Table of contents for 2022-05-30 in Cape Times

From page 1 Yabo said: “The 11th regional conference is therefore postponed until further notice. The ANC in Greater Tshwane Region would like to commend the progress made and effort put in by the Conference Preparatory Committee to ensure that all the other Constitutional requirements are met on time.” The conference will take place 10 months later than its scheduled time, as provided for in the ANC constitution due to the National State of Disaster that was lifted in April. Regional co-ordinator Eugene “Bonzo” Modise is known to be one of the contenders for the party’s chairperson position. It remained unclear whether the ANC council chief whip Aaron Maluleka would finally be persuaded by lobbyists, who wanted him to contest for the top post in the region. On the other…

THREE former senior Matzikama Municipality officials and a man linked to a service provider are the latest to be arrested by the Hawks for alleged personal protective equipment (PPE) fraud worth nearly R400 000. They are charged with fraud for unlawfully colluding with a service provider that was allegedly awarded a tender without following set supply chain procedures during April 2020. The accused, Matzikama former acting municipal manager Aldrick Ivan Hendricks, Covid-19 coordinator Isak Edward Jenner, acting chief financial officer Jafta Booysen, and Nicolaas Jacobus Klazen appeared briefly in the Vredendal Magistrate’s Court on Thursday. They are currently out on R5 000 bail each, and the matter has been postponed to July 12. Their arrest comes after the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) revealed that they had received allegations relating to…

INNOCENT people are being massacred across the US heartland because an ambiguous, outdated constitutional law empowers citizens to own guns. It is a sad reality, because politicians are beholden to the gun lobby. The latest massacre in Texas where 19 young children and others were brutally gunned down in an orgy of relentless fire power is a graphic display of American culture, based on mindless violence. The latest mass killings has turned the US into “the land of the deranged and the home of the fearful”. Violence is now part of the American way of life, from womb to tomb. It has been pervasive from that country’s earliest day’s almost 400 years ago. The US was conceived and nurtured by violence, they are entertained by it, with 200 million guns…

YOUR Tuesday edition “shock as elderly man thrown out of train”, refers. It is a shock to read how this passenger was treated by an official. I presume and hope that Prasa has taken the necessary action against the official concerned. While a proper investigation should be taking place, the Prasa employee should be suspended pending the outcome of a disciplinary inquiry. Unfortunately, Prasa is notorious for having these disciplinary inquiries many months after the event. The individual then draws a salary for all that time waiting for the investigation and the final hearing. In some cases this could take years. I trust the human resources department at Prasa will not make a botch up of this one. The witnesses have come forward, they are available immediately and the accused…

MORE than 50 000 people in the waste management sector lost their jobs because of the negative economic impact of Covid-19 between 2020 and 2021. This came to light following a parliamentary question by EFF MP, Andrew Arnolds to Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Barbara Creecy. Creecy said: “In a quest to protect South African citizens from the novel coronavirus, the lockdown resulted in a shock in the labour market and a big change in the way people went about doing their work. Due to Covid-19 lockdown and economic impacts, the sector has lost over 51 000 jobs between 2020 and 2021, of which most jobs lost were accounted to the formal sector losing over 55 000 jobs, while the informal lost just under 4000 jobs.” Arnolds also…

LAST year Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe commented that objections to oil and gas developments in the name of environmental protection could be construed “as apartheid and colonialism of a special type”. Some may have perceived his comments as abrasive or heavy-handed, but they certainly did make one step back and think. South Africa is an extraordinary country with many laudable developments and accomplishments, including a progressive Constitution and an independent legal system that provides individuals with the ability to push back against government decision-making. However, when it comes to the scale and severity of the energy security crisis in modern-day South Africa, bowing to the objections of those who seek to act against government objectives or processes has exacerbated an issue into an emergency. We all acknowledge that mitigating factors…

It was banned for years and its authors – including the celebrated Ngugi wa Thiong’o – imprisoned, but after more than four decades, Kenya’s most famous play is finally home. As the lights dim and a hush settles over the Nairobi audience, the theatre explodes into song and actors dance down the aisle. It is a scene few could have imagined. The tumultuous history of the drama Ngaahika Ndeenda (I will marry when I want) means it has not seen the light of day on a Kenyan stage since 1977, when it was performed by peasants and factory workers in the central town of Limuru. Its withering take on the exploitation of ordinary Kenyans by the country’s elite hit home and the government wasted no time in shutting down the…

