Table of contents for 2022-02-24 in Mercury

Siphelele Dludla siphelele.dludla@inl.co.za Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana has remained bullish about South Africa’s fiscal discipline as the country’s better-than-expected revenue collection will help cover social spending and reduce the Budget deficit. In his Budget speech yesterday, Godongwana said the National Treasury was on course to close key fiscal imbalances and restore the health of public finances in the medium-term. Godongwana, however, said the country’s debt burden, currently standing at R4.35 trillion, remained a matter of serious concern amid growing spending demands. Debt‐service costs consume an increasing share of gross domestic product (GDP) and revenue. On average, 20 cents of every rand collected in revenue every year will be needed to pay debt-service costs. “This huge sum is owed to lenders domestically and around the world,” Godongwana said. “It incurs…

Sibusiso Mboto sibusiso.mboto@inl.co.za THE KwaZulu-Natal Transport Department has come under fire over the appointment of a service provider for a massive R25 million fee to investigate multibillion-rand irregular expenditure that occurred over a seven-year period. Questions have been raised as to how this irregular expenditure had been allowed to run over such a long period. According to the department, the investigation by the service provider Open Water Advanced Risk Solutions is set to look at: The reason for irregularities being reported. Identifying officials responsible for the irregularities. And to determine whether there was any value for money received from the transactions. The department cited the massive volume of work and lack of internal capacity as the reason behind seeking outside help, in the form of a service provider. The IFP…

NARENDH GANESH | Durban North PRESIDENT Ramaphosa, in the aftermath of your State of the Nation Address, my crystal ball reveals nothing much will change in this country for a while to come. In fact, it reveals that our dire situation will get much worse as a lethargic and inept leadership steers us aground at almost every turn. The startling revelations by Police Minister Bheki Cele at the SA Human Rights Commission hearings that our intelligence agency withheld reports that could have helped the SAPS tackle the unrest of July 2021 is nothing short of stupefying. What are we paying taxes for? As president, are you not briefed regularly by the security apparatus, including crime intelligence, so that, as commander-in-chief, you are informed to make decisions to protect…

DUNCAN DU BOIS | Bluff The mainstream media’s low-key and indifferent coverage of the jackboot measures of the Trudeau (Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada) regime’s treatment of Canadian citizens stands in stark contrast to its usual hyperventilation over any issue that involves race or discrimination, such as the George Floyd and Kyle Rittenhouse cases in the US. To date this week, The Mercury has avoided the issue. Yet, Trudeau’s human rights violations are unprecedented in the post-WW II Western world. The use of terrorism legislation against non-violent citizens typifies the response of Marxist and Third World regimes. It unmasks the totalitarian nature of Trudeau, who is on record as expressing admiration for Beijing’s “ability to get things done”. Freezing protesters’ bank accounts, suspending truckers’ insurances and licences,…

Baldwin Ndaba baldwin.ndaba@inl.co.za Various businesses and foreign-owned companies made donations to 11 South African political parties – including the ANC, EFF and DA – to the tune of more than R46 million. This was revealed by the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) in its latest Political Party Funding Disclosure Report. The report showed the EFF has confirmed receiving donations from South African Breweries R100 000; SN Maseko R100 000 and Harmony Gold Mining R1 099 088. The EFF did not do declarations in the first report issued on September 9 and November 18 2021. The IEC said in the third quarter of the 2021/22 financial year, a total of eleven political parties made declarations totalling R46 036 589 in terms of section 9 of the Act. Out of the…

SANParks has announced it would be setting controlled “burns” below Tafelberg Road on the mid-slopes of Table Mountain and in Lower Tokai. SANParks said March/April 2022 was chosen because it was the later part of the fire season when conditions were most favourable for conducting prescribed burning. SANParks said fynbos relied on fires every 10 to 15 years because if fynbos did not burn often enough, proteas and other bushes would get too old and their reproductive ability would decline substantially. On the other hand, if fynbos burned too often, reseeding shrubs could be lost and resprouting species and alien species could take over – thus burning was conducted to encourage reproduction and growth in fynbos species as well as to prevent the build-up of fuel loads. |…

ZELDA VENTER zelda.venter@inl.co.za THE Road Accident Fund (RAF) has incurred the fury of lawyers, who are accusing it of trying to rescind a host of legitimate court orders. According to the lawyers, those who are close to RAF chief executive Collins Letsoalo are being paid first. The RAF turned to the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria nearly two weeks ago, in which it asked that the auditor-general’s report into its affairs not be presented to Parliament during this sitting. It in fact asked that the contentious report remain under wraps pending an urgent review of the findings. The audit concluded that the RAF’s liabilities exceeded R361 billion, while it maintained that its liabilities are no more than R30bn. Auditor-General Tsakani Maluleke in December issued the RAF with a disclaimer audit opinion…

