Table of contents for 2023-02-16 in Mercury

The Communication Workers’ Union has said it will take action to “ensure no jobs are lost” after the South African Post Office (Sapo) announced that it was contemplating reducing staff numbers. The union said the proposed retrenchments could see 6 000 jobs lost, leaving hundreds of thousands of families without breadwinners. In response, Sapo spokesperson Johan Kruger confirmed that the entity was in consultation with labour unions. “The Post Office brought this matter to the table in November 2022. The first letter to the unions to introduce the Section 189 (retrenchment) process was in November 2022. Prior to that, there have been a number of engagements with all unions recognised at the SA Post Office, considering and exploring the various options to reduce the high cost of employment. These engagements…

YOU may have noticed there are about seven layers beneath the situations – the problems, antisocial behaviours, conflicts, dilemmas, addictions, and much more – churning within you and within the people with whom you live and those whom you meet every day. A less complex linear world may be convenient, but human dynamics escape mere “cause and effect”. “Johnny doesn’t want to go to school” followed by “What’s ‘wrong’ with Johnny?” or “What’s ‘wrong’ with the teacher or school?” is linear thinking. Johnny may want to stay home from school to protect mom from dad or dad from mom and not even know it. Johnny may prefer home to school because he recognises rejection from children of a different socio-economic group than he enjoys or endures. Johnny may well be…

In the economics of time management at workplaces, we know that the same task that can be done in one day could take one week or more if we don’t set a reasonable time limit for the staff to get the job done by a precise date within the approved budget. It is proven that when there is no time frame for any task, the work will expand unnecessarily, and time will be wasted; this is what we call bad bureaucracy. Similarly, and as expected, the last State of the Nation Address delivered by President Cyril Ramaphosa was only an update of his old promises. He talked about reforms to almost all our problems, including Eskom, Transnet, unemployment, poverty, crime, mismanagement, corruption, bad public service delivery, etc. But he didn’t…

Putting South Africa under a national state of disaster due to the electricity crisis is an abuse of legislation. This is according to trade union Solidarity, which said the declaration would discourage economic investment in the country and enable the looting of state funds. Solidarity has served court papers on the government to get the state of disaster due to the electricity crisis declared irrational and unjustifiable. President Cyril Ramaphosa announced the national state of disaster during the State of the Nation Address last week. Among the government’s plans announced to put the brakes on load shedding is the appointment of a minister of electricity, who will drive and monitor the turnaround strategy, working with a special committee and Minister of Minerals and Energy Gwede Mantashe, Public Enterprises Minister Pravin…

THE ANC in the eThekwini region believes the reconfiguration of different committees in eThekwini Municipality is necessary to improve service delivery to residents. It announced the splitting up of some committees and the appointment of chairpersons during a media briefing yesterday. Committees in the city include human settlements and infrastructure committee (HSI), which controlled the bulk of the city’s services and was in charge of infrastructure-related matters, economic development and planning, community services, governance and human resources and finance and emergency services. The ANC announced yesterday that the finance and emergency services committee had been split. It was previously chaired by eThekwini mayor Mxolisi Kaunda. In terms of the changes, Kaunda will still chair the finance committee while deputy mayor Zandile Myeni, of the NFP, will chair the emergency services…

The huge job cuts in the big tech companies provide an opportunity for growth for start-ups and medium-sized companies, and could soon level the playing field in the tech space. Since mid-2022 up to as recently as this week, tech news has been filled with rumours or confirmation of big job cuts in the big tech companies. Most notably, Microsoft cut 10 000 jobs, Amazon is cutting 10 000 jobs, Meta cut 11 000, Twitter cut 3 500, and Apple halted their recruitment, cutting their recruiters’ contracts. The reasons given for these lay-offs are the scaling back from the big recruiting of software engineers. The big tech industry had optimistically assumed the Covid-19 pandemic was a catalyst for the adoption of online life. That assumption has not become reality,…

Military helicopters winched stranded storm survivors to safety in New Zealand yesterday, after Cyclone Gabrielle killed four people and displaced 10 500 more. With the storm now fading into the South Pacific, rescue teams are finally reaching regions cut off by days of torrential rain and gale-force winds. The New Zealand military deployed three helicopters on reconnaissance and rescue flights to the hard-hit Hawke’s Bay area, finding families, pets and workmates clustered on sodden zinc rooftops – surrounded by a sea of murky, debris-filled floodwater. The disaster has severed roads, collapsed houses and cut power across a swathe of New Zealand’s North Island, home to more than three-quarters of the country’s 5 million residents. Police said the body of a child was found in a town on the remote…

