Cape Timesの 2023-01-12 の目次

Mergers and acquisition (M&A) activity in Africa fell markedly in the second half of last year and was likely to remain subdued this year as the global economy remains in a perma-crisis state, a new report has found. International law firm Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF) released its Global M&A 2022 Insights and 2023 Outlook yesterday, which studied whether the M&A market can fully absorb the current perma-crisis state, with once-in-a- generation events now erupting with disturbing frequency. HSF said the ongoing worldwide uncertainty and its economic effects would continue to have an impact on M&A transactions in Africa, though the upward trend of M&A transactions was expected to continue, especially from private capital investors. This comes after a marked deterioration in M&A conditions in the second half of 2022, with…

The BankservAfrica Economic Transactions Index (BETI) ended the year positively, despite the ongoing dismal economic context, and it signals an improvement in the economy. “After six consecutive months of declines, the BETI rose to an index level of 132.1 in December, almost on par with the January 2022 level of 132.8,” BankservAfrica head of stakeholder engagement Shergeran Naidoo said in a statement yesterday. Naidoo said, however, that “there are indications that we could expect ‘more of the same’ in 2023,” as the main challenges of load shedding and households under pressure from elevated inflation and interest rates are likely to remain. The BETI increased by 1.7% on an annual basis versus a 0.9% decline in November. “The monthly, quarterly and annual improvements all signal some improvement in the broader economy,”…

Social activist and political analyst Xolani Dube has lamented the alleged “arrogance” with which President Cyril Ramaphosa has handled the Marikana issue. Dube’s Marikana Commemoration speech has resurfaced in a YouTube video uploaded this week and is doing the rounds on WhatsApp platforms shared by politicians and intellectuals, who said they were concerned about the future of South Africa’s black generations. In his speech, the analyst took the Marikana widows and orphans through the history of black life in South Africa. He explained that he had recently visited Phoenix, where 36 black people were killed between July 12 and 15, 2021, during what has been termed the July Unrest. He said from the days of apartheid to date, black lives had never mattered. “Look at this hall. Only the…

THE Oudtshoorn Municipality is appealing for assistance from the public after six family members, including a two-year-old toddler, burnt to death in their home in the Bongolethu informal settlement in the early hours of yesterday. Five adults and the toddler were declared dead by paramedics on the scene. The family members are believed to have been asleep when the home caught alight. Neighbours were unable to access the blazing structure to assist the family, according to the Oudtshoorn Municipality. Police spokesperson, Christopher Spies, said Oudtshoorn police had opened an inquest docket into the incident. “An inquest docket was opened following an incident where human remains of six bodies were found under debris at Kanaal Road, Oudtshoorn, at about 2.55am on Wednesday, January 11 2023. “Preliminary investigation indicates police were dispatched…

WITH the countdown to the release of the final matric results next week, the South African Depression and Anxiety Group (Sadag) will host a live question-and-answer session for anxious parents and pupils. “Ask the Expert” chat will take place tomorrow at 1pm. The aim of the conversation is to support pupils and equip parents and teachers with practical ways to navigate increasing nerves, what to do when the results are released, and look at the way forward. “If you are a parent or loved one of a student who is anxious and concerned about the upcoming results, don’t miss this discussion. “Experts educational psychologist Dr Elzette Fritz and clinical psychologist Ryan Cooper will be answering questions on how learners, parents, teachers, and loved ones can better prepare for the release…

Three organisations that claim that the Covid-19 vaccine is harmful to people have turned to the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, in an urgent bid for the government to immediately stop the jab from being further administered. The three non profit organisations – Covid Care Alliance, Transformative Health Justice, and Free the Children – Save the Nation – are, among others, asking for an order interdicting the government from urging South Africans to be vaccinated against Covid and from distributing vaccines to centres. At a later stage they intend asking that health officials be ordered to test the medical and scientific efficacy and safety of the vaccines used against Covid in the country. The applicants also want the government to look into the medical conditions of vaccinated patients who have presented…

