in the Department of Defence. Defence Minister Thandi Modise hinted at this when she tabled her department’s budget for 2023/24 in the National Assembly this week. Modise said her department received a qualified audit opinion on four matters from the auditor-general in 2021/22. She said apart from matters related to the under-funding of the compensation of employees, there was R1 million in fruitless and wasteful expenditure as well as R475m in irregular expenditure. Due to under-funding of the compensation of employees, Modise said, that they would be overspending by R3 billion on the budget in 2023/24. “We are in constant engagement with the secretary for defence to make sure whatever it is within, we trace the problem of…

The Umzinyathi District Municipality has fenced off the historic Isandlwana battle site near Nquthu in northern KwaZulu-Natal after scrap dealers were caught stealing the war material lying on the mountain, which is there for display and educational purposes. This was revealed by the district mayor, Petros Ngubane, during the provincial commemoration of International Museum Day this week. Ngubane said that it was important for future generations to be taught their history, so they could have a clear understanding of where they came from. Isandlwana, a place where the Zulu army defeated the mighty British imperial army in January 1879, was declared by Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini as a holy shrine for the Zulu nation. The king said the area was sacred because it was where Zulus waged a war to…

Community Police Forums (CPFs) in Durban have called for more assistance following the Police Minister Bheki Cele delivering his budget vote presentation this week. In his presentation, Cele said: “Policing communities and policing with communities remains the backbone of our policing direction going forward. We therefore call upon communities to embrace and throw their full weight behind the police, to turn the tide of crime and create safer communities. To this end, R70 million is allocated to the provinces to support CPFs in terms of resource requirements.” Cele added that this funding would go towards assisting CPFs with resources such as vehicles, laptops, torches and reflective jackets. “In addition, R5m is also provided for community interaction in terms of izimbizos, awareness campaigns, summits and conferences. In this regard, the police…

A NATION with more than 80% of its Grade 4 learners unable to read for meaning has a reason to demand the sacking of the people entrusted with the futures of their children. There is no doubt that some teachers should shoulder a portion of the responsibility, but essentially the buck stops with Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga; although she appears to be looking for any reason to downplay the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS). It shows that 81% of Grade 4s cannot read for meaning in any official languages. This was an increase from the previous 78% from 2016. While the study is mostly done in developed countries, Morocco and Egypt also formed part of it, which leaves no room for South Africa to hide. Behind these…

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis was to make his foray into the 2024 presidential race yesterday at an event with billionaire Elon Musk on Twitter. His entry changes the shape of the contest for the Republican nomination, as he will likely emerge as former president Donald Trump’s biggest rival. The nominee will face President Joe Biden, a Democrat, in the November 2024 general election. DeSantis, 44, was to also have a meeting with his top donors. His says he is the only Republican who can defeat Biden, who beat Trump in the 2020 election. | Reuters…

LONDON: Thousands of university students asked London’s High Court yesterday to give the go-ahead to a mass lawsuit against University College London (UCL) over disruption to their studies caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and strikes. More than 3 000 students – who paid £9 250 (R219 930) a year – are suing UCL for breach of contract. UCL argued it was permitted to change or cancel courses due to circumstances beyond its control, such as the pandemic. About 100 000 students from 18 universities plan to sue. A lawyer for the students said they were promised “in-person, on-campus tuition” under their UCL contract and had lost 47 teaching days as a result of strikes. | Reuters…

Chinese authorities are rushing to push out vaccines to fight an ongoing new wave of coronavirus cases expected to peak in June and infect as many as 65 million people a week, as the new XBB variant of the virus evolves to overcome the immunity built up after China’s abrupt exit from its “zero Covid” policy last year. Zhong Nanshan, a top Chinese epidemiologist, said on Monday that two new vaccines for the XBB omicron subvariant had received initial approval, according to state media reports. Zhong, speaking at a biotech forum in Guangzhou, said three to four other vaccines were set to be approved soon. The new outbreak could be the largest wave of infections since China dismantled its strict zero-Covid regime last winter, causing as much as 85%…

