Innholdsfortegnelse for 2022-06-01 i Mercury

The Minister of Police, Bheki Cele, Sir. Let me not beat around the bush. You have lied to Parliament. By even suggesting in your report to Parliament that police acted “decisively” in handling the July 2021 unrest, when the entire country, if not the world, who witnessed the gratuitous criminality and thuggery unfold, while visuals of police standing by doing nothing, is indeed mischievous, if not unbecoming of you as a supposedly responsible minister. If you were looking for a reason or an excuse to exonerate the inaction of the police under your watch, you could not have done a more pathetic job than you have. Further, your obsession and animus to demonise a particular race group – sadly, you did not have the courage to name such a group…

I have just witnessed the horrific sight of yet another poor soul lying dead on the tarmac at the Roger Sishi turn-off westbound on the M17. This is the second death at that point this year and follows a number of other deaths in recent years. Despite the existence of three safe crossings at St James Avenue Bridge, the Roger Sishi underpass, and the pedestrian bridge at the fire station – all within a few hundred metres, pedestrians in numbers continue to make this hazardous crossing daily, putting their lives and the lives of drivers at huge risk. There could not be a more dangerous spot to jump the fence. Westbound drivers are totally unsighted at the crest of the hill and on the bend and have no time to…

THE mind always boggles whenever our dear Minister of Transport opens his mouth; now he is proposing a new driving tax. This man should look at his own track record and see how well he has done running the transport sector. If the government needs more money, instead of creating all these weird and wonderful schemes, why not just cut the total government complement by half – it’s so bloated, it’s a joke compared with other countries. There would be an enormous saving in wages and associated corruption. This also makes sense in that probably half of all those employed in the government hardly do any work at all. This government cannot be allowed to introduce any more new schemes to generate revenue when due to their own inability, they…

Financial troubles of former Correctional Services bosses Linda Mti and Patrick Gillingham have forced the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria to postpone their fraud and corruption case to allow them to raise funds for their legal representation. Mti, the former head of Correctional Services, and Gillingham, the former Correctional Services chief financial officer, appeared in court along with former Bosasa employee Andries van Tonder on Monday. Former Bosasa chief operating officer Angelo Agrizzi – who is the fourth accused in the matter – was not in court. Mti and Gillingham, through their lawyers, requested a postponement to sort out their financial situation. The case against them was postponed to July 22. The court also heard that the pulmonologist appointed by the State had assessed Agrizzi and the outcome of…

The removal of the body of soccer star Senzo Meyiwa from a Vosloorus house on October 26, 2014, amounted to contamination of the crime scene. This was according to advocate Malesela Tefo, representing four of the five accused in the Meyiwa murder trial in the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, yesterday. Cross-examining forensic detective Sergeant Thabo Mosia, Tefo said one of the witnesses lined up would testify that Meyiwa was already dead when he was rushed to Clinix Botshelong- Empilweni Private Hospital. “The witness will testify that the deceased was taken to hospital in his car, (a BMW) X6, driven by Kelly Khumalo,” he said. Khumalo was Meyiwa’s girlfriend, and the house where the shooting took place belonged to her mother. The property has since been sold. Tefo told Mosia “the…

A 45-YEAR-OLD man convicted of rhino poaching has been sentenced to 28 years in prison by the Empangeni Regional Court. Michael Kleinbaas Masuku was convicted of conspiracy to hunt rhino, two counts of hunting/killing a protected species, and one count of hunting without a permit. The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson, Natasha Kara, said the incident took place in the Hluhluwe-Umfolozi Game Reserve in October 2018. Describing the incident, Kara said the men were armed with weapons and tools and gained access to the game reserve, where they shot one white and one black rhino. “They removed two horns from the first rhino and one horn from the second rhino before fleeing,” said Kara. Investigations led to Masuku, and he was arrested shortly after, she said. During the court…

