Inhoudsopgave van 2022-08-24 - Star

Economists express concern that the recovery in the jobless rate may be a short-lived one THE RATE OF unemployment in South Africa surprised on the downside in the three months to June, but this has raised serious questions about the accuracy of data on the back of the expected economic slump in the period. Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) yesterday said South Africa’s unemployment rate fell for the second quarter by 0.6 of a percentage point to 33.9 percent in the second quarter, down from 34.5 percent in the first quarter. This was despite the adverse effects of extensive load shedding and disruptions to manufacturing and logistics caused by severe flooding in KwaZulu-Natal. The decline in the rate of joblessness means that unemployment in the country eased further…

THE SHARES of Merafe Resources dipped to a low of 12 percent yesterday despite it announcing an increase in its half-year profit and declared a 12c dividend – a 70 percent increase compared to the previous comparative period. However, the ferrochrome producer warned that for the remainder of the financial year it expected trouble in logistical and supply chain constraints and would take a cautious approach. The shares closed at R1.30 on the JSE yesterday, having decreased by almost 7 percent in the past six months. In its results for the six months ended June 30, 2022, yesterday, Merafe said headline earnings per share rose by 60 percent to 37 cents due to a weaker rand and higher chrome prices. Chief executive Zanele Matlala…

Student teacher must be held accountable for remarks, family say AUTHORITIES are probing a matter involving a 16-year-old Soweto learner who committed suicide after allegedly being called “sissy boy” by a student teacher. The incident happened in a Setswana class at PJ Simelane Secondary School in Dobsonville last week. The Grade 9 learner, Tiro Moalusi, allegedly committed suicide as a result of homophobic comments by the teacher. Moalusi’s aunt, Masingita Khosa, said last Tuesday was Tiro’s last after he left home for school. Towards the end of the day, Tiro's life changed after an encounter with the Setswana student teacher who allegedly called him “sisi bhuti (sissy boy)” in front of other pupils. “We as a family know that Tiro was gay. He was our gay and we had long…

African champions Banyana Banyana are set to receive a huge payday as Minister of Sport Nathi Mthethwa announced an increase to their original R5.8-million victory bonus for the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (Wafcon). “Banyana Banyana pledge of R5.8m, following the team’s recent 2022 Wafcon victory, is now increased to R15m,” Mthethwa confirmed on his social media account. “As big supporters of women’s sport, my department is proud of its support, not only to Banyana Banyana and the Proteas Netball team. In fact, the department’s contribution to big sports like cricket and rugby, is specifically ring-fenced for women. “Desiree Ellis and her team achieved what seemed like an impossible feat when they maintained a clean sheet in reaching the Wafcon finals in Morocco. She too gave us much to cheer…

Edndale Belachew is a man on a mission. The Maxed Elite Running Club athlete wants to dispel the generally held notion that East Africans “are not good at ultra-distance running”. While they have dominated the standard marathon and half-marathon for many years, Ethiopians, Kenyans, Ugandans and Somalians hardly ever feature in distances over 42.2km. But having gone some way to prove that Ethiopians can run fast and long by winning the 56km Two Oceans Marathon at his first attempt in April, Belachew has set his sights on becoming the first runner from East Africa to be crowned champion in the almost 90km-long Comrades Marathon. It is a Herculean task, especially given that he will be making his debut in The Ultimate Human Race on Sunday – Belachew ran further than…

One of the Premiership’s fiercest derbies comes under the spotlight as AmaZulu battle their arch rivals Golden Arrows at the Princess Magogo Stadium today. Usuthu are currently riding a wave of confidence, having collected 10 out of 12 available points in their opening four games of the season. However, coach Brandon Truter has played down his team’s impressive start, and feels it has little influence on how the match might turn out. “Derbies are always tough, and therefore, the form book and log standings go out of the window,” Truter said. “We are playing for pride and we’re playing for the bragging rights of the province. The KwaZulu-Natal derby isn’t like any other, and we saw it last season as well, because we were on a roll and Arrows came…

