Table of contents for 2022-03-03 in Cape Times

Siphelele Dludla siphelele.dludla@inl.co.za THE NATIONAL Treasury has been asked to publish a list of all state-owned enterprises (SOEs) by October so that a determination can be made on which ones should be disposed of. The Fiscal Cliff Study Group yesterday told Parliament it was concerned about the high level of government support for non-performing SOEs in light of no return on investment. The study group led by the head of Wits University’s School of Economics and Business Sciences, Professor Jannie Rossouw, said it was stressing that the government did not have stock of how many companies it owned. Rossouw told the joint meeting of the Standing and Select committees on Finance in Parliament that the overwhelming support of SOEs was weighing heavily on the fiscus. “I want to stress the…

From page 1 “Our client is the proprietor of trademark registrations 2014/00044 Soul Kitchen in class 43, 2001/12904-5 Soul in classes 29 and 30 and 2001/12909 Soul in class 43.” Following a back-and-forth between the parties, Sol Kitchen had decided to make the changes. In their answering affidavit they said: “Members of the public are not confused or deceived into believing that the business of the Respondent is linked to or associated with that of the Applicant. The respondent is not exploiting any trademark or damaging any brand, nor possibly or potentially causing any loss of sales caused by confusion. (Sol Kitchen) nevertheless decided to change the name in order to avoid unnecessary and costly litigation. A quick search of the word ‘soul’ at the Companies and Intellectual Property Office…

Sihle Mavuso sihle.mavuso@inl.co.za SUPPORTERS of de facto Zulu King, Misuzulu KaZwelithini, yesterday adopted a conciliatory tone after the Pietermaritzburg High Court victory that cleared the way for his much- anticipated coronation, with his aide, Prince Thulani Zulu, saying “there was no winner”. Yesterday, KwaZulu-Natal High Court Deputy Judge President Isaac Madondo delivered his judgment on the three matters that were before him. In the first matter, Queen Sibongile Dlamini-Zulu wanted the court to grant her an order that 50% of the late king Goodwill Zwelithini’s estate be set aside for her as she was his first wife and they had been married through civil rites and community of property. Judge Madondo dismissed the application, saying there was no dispute regarding that. As such, the court could not rule on something…

Siphokazi Vuso siphokazi.vuso@inl.co.za THE unions and labour experts have weighed in on the looming legal challenge against some of the country’s top banks, saying the termination of bank accounts for companies belonging to the Sekunjalo Group could be a major industrial relations nightmare. “Thirty-three of the banks were caught red-handed manipulating the currency of South Africa. They have paid big fines in the US. “ We have not asked the state to boycott them because if all of them are guilty we wouldn’t know where to go,” said South African Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu) general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi. “Why would they, with their own hands dripping in blood, be the paragons of morality?” Vavi asked. He said if banks wanted to act against anyone who was “rogue” in their…

Staff writer THE University of Pretoria’s (UP) Forensic Anthropology Research Centre (Farc) is setting up a comprehensive facility to help other departments in the University’s Faculty of Health Sciences with the 3D printing of replicas of bones and organs. This is being done to improve health care, research methods and the teaching of students; there are also plans to collaborate with other faculties. “Three-dimensional printing offers several advantages, such as visualisation and tactile opportunities, allowing us to assist colleagues in the fields of orthopaedic surgery and prosthodontics with their research, particularly their need to use 3D imaging and 3D printing in their medical practices,” said Professor Ericka L’Abbé, a professor of biological anthropology and director of Farc. “Dr Alison Ridel, a postdoctoral researcher at Farc, is collaborating with Dr Alwyn…

Okuhle Hlati okhule.hlati@inl.co.za GROOTE Schuur Hospital has beefed up security measures, saying the facility is being used as a “physical battleground” to raise grievances on labour matters. Around 100 porters have been protesting since Monday to get their jobs back after being axed – allegedly without explanation. Entrances to the hospital were blocked and bins set alight. Fourteen protesters were arrested and police used rubber bullets to disperse the crowds. EFF Cape Metro spokesperson Andiswa Madikazi said more than 120 outsourced employees have been allegedly unfairly dismissed. Madikazi said their labour desk was approached by the porters, who informed them that Zara, a company that has been contracted by the hospital, was planning to fire them. “According to these workers, they were once previously employed by the hospital through Zara,…