Jerusalem braced for a controversial “flag march” yesterday as Israelis mobilised to commemorate the city’s unification and Palestinian groups threatened retaliation over the annual rally that sparked a war last year. Tensions were high in the Old City, and at the Al-Aqsa mosque compound. Al-Aqsa is Islam’s third holiest place and also Judaism’s holiest site which Jews call the Temple Mount. Israeli police said a small group of Palestinians threw rocks at officers from inside the mosque. There were no reported injuries. Last year on what Israelis call “Jerusalem Day”, Hamas fired rockets at the city, prompting retaliatory strikes and triggering an 11-day war in the Gaza Strip. The fighting cost the lives of 260 Palestinians and 14 people were killed in Israel. Hamas warned last week against marchers passing…

Colombo: Cash-strapped Sri Lanka took delivery of Russian oil at the weekend to restart operations at the country’s only refinery, energy minister Kanchana Wijesekera said. The island nation is suffering its worst economic meltdown since independence, with shortages of fuel and other vital goods making life miserable for its 22 million people. The state-run Ceylon Petroleum Corporation refinery was closed in March when the government was unable to finance crude imports. The Russian crude oil delivery had been waiting offshore as the country tried to raise $75 million (about R2 billion) to pay for it, Wijesekera said. |…

African Equity Empowerment Investments (AEEI), the black owned and controlled investment holding company, said on Friday net asset value per share fell 11.49 percent to 1 058.40 cents in the six months to February 28. No interim dividend was declared, so cash could be used to reduce debt. The company has interests in fishing, events and tourism, technology, health and beauty, biotherapeutics and it holds other strategic investments. Directors said they were confident strategies were in place to yield positive shareholder gains in the long term. In the six months, the basic loss per share increased to the equivalent of 23.71c from 12.33c, mostly due to a reduction in operating profits from the technology division due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and a restructuring. Technology…

A MASS meeting of students at the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) last Wednesday brought learning and teaching to a halt, as they addressed issues affecting students’ performance. Organised by the South African Student’s Congress (Sasco), the meeting affected operations at departments which work with various issues, among them the certification of those who benefit from the National Student Fund (NSFAS), accommodation and fees. Sasco said it was its considered view that there were serious issues asy play, which it had tried to escalate through student representative deployees, to no avail. Issues included withholding of certificates for NSFAS students, lack of adequate accommodation and outstanding fees. The meeting discussed NSFAS and the finance department, as there were students who had been funded by NSFAS who graduated without having received their…

BREWERIES GIANT, SAB, has been unsuccessful in its legal challenge to the government’s alcohol ban imposed during the first few months of the Covid-19 pandemic. Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) spokesperson, Lungile Mtshali, said they welcomed the Western Cape High Court’s ruling handed down on Friday, saying it “reinforced what we have said all along”. “The decision to institute the ban was taken for the public’s good. It had to be done to survive and we never retained the regulations beyond any longer than what was necessary. We welcome the judgment,” said Mtshali. SAB did not respond to media enquiries by deadline yesterday. According to thecompany’s founding affidavit, the economic losses to the country as a result of the alcohol bans included tax losses estimated at R25 billion in…

THE recent peeing incident at Stellenbosch University has again exposed the racial paranoia that afflicts many South Africans. They see a racist around every corner, much like McCarthyism in 1950s America where there was a Communist under every bush. Throw social media into the mix where anyone with a device believes they’re an expert on the subject, and we have people sacrificed on the altar of public opinion before due process is followed. The media love it – nothing like a juicy racism allegation to get the public’s attention. Such is the case with Theuns du Toit, a young student at the university. In the early hours of the morning he enters the room of a friend at Huis Marais residence and proceeds to relieve himself in the corner,…

AL JAZEERA Media Network has assigned a legal team to refer the killing of its journalist Shireen Abu Akleh to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague. The network said in a statement on Thursday that it has formed an international coalition that consists of its legal team along with international experts, and is preparing a dossier on the murder of Abu Akleh for submission to the ICC prosecutor. In addition to the killing of Abu Akleh, who was shot dead by Israeli forces on May 11 near the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank, the ICC submission will also include the Israeli bombing “and total destruction” of Al Jazeera’s office in Gaza in May, 2021 and “the continuous incitements and attacks” on Al Jazeera journalists working…