Trade volumes between Kenya and South Africa have always been minimal compared with each country’s engagement with its other major trading partners. But in recent years, leaders of the two countries have been taking steps to stimulate trade. Trade and foreign policy analyst Paul Odhiambo and economist XN Iraki discuss the trade obstacles between the two countries and how these can be overcome. What are the major imports and exports between South Africa and Kenya? Paul Odhiambo: Kenya’s exports to South Africa (in 2020) included gold, soda ash and cut flowers. In 25 years, the exports of Kenya to South Africa increased at an annualised rate of 0.49%, from US$30.7 million in 1995 to $34.6m in 2020. Kenya also unveiled its plans to start exporting meat to South Africa…

Washington: All flights across the US were grounded due to a technical glitch in the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) computer system. This was reported by NBC News that was quoting a source in the aviation industry. The US FAA system that alerts pilots and other flight personnel about hazards or any changes to airport facility services and relevant procedures was not processing updated information, the civil aviation regulator’s website showed yesterday. “Operations across the National Airspace System are affected,” the Official Twitter account of the FAA tweeted. |…

THE US state of California braced for a major cyclone yesterday, the National Weather Service (NWS) said, after tens of thousands of people were placed under evacuation orders due to a barrage of storms that killed at least 17 people. On Tuesday, torrential downpours caused flash flooding, closed highways, caused sinkholes, toppled trees and swept away people – including a 5-year-old boy who remains missing in California. About 66 000 homes and businesses in the most populous US state were without power yesterday, according to tracking site Poweroutage.us. The new storm was expected to hit northern California and was also forecast to bring more snow to the Sierra Nevada mountains, the NWS said. California governor Gavin Newsom said at least 34 000 people had been told to flee. However, an…

LONDON: British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak admitted yesterday to using private health care in the past, breaking weeks of silence over whether the wealthy politician had any experience of Britain’s state-run National Health Service (NHS) which is in a state of crisis. With thousands of nurses and ambulance workers on strike over pay, Sunak has been repeatedly asked by journalists and opposition lawmakers whether he uses the NHS or gets private treatment which offers a quicker service. “I am registered with an NHS GP (general practitioner), I have used independent health care in the past,” Sunak told parliament yesterday. The prime minister also said that the strikes by ambulance workers were terrifying for patients in need of urgent care, with people not knowing whether they will get help for treatment…

ORLANDO Pirates have 'trust in the process' and they will not give up on the title race as they believe they'll turn the tide if they learn from their hardships. Pirates are currently enduring a rough patch, having only racked up one win in their last seven league games. That poor streak, which includes losing to both Kaizer Chiefs and Mamelodi Sundowns, has put coach Jose Riveiro and his charges under huge pressure. So much so that the Spanish-born coach is forced to turn the tide on Saturday afternoon at home to Golden Arrows or he will run the risk of losing his job as they trail leaders Downs by 21 points. But Riveiro says they are not giving up. “We are all going through different moments in the…

Tharisa Minerals, the platinum group metals (PGMs) and chrome co- producer, said yesterday that its mining volumes were affected by unprecedented rainfall not seen in the history of the mine. In its production report for the first quarter of the 2023 financial year, released yesterday, the group said rainfall in the first quarter was 27% higher than in previous years. Tharisa Minerals CEO Phoevos Pouroulis said output in the quarter was hampered by unprecedented rainfall in the open pit where it mines in the North West. “While the changes we have made to the pit layout provided significantly better drainage, access to the pit was nevertheless hampered due to the high water level, directly resulting in pit flexibility being compromised. Our stockpile management strategy was implemented over the past 24…

PRESSURE is mounting on Defence Minister Thandi Modise to act against SANDF members who allegedly threw corpses on a burning heap in Mozambique. While the SANDF has already indicated that it was investigating the incident, political parties and civil society organisations are threatening legal and political action to force her to act. Cope is the latest political party to express its disgust at the video circulating on social media. Cope national spokesperson Dennis Bloem said his party was calling on Modise to withdraw the soldiers implicated immediately. “Minister of Defence Thandi Modise must immediately withdraw the soldiers of SANDF who are deployed in Mozambique and can be seen in a video in an incident where soldiers are throwing bodies on a pile of burning rubbish. “This is immoral and…