The World Rugby Sevens Series reaches a climax in Los Angeles this weekend, and the Blitzboks have pronounced themselves “ready” to see off the challenges of close rivals Australia and Argentina to clinch the overall title. The South Africans have just travelled halfway around the world to get to the west coast of the US, and star player Sako Makata says they are weary, but determined. “We will be ready,” Makata said. “It took us over 20 hours of travelling to get here, we have hardly eaten and not showered, so we are exhausted, but we are ready to go. “We did a ‘stay awake’ session at the beach after arrival, and the beauty of the place and the friendliness of the people perked us up already. “The fact that…

While the famous football stadium just down the road carries the nickname the ‘Theatre of Dreams’, Manchester’s Old Trafford cricket ground has more often than not created nightmares for the Proteas over the years. Tomorrow’s match is only the 10th Test match South Africa have played at Old Trafford, dating back to the first in 1924, and just the third in the post-isolation era. A bit like The Oval, SA have won just once in Manchester in those previous nine visits. It took centuries from Jackie McGlew, Johnny Waite and Paul Winslow to set up a narrow three-wicket victory there in 1955. In 2017, the Proteas’ batting let them down and they were thumped by 177 runs. The 1998 Test was one that SA, captained by Hansie Cronje, really should…

SOUTH Africa’s major financial institutions risk having the country’s entire financial sector grey-listed internationally if they continue to rely on contract law and the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) judgment – Bredenkamp and Others vs Standard Bank – to arbitrarily unbank clients without first involving law enforcement agencies. Instead of acting unilaterally against organisations and individuals accused of unlawful financial activity, banks should follow the Financial Action Task Force’s (FATF’s) rules. The Financial Intelligence Centre’s (FIC’s) executive manager for legal and policy, Pieter Smit, said earlier this year that it was unacceptable for banks to prematurely close bank accounts since that jeopardised the FIC’s ability to act. “This is, in fact, not a behaviour that the FIC encourages. We are very clear when we speak to the banks that we…

AVENG’s Australasia construction and engineering subsidiary has secured 91 percent of its budgeted work for financial 2023, while the group’s open-cut contract mining business Moolmans has secured 78 percent of its budgeted revenue for the period. “We are suitably equipped to continue on our path of sustainable, profitable growth,” chief executive Sean Flanagan said at the release of the annual results for the 2022 financial year, in an online presentation, yesterday. He said they had five key growth levers: an optimised balance sheet, the specialist capabilities of McConnell Dowell particularly in rail, marine and green energy, the group’s people and systems, the optimisation of fleet and equipment and the ESG framework. Talks to sell the non-core Trident Steel were under way and the proceeds would likely erase debt…

FEMICIDE convict Sandile Kagiso Mantsoe, 33, is facing new charges relating to an elaborate investment scheme that targeted 180 public servants working for government departments and municipalities. Mantsoe, who is the sole director of Trillion Dollar Legacy, is accused of luring unsuspecting government employees into investing R2 million in his company. The alleged crimes happened two years before he was arrested over the fatal stabbing of his 22-year-old former girlfriend, Karabo Mokoena, and burning her body in a field in Joburg in 2018. Mantsoe appeared in the Evander Regional Court in Mpumalanga on charges of fraud yesterday after being subpoenaed while serving his sentence at the privately managed Mangaung Correctional Centre in Bloemfontein, Free State. “It is alleged in December 2016, the accused visited many government offices, including the…

