Table of contents for 2023-02-07 in Cape Times

PARTIES across the political divide paid glowing tributes to the first Speaker of the democratic Parliament, Dr Frene Ginwala, during a memorial service at the Cape Town City Hall yesterday. Ginwala passed away at her home in Cape Town on January 12 at the age of 90 following a stroke two weeks prior. Delivering her tribute, International Relations and Cooperation Minister Naledi Pandor said Ginwala was a leader of many accomplishments. “She is renowned as a courageous Freedom Fighter who fearlessly committed herself to the cause for justice and an end to apartheid. Comrade Frene fully associated herself with the downtrodden, marginalised and the vulnerable,” Pandor said. She recalled Ginwala as someone who was extensively educated and well-read in journalism and law. “Speaker Ginwala was determined at an early time…

AS THE death toll of the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck central Türkiye and northwest Syria yesterday continued to climb, with well over 2 600 deaths reported by last night, the South African embassy remained on high alert with no reports of South Africans among the deceased as yet. Rescuers were still retrieving bodies from the rubble yesterday, after the earthquake rocked the region at about 4am. Department of International Relations and Co-operation (Dirco) spokesperson Clayson Monyela said while there have been no reports of South Africans injured or deceased, the embassy was monitoring the situation and on standby to offer consular assistance. Consular assistance was non-financial, depending on the magnitude of a national disaster, but at times the Cabinet could take a decision to make funds available for relief,…

WHILE rhino poaching in the Kruger National Park (KNP)saw a decline in 2022, poaching fears and threats have now shifted to KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), which lost 244 rhino last year. The Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) said 124 rhino were killed in the KNP last year. This constitutes a 40% decrease compared with those killed for their horns in 2021. KZN lost 244 rhino to poaching last year. Of these, 228 were killed in provincial parks and 16 in privately-owned reserves. The Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park was specifically targeted. In total across the country, private rhino owners lost 86 rhino. “The number of rhino killed in the past year represents a slight decline of three compared to the 451 rhino poached in South Africa in 2021,” said DFFE Minister, Barbara…

THE victim of the Polokwane pit bull attack, which sparked racial tensions in the Limpopo capital, is out of hospital and recovering at home. However, her family said the girl, who asked not to be named for fear of victimisation, complained that most of the pain was in her left hand. She said she was unable to use the hand at the moment. The pit bull terrier attacked the pupil, biting her on her upper body - on her left breast - while she walked home from school earlier last week. According to onlookers, the dog apparently escaped through a small gate to attack the girl, who was walking with a friend on Magazyne and Van Warmelo streets. Speaking to Pretoria News, witness Susan Tshifalo said the incident caused…

ANOTHER two suspects have been arrested after a R3.2 million crayfish tail and abalone bust in Belhar. Police said a 21-year-old suspect was arrested on Saturday after he was found in possession of the seafood without a permit. The City yesterday said its law enforcement officers, attached to the K9 Unit, further arrested two suspects, aged 23 and 26. “The officers attached to the K9 Unit executed a search warrant in Bellville and arrested two suspects for the possession of abalone and crayfish, valued at approximately R3.2m. “Officers found 6 416 units of abalone stored in three big deep freezers inside the garage, four whole crayfish, 40 crayfish tails and approximately R150 000 in cash. The suspects, a 26-year-old male and a 23-year-old female were detained at Bellville SAPS,” the…

AS OUR country battles the energy crisis, the governing party must be commended for suggesting that our country needs an energy mix rather than simply pushing for renewables. However, we have seen that South Africa has received much support, politically and financially, to ensure the rapid introduction of renewables by the West, in particular. Recently, US treasury secretary Janet Yellen visited South Africa because our country, as she said, “is the first country with a just energy transition partnership to which the US was proud to commit as a partner”. Yet, since the outbreak of the conflict in Ukraine, reports suggest that there has been an uptick in the production of coal in the US. Following Yellen’s visit, the EU announced its partnership with South Africa, through its Global Gateway…