Iran yesterday condemned a report by the UN nuclear watchdog as “not fair”. The report stated that traces of nuclear material were found at three undeclared sites, as talks on reviving a 2015 deal remain deadlocked. “Unfortunately, this report does not reflect the reality of the negotiations between Iran and the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency),” foreign ministry spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh said, referring to the report on Monday by the agency. “It’s not a fair and balanced report,” he said, adding: “We expect this path to be corrected.” The IAEA’s report came as talks to restore the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and major powers have seen no major developments since March. In the report, the watchdog said it still had questions which were “not clarified” regarding nuclear material previously…

Recife: The death toll from torrential rains that triggered floods and landslides in north-eastern Brazil has risen to 100, officials said yesterday, as emergency workers searched for more victims. The force of the landslides ripped apart houses in areas including Jardim Monteverde, a poor community outside the city of Recife. Rescue workers have found dozens of bodies buried in the mud that tore through the neighbourhood on Saturday, and said they expected to find more. At least 14 peopler were missing, said officials for the state of Pernambuco, scene of the latest deadly weather disaster to hit Brazil in recent months. | AFP…

Call to probe mining giant over allegations of corruption UNITED Democratic Movement (UDM) leader Bantu Holomisa says Public Protector (PP) Busisiwe Mkhwebane is capable of handling his request to investigate Glencore’s possible corruption links in South Africa. This follows former Eskom acting chief executive Matshela Koko’s assertion that President Cyril Ramaphosa, a known associate of the mining company, remains untouchable. Koko said that he had unsuccessfully engaged the PP to investigate Ramaphosa’s association with Glencore, and the implications their relationship had on the running of Eskom. “No institution wants to pursue anything related to Ramaphosa. I wrote to the public protector towards the end of 2020 and had an interview with her and her team on March 7, 2021, but I have not heard from them. I believe the…

Would you love to grow your own vegetables, if only you had the space, and there wasn't so much digging and, frankly, manure? Germany may have just the thing. Pre-planted vegetable gardens, rented for a season, were already growing in popularity as a source of recreation during the coronavirus pandemic, and a surge in food prices has now driven demand even higher. Meine Ernte ("My Harvest"), which rents out small allotments all over Germany for city dwellers to grow vegetables, has expanded its stock by a sixth to 3 500 plots this year to meet rising demand. "In the last two years, due to coronavirus and now also due to the situation in Ukraine, demand has increased very significantly," said co-founder Natalie Kirchbaumer at a garden on the outskirts of…

I LEARNED a lot about myself and my extended family this past week. My sister is visiting my home in the US from Durban and it is a pleasure to have her. Problem was it took her five days to get here. Jenny had delays upon airline delays resulting in three nights in hotels – in two nations – all paid for by the airline. What was scheduled to begin on Sunday in Cape Town and end on Monday evening in Indianapolis got extended to a Thursday midday arrival in Indianapolis. I was not the one travelling or inconvenienced but I really felt it. The unknown was keeping me awake at night. The time-related issues connected to the Covid-19 test had me catastrophising almost everything – far more than when…

Graduates from the world’s top tertiary institutions will be allowed to apply for a UK visa, however, their African counterparts won’t be so fortunate. According to the UK government, alumni who have graduated from top non-UK universities in the past five years will be able to apply – and they are not required to have a job offer. The universities include the California Institute of Technology, Harvard, John Hopkins University, University of British Columbia, Peking University, Karolinska Institute and the Kyoto University. The BBC reports that successful applicants will be given a working visa that will last for two years if they hold a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree, and three years if they have a PhD. They will also be able to switch to other long-term employment visas if they…

A businessman who was sought by the Mbombela-based Hawks’ Serious Commercial Crime Investigation Unit for fraud and contravention of the Tax Administration Act, handed himself over at their offices, accompanied by his lawyer this week. On May 26, the SAPS put out an alert that it was searching for Sifiso Innocent Mabuza, 39, after he had reneged on a promise to hand himself over to the police in connection with the charges that were brought against him. The court then issued a warrant for his arrest. The fraud case relates to matters that took place between 2018 and 2021. During that time, Mabuza was the director of Shishila Rural Trading whereby he allegedly submitted fraudulent tax returns to the SA Revenue Service (Sars) and prejudiced the receiver of revenue to…