It WAs heartbreaking to witness an innocent security guard being stoned and kicked to death by protesters at a Clover institution. The right to strike for a better life falls within the ambit of our Constitution. No one has the right to kill the protectors of our property. The deceased was a human being who was subjected to such brutality that it could be classified as a crime against humanity. Such savagery bodes ill for our nation. I shudder to think what will happen when law and order cease to exist. We are a nation on the edge of a steep cliff, starring into the abyss below. The innocent guard was a brother, father, son, uncle, and husband to someone. It is indeed extremely sad that it took the tragic…

Chinese authorities have launched a criminal investigation into nine people in connection with a woman who appeared chained by the neck in a video on social media that went viral and sparked a public outcry, state media reported yesterday. The video, which surfaced in late January, showed the woman in an apparently confused state in the eastern province of Jiangsu. It was seen by millions, stirring debate over the treatment of women and issues including the trafficking of brides. Besides the nine facing a criminal probe, 17 county-level officials have been punished over the case. Investigators said the woman, 44, originally from the southwestern province of Yunnan, was sold twice by human traffickers in Feng county, the first time in 1997 for 5 000 yuan (R12 029). She ran away…

Beirut: Lebanon has thwarted a plan by the Islamic State group to carry out three suicide bombings targeting Shia religious compounds in Beirut’s southern suburbs, the interior ministry said yesterday. “A terrorist group had recruited young Palestinian men in Lebanon to carry out major bombing attacks using explosive belts” and other munitions, Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi told a press conference. “Three separate targets were to be hit at the same time,” the ministry said, in an operation Mawlawi said would have caused a large loss of life. Lebanon’s Internal Security Forces said the instructions for the bomb plot came from an IS operative based in a Palestinian refugee camp.…

CHELSEA rediscovered some of their fluent attacking form as they beat Lille 2-0 in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Tuesday, but the talk at Stamford Bridge was more about the striker who did not play than the ones who did. Record signing Romelu Lukaku sat on the bench as an unused substitute while fellow strikers Kai Havertz and Christian Pulisic claimed the goals that put reigning champions Chelsea in the driving seat to advance to the quarter-finals. On Saturday, against Crystal Palace, Lukaku had the fewest touches of the ball - seven - ever recorded for a player on the pitch for at least 90 minutes in a Premier League game since such data began to be collected in full in the 2003/04 season. That…

AFRICAN champions Al Ahly will be eager to get their CAF Champions League group stage campaign up and running when they host Mamelodi Sundowns on Saturday night. But that will be easier said than done. Al Ahly are coached by Pitso Mosimane, who led Downs to 11 trophies during his time with the club. Independent Media football writer Mihlali Baleka looks at five players that can set the scene alight in Cairo. Andile Jali - Sundowns Jali has been in superb form for the Brazilians this season. So much so that many experts, including his coach Rulani Mokwena, have already advocated for him to be among the nominees for the coveted Footballer of the Season award. Jali will know that it is performing in matches like these that will make…

Banele Ginindza banele.ginindza@inl.co.za DEVELOPMENTS in the Russia/Ukraine conflict were too strong yesterday to make an impression on the rand even as Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana delivered his maiden Budget Speech, largely hailed for its positive connotations towards fiscal consolidation. The rand, which had been trading in the red at R15.04 to the US dollar in midday trade, firmed up somewhat to R15 after the speech, and closed weaker again at R15.07 due to overtures of conflict in the Russia/Ukraine standoff, which has bogged down the markets. “The rand has been mired by the Russian/Ukraine conflict, and news today of worsening tensions and the potential for further escalation,” said Investec chief economist Annabel Bishop. Oil prices have been on an upwards trajectory with Brent crude oil prices up by more than…

Philippa Larkin philippa.larkin@inl.co.za CONSTRUCTION Shares in Wilson Bayly Holmes- Ovcon (WBHO) yesterday plunged to 23.23 percent to R86.37 after it announced its decision to discontinue financial assistance to WBHO Australia (WBHOA). This as the firm in a trading statement said the construction firm expected to report a loss per share of at least 2 532 cents for the period ended December 31, 2021 compared to earnings of 32c per share for the prior period. The headline loss was forecast to be at least 1 611c per share for the reporting period compared to earnings of 82c per share. WBHO said in a statement yesterday that it had held its investment in Australia for more than 20 years, through a majority shareholding in Probuild Construction (Aust) and WBHO Infrastructure .…