Nurses and ambulance staff stepped up their demands for better pay yesterday to combat the UK’s cost-of-living crisis by launching their biggest round of health service strikes. The stoppages – part of a wave of industrial action across the UK economy – saw nurses and paramedics go on strike on the same day for the first time yesterday. Striking staff outside St Thomas’ Hospital in central London waved placards and chanted “Safer staffing saves lives” and “Claps don’t pay the bills”, a reference to the daily national applause they received from the public during the coronavirus pandemic. The healthcare workers say their wages have failed to keep up with inflation over the past decade, leaving them unable to pay their bills amid spiralling fuel, food and housing costs. They warn…

VATICAN CITY: Pope Francis has said some in the conservative wing of the Roman Catholic Church had exploited the death of the former pope, Benedict, in an unethical way for their own gains. Francis also rejected claims by some conservatives that Benedict, who died in December last year, was embittered by some of current pope’s decisions. “I think the death of Benedict was instrumentalised by some people,” he said. “Those people do not have ethics. They are people of a party, not of the Church.” Francis used a Spanish expression “Cuento Chino”, meaning tall tales, to describe allegations by some conservatives that Benedict was saddened by some of Francis’s decisions after Benedict resigned in 2013. The pope said he had often consulted Benedict. After Benedict’s funeral in January, the late…

Nairobi: A Kenyan court yesterday rejected a bid by Facebook’s parent company Meta to stop a case accusing it of exploitation and poor working conditions. The suit was filed by a former content moderator at Sama, a company contracted by Meta to review Facebook posts. Meta sought to have the case struck down. But high court judge Jacob Gakeri yesterday dismissed the request from Meta. Meta has faced scrutiny over the working conditions of content moderators who say they spend hours focused on hateful, disturbing posts with little regard given to their well-being. | AFP…

HANOI: Vietnamese authorities have over the past week seized more than 600kg of ivory smuggled from Africa, the government said yesterday. Trade in ivory is illegal in Vietnam but wildlife trafficking remains widespread. Other items often found smuggled into the country include pangolin scales, rhino horns and tiger carcasses. Customs authorities in the northern port city of Haiphong yesterday found nearly 130kg of ivory hidden in a container of cow horns originated from Africa, the government said. This after the finding of 500kg of African ivory last week at Lach Huyen Port in the city. It’s the largest seizure of ivory in Vietnam in four years. | Reuters…

Manchester City have been referred to an independent commission by the Premier League over alleged breaches of its financial rules, the English top flight announced yesterday. The alleged breaches span a period from the 2009/10 season to the 2017/18 campaign. City were banned from Uefa competitions in February 2020 for two years by European football’s governing body for “serious financial fair-play breaches” but the sanction was overturned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport in July of the same year. The defending Premier League champions are alleged to have breached league rules requiring provision “in utmost good faith” of “accurate financial information that gives a true and fair view of the club’s financial position”. The Premier League said the accurate financial information required related to “revenue (including sponsorship revenue), its…

THE Department of Social Development lost its Gauteng High Court, Pretoria bid to appeal an order issued in October to reinstate a well-known Christian organisation’s accreditation as a child protection entity. Judge Anthony Millar earlier found that the department had acted with an “ulterior purpose” in simply withdrawing the status of the Christelike Maatskaplike Raad North. Judge Millar, in his order for the department to revoke the organisation’s child protection status, at the time also awarded a punitive costs order against the department, saying: “I am satisfied that the conduct of the department falls sufficiently short of that which is expected of it…” The department withdrew the status following an investigation after eight complaints about the conduct of social workers at the organisation. It then lodged an application for leave…

ANC deputy president Paul Mashatile was sworn in as one of the party’s new MPs yesterday, taking him one step closer to becoming the country’s second-in-command. Mashatile was sworn with Maropene Ramokgopa, Sihle Zikalala and Parks Tau at the office of National Assembly Speaker, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula. Speaking to the media, he said as new MPs they were in Parliament to implement the manifesto of the ANC. “We are joining a team of other comrades, who have already been here so we are to work with them to ensure we serve our people well. “We will be briefed by the chief whip of the majority party about our responsibilities as MPs and we will serve with dignity and respect whatever task we are given.” Mashatile said it was good to…