RESIDENTS in the central, south, north and inner-west parts of the city are experiencing water disruptons due to repairs to flood-damaged infrastructure at the water works. The Durban Heights Water Treatment Works experienced water production interruptions while Umgeni Water works on pump repair. In other areas interruptions have been caused by reduced production output at the Wiggins Water Treatment Works caused by murky raw water. In a statement late on Monday night, the eThekwini Municipality said teams have been working on pump repairs after they were damaged by floods at the Durban Heights Water Treatment Works. “For this reason, the distribution network was disturbed, and this caused some reservoirs to run low, thus affecting water supply to consumers. “Repairs at the Durban Heights Water Treatment Works are at an advanced…

Lawmakers have unanimously passed a law that will force people convicted of Schedule 8 offences, including rape and murder to have DNA samples taken. Deputy Minister of Police Cassel Mathale told Parliament yesterday that they would do their best to immediately implement the Criminal Law (Forensic Procedures) Bill after President Ramaphosa signed it into law. Political parties said the law will open the door for people, who are convicted of rapes, murders and other violent crimes, to be linked to previous crimes. MPs said since 2017 almost 100 000 prisoners who had been in jail for violent crimes were released without their DNA samples taken and some could have committed more crimes while out. But after the National Assembly passed the bill, this would close the loophole in the system…

THE leaders of the EU have agreed to an embargo on Russian oil imports that will start kicking in near the end of the year and which exempts, for now, pipeline imports that Hungary and two other landlocked central European states rely on. The toughest sanction yet on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, was agreed on overnight after weeks of wrangling. It aims to remove 90% of Russia’s crude imports into the 27-nation bloc by year-end, senior officials said. “The purpose is to stop Russia’s aggressive war,” Latvian Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins said. Two-thirds of the Russian oil imported by the EU is delivered by tanker and one third through the Druzhba pipeline. The ban on the seaborne imports will be imposed with a phase-in period of six months…

KHARTOUM: The trial of four Sudanese protesters accused of killing a police officer has begun in Khartoum amid anti-military demonstrations and a heavy police presence. The defendants, who have become emblems of the anti-military protest movement, deny the charges. Security forces have detained figures connected to the protest movement since a coup ended a military-civilian power sharing arrangement in October. Lawyers say dozens remain in detention. Sudanese authorities have freed several dozen political detainees, although others remain jailed, after a lifting of a state of emergency. | Reuters…

The new tariffs that have been imposed by the eThekwini Municipality for the new financial year have been described as the lowest in years. Mayor Mxolisi Kaunda detailed the new tariffs as he tabled his budget for the 2022-2023 financial year at the Durban ICC yesterday. Kaunda described the R54 billion budget as being people-centred with a focus on the challenges faced by the city’s residents. The budget comes up for a vote before the full council in seven days where it is likely to be passed but amendments could still be made. Among the issues that raised concern was the increase of borrowing from R1bn to R1.5bn. The city said it had to increase the borrowings to accommodate the challenges it was facing as a result of the floods.…

IT SEEMS British Prime Minister Boris Johnson plans to mark Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee by announcing a return to imperial measurements – pounds and ounces, feet and inches and so on. That’s according to the London Guardian. It’s not clear whether this will be a sort of twos-up gesture to the EU as the squabble over the Northern Ireland Protocol deteriorates, or whether it’s an attempt to whip up support among his Brexit supporters as so much seems to be going wrong elsewhere. After all, who won the Battle of Waterloo? Britain uses a mix of imperial and metric measurements, with speed limits in miles per hour and milk and beer sold in pints. While it is legal to price goods in pounds and ounces, these have to be displayed…

IT WAS in Grade 7 ( standard 5) in 1959 when I first came into contact with a novel type of competition in my classroom. There was one “Razack” fellow who was never found at any time to be without some book in front of him. Whether it was lunch break or even during some class lesson, Razack just kept reading. He read anything. He opened the pages and just read away… This eventually created a sensation as some other curious learners in class joined and began to compete with each another to see who could read the most number of books at the end of the month. Razack, however, was always well ahead. My own passion for writing to newspapers had begun a few years earlier. I held the…

