Table of contents for 2023-02-21 in Cape Times

PRESSURE is mounting on President Cyril Ramaphosa to wield the axe on some of his Cabinet members during the looming reshuffle. According to a political analyst, Ramaphosa was still consulting, while insiders said it would happen any time after the Budget Speech, scheduled for tomorrow. The eminent reshuffle is expected to take place after some of his Cabinet members were booted out of the ANC National Executive Committee (NEC) at the party’s elective conference in December. Most glaring among those left outside the NEC were Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan and Nathi Mthethwa (Minister of Sports Arts and Culture). A party insider close to the party’s National Working Committee, and who did not want to be named for fear of repercussions, said Ramaphosa told the structure in a meeting last…

WHILE Eskom will continue plunging the country into stage 6 load shedding until later in the week, outgoing CEO Andre de Ruyter could not provide a clear answer about the amount spent on diesel to keep the lights on. “We continue to consume diesel as we go. We have obtained the support of the National Treasury to give assurance to banks from whom we borrow to buy diesel that the National Treasury will stand behind these loans. “That has given us the ability to ease the liquidity constraints and we can continue to purchase diesel,” he said. He said stage 6 load shedding would prevail until Wednesday evening peak. “By Thursday we will be able to start phasing it down to load shedding stage 4 and load shedding stage…

UNREST has ceased at UCT with all academic programmes back to normal yesterday. “UCT has had no disruptions on campus on Monday,” said UCT spokesperson Elijah Moholola. On Sunday the university announced that in-person teaching and learning and research operations will commence. “The UCT management is deeply regretful for the disturbances and distress that staff and students experienced as a result of the unfortunate developments of the past week. “We apologise for this and the distress caused,” it said. The university experienced a rocky start to the academic year with a full week of protest actions forcing management to move teaching and learning online. Demonstrations led by the student representative council (SRC) saw students occupying buildings, lecture halls and disrupting lectures. A night vigil was held outside the Sarah Baartman…

US President Joe Biden walked around central Kyiv on an unannounced visit yesterday promising to stand with Ukraine as long as it takes, on a trip clearly timed to upstage the Kremlin ahead of the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion. Biden and President Volodymyr Zelenskiy walked side-by-side to a gold-domed cathedral on a bright winter morning pierced by the sound of air raid sirens. “When (Russian President Vladimir) Putin launched his invasion nearly one year ago, he thought Ukraine was weak and the West was divided. He thought he could outlast us. But he was dead wrong,” Biden said. “The cost that Ukraine has had to pay is extraordinarily high. Sacrifices have been far too great ... We know that there will be difficult days and weeks and years ahead.”…

Taliban authorities have closed the main border crossing between Afghanistan and Pakistan, an Afghan official said yesterday, and residents reported the sound of gunfire near the normally bustling border transit point. A Taliban official said the Torkham border crossing, near the Khyber Pass, was closed for all trade and travellers. “The Pakistan side hadn’t committed to their promises to create facilities for transit, sick people and passengers,” said Siddiqullah Quraishi, the head of the Afghan province of Nangahar’s information department, as the reason for the closure. He said both sides were speaking to try to find a solution and denied there had been any violent clashes, saying the situation was under control. Pakistani military, police and government spokespeople were not immediately available for comment, but two Pakistani security officials confirmed…

London: Novelist Salman Rushdie led condemnations yesterday of Roald Dahl’s children’s books being re-edited for a modern audience, calling it “absurd censorship” by “bowdlerising sensitivity police”. Publishers Puffin have made hundreds of reported changes to characters and language in Dahl’s stories, including making the diminutive Oompa-Loompas in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory gender neutral and calling Augustus Gloop enormous rather than fat. Mrs Twit in The Twits is also no longer ugly, but beastly instead, while the Cloud-Men in James and the Giant Peach are now “Cloud-People”. “Roald Dahl was no angel but this is absurd censorship. Puffin Books and the Dahl estate should be ashamed,” said Rushdie. Dahl’s books have sold over 250 million copies worldwide. Critics of the edits highlighted how the “nasty” elements of Dahl’s stories were…

