Índice para 2022-02-28 em Cape Times

Lengthy war to have ‘serious implications’ for food prices as SA doesn’t produce enough wheat Siphelele Dludla siphelele.dludla@inl.co.za Agri SA has warned that Russia’s ongoing full-scale invasion of Ukraine not only puts pressure on global oil prices, but also threatens to destabilise trade relations and jeopardise food security. Russia and Ukraine are meaningful contributors to the global food chain, accounting for at least 30 percent of the world’s wheat exports, 20 percent of maize exports and 80 percent of sunflower oil exports. Ukraine’s wheat has the greatest impact on food security throughout the world, as the country exported at least 18 million tons of wheat in 2020, making it the world’s fifth-biggest wheat exporter. Wheat prices have risen to the highest level since 2008, as the Russian…

Edward West edward.west@inl.co.za Oceana Group’s shareholders appeared to take heart on Friday after it said initial feedback from a probe by ENSafrica Forensics showed no employees or directors would be implicated in fraud or criminal conduct in the report. In addition, none of the matters in the ENSafrica Forensics investigation were likely to result in a financial loss to the company, a statement from Oceana said. The share price gained 3.38 percent to R53.60 on Friday afternoon, this after it has been trending lower following delays in releasing the results for the year to end-September 2021, the “precautionary” suspension of CFO Hajra Karrim, and the resignation of the CEO Imraan Soomra. Further doubts were cast when Oceana said the report had also uncovered “other matters, that were not within the…

Loyiso Sidimba loyiso.sidimba@inl.co.za THE State Security Agency (SSA) is investigating malfeasance in the entity, Defence Minister Thandi Modise announced yesterday. Modise revealed details of the probe during the justice, crime prevention and security cluster’s briefing following President Cyril Ramaphosa’s State of the Nation Address. ”A forensic investigation was initiated and a forensic investigations firm has been appointed to conduct an investigation into all malfeasance in the agency,” she said. According to Modise, the SSA has recently dismissed four members who had been found guilty of fraud and corruption. ”The agency has also made much progress in terms of working with the (National Prosecuting Authority’s) Investigative Directorate to ensure that the persons who were involved in criminality will be prosecuted,” she added. Police Minister Bheki Cele refused to answer questions about…

MOHAMED SAEED | Pietermaritzburg AS SOMEONE who has witnessed first-hand the effects of war in Syria and the brutal occupation of Palestine by Israeli colonialists, we must come together as human beings and demand a diplomatic solution to the crisis in Ukraine. Despite the double standards, lies and hypocrisy of the US, EU, UN Security Council and Nato axis, Russia’s military invasion of Ukraine must be denounced and condemned. The US and its allies have been violating international law and charters for many decades with no objections from the international community. What the Russians are currently perpetrating in Ukraine, for over a century, the US has been committing far worse crimes against humanity with its military adventures around the globe. In the name of “war on terror”, “regime…

Okuhle Hlati okhule.hlati@inl.co.za FAMILY, friends and residents bade farewell to slain Gugulethu grandmother Charlotte Madolo, found brutally murdered in her home, during a funeral service at the weekend. Mourners including family and residents of NY132 gathered at a hall in New Crossroads yesterday to pay their last respects to the 85-year-old. Madolo’s body was found by her grandchildren, tied to her bed on February 19, with her right eye gouged out and a scar over her other eye. At the time of the incident, other family members were attending a funeral just one street away. A 48-year-old man was arrested in connection with the murder the next day. “The way she was taken away from us was gruesome. No family should go through what we did. On the day of…

WITH the dismissal of national police commissioner Khehla Sitole, the search is on for a suitable replacement. The question that will linger is whether the new police boss will be appointed for political reasons rather than his/her ability to do one of the country’s most crucial jobs. Since 1994, with the exception of George Fivaz, none of the permanent appointments has completed their term in office. Political interference in policing has turned the office of the national commissioner into a tool for promoting the political interests of factions and parties. The July unrest, arson attack on Parliament and vandalism at the Constitutional Court reveal the failings of policing, specifically at the Crime Intelligence unit. There are undoubtedly excellent officers in this unit, but interference has neutralised their abilities. President Cyril…