THE government’s flip-flopping on the Ukraine-Russia conflict, and contradictory statements by President Cyril Ramaphosa and Minister Naledi Pandor’s Department of International Relations and Co-operation (Dirco), have exposed the folly of South Africa’s incoherent and vague foreign policy. As has become the norm, Pandor’s department released a strongly worded statement on February 24 calling out Russia for invading its Eastern European neighbour. “South Africa calls on Russia to immediately withdraw its forces from Ukraine in line with the UN Charter, which enjoins all member states to settle their international disputes by peaceful means in such a manner that international peace and security, and justice, are not endangered. South Africa emphasises respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states,” Dirco said. Russia reacted angrily, warning Pandor’s department in a tweet…

The RUSSIAN economy is experiencing serious blows, but there is a margin of safety, as well as potential, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said yesterday, commenting on US President Joe Biden’s remark on the tottering Russian economy. Delivering his State of the Union address on Tuesday, Biden said that Russia’s economy is shattered as a result of Western sanctions. “Of course, the Russian economy is now under serious pressure, serious blows, I would say. “There is a margin of safety, there is potential, there are plans, energetic work is under way,” Peskov told reporters.The recent decision to ban the export of more than $10 000 (about R155 000) by individuals from Russia was made to avoid shattering the economy, Peskov added. Meanwhile, the head of the China Banking and…

Around 2 500 migrants stormed the border fence separating the Spanish enclave of Melilla from Morocco yesterday, with some 500 managing to cross, in one of the largest influxes in recent years. The migrants used “hooks” to scale the high fence that separates the tiny territory from Morocco and threw rocks at police, the Spanish government’s local delegation said. “The great violence used by the migrants ... overwhelmed the Moroccan security forces who were trying to prevent them from reaching the fence,” it added. Three Spanish Guardia Civil police suffered “slight injuries” in the incident and three migrants were also treated for injuries near the fence. About 2 500 sub-Saharan African migrants stormed the border at around 9.30am, but Spanish security forces managed to “neutralise most of them” and…

BERLIN: The Archbishop of Cologne, Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki, has offered his resignation to Pope Francis over his handling of allegations of child sex abuse committed by priests. An 800-page report into the abuse cases in the archdiocese between 1975 and 2018 found more than 200 abusers and more than 300 victims mostly under the age of 14. The pope has yet to comment on whether he to will accept the resignation. The pope dispatched two senior foreign bishops in May to investigate the archbishop’s handling of the allegations, in particular for shelving a report into wrongdoing by priests.…

Colombo: Sri Lanka’s buses ran out of diesel yesterday, officials said, as the country’s foreign exchange crisis worsened with no dollars to import fuel. The Private Bus Owners’ Association said it was able to operate only about a quarter of its fleet of 20 000 vehicles. Drivers reported queuing for seven hours to top up fuel. The shutdown came as electricity blackouts also came into effect. The country is now in the grip of an economic crisis, with shortages of food, medicines, automotive parts and cement. Supermarkets are also forced to ration staple foods including rice and sugar.…

Mayibongwe Maqhina mayibongwe.maqhina@inl.co.za THE SABC was yesterday adamant that it would not be seeking a bailout even though it was experiencing a decline in advertising revenue. The public broadcaster made the commitment when it was pressed by Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) chairperson Mkhuleko Hlengwa after CFO Yolande van Biljon made the statement when quizzed about concerns over the entity’s going-concern status. Hlengwa asked if the SABC was confident that interventions put in place would yield results. Deputy Communications Minister Philly Mapulane said the ministry was satisfied with the implementation of the turnaround plan and that the SABC had been able to attain most of the targets. “We are confident as far as that is concerned because we can observe there is relative stability at the SABC, unlike in…