Edward West edward.west@inl.co.za KAP Industrial Holdings’s headline earnings surged in the six months to December 31 after its two largest businesses PG Bison and Safripol benefited from strong demand for decorative wood panels and polymer products, respectively. The group has over the past three years been inwardly focused through growing its businesses and driving efficiencies and technology improvements, but it was entering a more outward-looking phase that would likely include value-added acquisitions, chief executive Gary Chaplin said in a telephone interview yesterday. KAP’s share price increased 3.97 percent to R4.97 yesterday afternoon - the price has increased over 17 percent over a year. KAP grew revenue by 13 percent to R13.6 billion in the six months and improved operating profit before capital items by 41 percent to R1.6bn. Headline earnings…

Siyabonga Mkhwanazi siyabonga.mkhwanazi@inl.co.za THE government is developing a new funding model for students at institutions of higher learning, which will come into effect in 2023. The National Treasury said a ministerial task team had been set up to work on the model. This was revealed after Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana announced an additional R32.6 billion for the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) during the tabling of his Budget yesterday. He said they had decided to prioritise spending on the social wage and this included education. They had allocated additional funds for students who are going to university or TVET colleges this year. “In 2017, government announced a policy for fee-free higher education. “We are announcing an additional allocation of R32.6bn for financial support to current bursary holders and first-year…

| Reuters From Salvador Dali’s Lobster Telephone to Ted Joans’ massive Long Distance drawing, a new exhibition at London’s Tate Modern explores the global span of surrealism over 60 years. Opening today, Surrealism Beyond Borders features more than 150 artworks, ranging from paintings and sculpture to photography and film. On show are Rene Magritte’s Time Transfixed painting of a train coming through a fireplace as well as Joans’ 11-metre drawing Long Distance, which took nearly 30 years to complete and features artists from around the world. Pablo Picasso’s The Three Dancers, Malangatana Ngwenya’s untitled painting of people fighting for independence in Mozambique and Deification of a Soldier by Japan’s Yamashita Kikuji are among the artworks showcasing the 20th century movement’s geographic reach. “As you walk through these galleries you…

TONY BALL | Gillitts ETHEKWINI mayor Mxolisi Kaunda tells us that it is important we sing from the same hymn book before a project is launched (The Mercury, February 22). That is happening but the problem is that the hymn book is called the “Manual of Unkept Promises and Grandiose Pie-in-the-Sky Ideas” and the copyright belongs to President Cyril Ramaphosa. Everywhere we see evidence of wonderful impressive events but action is non-existent and it is becoming like a stuck record that focuses on how many jobs will be created. Our citizens are not fooled by the rubbish that is fed to them. Never ever has the comment “talk is cheap, money buys the whiskey” applied so convincingly.…

On a personal note: I know that tempers can flare and patience can run thin with customer service in all countries. I know that bureaucracy can get overwhelming with the plague of fraud, especially pertaining to banking and international finance. But, South Africa, yes, the whole nation, in my experience, you may not think so or believe it, but you are ahead of the game when it comes to personal service – and especially when it comes to banking and to insurance. As limited as it may be, this has been my enduring experience. In attempting to complete an international transaction I have had to call a South African bank several times. Every time, after a short message requiring me to select an option, the phone has been answered by…

A 28-year-old Brazilian national is expected to appear in the Bellville Magistrate’s Court this week after she was found allegedly trying to smuggle drugs into the country. The woman, who was travelling from Sao Paulo, was found to be in possession of cocaine and heroin with a street value of R870 000 at Cape Town International Airport on Tuesday. According to Zinzi Hani, the provincial spokesperson for the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks), the suspect was intercepted during a multidisciplinary operation. The operation included officers from the Hawks’ South African Narcotics Enforcement Bureau, Crime Intelligence and officials from the customs division of the South African Revenue Service. “The joint team acted on a tip-off about a suspect travelling from Sao Paulo, Brazil, to Cape Town via a Qatar airline.…

The Covid-19 pandemic has taken a heavy toll on health workers and has demonstrated dangerous neglect of their health, safety and well-being, warned the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) in a new report this week. The report stated that even before the pandemic more than one-in-three health facilities lack hygiene, while fewer than one-in-six countries had in place a national policy on a healthy and safe working environment in the health sector. Health workers have suffered from infections, musculoskeletal disorders and injuries, workplace violence, burnout, and allergies from the poor working environment. “Even before the Covid-19 pandemic, the health sector was among the most hazardous sectors to work in,” said Dr Maria Neira, director, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health, WHO. “Sickness, absence and…