Beijing: Hundreds of retirees staged protests in the Chinese cities of Wuhan and Dalian yesterday against reforms to the public health insurance system, said witnesses. The outpouring of frustration has been sparked by reforms to China’s vast public health insurance system that have reduced allowances paid monthly to retirees. A crowd of demonstrators rallied in front of a park in Wuhan in the second such gathering in a week. The insurance reforms come as local government finances are strained following years of strict and costly zero-Covid policies. The protests in Wuhan have been exacerbated by officials being largely unaffected by the reforms. | AFP…

Türkiye said it would demolish buildings heavily damaged by a huge earthquake last week and swiftly start a mammoth reconstruction effort, with thousands of families struggling to survive amid the rubble and freezing conditions. Rescuers who flew in to save people trapped in the debris were starting to pack, although one woman was pulled out of a collapsed building yesterday after being buried for 222 hours. In neighbouring Syria’s opposition-held north-west, already suffering from more than a decade of bombardment, the earthquake left many fending for themselves amid the rubble, with aid slowed by the complex politics of humanitarian assistance there. The combined death toll in the two countries has climbed over 41 000, and millions are in need of humanitarian aid, with many survivors having been left homeless in…

Questions have been raised about the government’s vetting processes following the discovery of a former senior government official who was allegedly appointed without proper qualifications. The former employee, 40, who worked in the Office of the Premier in KwaZulu-Natal, has since been summoned to appear in court next month. Hawks spokesperson Captain Simphiwe Mhlongo said the suspect, who cannot be named until he appears in court, was served with summons in connection with two counts of fraud. “It is alleged that the suspect applied for a project manager’s post in 2010 and submitted a fraudulent qualification. “He was employed and in 2019 he further applied for a deputy director’s post and he was appointed to that post.’’ He said the alleged fraud came to light when the Department of Public…

The reluctance of President Cyril Ramaphosa to do a Cabinet reshuffle vividly indicates his fragility – he has sustained non-performing ministers for a while, and it shows he does not have a hold on power. Ministers like Pravin Gordhan, Fikile Mbalula and Gwede Mantashe should have long been fired from their portfolios but then, he would not have made his second term as ANC president. He is forced to keep even ministers who have clearly shown that they are not in his corner, like Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma after she voted for the Phala Phala report (adoption). Now that he has not accepted DD Mabuza’s resignation as deputy president, it will further make the situation tense between him and the well-known power-monger in Paul Mashatile. I can’t get my mind around…

Estcourt has again lived up to its “Murder Capital of KZN” reputation with another shooting a mere three days after the last one. According to reports, the latest murder of two people and serious injury to three other people travelling in a mini-bus took place on Monday on the Wembezi Road Allegedly, the main target may have been an official in the Inkosi Langalibalele Municipality, but this did not stop the killers from killing and injuring other people. The injured are reported to be in a critical condition. It is with great sadness that the DA once again extends its condolences to the families of the murder victims and those injured. The DA will closely monitor this case to ensure that the perpetrators are brought to book. The question around…

Eastern Cape Health MEC Nomakhosazana Meth has welcomed the Bhisho High Court ruling that the Provincial Health Department does not have to make an upfront lump sum payment for future medical expenses in a medico-legal claims case. The matter involved the mother of a minor child, who had sued the MEC for damages arising from the negligent conduct of medical staff in a public hospital. Her son’s birth at Cecilia Makiwane Hospital followed a period of prolonged labour and he suffered a brain injury. He has spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy (CP), microcephaly, intellectual impairment and epilepsy. He is also hearing and visually impaired, and has a percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) tube for feeding. He is incontinent and will remain so for life. General damages were settled in the amount of…

AS HEAVY rains continue to batter some provinces across South Africa the death toll increased to 12 yesterday, with thousands of people displaced. The SA Weather Service (SAWS) warned that heavy rain and floods were expected to continue in some parts until tomorrow. The widespread flooding led to President Cyril Ramaphosa declaring a national state of disaster on Monday. According to the government, this is to enable an intensive, co-ordinated response to the affected areas, including Mpumalanga, the Eastern Cape, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, the Northern Cape, and North West provinces. Department of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs spokesperson Lungi Mtshali said the death toll had increased to 12, including four people who died in Mpumalanga, three in Eastern Cape and one in Gauteng. He also announced another death in KwaZulu-Natal,…