A SOUTH African man, 30, has appeared in the Beitbridge Magistrate’s Court in Zimbabwe on charges of smuggling a pistol and 50 rounds of live ammunition into the neighbouring country. State-owned The Herald newspaper in Zimbabwe reported that Tshililo Mathabi from Thohoyandou, Limpopo, was arrested on Friday and charged with illegal possession of a firearm. Mathabi appeared before magistrate Annia Chimweta and was remanded in custody until September 2 for trial. The case was postponed to wait for a ballistic report on the firearm. The prosecution said Mathabi entered Zimbabwe on Friday through the Beitbridge border post. Alert police officers noticed a firearm holster. After a body search, Mathabi was allegedly found with a Berretta pistol with an empty magazine. At least 50 bullets were allegedly found in Mathabi’s belongings.…

It looks like things are headed in the trajectory that Big Zulu wanted after renowned rapper K.O (Ntokozo Mdluli) responded to his much-talked about diss with a fiery diss track. The Mali Eningi hitmaker waged war after taking aim at several local hip-hop heavyweights such as Cassper Nyovest, Emtee, Stogie T, AKA, Nota, K.O and Duncan. Since its release, music fans have been eagerly waiting responses from the artists mentioned on the controversial diss track titled 150 Bars. The multiaward-winning rapper K.O who also caught the strays has responded with a track Omega freestyle, leaving social media in a frenzy. The Skhanda Love smash hitmaker is known as one of the greatest in the game, and his fans did not doubt that Big Zulu would have what he asked for…

A steel company is helping build e-learning capacity for South African schools as it invested R1 million in a locally developed e-learning ecosystem available to more than 200 learners recently. Steel company Aveng Trident Steel has assisted in building the country’s access to digital education after investing R1m in e-learning ecosystem Odin Education. The investment paid off as the company recently handed over more than 200 dedicated educational technology tablets to the Grade 11 class at Cowan High School in Gqeberha in the Eastern Cape, as the learners started the second semester countdown towards their critical matric year. “Currently used by almost 3 000 school learners in six provinces, the tablets are locked for educational purposes only and do not allow distracting social media or entertainment platforms,” the company said.…

Football doesn’t allow for any lengthy bouts of festivity, and equally no time to sulk about disappointments suffered in a previous game. Wipe out your eyes and it’s time to prepare for the next 90 minutes. And Mamelodi Sundowns know this better than most teams, considering their congested fixture list every season. Often it is about managing the celebrations for Masandawana, though, rather than having to pick themselves up. But that’s the situation the champions find themselves in ahead of hosting Stellenbosch FC at Loftus Versfeld today (5pm kick-off). It’s been a rather strange start to the season for Sundowns. Emphatic victories over championship rivals Cape Town City (2-0) and Kaizer Chiefs (4-0) have been achieved, but it’s been interspersed with a shock 1-0 defeat to TS Galaxy and 1-1…

Orlando Pirates’ victory hopes will rest heavily on their ability to break down Marumo Gallants’ compact defence in their Premiership clash at Orlando Stadium today (7.30pm kick-off). Pirates were held to a goalless draw by SuperSport United on Sunday, but there were signs that Spanish coach Jose Riveiro is starting to establish who his starting XI should be, and the team have started to gel. Gallants were held to a 2-2 draw by Royal AM, who were headed for defeat, but Brazilian Ricardo Nascimento came to their rescue with an injury-time equaliser. The outcome meant that Gallants retained their unbeaten four-match streak, with four draws in as many matches since the start of the season. Gallants’ French mentor Romain Folz said his team came within a whisker of their first…

The return of veteran backs Kurtley Beale and Bernard Foley has raised Australian morale as they look to rebound against the Springboks in the Rugby Championship on Saturday. The injury-hit Wallabies were thrashed 48-17 by Argentina in San Juan in their last match, and are set to face the world champion Boks in Adelaide. Utility back Beale has not featured for the Wallabies since late 2021, while Foley was named last week in his first Australia squad since the 2019 World Cup. “They’re big personalities, both of them,” wing Andrew Kellaway told reporters yesterday. “Kurtley brings his infectious laugh everywhere he goes, so he’s firstly bringing the morale up. “He’s one of those guys who pumps up everyone around him. That’s a really great thing. And Bernard’s the same. “Having…