Kharkiv: Street fighting raged in Ukraine’s second-biggest city yesterday after Russian forces pierced through Ukrainian lines, as both sides said they were ready for talks to halt a conflict that has forced hundreds of thousands of people to flee their homes. Machine gun fire and explosions could be heard in Kharkiv in north-east Ukraine. However, there is some hope for peace. Ukrainian and Russian officials would meet for talks at a venue on the Belarusian border with Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s office said yesterday. The talks, the first since Russia unleashed a full scale invasion of Ukraine last week, would be held without preconditions and were the result of a phone call between Zelenskiy and the Belarusian president, Zelenskiy said. “The past night in Ukraine was brutal,” he said. “They…

Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri Kani was to return to Vienna yesterday evening for talks on resolving the remaining issues in indirect negotiations with the US to revive the 2015 nuclear accord, the official IRNA news agency reported. Bagheri Kani, who flew to Tehran last week for talks with Iranian officials, will “pursue the negotiations with a clear agenda aimed at resolving” the remaining issues, IRNA said. Nournews, which is affiliated to Iran’s Supreme National Security Council that is in charge of the nuclear talks dossier, said a council meeting stressed “the need to quickly resolve the remaining issues that border between agreement and dead end”. It did not name the sticking points, but the main remaining disputes appear to include the extent of sanctions roll-back and questions about…

Carlos Barbosa-Lima, a guitarist who brought a dazzling virtuosity to the stage, exploring classical music, jazz and compositions from his native Brazil during a career of more than six decades, died last Wednesday at a hospital in Paraty, Brazil. He was 77. The cause was a heart attack, said Larry Del Casale, a New York guitarist who often performed with Barbosa-Lima. A child prodigy who made his professional debut at age 12, Barbosa-Lima combined a flawless classical technique with an inventive and eclectic musical approach. His vast repertoire ranged from Bach to the Beatles, from Gershwin to Jobim, and included a large number of works he adapted for guitar. He toured the world with his guitar, which he considered a universal instru- ment, common to many musical traditions, which embodied…

VIENNA: The UN nuclear watchdog’s 35-nation Board of Governors will hold an emergency meeting on Wednesday about Ukraine, where war is raging in a country with four operational nuclear power plants and various waste facilities, including Chernobyl. Board members Canada and Poland called the meeting at the request of Ukraine. Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi “called on all parties to refrain from actions that could jeopardise the security of nuclear material, and nuclear plants’ safe operation”.Ukrainian authorities have told the IAEA that Russian missiles hit a radioactive waste disposal site in Kiev. On-site radioactive results were still pending. | Reuters…

Banele Ginindza banele.ginindza@inl.co.za SOUTH Africa’s just transition from coal resources to a mix of renewable energy debate became painfully historic as Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe likened the “enforced march” to renewables as akin to the 1856/7 prophecy by Nongqawuse that people in the Cape Colony must destroy available assets in anticipation of future windfalls. Mantashe, who is Xhosa, said the temperament of green energy proponents suggested that South Africa should immediately desist from utilising its fossil fuel resources, enough for two more centuries, in favour of the yet unproven efficiency of renewable energy, from sun, wind, nuclear battery storage and hydrogen outcomes. In April, 1856 the 15-year old Nongqawuse and her friend Nombanda went to scare birds from her uncle’s crops in the fields by the sea…

OUR Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo (DCJ) presiding over the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into State Capture established for the purpose of determining whether or not in a specific time period, the state had been captured by non-state actors and where so captured to what degree, has raised in his findings the possibility of a named bank or banks having actively participated in money-laundering activities. With this finding, the obsequious halo that adorns the image of the banks has arguably been sullied, and the learned law lord has called an abomination on such conduct. By so doing, the Honourable Deputy Chief Justice has cracked open the vaults of intrigue and shone a light on the chicanery of the high priests of capital. The harried events spawned by these revelations have…

Siphokazi Vuso siphokazi.vuso@inl.co.za THE Patriotic Alliance (PA) has announced it will immediately withdraw from coalitions in Knysna and Oudtshoorn municipalities in the Western Cape. The party said it will sit in the opposition benches if their members are not being prioritised for employment. Outside of the province, the party said Nelson Mandela Bay, and Kou-Kamma were also among the municipalities the party will withdraw their coalition agreement from. The party’s president, Gayton McKenzie, said they have recently met with various political leaders where they were clear that they will only reconsider their decision when they see a change in their behaviour. He said they will withdraw from the coalition in Knysna with the DA, citing they will not “allow themselves to be taken for a ride”. He said the party…