The chairperson of the South African Local Government Association (Salga), Bheki Stofile, has proposed to Parliament that there be some changes in the local government sphere in the wake of the unstable coalition governments in several municipalities across the country. Stofile said the coalition governments which came into power after the November 2021 local government elections were the most unstable and called on the government to take another look at the system and possibly review it. He said when services were not delivered to communities, they looked at their municipalities and blamed them. “This animal called coalition robs the majority of our people, when they vote you political parties you lock yourself in the room and cut the cake according to what is your interest and the communities are…

Seif al-Adel, a former Egyptian special forces officer who is a high-ranking member of al-Qaeda with a $10 million (R180m) US bounty on his head, is now the “uncontested” leader of the militant group, according to a new UN report on the organisation. Al-Qaeda has not formally named a successor for Ayman al-Zawahiri, believed to have been killed in a US missile strike in Kabul last year, dealing a blow to the group since its founder Osama bin Laden was killed in 2011. A US intelligence official said in January that Zawahiri’s succession remained unclear, but the UN report assessing risks from the group said: “In discussions in November and December, many Member States took the view that Seif al-Adel is already operating as the de facto and uncontested leader…

Jerusalem: Israel yesterday expanded its policy of stripping citizenship over “terrorism” offences, with its parliament announcing that MPs had passed legislation against those who receive funds from the Palestinian Authority (PA). The bill also paves the way for Israel to expel people from the country or annexed east Jerusalem. The PA gives stipends to numerous families of prisoners, or detainees themselves, including those convicted of killing Israelis. The law may affect hundreds of east Jerusalem Palestinians and dozens of Israeli citizens, said Israeli rights group HaMoked. Most Palestinians living in east Jerusalem hold Israeli residency permits. | AFP…

FRANKFURT: German flag carrier Lufthansa said its IT system was recovering and flight departures from Frankfurt airport were resuming after a major IT failure left thousands of passengers stranded yesterday. The airline blamed botched railway engineering works that damaged broadband cables. More than 200 flights had been cancelled in Frankfurt, one of Europe’s biggest airports. The IT system failure comes two days ahead of planned strikes at seven German airports that are expected to lead to major disruptions, including potentially at the Munich Security Conference, where world leaders are expected to gather. | Reuters…

The head of the UN has warned that rising sea levels caused by global warming could spur a mass migration of entire populations from low-lying areas on a “biblical scale”. Speaking to the Security Council in New York about the impact of sea level rises on global peace and security, UN Secretary General António Guterres said that about 900 million people lived in low-lying coastal areas. “Under any scenario, countries like Bangladesh, China, India and the Netherlands are all at risk,” said Guterres this week, adding that such migration could lead to disputes over land and maritime territory. “Megacities on every continent will face serious impacts, including Lagos, Maputo, Bangkok, Dhaka, Jakarta, Mumbai, Shanghai, Copenhagen, London, Los Angeles, New York, Buenos Aires and Santiago.” Guterres cited data compiled…

EThekwini Municipality has proposed drastic changes to its model to operate the multimillion-rand GO!Durban project that could see taxi operators continuing to operate on the routes designed for the project. Initial plans had suggested that taxi operators might have to give up their licences and receive compensation. Taxi operators in the Pinetown area have argued in the past that some of their members had been displaced by the construction work, and had lost their customers as well as taxis. They indicated this week that the new proposal would face resistance as it was tantamount to changing the terms of a contract after it had been signed. The document, titled “Amended Approach for the Implementation of eThekwini Municipality’s Integrated Public Transport Network (IPTN)”, details the changes that have been proposed to…

Frustrations following the domino effect of a train of inefficiencies, continues to force people to tear the last bits of hair from their heads. Not just at supermarkets or our eThekwini Metro services. It’s an international phenomenon, really. In some stores in the US, for instance, customers scan their purchases on their own, pay by card and go home. No cashiers! A similar process occurs at some advanced airports. A computer robot checks passengers’ luggage before they move to security. Wonderful, eh? Not at all. Because there is hardly anybody on the shop floor to help out with some technical assistance, friendly advice or even a smile. Our banks have always been ahead with this advanced idea of keeping the customer at arm’s length, or at least as far away…