MISSING persons organisations and police have asked the public to remain vigilant amid an apparent increase in kidnapping, attempted kidnappings and missing person alerts in recent weeks. Police spokesperson Andrè Traut said while there were no comparative figures, cases were prioritised and dealt with sensitively. Missing Children SA’s national co-ordinator, Bianca van Aswegen, said citizens should not wait to report missing people. “We have seen an increase in kidnappings and human trafficking that is increasing in South Africa. “We ask the people be more vigilant and aware of their surroundings. “Also to please not wait before opening a missing person’s case as there is no waiting period, the quicker the case is opened the quicker action can be taken.” Western Cape Missing Persons Unit (WCPMU) founder, Candice van der Rheede,…

A ROBERTSON teacher who expected to be appointed in a departmental head post at Langeberg Secondary School has lost an unfair labour practice application. In 2020, Francen September applied for a post as departmental head for the FET (Further Education and Training) phase advertised by the Western Cape Education Department (WCED). September placed into dispute that he was not eligible to teach in this phase, testifying that he “was nominated as the best suited candidate by the school governing body (SGB) at Langeberg Secondary School” and “during the pandemic I taught Afrikaans at Grade 10 and 11 level which are in the FET phase”. This was the only year he taught in the FET phase. September said he taught Grade 9 for 10 years and the responsibilities of the departmental…

ANC hasn’t removed any corrupt individuals in its ranks, and is unlikely to do so THE ANC members who are opposed to corruption and factionalism do not need any new information to judge whether individuals implicated in the Zondo Commission’s reports or standing trial on criminal charges are fit to stay in office. Since the ANC hasn’t removed them yet, there is a good chance it never will. How should ordinary citizens receive the news that ANC treasurer-general Paul Mashatile sent a document entitled “Terms and Conditions” to provincial and regional structures? The document, which makes official the “step-aside rule” that members indicted in a court of law cannot stand for election in any leadership position in the party or hold government positions, illustrates an already known story. It says…

US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden visited Uvalde yesterday to console residents mourning 19 children and two teachers who were gunned down at a school in the small Texas town. Biden called for action to prevent future massacres in a country where efforts to tighten firearms regulations have repeatedly failed. “We cannot outlaw tragedy, I know, but we can make America safer. We can finally do what we have to do to protect the lives of the people and of our children,” Biden said on Saturday in a speech at the University of Delaware. Demands for accountability in Uvalde increased at the weekend after officials acknowledged that law enforcement officers improperly waited an excruciatingly long time before rushing the classroom where gunman Salvador Ramos, 18, killed 19…

LOS ANGELES: Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan’s daughter Lilibet will celebrate her first birthday in England. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex will fly to the UK from their home in California with Lillibet and 3-year-old Archie to celebrate Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee. While Lilibet will turn 1 on June 4, it is unclear how the family will mark the birthday as the royals will be busy with Jubilee events. A source told The Sun newspaper: “Harry and Meghan will want to celebrate Lilibet’s birthday somehow with their family. But diaries are full on Saturday. There isn’t much wriggle room to fit in a birthday party for a 1-year-old. “These events have been planned far in advance and the Sussexes have not exactly made their plans clear or public.”…

Port-au-Prince: A French national has been kidnapped in Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince, adding yet another abduction case to a long line of similar incidents, French broadcaster LCI reported on Saturday, citing police sources. Police said the victim was a 45-year-old man who worked as a computer consultant and frequently visited Haiti for professional reasons. Preliminary reports revealed that heavily armed men forced him into a vehicle, a source said. Several residents tried to stop the kidnappers who responded with violence and fled the scene with the victim. More than 1 000 people were kidnapped in Haiti last year, and more than 200 have been taken so far this year. |…

Bogota: Colombians voted yesterday in a first round of presidential elections, with a leftist poised for victory for the first time in the country’s troubled history. The vote takes place in a tense atmosphere, a year after a brutal security crackdown on protests that were fueled by deepening socioeconomic woes. Polls show that many Colombians are pinning their hopes on Gustavo Petro, 62, an ex-guerrilla and former mayor of Bogota, to address poverty, rural violence, urban crime and endemic corruption. To avoid a June 19 run-off against Federico Gutierrez, 42, Petro would need to garner more than 50% of first-round votes cast. |…