Nicola Daniels nicola.daniels@inl.co.za PUPILS have fallen up to 70% of a school year behind previous cohorts in language, and up to 106% of a year behind in maths, the 2021 systemic test results for the province show. The greatest losses were in the Foundation Phase, with the Western Cape Education Department (WCED) yesterday saying the 2021 systemic test results confirmed the devastating impact of Covid-19 on education. The 2021 results are in comparison to tests conducted in 2019, as testing could not take place in 2020. Administrative data from the WCED’s Temporary Revised Education Plans (TREPs) also showed that 155 school days were lost in the province in 2020 and 2021. In maths grade 3s in the province saw a drop from an average of 54.5% to 46.7%. Language in…

MICHAEL BAGRAIM | Highlands Estate YOUR edition Friday, February 25 – “South Africa’s forgotten refugees”, refers. The heartfelt letter from the chairperson of the Congolese Civil Society of South Africa should be read by our departments of both Foreign Affairs and Home Affairs. In essence, it is quite clear that the behaviour of the South African government fuels xenophobia. Furthermore, the system of registration is both archaic and cruel. Home Affairs needs to treat refugees with at least a modicum of dignity. At the moment refugees are treated like dirt. It must also be remembered that the Congo is not only a fellow African country but an ally of South Africa. Congo was one of the few places that came to the freedom fighters’ aid during apartheid. What…

C THORNS | Sunningdale WATCHING Judge Dennis Davis on Judge for Yourself, which was aired on Thursday, interviewing Edward Senzo Mchunu was mind-boggling. How could it be possible that he was appointed Minister of Water and Sanitation, when his qualification is a BA in Education and International Relations? From 1985 he worked as a high school teacher. He then resigned and became a full-time politician in 1991. He had no knowledge or experience in the position that he now holds. It is no wonder that so many people do not have running water and that South Africa is in such a mess, when ministers, that are appointed, are not qualified for the position that they hold.…

Molaole Montsho Three men accused of fraud, involving an almost R10.2 million tax scam, were granted bail, the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation, better know as the Hawks, said. Spokesperson Captain Ndivhuwo Mulamu said the men aged 44, 51 and 52 appeared in the Specialised Commercial Crimes Court in Pretoria and Palm Ridge on Friday. “It is alleged that the Atteridge- ville-based construction company, Suxeed Invest 130 and its director, Pule Louis Molele, 52, and his co-accused and independent tax practitioner, Solly Ngobeni, 44, submitted false tax return claims through e-filing to claim an undue value-added tax refund for the period August to December 2019.” The SA Revenue Service (Sars) allegedly processed some of the refund amounting to about R1.1m. Sars’ internal forensic investigation team discovered the claims were fraudulent;…

Finance Minister Enoch Godon- gwana spelt out the sombre reality of the state of the country’s finances and its economic prospects for the year ahead and beyond in his 2022 National Budget. What was striking was his tone of pragmatism, tempered with hope and despair. The usual overstated rhetoric of aspiration of his predecessors and sometimes his president, Cyril Ramaphosa, was muted. The handouts were also considered! The reality is a Budget that combines a “carrot, stick and stuck” approach. That the country has been stuck in an economic Groundhog Day for the past 10 years speaks volumes of the inability of the governing ANC to get on top of its stewardship of the economy and its finances. There has been some painstakingly slow progress. “These interventions,” noted the minister,…

North Korea fired a suspected ballistic missile off its east coast yesterday, militaries of South Korea and Japan said, its first since January and its eighth test of the year. The suspected ballistic missile was fired from a location near Sunan District of North Korean capital Pyongyang, said South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff. North Korea appears to be resuming its missile tests after a month-long pause during the Beijing Winter Olympics, which some analysts believe was intended to avoid crossing its ally, China. In January, North Korea conducted seven missile tests, as it works to diversify and expand its arsenal with a variety of new missile systems. During its last test on January 30, North Korea fired an intermediate-range ballistic missile capable of striking Guam, in its most powerful…