Nicola Daniels nicola.daniels@inl.co.za THE Western Cape High Court has dismissed an application by the owners of Chicken Licken, Golden Fried Chicken (Pty) Ltd, who alleged trademark infringements in relation to the word “soul”, against a Plettenberg Bay restaurant formerly trading as “East Coast Soul Kitchen”. This as the company had already made efforts to remedy the situation by changing its name to “Sol Kitchen”. The case came about in July 2021 when Chicken Licken’s attorney, Ronald Wheeldon, contended that by trading as “East Coast Soul Kitchen”, the restaurant had infringed certain of the Chicken Licken trademarks. They wanted Sol Kitchen to remove all material, including letterheads, business cards, signage and printed material, in its possession or under its control, which makes or contains any reference to the mark Soul or…

Staff writer AFTER the release of the most comprehensive assessment of climate impacts, environmentalists say governments and corporations have no choice but to act in line with science to meet their human rights obligations, and if they won’t, they will be met in court. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) Working Group II report delivered its latest scientific assessment to world governments this week. Focusing on impacts, adaptation and vulnerability, the report lays out in sobering detail how the impacts of climate change are already causing widespread loss and damage to people and ecosystems around the world, and are projected to escalate with further warming. Since the previous assessment, climate risks are appearing faster and will get more severe sooner. The IPCC finds that mortality from floods, drought and…

Nicola Daniels nicola.daniels@inl.co.za WHILE the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) activated the West Coast rock lobster contingency plan, the effects of the red tide that has caused a mass walkout of the species could potentially be devastating for small-scale fishers. This as the South African United Fishing Front (Sauff) explains there is no telling when the resource would come back to the area following the event. The algal bloom or red tide, developing on the West Coast, had caused an estimated 500 tons of West Coast rock lobster to walk out as of Tuesday, the DFFE said. The Cederberg Municipality said yesterday that teams collected the live crayfish to be transported to St Helena Bay for release while decomposed crayfish will be buried above the high water…

IT IS most unfortunate that South Africa has experienced no “new dawn” as promised by President Cyril Ramaphosa when he was elected to the highest office in the land. Unfortunately, most informed commentators are of the viewpoint that he has proved to be a bitter political disappointment for the long- suffering people of this great land. Also, these political commentators are of the view point that, as a country and as a people, we are in a state of chronic unprecedented political and economic crisis since the inception of the democratic era, which started with the introduction and operation of the Interim Constitution on April 27, 1994. We faced our darkest hour, which ensued with the attempted insurrection that occurred at the beginning of July last year,…

MOSCOW: When Russians showed shame and grief over President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, his most loyal propagandist was withering: “If you are now ashamed that you are Russian, don’t worry, you’re not Russian,” the editor-in-chief of state-owned broadcaster RT, Margarita Simonyan, sniped on Twitter. The invasion that united Nato and Europe on sanctions as never before also divided Russians. On one side: an outward-looking urban middle class. On the other: Putin loyalists, many less-educated Russians or older people raised on Soviet propaganda. In Kamenka village in Russia’s southern Rostov region, close to the Ukraine border, Alexei Safonov, 47, was horrified at the news that Russia began its attack last week. Then he got to work as chief engineer at an ice-skating rink, and was sickened to find his colleagues…

San Francisco: Tesla CEO Elon Musk has said that no one was watching US President Joe Biden after the president did not mention Tesla during his State of the Union speech, media reports say. “Nobody is watching the State of the Union,” Musk emailed CNBC. Biden touted the combined $18 billion investments by Ford and GM to build electric vehicles. Tesla, an electric vehicle (EV) giant, was not mentioned in Biden’s address. Musk later directly tweeted Biden saying “Tesla has created over 50 000 US jobs building EVs and is investing more than double GM + Ford.”…