Cash generation across budget retail operator Pepkor was robust in spite of economic headwinds and the group – which also benefited from a Streinhoff settlement payment – reported a sharp 93 percent rise in cash sales to R4.1 billion in the half-year to March 31. The non-recurring settlement payment by Steinhoff, which has a 50.6 percent stake in the budget retailer, emanated from an accounting scam unearthed in 2017. This drove down the share price in Steinhoff, with the company sub- sequently deciding to pay a settle- ment to shareholders for the share losses. The settlement from Steinhoff benefited Pepkor by R429 million or 12 cents per share, the company said on Friday, highlighting that it was “pleased to honour its commitment to shareholders…

From page 1 should the party drift towards that direction. It’s always difficult, if not impossible, to win against the party infrastructure. I think we’ve seen that in the past, even where former leaders of parties were kicked out of political office. An example is former president Jacob Zuma when he didn’t want to (leave) office and the party moved on to threaten that they would impeach him and he would lose the benefits that come with a presidency. I think the DA can place the Speaker in the same position, and he will ultimately consider this and move.” Matsilele said factional politics was not limited to one or two parties but most parties were grappling with internal fissures. “They are also struggling with internal fractures that threaten administrative duties…

BERGRIVIER’S municipal manager has, in the face of community criticism, defended the temporary appointment of a 73-year-old senior manager, saying there were no other suitable candidates to fill the position. Residents have been up in arms over the appointment of Johan le Roux as the head of facilities in the municipality earlier this month. Rural and Farmworker Development Organisation executive director, Billy Claasen, said residents were “upset because there were a lot of young people in Bergrivier communities who were sitting at home without jobs”. “Residents feel that the municipality has neglected them, they feel that to appoint such an old white male is a slap in the face to our young people. “But this shows how this DA-led municipality’s mayor, municipal manager, directors and councillors are spitting and urinating…

SENIOR suspended DA member Masizole Mnqasela, who remains adamant that he is not guilty, says he is yet to be approached by the Hawks about the fraud case against him. Mnqasela, also the Speaker of the Western Cape legislature, was suspended on Friday by the Western Cape’s Provincial Executive Committee (PEC) from all party activities pending the finalisation of an investigation and/or the institution of disciplinary proceedings against him. Two alleged whistle-blowers had allegedly provided Premier Alan Winde with submissions relating to subsistence, travel and entertainment allowance claims. The PEC’s chairperson Jaco Londt said the decision to suspend Mnqasela was based on the findings of an investigation report by the DA’s Federal Legal Commission that there was sufficient credibility to the allegations relating to irregularities. “Mr Mnqasela was given an…

PLEASE Mr Mthethwa, would Bloem’s National Women’s Monument be renamed because it discriminates against men? As an Afrikaans speaker in his 80s, cherishing the soul of my mother tongue, I would like to appeal to the good minister, Nathi Mthethwa, to seriously rethink his “non-negotiable command” that the Afrikaans Language Monument in Paarl be renamed “something more inclusive”. With all due respect, Mr Mthethwa, the monument was specially designed to depict the integration of many other languages into the Afrikaans language, and is full of Afrikaans-language symbolism in all its structures. These concrete structures on the mountain would make no sense because of their integral historic nature, if they were superimposed on to a wider group of people who have to be included for the sake of “nation-building”. Please, sir,…

THE pleasure of getting old, I rather call this sarcastically, getting old ain’t for sissies. If one would ask me, what is the pleasure of getting 80+? It’s not much fun anymore … Old folk are feeding the pharmaceutical industry, with the chemist wanting to live as well. My personal problem hit me out of the blue. My brain in total confusion, the ambulance has taken me to MediClinic in Milnerton. I have always been a healthy person my whole life, so I did not have the faintest idea what was awaiting me. I did not remember the day, date or even my name. With my very bad bladder infection I landed in the ICU. To say the least, I noticed, if this is what a hospital is all about,…