Thami Magubane thami.magubane@inl.co.za A LIST of roads to benefit from a roads rehabilitation programme in the eThekwini Municipality has sparked harsh criticism from some councillors who said it was biased towards developed areas, especially those north of the city. IFP councillor Mdu Nkosi led the charge saying little was being done for townships and non-urban areas and those areas were getting left behind with pothole-riddled roads. However, other councillors said the criticism was misplaced, adding that the needs analysis for the area should be the determining factor when it came to funding and not the demographics. Councillors were briefed on Tuesday on spending proposed for the 2021-2022 financial year on the road rehabilitation programme during an executive committee meeting. The city council will fork out more than R170 million on…

In the wake of Covid-19 co-operation can be strengthened Message from Maruyama Norio, Ambassador of Japan to the Republic of South Africa, on the occasion of His Majesty the Emperor’s birthday this week. Fourth year of Reiwa I would like to celebrate the 62nd birthday of His Majesty the Emperor, which was yesterday, February 23, 2022. Due to difficulties caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, it is highly unfortunate that I am unable to host the reception to celebrate His Majesty the Emperor’s birthday this year, as we were also unable to celebrate last year. On this auspicious day, I would like to share with you my thoughts on relations between Japan and South Africa, especially in light of the Eighth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (Ticad8), which will…

Ankara: Soaring inflation in Turkey has propelled a wave of strikes, as workers demand more money to counter the shrinking value of their pay. Supermarket warehouse worker Bekir Gok was sacked this month – with 256 colleagues – for demanding an extra four Turkish liras (about R4.30) per hour, the equivalent of a loaf of bread. However after the workers at the Migros supermarket chain went on strike, they won back their jobs as well as salary rises and other demands. “We were asking for the price of a loaf of bread. It’s nothing compared to what we’ve helped them earn since the pandemic began,” Gok said. Turkey’s annual inflation rate officially reached 48.7% last month, and workers have struggled to keep up with the sky-rocketing cost of living. Industrial…

LONDON: Heathrow airport, Britain’s busiest, saw its lowest number of passengers since 1972 last year and suffered wider losses as the coronavirus pandemic cut demand for business travel and holidays. Passenger numbers fell to 19.4 million last year. Heathrow also recorded a pretax loss of £1.79 billion (R36.59bn) for 2021, taking total loses during the pandemic to £3.8bn due to the drop in passengers and high fixed costs. CEO John Holland-Kaye said Heathrow expected to meet its target of more than doubling passengers to 45.5 million this year, although demand would be “quite peaky” and focused on British school holidays.…

Dieketseng Maleke dieketseng.maleke@inl.co.za Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana yesterday said the government would hire 12 000 new police officers in a bid to beef up the security of the country. In his 2022 Budget Speech, Godongwana outlined South Africa’s expenditure, saying the SAPS had been allocated R1 billion to implement personnel reforms. The SAPS was also allocated an additional R8.7bn to its budget. “We are beginning to say, if we do not deal with the security of the country, it’s not going to be helpful …The police and other law enforcement agencies would not be able to do their job because of the lack of resources.” Last year, South Africa was gripped by civil unrest in Gauteng and KwaZulu- Natal. The police came under fire as citizens complained about…

Sibusiso Mboto and Yogashen Pillay Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana’s announcement that there will be a review of the fuel price has been warmly welcomed. Civil society groups and academics in the economics field said this, along with tax rebates and a business relief scheme, had seen Godongwana start on a good footing in his maiden Budget speech yesterday. But they stressed that there was a long way to go before determining whether he would succeed as there was a lot of rebuilding needed to restore business confidence in the country. The minister said restructuring the corporate income tax system was an important part of the government’s efforts to create a conducive environment for businesses to grow, increase investment and to employ more people. Therefore, the employment tax incentive would be…

THYAGARAJ MARKANDAN | Kloof INDIA is a crowded place where man and beast live cheek by jowl. With a population of 1.3 billion it is second only to China. Land is at a premium, yet Indians have found a way to live in harmony with nature. They love their animals, be it rats, monkeys, snakes, cows, leopards or tigers. Yet the leopard and the tiger often attack humans. The man-eating tigers of the Sundarbans kill anything from 50 to 100 people a year, far more than all the shark attacks around the world which make such sensational news. Yet they are protected. It is unlawful to kill a leopard or tiger in India. Even though these dangerous predators will not hesitate to attack people in the wild, Indians…

