Table of contents for 2022-10-13 in Mercury

AS Eskom continues to plunge the country into darkness, opposition parties and energy experts yesterday reminded the country that President Cyril Ramaphosa had failed to fix the energy crisis – first as deputy president and then president of the country. Opposition parties constantly remind the country that the state-owned enterprise remains a blight on the economy, a drain on the fiscus and the biggest inhibitor to job creation. Ramaphosa has made promises, saying that load shedding would be a thing of the past from at least 2015. DA national spokesperson Solly Malatsi said that they maintained that Minerals and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe must be removed for solutions to be found to fix Eskom. “Ramaphosa is choosing a political ally rather than energy security for the country, ” Malatsi said.…

TRUCKING companies in KwaZulu- Natal said they were worried about the future of their businesses due to their trucks having restricted access to ports because of the ongoing Transnet strike. The Road Freight Association said most Transnet terminals at the port had either come to a grinding halt or were operating at very low input. Trucking companies yesterday said that due to limited operations they had been unable to access the ports to pick up containers. Gavin Kelly, chief executive of the Road Freight Association, said some parts of the ports were working but the issue was the terminals. “We have private terminals and Transnet terminals. The private terminals are operational but the Transnet terminals have either come to a grinding halt or are operating at a low input level…

Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula has called for increased investment in research and innovation in greener technologies for the maritime sector, saying there is an abundance of renewable energy potential in South Africa. He was delivering an address at the World Maritime Day event held under the auspices of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) at the Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre yesterday. The three-day meeting is being attended by delegates from 178 IMO member states who have gathered in Durban to discuss innovative solutions aimed at improving the maritime sector worldwide. Hosted under the theme “New Technologies for Greener Shipping”, the gathering provides an opportunity for the international community to make concrete contributions and collaborate on innovative and mitigation strategies geared towards addressing the impact of maritime transport on climate…

Winter’s gone, spring’s also vanishing quickly, and summer’s almost here. So it’s good to be fruitful and fair. And to compare apples with apples. Whenever somebody complains about the persecution of Palestinians in their own country or discrimination and violence against Muslims in India, the right-winging personnel are quick to point to the horrible execution of, particularly Muslims in the Arab States – UAE, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Egypt, Afghanistan, the works. It happens all the time. Let’s get real, and please, let comparisons be scientifically valid. No Muslim country boasts a democracy. And they should really be condemned to a real bad place beyond the blue sky for all their vile atrocities. And especially for abusing and discriminating cheap labour from further east. Yes. Absolutely. From the Sultanate days, it’s…

The floods that ravaged our province in April may well be a memory for many of us, but this is not the case for the thousands of flood victims still housed in community halls across the province. We have seen mop-up operations and repairs being done to roads and other infrastructure. There can be no denying that we have a way to go to get back to where we were before this natural disaster took place. This is not the lived experience for those who lost their homes over that period. Of these, 231 people have been living in community halls for the past six months in KwaDukuza local municipality. Temporary residential units (TRUs) have been built, and park homes have been donated to accommodate some of the victims. The…

Amnesty International in South Africa has called for the decriminalisation of sex work and the protection of sex workers, following the discovery of the bodies of six women believed to be sex workers in Joburg. “If you look at who are the majority of sex workers … the majority are young, usually black women who are really doing sex work in order to feed their families and their dependants. That is the reality of sex workers in this country,” Amnesty International South Africa’s executive director Shenilla Mohamed said in a television news interview. “People don’t go into sex work in South Africa in particular because it is a great thing to do. It is often out of desperation. “We, and others have been fighting for decades for the decriminalisation of…

The Ramaphosa administration’s new dawn has been nothing but a never- ending nightmare for poor South Africans who are desperate to keep their heads above water. It has been all about benefiting a few cadres and business people who sing the praises of the incumbent. Even for those with the means to get by, load shedding and the high price of food and fuel have left a bitter taste in their mouths. It therefore comes as no surprise that our ministers and their deputies’ water and electricity bills are being footed by the already squeezed taxpayer. The same members of the executive don’t know a thing about the Eskom blackouts that Ramaphosa has no idea how to fix. Instead, he handsomely awarded them a 3% wage increase in June, effectively…