CORRECTIONAL Services national commissioner, Makgothi Thobakgale, said the battle against drugs has infiltrated correctional centres, as he called on communities to work with them in the war against drugs. According to Thobakgale, it was critical that intelligence platforms be created to tackle “those destroying our societies”. Thobakgale was speaking at a Correctional Services Imbizo in Vanrhynsdorp, in the West Coast District Municipality on Sunday. The event was held at the Thusong Service Centre, where he and other officials engaged with residents on the issue of drug abuse and drug smuggling. “It is crucial that we engage and work together as we seek to find solutions that will protect us as people and take our country forward. “Of course, there are many other challenges facing South Africa that we attend to…

A NOW divorced man has lost out on his portion of his wife’s state pension, their house and all of which formed part of their joint estate because he never contributed towards the household. When he received his pension fund payout some years ago, he also did not share a penny with his wife nor with his children. The wife, who works for a government agency, turned to the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, to obtain a divorce. As they were married in community of property, she also asked the court not to divide the assets – all hers – between them. The wife asked the court to order that the husband had to forfeit his half of the assets, due to “substantial misconduct”. This is as he used the R270…

THE dignity of pupils in Dunoon and Joe Slovo, who started the 2023 academic year wearing flip flops, boots and worn out takkies, was restored when they received brand new school shoes and supplies yesterday. The faces of children from Silver Leaf Primary School in Dunoon and Marconi Beam Primary School in Joe Slovo lit up as they received some of the 200 pairs of school shoes, dental kits from Aquafresh, backpacks, and other essentials. The School Readiness Campaign was held by the Justice and Correctional Services ministry, in partnership with the Department of Basic Education (DBE). All donations were made possible through the poverty alleviation fund, to which correctional service officials voluntarily contribute monthly for the upliftment of poor communities. It is also part of the DCS build-up activities…

When President Cyril Ramaphosa delivers his much-anticipated State of the Nation Address (Sona) later this week, he needs to be aware that the level of trust among South Africans is at its lowest ebb. Due to several broken promises that he has made in the past, ordinary citizens no longer take his utterances or those of his government seriously. As Ramaphosa delivers his first Sona since he won the fiercely contested presidency of the ANC in Nasrec last year, he should galvanise his team to work harder, because the promises he makes will be scrutinised by the opposition and a sceptical public. He should also be mindful of the fact that beautifully constructed speeches and sound bites will no longer cut it with the public. People are tired of load…

Beijing confirmed yesterday that a balloon seen flying over Latin America is Chinese, while the US worked to recover what it claimed was an unmanned spy craft it shot down at the weekend. China has expressed fury at Washington’s decision to shoot down a device that it insists was an unmanned weather surveillance aircraft that had veered off course last week. That balloon sparked outrage in the US, which accused China of an “unacceptable violation” of its sovereignty and prompted Secretary of State Antony Blinken to call off a planned trip to Beijing. Beijing acknowledged yesterday that the latest balloon, spotted by US and Colombian officials flying over Latin America at the weekend, was also Chinese. Its foreign ministry said the device was of “a civilian nature and used for…

Pharmaceutical companies that made billions from the pandemic over the past two years selling vaccines and treatments are now up against a steep Covid-19 cliff and investor pressure to spend their windfalls wisely. Western drugmakers including Pfizer, BioNTech Moderna, Gilead Sciences, AstraZeneca Plc and Merck & Co are estimated to have earned about $100 billion (roughly R1 767 000 000) in revenue from Covid-19 vaccines and treatments in 2022. Company and analyst estimates suggest those sales could fall by nearly two-thirds this year due to built-up product inventories across the world including in countries that pay the most. Population immunity from high rates of vaccination and previous infections means demand for treatments could dip as well. These companies are used to steep revenue drops – known as patent cliffs –…

LONDON: The search for a woman who disappeared while walking her dog and on a work call intensified yesterday with underwater search specialists joining an effort to find out what happened to the mother of two last seen 10 days ago. Nicola Bulley, 45, was last seen walking her dog near a river in Lancashire, north-west England, on January 27. Just 25 minutes later, her cellphone, still connected to a work Teams call, was found on a bench. Willow, her springer spaniel, was found waiting nearby. Police said they believed she had fallen into the water. There was no evidence of anything suspicious, they said. The case remained a missing person enquiry. | Reuters…