A two-week transatlantic saga ended this week with a massive ship - and thousands of luxury cars aboard - sinking about 250 miles (402km) off a Portuguese archipelago after catching fire. Despite efforts to salvage what remained of the Felicity Ace, the ship and its nearly 4 000-vehicle cargo went down near the Azores Islands, the Portuguese navy said in a statement. During the towing process, which had begun on February 24, the ship ‘Felicity Ace’ lost stability and sank some 25 nautical miles outside of the limits of Portugal’s exclusive economic zone, ,” the navy wrote in Portuguese. The vessel, operated by Japanese shipping line Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL), was traveling from Germany to Rhode Island when a fire started in the ship on February 16. Authorities tried to…

DUBAI: “Bitter experience” with broken US promises has made it inevitable that Iran will push to defend its interests by securing a reliable nuclear agreement, its top security official said on Wednesday, according to the Nour-news website. All parties involved in the talks say progress has been made toward the restoration of the pact to curb Tehran’s nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief, which the US abandoned in 2018. But both Tehran and Washington have said there are still some significant differences to overcome. Some alternative solutions have been discussed in talks between Iranian negotiators and Western powers, sources said.…

From page 1 and losing their jobs. In an economy with 46% unemployment and 2.2 million workers having lost their jobs since Covid-19, millions of workers have lost their wages and pensions, and most workers are highly indebted. We cannot afford to lose a single job. Nor should workers and their families be made to suffer,” Pamla said. Labour expert Michael Bagraim said the closure of the bank accounts of any employer was a major industrial relations nightmare. “The staff rely entirely on monthly and weekly payments done through a banking institution. If the banking institution closes the facilities, this creates what could be termed an unfair labour practice. It might be necessary for the staff to approach the Labour Court for a ruling on the forthcoming nightmare. “This is…

Baldwin Ndaba, Mashudu Sadike and Kailene Pillay MINERAL Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe and former president Jacob Zuma have vowed to launch separate legal actions against the Zondo Commission report which implicated them in state capture. The planned action comes as pressure is mounting on the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) to prosecute top ANC leaders including the party’s national chairperson and Minister, Mantashe, for their role in state capture. The calls mounted following a damning report by Acting Chief Justice Raymond Zondo which was handed over to President Cyril Ramaphosa’s office on Tuesday. In the report, Justice Zondo recommended criminal investigations against Mantashe for accepting Bosasa’s offer to install security systems at his three houses in Cala, Elliot in the Eastern Cape and in Boksburg in Gauteng. “The evidence…

Chevon Booysen Chevon.booysen@inl.co.za UNDER-FIRE Western Cape Premier Alan Winde stuck to his guns when facing tough questions yesterday over the sexual misconduct allegations against the now-dismissed Community Safety MEC Albert Fritz, refusing to disclose the details of the probe or the budget spent on it. Winde appeared before the standing committee on community safety, cultural affairs and sport to brief MPLs about the developments on the issue after he fired Fritz from his cabinet on Tuesday. Advocate Jennifer Williams found in her report that there was “sufficient credibility” of sexual misconduct by Fritz despite him denying the allegations of sexual misconduct, alcohol abuse and grooming. The report said these related to the creation of circumstances which enabled sexual misconduct brought against him. Fritz has indicated his intentions to challenge the…

Staff writer A NEWLY released report by the International Fund for Animal Welfare (Ifaw) has found the EU plays a key role as a supplier and trader in the global shark trade, which is driving many species towards extinction. The Supply and Demand: The EU’s role in the global shark trade report provides the first comprehensive picture of the EU’s role as reflected in official raw customs data from Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan, covering fin and meat import and export data compiled from 2003-2020. It reveals how EU member states were the source of 45% of shark fin- related products imported into Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan in 2020. Spain is shown to be one of the top exporters for the global fin trade, with the major fin-trade hubs…