RESEARCH conducted by the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) for the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) has found that the growing critical views of democracy and accountability may significantly erode voter turnout at next year’s elections. The Voter Participation Survey research findings showed that voters were dissatisfied with the current political system. The national general elections are expected to take place between May and August next year, with President Cyril Ramaphosa still to officially gazette the date. There was a clear difference in voter turnout between the first democratic elections in 1994, with its snaking queues, and the last local government elections in 2021. The difference, the research found, is because of the general perception among the adult population that nothing much has changed and that the promises of…

Two pieces caught my eye in Wednesday’s edition of The Mercury, May 24: Mr Kevin Govender’s “There are things money can’t buy” and Mr Narendh Ganesh’s “Ministers don’t care about the poor, only themselves”. Multi-billionaires like Steve Jobs squealing at the last moment that material wealth was not the most important commodity in the world, somehow does not cut much ice with everybody else who is pursuing more money. It’s a clichéd conundrum to reflect, on their deathbed, about the same stupid errors that almost everybody else, from time immemorial, goes through. Listening to others at that stage, begging for forgiveness does nothing for those who weep around the deathbed. Imparting, begging and exchanging forgiveness, as if it’s a material commodity, is laughable and seems wrenched from the old silent…

Bakhmut in Ukraine has witnessed destruction unprecedented since World War II. Waves of fiery destruction in 3D, graphically exposing man’s inhumanity to man. Bakhmut is suddenly synonymous with slaughter, and helplessness, and lives snuffed out in a moment, and all the endless misery of a savage war. The savagery of the war is a grim reminder of Dresden during WWII. The battle for Bakhmut was a cruel war of vicious attrition, where every inch of rubble was paid for in spilt blood and smashed bones and wasted lives. Man remains impotent as brutal wars decimate humanity every minute. World leaders will be severely and harshly judged as the brutal slaughter of men, women and children continues unabated in many parts of our strife-torn planet. The abject failure of the UN…

The Parliamentary Committee on Water and Sanitation was in Hammans- kraal in Tshwane yesterday following the outbreak of cholera that has claimed 17 lives. The initial death toll of 15 was upped to 17 yesterday. Committee chairperson Robert Mashego said they would engage role-players to ascertain why recommendations agreed upon during a meeting held with the committee in February 2020 were not implemented. The committee said it had held several meetings with the City of Tshwane, the Department of Water and Sanitation and water boards to find solutions to the challenge of the quality of water within the city. “We are well aware of the political and administrative instability that has besieged the city, but we remain of the view that the correct undertakings that were made by all role-players…

The Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) has confirmed that it is investigating the shooting incident in which two armed robbers were killed in Newlands East yesterday. Police alleged that the suspects robbed a courier vehicle on the N2 freeway in Paddock in the early hours of yesterday morning before being tracked to Newlands East by police. This led to a shoot-out between police and the suspects in which the two suspects were killed and one was arrested. Robbie Raburabu, national IPID spokesperson, said its investigator had attended the crime scene. “The suspects are alleged to have shot at the police who retaliated and fatally shot two suspects and arrested one of them.” Raburabu added that IPID would be investigating the circumstances surrounding the incident. Police spokesperson, Brigadier Jay Naicker, said…

AS THE world’s largest free trade area, the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) holds immense potential for boosting trade and economic growth and development in Africa. By reducing tariffs and eliminating non-tariff barriers (NTBs), the AfCFTA, one of the flagship projects of the AU’s Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want, aims to significantly boost intra-Africa trade across all sectors of continent’s economy, particularly trade in value-added production. It is, therefore, fitting that the AU’s theme for 2023 is “Acceleration of AfCFTA Implementation”. The AU estimates that there are around 1.3 billion people within the AfCFTA, which amounts to a potential $3.4 trillion (about R65 trillion) market. Several international organisations, such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund have published research data about the potential benefits of…