N’DJAMENA: Severe drought followed by the worst floods in 30 years has led to rocketing food prices and left a record 2.1 million people in Chad acutely hungry, report UN agencies. As a result of the climate disaster, 10% of all children under 5 are affected by severe malnutrition, and one in three will suffer from stunted growth, said the UN children’s fund. On a bed at the Notre Dame des Apotres Hospital in the capital N’Djamena, Fatimé Mahamat Idriss feeds her gaunt toddler through a feeding tube. When the harvest failed, her husband sought work in a gold mine in the north, leaving no food for their three children. | Reuters…

A vault built on an Arctic island to preserve the world’s crop seeds from war, disease and other catastrophes received new deposits yesterday, including for the first time from Iraq and Uruguay, Norway’s ministry of agriculture and food said. The Svalbard Global Seed Vault on Spitsbergen island halfway between Europe and the North Pole, is opened only three times a year to limit its seeds’ exposure to the outside world. Launched in 2008, the vault acts as a last resort for national and regional gene banks, and played an essential role between 2015 and 2019 in rebuilding collections damaged during the war in Syria. More than 45 000 samples from 13 gene banks from Asia, Australia, Europe and Latin America were added yesterday, lifting the total number of deposits…

The under-fire monarch of the eSwatini kingdom, King Mswati III, has confirmed that he is going to attend the coronation of Zulu King Misuzulu KaZwelithini. The two kings are blood relatives and the coronation ceremony will take place at Durban’s Moses Mabhida stadium on October 29. King Mswati is an uncle to King Misuzulu as the latter’s mother, the late Queen Mantfombi Shiyiwe Dlamini-Zulu, the wife of the late King Goodwill Zwelithini, was a half-sister of the Swati king. On Tuesday, King Misuzulu paid a courtesy visit to King Mswati at Ludzidzini royal palace just outside the eSwatini capital city of Mbabane. King Mswati’s spokesperson, Percy Simelane, said the king would come to Durban for the event. That is despite his presence being likely to spark ugly scenes of protests…

The Federation of Unions of South Africa (Fedusa) says it has written to President Cyril Ramaphosa, requesting an additional paid public holiday in December. The union said during this year, working South Africans had 11 out of the 12 paid public holidays as Christmas fell on a Sunday. “The matter was raised that Christmas falls on a Sunday this year, and in terms of the Public Holidays Act, ‘whenever any public holiday falls on a Sunday, the following Monday shall be a public holiday’. “Consequently, Monday 26 December 2022, the Day of Goodwill, will then be deemed to fall outside of the ambit of the Public Holidays Act,” said Fedusa. Therefore, the government should consider making December 27 a paid public holiday, it said. Fedusa general secretary Riefdah Ajam said…

A MAN has been charged with smuggling three Burmese pythons in his pants at a Canadian-US border crossing. Calvin Bautista, 36, is accused of bringing the hidden snakes into the US on a bus, according to Associated Press. Importation of Burmese pythons is regulated by an international treaty and by federal regulations listing them as “injurious to human beings”. The charge carries the potential for a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine as high as $250 000 (about R4.1 million). Three Burmese pythons in his pants? What did he think he was doing? He might have got away with one Burmese python – but three? The mind, señor, she boggles! Silent letters AN ENGLISH lesson comes this way: Tsunami – T is silent. Honest – H…

SO OUR ministers who earn a minimum salary of R2 million per annum now also get free utilities. Even the R5 000 cap was too high. They get so many perks as it is, why can’t they pay for their own utilities? Will they bother to save electricity when they get it for free? Yet, a large percentage of the population is expected to survive on a grant of R350 per month. And that is meant to pay for food and utilities, etc. Isn’t it time to level the playing fields? The majority of people I know would be happy with half a million rand per annum and would still be able to put savings aside. Ditto with the money spent on two statues. Why did this have to go…