JERUSALEM: Israel has informed the US that it won’t approve new settlements in the occupied West Bank “in the coming months”, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said yesterday. Israel’s far-right coalition government has legalised nine settler outposts built without permits by granting them retroactive authorisation. The move drew sharp condemnations from Palestinians and world powers. There are dozens of unauthorised outposts and some 140 Israeli-authorised settlements around the West Bank and East Jerusalem, territories captured by Israel in the 1967 war and where the Palestinians wish to set up a future state. | Xinhua…

Apart from defender Sifiso Hlanti, not many Kaizer Chiefs players have put their hands up for Soweto Derby selection and coach Arthur Zwane has a selection headache. After Sunday’s soul-crushing 3-2 defeat at the hands of Golden Arrows, Zwane is faced with the monumental task of rebuilding morale and deciding on a team that will put the smile back on the faces of the AmaKhosi faithful. On Sunday, at the Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane, fans jeered and booed Chiefs. Worse was to follow when they chanted ‘Zwane must go’ and reports say that at the end the team was escorted off the pitch by police. The problem is that many Chiefs players under-performed on the day. To add insult to injury, Zwane’s substitutions backfired as the team became increasingly…

Victor Osimhen and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia are leading Napoli's Champions League charge, the Italians' crown jewels in wonderful form ahead of tonight’s trip to Eintracht Frankfurt. A club in turmoil at the end of last season whose fans were in open revolt, Napoli have stunned their own supporters and the rest of Europe by becoming possibly the continent's most exciting team and Italy's champions-elect by mid-February. Napoli have never made it past the last 16 in the Champions League but with none of Europe's powerhouses at their peak, a window has been left for Luciano Spalletti's side to have a go at the continent's top competition. The optimism surrounding Napoli is due in large part to Serie A's leading scorer Osimhen and close season signing Kvaratskhelia, a devastating partnership which is…

The National Prosecuting Authority’s Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) and the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) have secured preservation orders against individuals and companies linked to fraud and corruption during the construction of Kusile Power Station. The order, issued by the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria last week, authorises the AFU and SIU to preserve two portions of a farm that was used as a lodge, a commercial property in Mbombela, a house on an estate, five cars, a golf cart, and a quad bike, which are the proceeds of unlawful activities at Eskom’s Kusile Power Station following allegations of serious maladministration and corruption. Assets under preservation are two portions of Casambo Exclusive Guest Lodge in Mbombela; a house in Stonehenge Extension 1 Mbombela, registered in the name of Muzi Sambo;…

HOMELESS people living in the city centre, some of whom were born on the street, say they don't know where they will go, after they were issued with eviction notices by the City yesterday. It is unclear how many homeless people were issued with eviction notices following a successful application by the City in the Western Cape High court, but the areas around the CBD that the City identified as “unlawful occupation hotspots” include along Buitengracht Street, FW De Klerk Boulevard, Foregate Square, Taxi Rank and Foreshore, Helen Suzman Boulevard, Strand Street, Foreshore/N1, Virginia Avenue and Mill Street Bridge in the city. Gershwin Thomas has been staying in Strand Street with his older brother for seven years and detailed how they were met by law enforcement yesterday morning. “We had…

FOR THE first time in Africa, more than 1 200 researchers from across the world will gather in the city for the 14th International Congress of Human Genetics (ICHG 2023) this week at the Cape Town International Convention Centre. Themed “Coming Home”, the event will discuss and exchange ideas on the latest developments and research in human genetics. It is hosted by the African Society of Human Genetics, Southern African Society of Human Genetics and International Federation of Human Genetics Societies, from tomorrow until Sunday. Human genetics is the study of the genetic make-up and variations within the human species. It examines how genes are inherited by offspring from their parents, and how they affect physical traits, behaviour and health. Through research in this field, scientists have gained insights…