PAT NAICKER | Chatsworth IMPROVING lives through data ecosystems. This is the motto of Statistics South Africa. Here in Chatsworth, we have not seen any improvement after the three censuses post-1994. However, in the same period, there has been a free fall in service delivery and law enforcement. In spite of above-inflation increases to our metro bill we have continuous disruptions to our water and electricity supply, erratic refuse collection, poor maintenance of roads, pavements, sports fields and open spaces, crumbling stormwater systems, as well as by-laws that are not upheld by law enforcement. Delivery of these services are fundamental to the quality of life for every law-abiding resident in Chatsworth. It is what we expect in return for paying our metro bill. Most Chatsworth residents are peaceful…

OH BOY, the balloon’s gone up over Ukraine. Who can tell where it ends? What is really behind it? Putin seems to be on some kind of deranged mission to reverse the collapse of the Soviet Union and restore its territories. Has he not instead revitalised Nato? Questions, questions. When will he launch a full invasion? (By now he might have already.) You don’t deploy 290 000 troops just for fun. Nato and other EU countries have announced wide-ranging sanctions. That includes Germany cancelling the Nord 2 gas pipeline from Russia, which will deprive the Russians of billions upon billions in revenue. But will the sanctions be as crippling as they sound? Will they have early effect? Are they enough to deter a man like Putin, who seems to be…

Yogashen Pillay yogashen.pillay@inl.co.za Malvern Primary School pupils and educators were met with a flooded school on Monday after copper pipes were stolen. The school was forced to close its doors due to the damage and having no running water. School governing body treasurer Karishma Mudhai said that there was extensive damage, and the school had to rely on sponsorships for makeshift repairs to be effected so that the school could restore its water supply. Mudhai said that the school was broken into over the weekend. “Whoever broke into the school gained access through the ceiling. They entered the change rooms and stole all the copper pipes. They vandalised the geyser and the toilets and took taps and other pipes. They also removed fire hydrants and broke the doors.” Mudhai added…

Sihle Mavuso sihle.mavuso@inl.co.za WITH tensions in the Zulu royal house escalating, the so-called “royal rebels” have written to President Cyril Ramaphosa, claiming that the mediation team led by former KwaZulu-Natal Premier Willies Mchunu failed to bring a solution. The letter was written on February 21 and signed by Prince Mbonisi Zulu and Prince Vulindlela Zulu. Notably, the royal rebels have been weakened after Princess Thembi Zulu-Ndlovu and Prince Thokozani Zulu pulled out when Prince Simakade was dumped in the contest for the throne against Misuzulu kaZwelithini, who is the de facto king. They opened the letter to Ramaphosa by thanking him for granting the late King Goodwill Zwelithini a state funeral. They said they appreciated the intervention by Ramaphosa and his minister of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta), Dr…

THE way the banks exercise their powers to terminate the banking facilities of some individuals and entities should be tested before the courts. South Africa’s top five banks, which control 90% of the market, appear to be a law unto themselves. Their approach seems to be political and selective. They have closed the banking accounts of some individuals and companies, in the name of “reputational risk”, while happily doing business with certified dodgy characters and other corrupt elements. Hiding behind something as vague as “reputational risk”, the banks have victimised and targeted people and companies. They have closed their accounts for being linked to irregularities, corruption and fraud, regardless of whether the targets have been criminally charged or found guilty. In some cases, the banks cited negative publicity – a…

Rome: Italian police have seized over €800 million (about R13.6 billion) worth of assets from three brothers suspected of links with the Calabrian ’Ndrangheta Mafia, including luxury villas and a large shopping centre. The assets included numerous companies, supermarkets, bank accounts, luxury motorbikes, a Ferrari and real estate, including one of the largest shopping centres in the southern Italian region, police said yesterday. The brothers – one of whom is on trial after a previous anti-Mafia sting – have been under investigation for several years, it said. Italy’s AGI news agency named them as Franco, Pasqualino and Marcello Perri.…

ZAAHIER ADAMS LAURA Wolvaardt’s social media posts feature plenty of photos showing off activities she undertakes in the outdoors. There are plenty of her trail running, working out at the gym or swimming in the ocean. And that’s only when she is not busy with favourite hobby, which is hitting balls in the nets, of course. It’s no wonder that Wolvaardt is ecstatic that she and the rest of her Proteas teammates are back out in the sun after spending the last week in quarantine in New Zealand ahead of next month’s Women’s World Cup. “It feels super good to be out here on the turf. It was super boring in my room. The first two days we were in the indoor nets, so it’s our first day out here.…