GENEVA: Swiss citizens will get the chance to try to ensure their economy never becomes cashless, a pressure group said, after collecting enough signatures yesterday to trigger a popular vote on the issue. The Free Switzerland Movement says cash is playing a shrinking role in many economies, as electronic payments become the default for transactions in increasingly digitised societies. It wants a clause added to Switzerland’s currency law, which governs how the central bank and government manage the money supply, stipulating that a “sufficient quantity” of banknotes or coins must always remain in circulation. | Reuters…

The Proteas women’s team delivered a mixed-bag in their first T20 World Cup warm-up match in Stellenbosch on Monday. The bowling unit discovered the challenge that lays ahead with England piling on 246/7 in their 20 overs. England’s top order, in particular, were belligerent with Sophia Dunkley striking 59 off just 19 balls (9x4, 3x6). Her opening partner Danni Wyatt was more sedate with 24 off 17 balls, but the carnage continued through Alice Capsey (61 off 33 balls) and Nat-Sciver Brunt (51 off 25 balls). All the South African bowlers suffered as a result, with only Shabnim Ismail (2/38) conceding less than 10 runs per over. Captain Sune Luus was particularly expensive, with the captain leaking 21 runs off her only over. In their turn at the bat, the…

Anti-mining activists from the Right to Say No as well as People’s Dialogue campaigns gathered outside Parliament yesterday in protest against the annual Investing in African Mining Indaba, saying communities were being stripped of their land and resources for the enrichment of the few. Africa is home to about 30% of the world’s mineral deposits, including the critical minerals needed in green technologies and renewable energy. The mining indaba kicked off yesterday under the theme “Unlocking African Mining Investment: Stability, Security, and Supply”. National organiser from the Right to Say No campaign, Matthews Hlabane, read out a statement outside Parliament, calling for the development of “sustainable peoples” alternatives. “The purpose of the indaba is to serve as a platform for these companies to promote extractivism and to discuss…

THE City of Cape Town once again has to provide Bromwell Street residents in Salt River with temporary emergency accommodation in a location as near as possible to where they now live – not Wolweriver, some 31km away from the CBD. The order was issued by the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) yesterday, where the City’s appeal was upheld against a Western Cape High Court judgment in respect of the constitutional duty of a municipality to provide temporary emergency housing. The matter has its genesis in 2014, when the Woodstock Hub gave notice to residents to vacate the premises it had bought from brothers Reza and Erefaan Syms, situated at erf 10626, Bromwell Street, Salt River. The residents had rented units at the property from the Syms brothers. The high…

HEALTH authorities have called for the public to be vigilant after two confirmed cases of cholera were reported in the country this week. The cases are sisters who travelled together from Johannesburg to Malawi to attend a funeral service. They returned by bus on January 30, and both developed symptoms on their return to Johannesburg. Cholera is an acute enteric infection caused by the bacteria Vibrio cholerae, and outbreaks usually occur in settings with inadequate sanitation and insufficient access to safe drinking water. Cholera typically causes acute watery diarrhoea and can affect people of all ages. Health Minister Dr Joe Phaahla said: “One patient presented to a local clinic and was then admitted to hospital. During the case investigation and follow-up of close contacts, the sister reported that she also…

AN ANC Overstrand councillor, described as someone who had a bright future in politics, was stabbed in the chest and killed at the weekend after an alleged argument with a suspect who is yet to be arrested. The stabbing comes weeks after the wife of ANC MP Edward Njadu, Lydia, was murdered in Beaufort West when at least three armed gunmen arrived at her residence and shot at the 55-year-old after a brief discussion. Overstrand councillor, Simphiwe Silo, died yesterday morning outside his home after collapsing by the gate. Police spokesperson Joseph Swartbooi said Hermanus police responded to a complaint at about 2.45am. “Upon arrival at the scene in Zwelihle they found the body of a 33-year-old man who (had) sustained stab wounds to his body. “The victim was declared…