The National Department of Health (NDoH) says it will respond to issues raised by the Information Regulator regarding the collection and protection of personal information gathered during Covid-19 contact tracing. The Regulator yesterday confirmed it had referred the NDoH to the Enforcement Committee over personal information collected as part of the management of the spread of the Coronavirus during the Covid-19 pandemic. According to the regulator, the decision follows numerous unsuccessful requests for information to the NDoH. Referral to the Enforcement Committee can culminate in issuing an enforcement notice which has the same effect as a court order. The matter stems from contact tracing regulations which were issued in terms of the Disaster Management Act, from April 2020. These regulations authorised the compilation of an electronic Covid-19 contact tracing database…

WET coal is blamed for Eskom’s latest increased load shedding. Come again? Rain has been and always will be with us, so preventive measures to keep coal dry are a given. At what stage does the rain wet the coal? While being transported in trucks? There is something called a cover, used to protect items when rain is expected – or when caught in the showers, these are easily placed over the load. Or does it take place where the coal is stored? One presumes the coal is housed in proper enclosed sheds? If not, it’s a serious oversight. Or while being delivered to the kilns per conveyor belt? Here again, the journey from the coal sheds takes place under cover? Or does it? Or are we missing something? A…

I had to take an early morning flight from Johannesburg to Durban on Sunday. My son took me to OR Tambo International Airport. But as he had only five minutes to leave the car at the drop off zone he didn’t have enough time to show me how to find my way through the departure section of the terminal. As we were trying to get our bearings, a young woman dressed all in black in traditional garb from head to foot, approached us and asked me to follow her. Pleasantly surprised and relieved, I followed her through the ziz-zag queue to the section for local departures. She asked for my boarding pass, went through it and then directed me to my gate. Sadly, I couldn’t get to see her…

North Korea fired two ballistic missiles yesterday, its second weapons test in 48 hours, which Pyongyang said was a drill for a rocket launcher capable of a “tactical nuclear attack” that could take out entire enemy air bases. Pyongyang had already tested one of its most powerful intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) on Saturday and warned more was to come, with leader Kim Jong Un’s powerful sister calling the Pacific the North’s “firing range”. Seoul and Washington, who are moving to bolster security cooperation in the region to address Pyongyang’s growing threats, staged joint air drills after the ICBM launch -- further enraging the North, which views such exercises as rehearsals for invasion. State media outlet KCNA said yesterday’s missile drill involving “super-large multiple rocket launchers, the tactical nuclear attack means”,…

Mauritius grounded flights and shut its stock exchange as tropical cyclone Freddy approached the island in the Indian Ocean yesterday, while emergency teams braced for heavy rains, floods and landslides in four regions on Madagascar. The cyclone, packing wind gusts of up to 120km/h, posed a direct threat to Mauritius, its weather service said. The cyclone could pass as close as 120km to the north-northwest of the island late in the afternoon, the service said. A video showed strong winds and waves hitting an ocean-front hotel in Mauritius as water entered the lobby. Authorities on Madagascar – about 1 130km west of Mauritius towards the coast of Africa – said they were expecting a direct hit by late today, between Mahanoro in the east and Manakara in the south…

Sao Paulo: Flooding and landslides triggered by torrential rain in Brazil claimed at least 36 lives on Carnival weekend in southeast Sao Paulo state. At least 36 people died in Sao Sebastiao, the state government said. Another 228 people were left homeless and 338 were evacuated in the coastal region north of Sao Paulo, the state government said as rescue crews raced to help victims. Sao Paulo state governor Tarcisio de Freitas declared a state of emergency in five towns along the coast. He freed up $1.5 million (R27m) for rescue operations. Sao Sebastiao, 200km north of Sao Paulo recorded 60cm of rain in 24 hours. Carnival events in Sao Sebastiao and elsewhere were cancelled. | AFP…

London: Two UK tea manufacturers yesterday faced accusations of sexual abuse on tea plantations in Kenya, according to an undercover probe by the BBC. “More than 70 women on Kenyan tea farms, owned for years by two British companies, told the BBC they had been sexually abused by their supervisors,” the BBC said. The report focused on a Kenyan plantation that at the time was owned by UK household goods giant Unilever, and another one that remains owned by the tea group James Finlay & Co. The BBC spoke with victims who said they had no choice but to give in to sexual demands of managers. | AFP…