Nearly 200 nations yesterday approved a major UN climate change report detailing the accelerating impacts of global warming, at the end of a sometimes fraught two-week meeting overshadowed by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) confirmed that debates had concluded over the report’s crucial “Summary for Policymakers”, a 40-page overview distilling thousands of pages of scientific research, which has been reviewed line-by-line and will be made public today. Species extinction, ecosystem collapse, mosquito-borne disease, deadly heat, water shortages, and reduced crop yields are already measurably worse due to global heating. Just in the past year, the world has seen a cascade of unprecedented floods, heatwaves and wildfires across four continents. All these impacts will accelerate in the coming decades even if the carbon pollution driving…

vatican city: Pope Francis yesterday called for an end to fighting in Ukraine on the fourth day of the Russian invasion of the country. “Let the weapons fall silent,” he said. “God is with those who seek peace, not those resorting to violence.” The Argentinian pontiff also called for the “urgent” opening of humanitarian corridors to allow civilians to escape the onslaught. “I am thinking of the elderly, of all those at the moment seeking refuge, of mothers fleeing with their children,” he said. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees says more than 368 000 people have fled Ukraine since Russia invaded on Thursday. Many of those escaping to neighbouring countries have crossed over into Poland. | AFP…

KATHMANDU: Nepal’s parliament began debating a US infrastructure grant of $500 million (R7.5 billion) which, critics say, undermines the Himalayan nation’s sovereignty as protesters opposed to the proposed funds clashed with police yesterday. The Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), a US government aid agency, agreed in 2017 to provide the grant to fund an electricity transmission line and road improvement project. The aid does not need to be repaid and Washington says it comes without conditions. But opponents, many wary of US influence, say the aid would undermine Nepal’s sovereignty. Protesters opposed to the aid clashed with police. | Reuters…

Banele Ginindza banele.ginindza@inl.co.za STATE arms manufacturer Denel still faces a steep road ahead with its outstanding R650 million salary bill despite a R3 billion gifting by Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana, and R1bn allowance out of the medical aid kitty. Unions with favourable attachment orders might still execute them, because the latest windfall is meant for interest payments and legacy debt, and not the salary arrears that the unions fought for in court. As acting CEO William Hlakoane confirmed on Friday, the financially ebattled state utility would still rely on its five-year turnaround plan, including the disposal of assets such as property and land to meet its arrears obligations. Unions were adamant they would move for an execution of court orders, which entitle them to attach Denel’s assets. “It…

From page 1 “Because companies like Sasol still do business with Bain, it legitimises them because they can say: ‘Well, Sasol, this big company, still does business with us.’ No one is calling business out on lies and duplicity. “All our CEOs should have been people of integrity, including the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, and come out and condemned Bain or companies employing Bain.” Williams added: “(Former president Jacob) Zuma did not capture our state, the private sector captured our state. The business world presents itself as clean, but there were mentions of Nedbank, Standard Bank – companies people were shocked to think of as corrupt. “The second problem is that our country is run by business, power dominates how things are done, [a] business friendship with Bain, Mckinsey, Nedbank, no…

Marsha Dean marsha.Dean@inl.co.za SOUTH Africa’s national lifesaving team clinched first place at the 2022 Lifesaving Africa Championships in Alexandria, Egypt, earlier this month. The Egyptian Diving and Lifesaving Federation (EDLF) welcomed its African counterparts under the slogan: “Africa United to Stop Drowning.” With a relatively inexperienced squad, South Africa dominated the water events and was the main catalyst in the Proteas finishing the championships with a combined total of 500 points. Hosts Egypt finished second with 468 points and Morocco came in third with 410 points. Competing for South Africa, Chevan Clarke said: “My experience in Egypt was phenomenal. “It was exceptional to see a team come together. In terms of team effort, everybody played their role in doing what needed to happen to get the points to secure a…

Okuhle Hlati and Chad Williams THE Department of International Relations and Co-operation (Dirco) says it is in touch with and assisting about 200 South African citizens in Ukraine. This is as Ukrainian and Russian officials will meet for talks at a venue on the Belarusian border, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s office said yesterday. The talks, the first since Russia unleashed a full-scale invasion of Ukraine last week, would be held “without preconditions” and were the result of a phone call between Zelenskiy and the Belarusian president, Zelenskiy said, according to a Reuters report. “We agreed that the Ukrainian delegation would meet with the Russian delegation without preconditions on the Ukrainian-Belarusian border, near the Pripyat River,” he said in a statement. Dirco spokesperson Clayson Monyela said according to their database there…