Chevon Booysen chevon.booysen@inl.co.za SWELLENDAM serial killer Brian Mudyiwayana, who has been described as arrogant and dismissive, will serve six life terms and 17 years imprisonment after sentence was handed down in the high court sitting in Swellendam yesterday. National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila said the court declared “he deserved to be permanently removed from society”. Mudyiwayana was convicted on six counts of murder, one count of robbery with aggravating circumstances and two counts of being in the country illegally. He was acquitted of a rape charge. Mudyiwayana went on a killing spree between 2016 and 2017, murdering his victims – Moleboheng Mafata, Gladys Ntondini, Grace Nyasha Hondo, Naume Gwengwe, Lungelwa Dangatye and Michael Pekaan – in Swellendam, Bredasdorp, Mossel Bay and De Doorns. Delivering sentence, Judge Derek…

Okuhle Hlati okhule.hlati@inl.co.za THE ANC in the Western Cape legislature has expressed concerns that nearly 3 000 children still need to be processed through the backlogged foster care system in the province. Social Development MEC Sharna Fernandez revealed in a written response to a question by Standing Committee on Social Development chairperson Gillion Bosman that the number of outstanding foster care orders requiring extension was 2 930 as a result of the foster-care backlog. This was asked in reference to the department’s strategic focus over the short- to medium-term period in the 2020/21 annual report and the implementation of the provincial foster care management plan. According to Fernandez, the main causes of the unprocessed extensions included social workers having high caseloads due to increasing population numbers without more funds to…

There have been a lot of discussions on the urgency of climate change. But it’s universally accepted that the steps that have been agreed to stop global warming are too little too late. Why is this? We argue that inequality is part of the answer as to why there is little action. On the one hand, inequality polarises societies and makes them less prone to act. On the other hand, inequality results in elites capturing the power of action and being less inclined to give up their privileges. The reduction of inequality is crucial, not only from an ethical point of view, but also because it would allow us to tackle climate change. However, if we want to reduce inequalities, we need to recognise that a different kind of growth…

Emergency services ordered some Sydney residents to prepare to flee yesterday as heavy rainfall barrelled down Australia’s east coast, burying towns in flood water, killing 13 and putting hundreds of thousands at risk. A week-long torrential downpour has swollen rivers and reservoirs past bursting point, causing chaos in an area 800 kilometres long. From Brisbane to Sydney, more than 30 evacuation warnings are in place and several dams are overflowing, with some near Sydney under threat of bursting. Terrified residents have sought refuge on higher ground, in make-shift evacuation centres, or by clambering into attics or on to rooftops praying for rescue by boat or helicopter. In Lismore, Lucy Wise said the floods came much quicker than expected. “The rain just wouldn’t stop and the water was just coming up…

LONDON: Adele is reportedly in talks to move her Las Vegas residency to a bigger venue. The I Drink Wine singer postponed her Weekends with Adele shows at Caesar’s Palace’s Colosseum last month because of production issues, just days before the first concert was due to take place, but it’s now been claimed a move to Planet Hollywood’s Zappos Theatre, which has a capacity of 7 000, is on the cards. A source told The Sun newspaper: “Talks are ongoing with Adele about the possibility of her moving the residency to Zappos. “The venue is within the Caesars family – who she has the huge-money deal with – and it’s world-class. It’s been a residency spot for a host of huge stars, including Jennifer Lopez and Shania Twain, and…

The Hague: New Zealand authorities arrested 46 people as part of an international operation into tens of thousands of accounts possessing and sharing child sexual abuse material online, Europol said yesterday. The arrests were part of a probe launched in 2019 after an online service provider’s report indicated “a large number of offenders used the platform to exchange particularly disturbing child abuse images”, Europe’s law enforcement co-operation agency said. The report included references to “imagery depicting sadistic acts of sexual abuse of infants and children”, a Europol statement said.…

SANA’A: International medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) announced yesterday that it had suspended operations in Yemen’s north-western province of Hajjah, citing safety and security concerns. “MSF took the decision to withdraw its staff and temporarily suspend its activities in the Abs hospital, in Hajjah Governorate as of March 1, 2022, while we are negotiating with the authorities to ensure the safety and security of our staff and patients,” MSF said in a post on Twitter, without providing further details. The MSF-run Abs hospital is located in the northern district of Abs, which is under the control of the Houthi militia.…