Even supporters of Ramaphoria wave start to anticipate defeat as euthanising mercy SOUTH Africans are watching whether this State of the Nation Address (Sona) will demonstrate a more gradual transition from a governing party to the opposition as a state of mind – an exhaustion of the will to govern and a dissolution of the discipline necessary to get work done into factional rancour. That journey precedes an election defeat and makes one more likely. Will this Sona make more ANC-SACP-Cosatu members lose hope of victory in accomplishing electoral promises? Will it reveal a leader in Ramaphosa who has run out of inducements to loyalty to see through the New Dawn project that ushered him into office? Will it expose failed attempts to show strength, advertising weakness instead? Voters smell…

The world is producing a record amount of single-use plastic waste, mostly made from polymers created from fossil fuels, despite global efforts to reduce plastic pollution and carbon emissions, according to a new report released yesterday. The second Plastic Waste Makers Index, compiled by the Western Australia-based philanthropic Minderoo Foundation, found the world generated 139 million metric tons of single- use plastic waste in 2021, 6 million metric tons more than in 2019, when the first index was released. It found the additional plastic waste created in those two years equates to nearly 1kg more for every person on the planet and was driven by demand for flexible packaging like films and sachets. The report found recycling wasn’t scaling up fast enough to deal with the amount of plastic being…

Johannesburg: South African DJ-producer Zakes Bantwini, flautist Wouter Kellerman and songstress Nomcebo Zikode won the best global music performance award for their Zulu song Bayethe at a Sunday ceremony in Los Angeles. “We applaud you for your brilliant contribution in placing South Africa on the world stage once again,” President Cyril Ramaphosa wrote on Twitter. The EFF tweeted that the latest victory reaffirmed “the depth in talent” in the country’s music industry, “which is globally recognised”. The ceremony was hosted by South African comedian Trevor Noah. | AFP…

Israeli security forces killed five Palestinians during an early morning raid yesterday in the normally quiet city of Jericho, amid the worst violence in the West Bank in nearly two decades. The Israeli army said two of the killed were captured on CCTV footage preparing to attack a Jewish-run restaurant on the main road outside Jericho with assault-style weapons last month and had been the target of an intensive manhunt. It described two of the dead as members of Hamas’s military wing. Hours after the operation, blood remained on the walls of a small shed next to large villas across a highway from the Aqbat Jabar refugee camp, a densely populated urban slum that is home to 13 000 people. Young men from the camp burned tires in protest and…

SANTIAGO: Chilean firefighters were battling to hold back forest fires yesterday as authorities said hot and dry weather would continue this week, potentially exacerbating what are already the deadliest blazes in the country’s recent history. The fires, which have consumed 270 000ha of land, have killed 24 people so far in south-central Chile, and already made 2023 the second worst year in terms of hectares burnt after the “fire storm” in 2017. As of yesterday there were 275 active fires; 69 in combat. Chile is in the grip of an over decade-long dry weather spell, which the World Meteorological Organization said was the longest in a 1 000 years and marked a major water crisis. | Reuters…

Bulls coach Jake White’s near-death experience has caused him to think differently about the game of rugby and life itself. For him it used to be that every try and match was life and death but after surviving an illness that nearly cost him his life, he now knows what life and death comes down to. White penned a heartfelt My Voice article yesterday, revealing just how close to death he came after he fell ill while travelling with the Bulls during the United Rugby Championship. In early January the team touched down in Wales for a match with the Dragons, but White couldn’t make it out of bed for that game. He says he already started feeling sick when the Bulls faced the Stormers in Cape Town two…

The likeable John Moeti, the legendary Bafana Bafana and Orlando Pirates midfielder, died yesterday after battling an illness for the past eight months. Moeti (55) was part of Clive Barker's triumphant squad that won the 1996 Africa Cup of Nations. He was part of the Pirates team that won the CAF Champions League (Cup of Champions) in 1995. It was the first South African team to win Africa's most elite club title. Moeti's family confirmed his death yesterday morning. The statement read: "It is with profound sadness and a deep sense of loss that we inform you of the passing of John 'Dungi' Moeti. "John suddenly took ill eight months ago and was receiving specialist medical care. "John succumbed to his illness in the early hours of this morning at…