Fighting had eased but not stopped in Sudan yesterday, the second full day of a ceasefire that has raised cautious hopes among beleaguered civilians that aid corridors and escape routes will open soon. Sporadic air strikes and artillery fire still echoed across the capital, residents said, but US and Saudi observers said “fighting in Khartoum appeared to be less intense” since the one-week truce entered into force late on Monday. Washington and Riyadh, which brokered the ceasefire deal between the forces of two rival generals, however pointed to reports “indicating that both sides violated the agreement”. Nonetheless, they stressed that preparations were under way “to deliver lifesaving assistance” to the people of Sudan, who have endured more than five weeks of fighting that has claimed more than 1 000 lives.…

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is considering banning former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s party for attacking the state, the defence minister said yesterday – a decision likely to enrage his supporters and exacerbate his confrontation with the military establishment. The former cricket star is embroiled in a decades-old rivalry between civilian politicians and the powerful military, which has ruled directly or overseen governments throughout Pakistan’s history. The face-off has brought widespread protests by Khan’s supporters, raising new fears about the stability of the nuclear-armed country as it struggles with its worst economic crisis in decades. | Reuters…

Doha: International Monetary Fund chief Kristalina Georgieva said yesterday that protracted domestic wrangling over the US debt ceiling was “unnecessary” for the world economy but should be settled. Georgieva also told the Qatar Economic Forum that central banks must keep interest rates high to tame inflation but there should be improvement in 2024. International markets have been unnerved by the battle between US President Joe Biden and opposition Republicans on US borrowing limits with an early June deadline looming. Some Republicans have questioned whether a quick agreement with the US administration is necessary. | AFP…

YAOUNDE: Wildlife officials in north Cameroon are struggling against a marauding herd of elephants that wandered into a regional capital this week after trampling through surrounding villages, killing at least two people, they said yesterday. An estimated 6 830 elephants live in Cameroon, says the International Union for Conservation of Nature, one of the largest populations of the endangered species left in Africa. Officials said this week that four elephants had made two incursions into Maroua in the north, before which they trampled a child. | Reuters…

MUNSTER lock Jean Kleyn believes that his team needs to ensure that they are not distracted by the potential sideshow surrounding Stormers hooker Joseph Dweba’s comments ahead of Saturday’s United Rugby Championship (URC) final. A video posted on social media showed Dweba celebrating with his teammates in a private suite at Cape Town Stadium after Munster beat Leinster 16-15 in the second semi-final on May 13, which meant that the Stormers would host the final Dweba was heard saying “We are gonna f**k them up”, and forwards coach Rito Hlungwani said this week that while the Springbok front-ranker “has a bit of a mouth on him, he is one guy who usually backs up his words”. “Saying what he said wasn’t something that was meant to go out to the…

Zulu king Misuzulu kaZwelithini’s much anticipated address yesterday has drawn mixed reaction, with some saying it was an important step while others labelled it an anti-climax, owing to its contents. Ahead of the address, speculation had been rife that the king could announce drastic changes, including the possible replacement of Mangosuthu Buthelezi as traditional prime minister, a position which he has occupied for over 50 years. The address, however, focused on the recent developments including the appointment of the Ingonyama Trust Board and its chairperson, Inkosi Thanduyise Mzimela. The king also dismissed reports of a rift between himself and Buthelezi, saying this was meant to sow divisions in the nation. “I would like to unequivocally state that the rumours that there is bad blood between myself in my capacity as…

THE duck-billed platypus, Australia’s egg-laying mammal, is unlikely to win any beauty or dancing competitions. Apart from the duck-like bill, it is flat-footed and cumbersome. But let it get into water and it’s like greased lightning as it scours the river bottom for the larvae and shrimps on which it feeds nocturnally, spending the daylight hours in its riverbank burrow. That possibly explains why so few Aussies have actually seen a platypus, which is found in the eastern regions of Australia and in Tasmania. But, beauty contest winners or not, there is, according to the BBC, a human cohort who could indeed kiss the platypuses they come into contact with, they love them so much. These are the scientists who are involved in restocking the wilderness areas with platypus. They…