IT seems President Ramaphosa cannot rid himself of his Achilles heel, as the public is racked by anxiety and uncertainty amid the dire challenges that range from spiralling unemployment to out of control crime and the energy mess. His overcautious approach to taking action and incessant obsession with consulting is unacceptable. Two recent examples suffice. Since the ANC conference, the country has waited with bated breath for a Cabinet reshuffle that is sorely needed. But nothing has been done even after Deputy President DD Mabuza resigned. Mabuza was persuaded to stay on, ostensibly so a smooth transition can be effected, which is not in sight. Worse still, Ramaphosa even announced the creation of a new ministry to deal with the electricity crisis, but is taking his sweet time…

A 37-year-old Durban woman was sentenced to an effective nine years’ direct imprisonment for fraud amounting to about R16 million. National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) provincial spokesperson Natasha Ramkisson-Kara said Cindy Saunders, who worked as an export controller at RenCorp CC, trading as Nicholson Shipping, pleaded guilty to 45 counts of fraud, in the Commercial Crime Court in Durban. “She admitted to having a gambling addiction and said she decided to defraud her employer and another company, SK Boyz (Pty) Ltd, to pay off her gambling debt. “To this end, she enlisted the help of her co-accused and his companies,” she said. As part of the scheme, the NPA said Saunders generated false invoices. “Saunders said in her plea that at the time of the commission of the offences, she knew…

The National Council of SPCAs said it would be laying criminal charges of animal cruelty after cows were left in inhumane conditions at the Gupta-linked Vrede Dairy farm. Spokesperson Keshvi Nair said the NSPCA received information that the cows were being left without food, water, and veterinary treatment. “The NSPCA wasted no time in sending out a team of inspectors to investigate the complaint, especially considering the fact that, in 2014, the NSPCA had laid charges of animal cruelty against members of the farm after inspectors found animals suffering on the farm. “Unfortunately, the case was dropped by the State, claiming that the charged party had fled to India and could no longer be traced. “Sadly, NSPCA Inspectors have once again found animals suffering on the farm.” Nair said four…

Twenty-one suspected illegal miners appeared in the Stilfontein Magistrate’s Court yesterday. The case was postponed to February 27 for the continuation of the bail application by six of the accused and for further investigations. “One of the applicants took the stand to plead with the court to grant him bail. He indicated that he intends to plead not guilty to all the charges levelled against him. The State is opposing bail for all six applicants,” said National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson in the North West division, Henry Mamothame. “It has been verified that two of the applicants are from Lesotho, one from Swaziland and three are South African citizens. One accused is out on R5 000 bail, while 14 others have not registered interest in applying for bail,” Mamothame said. The…

At least 39 people died yesterday when a bus transporting migrants bound for the US crashed with a minibus in Gualaca, Chiriqui, in Panama, an official in the Central American country said. The bus had 66 passengers including the driver and an assistant when it crashed about 400km west of the capital Panama City, police said. Authorities have yet to report the nationalities of the victims, or the number of people injured. President Laurentino Cortizo said the government was providing medical care for survivors. There were three critically injured people at the crash site. Several of the injured were taken to a hospital in the Chiriqui provincial capital city, David. The bus was transporting migrants from Darien, a jungle area in Panama’s east bordering Colombia, westward toward Costa Rica from…

EDINBURGH: Scotland’s First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, announced her resignation yesterday after more than eight years of leading its devolved government. The National Party leader said she knew the time was right to quit after approaching a decade in power pushing for Scottish independence. The 52-year-old confirmed she would remain First Minister until the party elected a new leader, and also stay on as a member of the Scottish parliament until at least the next election, due in 2026. She departs after facing mounting pressure over her tactics for independence, and over transgender rights. She vowed to continue pushing for Scottish independence. | AFP…

London: A team of Israeli contractors who claim to have manipulated more than 30 elections around the world using hacking, sabotage and automated disinformation on social media has been exposed in a new investigation. The techniques described by Team Jorge raise new challenges for big tech platforms. The unit is run by Tal Hanan, 50, a former Israeli special forces operative who now works privately using the pseudonym “Jorge”, and appears to have been working under the radar in elections in various countries for two decades. The probe reveals details of how disinformation is being weaponised by Team Jorge to covertly meddle in elections without trace. The group also serves corporate clients. | IANS…