Does “Bouncebackability” exist within the broader framework of “Bazball”? That will be the dominant theme as England’s new approach, busted for the first time last week, faces a new examination in Manchester. South Africa are expecting England to hit back hard, as any team would after an embarrassing defeat of the kind Ben Stokes’ team suffered in the first Test. “Coming into this series, they played some really good cricket and fought themselves out of situations where they were not favoured to win Test matches,” Keshav Maharaj said. “We know what they are capable of, and that they have some really world-class players in their team.” Maharaj offered the now cliched explanation about the Proteas: they would concentrate on themselves, their own processes and look to repeat those things that…

Sasol yesterday reinstated a dividend to shareholders, after putting it on ice for the past two years, as its annual earnings surged, boosted by high global commodity prices. In its financial results for the year ended June 30, 2022, the chemicals and energy group said shareholders would receive a R9.34 billion dividend, R14.70 per share, which is also the highest dividend per share the group has paid. Headline earnings per share increased by 20 percent to R47.58 per share compared to the prior year. Earnings before interest and tax of R61.4bn grew from R16.62bn in the prior year. Sasol said this was offset by lower volume performance, mainly due to the operational challenges experienced in the first half of the financial year. But it said the performance had…

OMNIA Holdings, a JSE-listed diversified chemicals group, yesterday said that Global Credit Ratings (GCR) had affirmed its ratings, with the outlook upgraded from stable to positive. CGR maintained its long and short-term national scale issuer ratings at A(ZA) and A1(ZA), respectively. Omnia chief executive Seelan Gobalsamy said the rating affirmed Omnia’s continued strategy execution and value creation for stakeholders over the past three years. “As we stabilised and renewed the company, improvements in our financial position and operational resilience have lifted our credit profile and rating. We continue to closely manage our capital and liquidity, particularly in the current volatile economic and trading environment,” he said. According to Omnia, which is valued at R10.4 billion, the rating upgrade reflected GCR’s view that Omnia’s earnings profile will continue to…

The National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) says it has been vindicated by the Labour Court’s decision to dismiss the recent contempt of court application by its former second deputy president, Ruth Ntlokotse. Yesterday, the court in Johannesburg dismissed Ntlokotse’s application to have the recent Numsa national congress declared null and void after it allegedly failed to comply with its constitution. The ruling comes after Ntlokotse filed an urgent application seeking to overturn and interdict the Numsa congress and have the court declare it null and void as the union had failed to comply with a ruling made by Judge Graham Moshoana, who had interdicted the congress until Numsa had complied with its own constitution. This resulted in the postponement of the congress for two days, with Numsa calling…

FORMER ANC MP and ActionSA Western Cape provincial chairperson Vytjie Mentor was yesterday mourned and remembered in different ways for her role in the fight against state capture. Her party, ActionSA, which she joined towards the end of her political career in 2020, remembered her for sounding the alarm on state capture during her five days before the State Capture Commission. “She was a true patriot who served her country even against criticism. We will keep her family and friends in our thoughts and prayers and ask that her loved ones be given privacy to grieve during this time,” ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba said. Black First, Land First leader Andile Mngxitama’s memory of Mentor is that of an “agent” who sold herself to advance a narrative of white monopoly capital.…

SANDF soldiers have started repairing a road in eSkebheni, Inanda, north of Durban, following April’s heavy rains and flooding. Major Mpho Mathebula said soldiers began road repairs last week. “Several roads were either washed away or damaged, isolating and restricting community members,” Mathebula said. “Those with cars in the area have not been able to utilise them to get to work or home, depending on their location when the roads were washed away.” Resident Nonhlanhla Dlamini said she was on her way home when the road was washed away. “I have not been able to park my car in my garage for four months,” Dlamini said. “Since that day I have been parking my car at another house and walking home because there is no longer a road. Others are…