If things go according to the EFF’s wishes, the seat of Parliament would be relocated from Cape Town to its administrative seat in Tshwane. This emerged in the government gazette where EFF leader Julius Malema gave notice to table a private member’s bill to provide for the relocation of the national legislature. This comes as the Old Assembly and the New National Assembly buildings, damaged by fire earlier this year ,are still to be restored. According to the notice, Malema intends to introduce the Relocation of Parliament Bill during the second quarter of the 2022–23 financial year. Malema said the current location of Parliament created several problems for MPs, the Cabinet, the government and officials from organs of state and broader society who wished to participate in legislative and…

THIS year’s Royal Show, which opened last week, is extra-special as it coincides with the Royal Agricultural Society’s 170th anniversary. The organisers said the show, with some 500 exhibitors participating, will largely adhere to the successful ‘recipe’ of past years but will also have interesting additions. “From a livestock perspective, the Royal Show has been chosen to host two national championships, being the Hampshire Down and Ile de France sheep breeds. The competitive cattle and sheep sections will conclude their participation with the spectacular Gold Cup Cattle Parade in the main arena today. “Other agriculturally related displays of public interest include the Sheep and Wool Expo (with weekend sheep-shearing demonstrations), an informative exhibit by the Milk Producers Organisation, the Honey Hall and the ever-popular bird and rabbit sections.” They said…

KWAZULU-NATAL MEC for Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs Sipho Hlomuka told the Ad Hoc Joint Committee on Flood Disaster Relief and Recovery this week that the province will work towards tracking any backlogs in rebuilding, but that National Treasury must release funds. The committee held an oversight visit in KwaDukuza on Monday after a two-day roadshow. Hlomuka appealed to committee chairpersons Cedric Frolick and Jomo Nyambi to assist and ensure that national Treasury releases all funds allocated to KZN to rebuild after the floods. “I have met countless times with National Treasury and Cogta to request release of the funds, and I know they will ask us to reprioritise. However, we have reached our limit. We can’t reprioritise our budget any further; there are projects that can’t change because they…

‘All-inclusive’ conference stillborn owing to shambles, walkout and factions THERE might not have been chairs flying, but emotions, frustration with logistics, and an almost two-day delay characterised the MK All-Inclusive Conference (AIC) that was held at the East London International Convention Centre (ICC) recently. It was chaotic, as delegates, some elderly and fragile, were made to wait in the cold for transport that was not ideal for long travel, only to arrive to hostility and disrespect at the conference venue. Accommodation was also not properly arranged, with no transportation between it and the ICC. As if this incompetence was not enough, delegates did not have sight of the conference documents, including the supposed interim constitution, until they were at the conference. To top it all, an illegality was enforced by…

The grieving Texas town of Uvalde has begun laying to rest the 21 children and teachers who were killed in a mass shooting at an elementary school a week ago, with funerals for a pair of 10-year-old girls yesterday. The children were killed along with 17 other students, all aged 9 to 11, and two teachers by an 18-year-old gunman who burst into their Grade 4 classroom and opened fire with a high-velocity AR-15-style semi- automatic rifle. Several large media outlets in Texas, observed 21 minutes of silence – one minute for each of the victims. Over the next two weeks, a series of funerals will take place in the town of 16 000, which is nearly 80% Latino or Hispanic and largely Roman Catholic. Among those are services for…

Israel signed a free trade deal with the United Arab Emirates yesterday, its first with an Arab country, building on their US-brokered normalisation of diplomatic relations in 2020. Israel’s ambassador to the oil-rich UAE, Amir Hayek, tweeted “mabruk” – congratulations in Arabic – with a photo of Emirati and Israeli officials holding documents at a signing ceremony in Dubai. The Emirati envoy to Israel, Mohamed Al Khaja, hailed as an “unprecedented achievement” the deal that, according to the Israeli side, scraps customs duties on 96% of all products traded. “Businesses in both countries will benefit from faster access to markets and lower tariffs as our nations work together to increase trade, create jobs, promote new skills and deepen co- operation,” Khaja tweeted. The 2020 deal was part of the US-brokered…