A NATIONAL task force that will focus on safety and security at institutions of higher learning will be established. This was announced by Higher Education and Training Minister Blade Nzimande at a media briefing yesterday, at the University of Fort Hare (UFH), following a meeting with the institution’s Council. He was joined by Minister in the Presidency Mondli Gungubele, while Police Minister Bheki Cele and State Security Deputy Minister Zizi Kodwa were expected to arrive later in the evening. This comes after vice-chancellor, Professor Sakhela Buhlungu’s executive protection officer, Mboneli Vesele was shot dead on Friday outside the professor's house, in an attempt to allegedly kill Buhlungu. The meeting yesterday experienced delays as there seemed to be a fallout between disgruntled university executive management and the higher education department, with…

LESS than four months after the first case of Ebola was confirmed in Uganda’s central Mubende district in September, the country yesterday declared the end of the disease outbreak caused by the Sudan ebolavirus. “Uganda put a swift end to the Ebola outbreak by ramping up key control measures such as surveillance, contact tracing and infection prevention and control,” said Dr Jane Ruth Aceng Ocero, Uganda’s minister of health. “While we expanded our efforts to put a strong response in place across the nine affected districts, the magic bullet has been our communities who understood the importance of doing what was needed to end the outbreak, and took action.” The outbreak was the country’s first Sudan ebolavirus outbreak in a decade, and its fifth overall for the kind of Ebola.…

Intercape has hailed a Makhanda High Court ruling which dismissed Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula’s leave to appeal an order forcing him and Eastern Cape Transport MEC Xolile Nqatha to develop an effective action plan to provide safety for the bus drivers and passengers. Judge John Smith in his ruling on Tuesday said he was of the view that the appeal had no reasonable prospects of success. Mbalula’s appeal was dismissed with costs including the costs of two counsel. The long-distance bus company took the officials to court following years of attacks which escalated last year when a driver was killed and many others wounded. A bus driver was also wounded in a shooting in Cape Town in December. “I must say, however, that the minister’s resistance to co-operation with the…

A former employee of a car hire company at Oliver Tambo International Airport, who was dismissed after he refused to get vaccinated against Covid-19 on religious grounds, has won his case against his employer on arbitration, when the commissioner declared his dismissal to be substantively unfair. It was ruled that Zenith Car Rental, trading as Avis Rent a Car and Budget Rent a Car, had to pay Owen Cook six months’ salary. The company had adopted a mandatory vaccination policy, but Cook had applied for exemption from the policy, which was declined. He was dismissed in March last year for gross insubordination by refusing to carry out what the company said was a reasonable instruction, in that he failed to present a Covid-19 vaccination certificate as instructed. The employer was…

Paris: Six people were wounded yesterday by a man wielding a knife at the busy Gare du Nord station in Paris, police and prosecutors said. The man was arrested by police at the station – a busy commuter hub which also serves as a departure point for trains to northern France, London and northern Europe – after they opened fire and wounded him, said a police source, who asked not to be named. The police were treating the stabbings as a criminal act, not a terrorist attack, a source close to the case said. The attacker sustained a life-threatening chest injury as police fired several rounds, the source said. |…

Geneva: A former Liberian warlord appealed a 20-year prison sentence for war crimes in a Swiss court yesterday, as prosecutors broaden the indictment to include crimes against humanity. Alieu Kosiah was found guilty in June 2021 of multiple atrocities committed during the first of Liberia’s back-to-back civil wars, in which about 250 000 people died between 1989 and 2003. Switzerland’s Federal Criminal Court found him “guilty of violating the laws of war”. The verdict marked the first time a Liberian was convicted – either in the west African country or anywhere else – of war crimes committed during the conflict. |…

The British and Japanese prime ministers signed a new defence deal at the historic Tower of London when the pair met in London yesterday, Downing Street said. The agreement is the latest sign of London’s growing interest in the Asia-Pacific region, and Tokyo’s efforts to strengthen its alliances to face the challenges posed by China. The deal creates a legal basis for the deployment of British and Japanese troops on each others’ territory for training and other operations. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s office called it “the most significant defence agreement between the two countries in more than a century”. “This Reciprocal Access Agreement is hugely significant for both our nations – it cements our commitment to the Indo-Pacific and underlines our joint efforts to bolster economic security,” said Sunak. Japan…