PATIENTS over 45 years undergoing high-risk noncardiac surgery, should have a blood test to help diagnose and monitor heart failure as part of risk assessment. This is according to a study published in the South African Medical Journal by experts from hospitals across the province as well as UCT and University of KwaZulu-Natal. The study is titled A prospective observational study of preoperative natriuretic peptide (NP) testing in adult non-cardiac surgical patients in hospitals in Western Cape Province, South Africa. The authors sought to develop a model to identify surgical patients who may benefit from preoperative NP screening (blood test to help diagnose and monitor heart failure). The researchers conducted it in seven public sector hospitals in the Western Cape - Paarl, Victoria, Mitchells Plain, George, Worcester and New Somerset…

FORMER Proteas cricketers Vernon Philander, Herschelle Gibbs, and JP Duminy, as well Stormers superstar, Scarra Ntubeni put their best foot forward yesterday as they teed off to help raise funds for the Mitchells Plain Golf Club (MPGC). The event took place at Erinvale Golf Estate in Somerset West. “The Mitchells Plain Golf Club is a golf developing programme which introduces at-risk youth from the Cape Flats and surrounding communities to a sport that can help take them away from gangsterism, crime and substance abuse. We took golf because we wanted them to try a new sport which can offer them a new pathway into life,” said club co-chairperson Jehad Kasu. “The purpose of this fundraising event is to celebrate the sport and to capacitate the organisation throughout the year. “This…

China has signed a deal with Samoa to strengthen diplomatic relations, while Australia’s new leader said he had a “comprehensive plan” for the Pacific, as Beijing and Canberra continued their rival campaigns to woo nations in the region. China is building on a security pact it recently signed with the Solomon Islands, which has alarmed the US and its allies such as Australia as they fear a stepped-up military presence by Beijing. Australia’s new centre-left government has made the Pacific Islands an early diplomatic priority. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who was sworn into office last Monday, said that his Labor government’s plan included a defence training school, support for maritime security, a boost in aid and re-engaging the region on climate change. “We will be proactive in the region, we…

Russian Foreign Ministry spokes- person Maria Zakharova said on Saturday that the Western statements about Russia blocking foreign ships in the Black and Azov seas were unfounded, as Moscow opens two humanitarian corridors every day, but the Ukrainian authorities refuse to co-operate. The port in Mariupol has resumed work after Russian forces gained control of it, “so the navigating channel was unblocked, and the conditions were created for the ships to leave”, Zakharova said. “The Ukrainian authorities “refuse to interact with representatives of foreign states and shipowner companies to ensure the safe exit of the blocked ships, practically holding the crews hostage”, she said. The head of the Russian National Defence Control Centre, Colonel General Mikhail Mizintsev, said that shipowners had ignored opportunities to withdraw their vessels from Mariupol port…

Abuja: More than 30 people were killed on Saturday in a stampede in southern Nigeria during an overcrowded church charity event where food was being distributed. Shoes and slippers lay scattered on the ground after the disaster in Port Harcourt city in southern Rivers State when people tried to force their way into the event, witnesses said. A local church organisation was offering food and gifts for the poor at the local Port Harcourt Polo Club when a “mammoth” crowd got out of control, Rivers State police said. Police said a criminal investigation was under way. |…

Bangkok: More than a thousand sacked Thai garment workers who made bras at a factory supplying lingerie giant Victoria’s Secret have received a landmark $8.3 million (nearly R130m) settlement, labour rights activists said. Brilliant Alliance Thai closed its Samut Prakan factory in March last year after going bankrupt. But the 1 250 laid-off workers – many of whom had worked at the factory for over a decade – did not receive severance payouts mandated under Thai law. Victoria’s Secret confirmed in a statement that an agreement had been reached, but did not mention the amount involved. |…

Proteas women’s coach, Hilton Moreeng, hopes that his players can transfer their recent good performances in T20 Leagues to the international stage as they embark on a lengthy tour to Ireland and England. Those players based in South Africa recently, headed for Ireland yesterday, ahead of six match tour, that includes three T20 Internationals, the first of which will be played on Friday. While the squad lacks the household names like Marizanne Kapp, Dane van Niekerk and Lizelle Lee, it is still a strong one, with Sune Luus, Laura Wolvaardt and Ayabonga Khaka fresh from playing in the Women’s T20 Challenge in India. The only new face is Delmi Tucker, for whom there are big expectations. “She has been training with the squad when the players have been in South…