One of the common threads with many African leaders – among them Robert Mugabe, Jacob Zuma and Cyril Ramaphosa – is that the taking of the oath of office is not afforded the respect or commitment that it deserves. It is merely seen as a stepping stone to a wealthy future for as long as possible. In many of his actions, Nelson Mandela showed that his suit was cut of a different cloth and despite some naysayers, he did much to create racial harmony among South Africans. He also demonstrated that the law applied to him as much as any other South African, and it was very enlightening to read Zelda la Grange’s book, Good Morning, Mr Mandela. The fact that he appointed a young Afrikaans woman as his personal…

The Pan South African Language Board (PanSALB) in association with media research company, Focal Points, has announced the 2022 SA Word of the Year shortlist. The shortlisted words are: 1. Phala-Phala 2. Load-shedding 3. Xenophobia 4. Inganekwane 5. Gaslighting The SA Word of the Year is a word, term or expression preferred to reflect the passing year in language. To qualify for consideration, there must be evidence that the usage of the word or expression has increased significantly in the past 12 months across a broad range of media. The shortlisted words, PanSALB said, have captured the ethos, mood or preoccupations of 2022. The winner will be announced on October 17, in commemoration of International Dictionary Day, observed the day before in remembrance of the first American lexicographer, Noah Webster,…

Farming activities hindered by low yields, lack of mechanisation and financing solutions Value addition is a central theme in agriculture. The concept involves adding value at every step, from production to delivery of a product. This creates opportunities for farmers and companies to find competitive advantages. It also has the potential to improve food security and create employment. In South Africa, the government has used value addition as a policy to try to correct some of the historical imbalances in the agriculture sector. Large-scale commercial enterprises have dominated the sector since the first part of the 20th century. They compare favourably with those anywhere in the world. But they are in stark contrast with the small-scale farming sector in terms of productivity and value addition. And the divide has a…

ZURICH: The Swiss government sent a draft law to parliament yesterday seeking to fine people who violate a national ban on face coverings up to 1 000 Swiss francs (R18 295) as it seeks to implement a “burqa ban” law. The far-right proposal to ban facial coverings in public won a narrow victory in a binding referendum last year. The cabinet proposal to levy fines did not mention Islam and is also aimed at stopping violent street protesters from wearing masks, yet local politicians refer to it as the “burqa ban”. Initially the cabinet wanted to anchor it in the criminal code with a fine of up to 10 000 francs. “The ban aims to ensure public safety and order,” it said. Muslims make up some 5% of…

At least 28 children have been killed in protests that have swept across Iran since the death of Mahsa Amini, with hundreds more mostly detained in adult prisons, rights groups inside and outside the country said. Amini, 22, was pronounced dead days after the morality police detained the Iranian Kurd last month for allegedly breaching the Islamic republic’s strict dress code for women. Anger flared at her funeral and spread to become the biggest wave of protests to rock Iran in three years, despite a crackdown that has killed scores and seen hundreds arrested. Iran’s Children’s Rights Protection Society condemned security forces for resorting to violence against children who have protested in schools and in the street. “According to statistics, 28 children have been killed in these confrontations, mostly in…

FIVE weeks ago when the Proteas squad for the T20 World Cup was announced there was reason for optimism. It was a balanced group with plenty of options, experience and variety. The big question mark was about Temba Bavuma, and that remains, but on the whole, there were more reasons to feel good about the Proteas chances in Australia, than was the case a year ago when the tournament was hosted in Dubai. However, how much scarring will there be following the one-day international series defeat to an Indian side devoid of many of their star players? That was a young team led by Shikhar Dhawan and they hammered the Proteas in the last two matches to clinch the series, and pushed the South Africans into even further difficulties as…