The City of Cape Town recently passed amendments to its Bylaws for Streets, Public Places and the Prevention of Noise Nuisances. It’s caused quite a stir, on both sides of the street. As someone who experienced homelessness for several years but also a recent law graduate with a few years of practical paralegal experience, I have a vantage point. In this month’s article, I want to dig into some high-level insight around the practical implications of the Streets Bylaws and the amendments from both my legal viewpoint and, most importantly, personal homeless experiences. The Legal View The original Street Bylaws first came into force more than 14 years ago, they’re not new and they cover some basics that help our City to function. The City last year…

Chevon Booysen Chevon.booysen@inl.co.za A HISTORY of violence was revealed during the bail application proceedings of accused murderer and suspended cop, Richard Smit, who is accused of the murder of his partner Natasha Booise. Smit, 36, appeared in the Piketberg Magistrate’s Court on Thursday where a list of his previous convictions was read to the court, including an incident in which he had pointed a gun at his father during an altercation in 2013. However, the recently-suspended cop, who intends to plead not guilty, in his bail bid argued that he “poses no threat to witnesses and isn’t a threat to society” and his further detainment would infringe on his right to freedom, dignity and healthcare. The matter was postponed to March 15 for further investigation. Ronald Davids for police watchdog…

Godongwana’s measured judgements confirm scrapping measure remains some way off THE fizzy drink levy might seem like a relatively light business, but through those bubbles you can get a glimpse of what’s to come as Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana hiked the health promotion levy, commonly known as the “sugar tax” from 2.21c per gram of sugar to 2.31c, when he delivered his maiden Budget last Wednesday. And, hey presto, there is panic in the sugar industry. Sorry, I should say some in the sugar industry. There is one hell of a debate going on in economic, financial, and health policy circles about whether this tax is warranted at all in the first place, given the forecast threat of job losses in the current financial year in an industry that has…

Ukrainian authorities yesterday launched a website to help Russian families track down soldiers killed or captured fighting in Moscow’s invasion of the pro-Western country. The site – 200rf.com – contains pictures of the documents and corpses of Russian soldiers Ukraine said had been killed since President Vladimir Putin launched the attack. It also has videos of soldiers Ukraine says it has captured. Viktor Andrusiv, an adviser to the interior minister, said in a video posted on the site: “I know many Russians are worried about where their children, sons, husbands are – we put this online so you could search for your loved one who Putin sent to fight in Ukraine.” Andrusiv said that over the past three days Ukrainian forces had captured almost 200 Russian soldiers and more than…

Actor and activist Sean Penn, who is on the ground in Ukraine filming a documentary on the invasion, denounced Russian President Vladimir Putin for what the US film-maker called “a most horrible mistake for all of humankind”. Penn on Saturday praised Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, while noting the destruction caused since Russia launched broad attacks in Ukraine. “Already a brutal mistake of lives taken and hearts broken, and if he doesn’t relent, I believe Mr Putin will have made a most horrible mistake for all of humankind,” he said. “President Zelensky and the Ukrainian people have risen as historic symbols of courage and principle.” | The Washington Post…

Doha: Talks between Chad’s military-led government and armed rebel groups due to start yesterday in Qatar have been postponed, diplomats said. The talks are aimed at paving the way for an “inclusive national dialogue” and elections which the leader of the Chadian junta Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno has promised by October. Deby took over as head of a Transitional Military Council (TMC) after his father, Idriss Deby Itno, who had ruled Chad for three decades, was killed in fighting with rebels in April last year. African diplomats in Doha said yesterday’s talks in Qatar had been delayed because preparations for the meeting had not been completed and difficulties for would-be participants to obtain travel documents. | AFP…

Stuart Hess stuart.hess@inl.co.za Neil Wagner - through word and deed - has provided three of the most captivating periods of play through this all too brief Test series between New Zealand and South Africa. With the bat in the first Test he blitzed the Proteas with a ballsy 49 on the second morning. In the second Test, which was delicately poised at the end of day three at Hagley Oval, it was Wagner in his primary role as bowling ‘enforcer’ that sought to get under the skins of the Proteas. It didn’t work that well in the first innings, where 21-year old Marco Jansen looked him up and down, then belted him over mid-on for four and subsequently had to endure a mini-barrage of verbals. Jansen’s already shown he doesn’t…