A Turkish court sentenced the head of the Turkish Medical Association (TTB) to more than two years in prison for disseminating “terrorist propaganda” yesterday but ruled that she should be released after being in detention since October, human rights activists said. Dr Sebnem Korur Fincanci, a prominent rights defender and internationally- respected medic had called for a probe into the Turkish army’s alleged use of chemical arms against Kurdish militants in northern Iraq. Fincanci was detained and jailed in October for using a television interview to highlight the claims that first surfaced in media close to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). The militia alleged that 17 of its fighters had died in Turkish chemical weapons attacks in the mountains of northern Iraq that month. The PKK launched an insurgency against…

THERE is a sense of hopelessness spreading across the Premier Soccer League (PSL), and the time has come to find a way to streamline Mamelodi Sundowns' spending power in the transfer market. In Europe, the English Premiership and Uefa have restraints to curb clubs from extravagant spending. Both organisations have financial fair play rules to which clubs adhere. The rules also ensure that lower-division clubs do not spend far more on wages than they make in revenue. Judging by recent comments of DStv Premiership head coaches, a plan such as a salary cap is needed in the PSL. That would make sure that Sundowns cannot 'buy' the various titles that are at stake in South African professional football. Various coaches feel they are unable to compete with Sundowns in…

International banking group says that energy crunch is hurting SA economy BNP Paribas South Africa has warned that the could could experience the worst power cuts on record with at least 200 days of loadshedding this year, as Eskom deteriorates even further. This comes as Eskom on Tuesday night ramped up its rotational power cuts to Stage 6 in the evenings, and Stage 4 during the day until further notice, crippled by unplanned breakdowns. The struggling power utility has implemented loadshedding everyday since the beginning of the year as more than half of its generating capacity remains offline. BNP Paribas senior economist Jeff Schultz yesterday said their long-held expectation of more acute energy supply challenges continued to materialise, and energy supply crunch will hurt even as energy intensity falls. Schultz…

South Africa’s transition to net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 could cost almost R6 trillion, according to a report by the National Business Initiative (NBI), in collaboration with Business Unity South Africa (Busa) and the Boston Consulting Group (BCG). According to the report, titled “Financing South Africa’s Just Transition”, the power sector offers the greatest opportunity for affordable decarbonisation. The report focused on what sources of finance are available to fund the transition, and how climate finance can be unlocked as a critical enabler of South Africa’s transition, especially for high-priority investment areas. The report found that R1 trillion is required by 2030, and R5.9 trillion is needed by 2050 to fund the net-zero transition, but many of these investments, it said, were commercially viable and would reduce existing expenditure on…

WELCOME Marcus and his accomplice arguably pulled off one of the easiest bank heists the country has seen in recent years, when they made off with R3 million without a commotion in 2018. Dressed in security uniforms, they went into a Nedbank branch on Anderson Street in Klerksdorp where they claimed they were there to collect money, on April 11, 2018. They were given the cash and left the bank. It was only after they had left that the bank officials realised that the pair were bogus security officials. The Hawks were roped in and their investigation led to their arrest in Joburg on May 13 that year. They made their first appearance in court facing charges of theft and were each released on R30 000 bail. The case was…

SOUTH Africans are expected to know today how much they will pay for electricity as the National Energy Regulator of SA (NERSA) will announce its decision on whether to grant Eskom’s request to hike prices. Nersa had conducted public hearings across the country following Eskom’s Fifth Multi-Year Price Determination (MYPD5) Year 2 (2023/24) and Year 3 (2024/25) revenue application. In a statement yesterday, the regulator said it would make its decision public during a media briefing at 4.30pm. Eskom wants to increase its electricity prices again, by 38.10% for the 2023/24 financial year, estimated revenue of R335-billion in its latest request to Nersa, according to energy activists. This is at a time the power utility can barely keep the lights on, further putting a strain on businesses…

1.2kg boneless lamb pieces 3 large onions, chopped 2 large red tomatoes, chopped 1 tablespoon tomato paste 1 tablespoon garlic paste 1 heaped teaspoon ginger paste 1 tablespoon ground cumin 1 tablespoon ground coriander 2 tablespoons leaf or roasted masala 3 sticks cinnamons 5 cardamom seeds 1 tsp chilli powder 1 tsp turmeric/borrie 3 green chillies, chopped (you can add more or less) salt or to taste 1/4 cup cooking oil or less 6-8 medium potatoes, halved Chopped green dhanya for garnish Heat oil in a large pot, add the cinnamon and cardamom. Cook for 1 minute. Add the chopped onions, braise until light brown, and the onions are translucent, 5-10 minutes. Add garlic, ginger and chillies. Add tomatoes and tomato paste. Add spices and salt. Simmer for 15 minutes…