IT’S A shame that the ANC in eThekwini has decided to trample all over the constitutional rights of citizens by attempting to ban councillors from speaking out about the state of the city to the media. This decision is a flagrant violation of the people’s right to be informed about the decisions being made on their behalf by council representatives and is tantamount to the draconian measures taken by the apartheid regime to silence its critics. What is particularly galling is the fact that the media often have access to council reports before councillors themselves do. This is not the fault of councillors, as these reports often take too long to reach committees. Rather, it is factions within the ANC who are leaking this information to the media. So instead…

We must compliment and commend the civic organisations and the ratepayers association of Chatsworth for organising a protest action to City Hall tomorrow, May 26, regarding the proposed municipal tariff increases. The planned march is from Bram Fischer Road to City Hall where an ultimatum will be handed to the mayor of eThekwini and the premier of KwaZulu-Natal. I don’t think the ratepayers of Durban know what an impact these increases will be, come July 1. For example, if a resident is paying an average of R5 000 a month on his metro Bill, then he or she will have to pay an additional R1 000 a month. If this resident’s electricity bill is R3 000 (about R650 increase at 21.9%), water bill is R1 000 (about R150 increase…

Former advocate Malesela Teffo yesterday received a temporary lifeline when the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, gave him a week in which to file his opposing papers in the application launched by the Legal Practice Council to hold him in contempt of court. This week’s proceedings began without any sign of Teffo or anyone representing him in court. It had also emerged that apart from earlier indicating that he would oppose the contempt of court application, Teffo did not file a single paper in this regard. Counsel for the LPC asked Judge Harshila Kooverjie to find Teffo in contempt of court for continuing to pose as an advocate, in spite of last year’s order in which his name was removed from the roll of advocates. The council, initially in an application…

The eThekwini Municipality has dismissed suggestions that it wants to spend thousands of rand of ratepayers’ money for its officials to become members at an exclusive private club. The City said reports that a proposal had been put forward at its Economic Development and Planning Committee (Ecod) meeting this week to take up membership at the The Pencil Club in uMhlanga at a cost of R195 000 were false. It said the report that had come before the committee was about hiring venues at the club, not membership. The Ecod report on the matter tabled at the meeting said the purpose was to seek approval and authority to utilise facilities and meeting rooms at The Pencil Club for strategic meetings in line with the Supply Chain Management Policy. It said…

A Category 4 typhoon hit Guam yesterday, packing winds of up to 225km/h and torrential rain, as it inched across the Western Pacific Ocean, but there were no early reports of deaths or injuries. The slow-moving storm – dubbed Super Typhoon Mawar – delivered rainfall of up to 5cm per hour overnight, the US National Weather Service (NWS) said in its forecast. Moving north-west at 12.8km/h, Mawar could produce landslides, flash flooding and life-threatening storm surges, the NWS said in warnings for the tropical island, located about 9 600km south-west of Los Angeles. “I’m very worried for our people’s safety and very concerned,” Guam’s governor Lou Leon Guerrero said yesterday. She compared the storm to 1962’s Typhoon Karen, which flattened much of the island that has a current population of…

OSLO: The world’s largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R Ford, sailed into Oslo yesterday, a first for such a US ship, in a show of Nato force at a time of heightened tension between Nato and Russia over the war in Ukraine. The ship and its crew will be conducting training exercises with the Norwegian armed forces along the country’s coast in the coming days, the Norwegian military said. “This visit is an important signal of the close bilateral relationship between the US and Norway and a signal of the credibility of collective defence and deterrence,” said Jonny Karlsen, a spokesperson for the Norwegian Joint Headquarters. | Reuters…

JERUSALEM: Israeli MPs passed an annual budget yesterday with controversial allocations for ultra-Orthodox Jews, in a concession to a religious party in the governing coalition that drew protests from the opposition. Thousands of Israelis marched through Jerusalem to demonstrate against the government’s plans to hand more cash to the ultra-Orthodox minority, accusing the coalition of “looting” state funds. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced the state would grant married ultra-Orthodox Jewish men engaged in religious study rather than work a total of 250 million shekels (about R1.2 billion). | AFP…