The electricity unit in eThekwini Municipality is investigating what caused the massive power outage on Tuesday night that plunged half of the metro into darkness, as they have found no reason that can explain it. Head of Electricity in eThekwini Maxwell Mthembu said they were conducting an investigation into the situation, but for the moment they had found no scientific or technical reason to explain what had happened. He ruled out any concerns that the infrastructure might have temporarily failed, saying that was not the case, and that their infrastructure was well-maintained. “We have not found any technical reasons for what led to what happened; we can only speak to the series of strange events that occurred prior to the outage,” said Mthembu in an interview with The Mercury yesterday.…

“HOW’S your heart?” is not usually a question about the fist-size mid-chest organ. It is usually an appeal to a person’s measure of mercy or generosity. The “heart” I am referring to is your operating platform, the seat of your emotions. It is the beautiful place deep within you where your soul, spirit, mind intersect and drive and shape your thinking, behaviours and feelings. While rare in my experience, some people are, sadly, really hard-hearted. They can easily be very stubborn, mean and even cruel. There are open-hearted people. They are usually warm and friendly and available for new experiences. There are people with teachable hearts or dispositions. They have a natural humility. They are able and willing to learn from anyone and can learn from everyone at any time.…

UPON reading the article “Taxation nightmare for pensioners” (The Mercury, October 7), I was compelled to add my voice in protest against this inhumane continued fleecing of pensioners by the SA Revenue Service (Sars), which seems oblivious to the fact that it is taxing us to death. I too received the notification issued by Sars, but via the administrators in charge of my Government Pension Fund payment, who said it was mandatory to accept this Sars increase in tax on my meagre pension. They did inform me that I had an option to “opt out”, but by the time I received this information I had already been issued with my “payslip”, which showed that this new hike had already been applied. I was advised by my broker, after he did…

The world’s richest man, Elon Musk, has sniffed out a new opportunity to capitalise on quirky products, launching a perfume called “Burnt Hair” that he said sold 10 000 bottles to earn a million dollars in just a few hours. “With a name like mine, getting into the fragrance business was inevitable – why did I even fight it for so long!?” Musk asked on Twitter, where he now describes himself as a perfume salesman. “The essence of repugnant desire” is the website description of his latest offering, which costs $100 (about R1 800) a bottle and is set to start shipping in the first quarter of 2023, making good on a product Musk first touted in September. Previous brainwaves have included Tesla’s own-brand tequila, launched in 2020, and a…

Community policing forums (CPFs) in Durban have welcomed the announcement made by Police Minister Bheki Cele that funding for the crime-fighting organisations was being prioritised. Cele said the funding plan had come about after calls were made by residents of Inanda, uMlazi and Clermont townships who attended the crime prevention izimbizo hosted by the police ministry at the weekend. “The funding of CPFs is not a matter of ‘if’ but a matter of ‘when’. In principle, we agree that CPFs across the country must be better supported and provided with resources and funds to assist police in crime detection and prevention. “It is clear that police need communities and communities need the police, if we are to win this fight against crime. We know and appreciate the role of CPFs,…

It has been seven years since students in South Africa began protesting in a bid to “Africanise” the country’s university curricula. They viewed what they were learning as too neo-liberal – characterised by Western values pushing the market- isation of education. They wanted universities to become more relevant to students in an African country and more connected to their own lives. The students’ calls propelled “decolonisation” to the forefront of national (and even international) debate. Decolonisation in the university context involves dismantling the institutional practices and policies that uphold white supremacist, Western values. Since then, there have been initiatives at most of the country’s 26 public universities designed to change what students learn and how. Every academic has their own opinion and approach. Mine, as a university educator who lectures…

The dozens of items on the public agenda of the annual meetings of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund this week include several sessions on climate change, food security, and other chronic world problems, some on inflation and trade, and attention as well to economic inclusion and digital currencies. Comparatively absent: the coronavirus pandemic, a once-in-a-century crisis that has killed an estimated 6.5 million people since late 2019 and highlighted broad weaknesses in how the global economy is organised, will be directly addressed through a single panel on preparedness, and two on issues related to economic recovery. With the world fractured by war, commodity price shocks, possible recession, financial market stress, and a slide towards deglobalisation, the lingering health crisis that sparked or accelerated many of those problems –…