A SURGE in drug busts involving correctional services officials and members of the public attempting to smuggle contraband into prisons means an informer contingency plan is needed, the SA Sentenced and Awaiting Trial Prisoners Organisation (Sasapo) said. This as a 58-year-old suspect was arrested on Monday with drugs allegedly destined for the Voorberg Correctional Services Centre in Porterville. The Manenberg woman is expected to appear in the Athlone Magistrate’s Court on a charge of dealing in drugs. According to police spokesperson FC van Wyk, the Western Cape provincial extortion task team acted on information of a consignment of drugs and unknown items that were destined to be delivered to inmates at a prison. “The members executed a search at the indicated premises in Bevan Street, Greenhaven, Manenberg, and seized 385…

‘Poverty, inequality and unemployment are what we need to solve first’ EVERY nation has a right to a reliable, stable and secure source of energy. Unfortunately, this is not something that Africa’s most industrialised economy enjoys. While the world is switching to low-carbon fuel sources and renewables to avoid catastrophic and irreversible climate change, a just transition requires equal access to reliable electricity. That’s a factor that green activists don’t consider when they call for an immediate halt to fossil-fuel generation. The fact that the switch to cleaner fuels must be part of a just transition was made abundantly clear by the more than 1 300 South Africans, myself included, who attended one of the six public participation meetings to discuss Karpowership SA’s projects. These events were held in…

LUSAKA: Zambia has started rationing electricity supply to mining companies following reduced power generation after a drop in water flowing into Lake Kariba, the state-owned power utility Zesco said. Water levels were down at 1.66% of usable storage for the Kariba North Bank Power Station in Zambia and the Kariba South Bank Power Station on the Zimbabwean side of the lake, said the Zambezi River Authority, which manages the dam. The north bank power station has an installed capacity of 1 080 megawatts (mw), while the power station in Zimbabwe has a capacity of 1 050MW. Hydropower contributes to more than 75% of Zambia’s electricity. |…

KABUL: A suicide bomber blew himself up near Afghanistan’s foreign ministry, where a Chinese delegation had been due to meet yesterday, Taliban officials and witnesses said. An AFP team was conducting an interview inside the information ministry next door when the blast took place. More than 20 people were injured. In the aftermath, bodies lay strewn outside the high-walled compound of the ministry. The ministry itself did not appear to be badly damaged. Ahmadullah Muttaqi, a senior official in the prime minister’s office, said no foreigners were present at the time of the attack. |…

The fate of Soledar in east Ukraine was unclear yesterday with the Kremlin saying it was important not to “rush” to declare victory in Soledar, hours after Russia’s mercenary group Wagner claimed it had seized control of the town in east Ukraine. “Let’s not rush. Let’s wait for official announcements,” AFP reported Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov as saying in a statement. In the early hours yesterday, Wagner’s boss, Yevgeny Prigozhin, claimed his fighters controlled the salt mining city in eastern Ukraine. He also said some “urban battles” were still being fought in the town centre. Ukraine denied the claims, with its army declaring “Soledar was, is and will be Ukrainian”. Kyiv and Moscow’s forces have said that the battle for Soledar – a gateway town outside the key city of…

The Iranian Foreign Ministry summoned the Iraqi Ambassador to Tehran after a number of Iraqi officials called the Persian Gulf the “Arabian Gulf” during a regional football tournament, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said yesterday. “We summoned the ambassador of Iraq to the Foreign Ministry and notified the Iraqi side of the sensitivity of the great Iranian nation about the use of the exact and full term of the Persian Gulf,” Amirabdollahian was quoted as saying by Iran’s Tasnim news agency. On January 6, Fifa president Gianni Infantino attended the opening ceremony of the tournament, where he called the Persian Gulf “Arabian Gulf”. Muqtada Sadr, Iraq’s most influential Shia politician, also referred to the gulf in the same way in his greeting message to the guests of the…