WITH five reported cases of monkeypox in South Africa, health expert and member of the People’s Health Movement, Professor Louis Reynolds, has cautioned over acting with haste at the expense of crucial health programmes. On Friday, Health Minister Dr Joe Phaahla confirmed that five cases of monkeypox were reported, with the most recent case that of a Joburg man, 28, with a travel history to the Netherlands and Spain. “These pandemics and health crises are going to continue. If our nation is going to run around, dropping everything to respond to each pandemic, and the slight differences it has with the previous pandemic, we keep getting sidetracked from developing our health system,” Reynolds said. “This would divert resources from routine programmes such as TB, HIV, childhood immunisation, rehabilitation,…

When Idols SA made new changes on the show after Unathi Nkayi and Randall Abrahams’s departure, many viewers hoped there would be a new spark of entertainment. Instead, things seem to be going downhill. Since the launch of the new season, a drop in viewership has been seen in the past few months, according to reports. Idols SA introduced the actress Thembi Seete, rapper-producer JR Bogopa and also brought back Somizi Mhlongo to the judging panel. However, the new panel does not seem to have made any effect on enticing viewers, evoking questions around bringing back Nkayi and Abrahams to revive the show. According to entertainment reporter Phil Mphela, the show’s ratings have plummeted drastically. “Season 18’s debut month has been a lukewarm affair. The intro of new judges…

Internationally-acclaimed comedian, and South Africa’s favourite satirist, Trevor Noah and The Daily Show have partnered with local start-up VoiceMap to provide a humorous self-guided audio tour reliving the January 6 Capitol Insurrection event last year, where pro-Trump rioters stormed Washington DC’s Capitol Building. In this irreverent audio tour, In the Footsteps of the Freedomsurrection, Noah revisits the events before and after Donald Trump called on his followers to walk down Pennsylvania Avenue to contest alleged “voter fraud”, and President Joe Biden’s election victory. The Daily Show host chimes in at the tour’s start to explain that the self-guided tour uses GPS to play audio automatically, and provide turn-by-turn directions for visitors. “That’s right, your phone knows where you are at all times,” Noah said. The tour was described…

The events of August 17 in Steve Tshwete Local Municipality are a reminder our democracy is a shame. A day after commemorating the 10th anniversary of the Marikana massacre, four protesting workers were shot, two of them fatally. The number is said to have risen by another fatality. It is disturbing to learn the killings were done by a private security company, with the police present. This is the same company that the South African Municipal Workers Union was complaining about in June, stating reasons that came to be true on August 17. The barbaric acts are also an exposition of the local municipality that it is incapable of dealing with labour disputes and lacks capacity to deal with security matters. The call for the in-sourcing of such services should…

Not many can work out why Warrick Gelant did not fill in for Kurt-Lee Arendse against the All Blacks at Ellis Park in the first place, but now that he is in the team, he says he has a licence to thrill against the Wallabies. The hot-stepping Gelant will be on the right wing for Saturday’s Rugby Championship match against the Wallabies in Adelaide, coming into the side after Jesse Kriel suffered a concussion early in the defeat to the New Zealanders, and he said from the South Australian city yesterday that he has the freedom to play his natural game. The 27-year-old Gelant earned the nickname ‘Boogie’ from his teammates at Tuks in the 2014 Varsity Cup, and the name has settled well with him, especially this season in…

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag said a change in attitude and spirit from his players was the reason behind a huge 2-1 win over Liverpool on Monday to lift the gloom around Old Trafford. The Dutch coach became the first United manager to lose his opening two games in charge for more than a century as defeats to Brighton & Hove Albion and Brentford left the Red Devils bottom of the Premier League for the first time in 30 years. On a big night for Ten Hag, his decision to drop Cristiano Ronaldo and club captain Harry Maguire paid dividends as United’s high tempo blitzed Liverpool for the opening 30 minutes. Jadon Sancho gave the home side a deserved halftime lead, before Marcus Rashford’s first goal since January put…