Western Province have had many heroes over the years that have enthralled the Newlands faithful Eddie Barlow through to Herschelle Gibbs, followed by Vernon Philander and now Tony de Zorzi have all showed off their sublime skill with the glorious Table Mountain overlooking from above. But it would be fair to say that WP’s first heroine has been Laura Wolvaardt. Due to the scheduling of women’s cricket, Wolvaardt has not had the same opportunities as her male counterparts to entertain those sitting under the famed Oaks with her glorious cover drive often enough, but the classy Proteas’ Women’s opener is firmly entrenched in the halls of greatness at Newlands. This week the 23-year-old and her Proteas teammates have an opportunity to cement their legacy by surpassing anything any South African…

THE battle for the Tafelberg property in Sea Point headed to the Supreme Court of Appeal this week, with the DA-led provincial government arguing that courts should not make the final call on how state resources were spent. The provincial government and the City have appealed the Western Cape High Court decision, compelling them to redress spatial apartheid. At the centre of the court case is the Tafelberg site which was sold to a private buyer, the Phyllis Jowell Jewish Day School, for R135 million in 2015, despite activists wanting it used for affordable housing. The property located on Main Road is more than 1.7 hectares. While the SCA reserved judgment, the Western Cape government stuck to its guns that the high court order signalled an intention to…

ANTAKYA, Türkiye - Another earthquake struck the border region of Türkiye and Syria last night, just two weeks after the area was devastated by a larger quake which killed more than 47 000 people and damaged or destroyed hundreds of thousands of homes. Yesterday’s quake, this time with a magnitude of 6.3, was centred near the southern Turkish city of Antakya and was felt in Syria, Egypt and Lebanon. It struck at a depth of just 2km, the European Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) said, potentially magnifying its impact at ground level. Muna Al Omar said she was in a tent in a park in central Antakya when the latest quake hit. “I thought the earth was going to split open under my feet,” she said, crying as she held her…

A scooter theft syndicate has been nabbed in Steenberg after the City’s law enforcement officers found at least 12 stolen bikes in a shed. Safety and security Mayco member JP Smith said the “Sixty60 delivery scooters were almost gone in 60 seconds”. The bust was made on Saturday evening, when auxiliary law enforcement volunteers responded to a request for help from a vehicle-tracking company. Smith said the vehicle, a delivery scooter, had been stolen. “The vehicle was a delivery scooter that had been stolen and was being tracked to a premises in Steenberg. “Upon arrival, auxiliary officers were informed by the resident that he had ‘just bought the scooter from someone’, but through further questioning, members accompanied the owner to the back of the property. “On the premises, a locked…

The bad news is that Ramaphosa is still playing for time THE good news that dominated last week’s debate on the State of the Nation Address in Parliament is that President Cyril Ramaphosa has finally declared a national disaster on the electricity crisis and announced an imminent Cabinet reshuffle. It will include an appointment of a Minister of Electricity in the Presidency, who will focus full-time on working with Eskom to end load shedding and replacing the deputy president. Public announcements on crucial policy and governance matters remain pivotal in our public life. Even this year, it was inconceivable that there would not be some to appease a nation battered by months of rolling electricity blackouts and economic insecurity. Ramaphosa claimed South Africa has turned the corner and is heading…

THE time has come for the government to fork out more resources to improve the state of the foundation phase of education. If this is not done, we should forget about turning the tide on poor child literacy rates. A recent report compiled by an advocacy group, 2030 Reading Panel, paints a bleak picture of the country’s education, revealing that pupils at foundation phase were unable to read for meaning. The report points out that 82% of South Africa’s Grade 4 children could not read for meaning. This shocking statistic is, unfortunately, an increase from 78% pre-pandemic. Perhaps what is particularly difficult to accept is that it would take 86 years on the current trajectory to reach 95% of children reading for meaning. Therefore, addressing these deficiencies in the learning…

The Sudan transitional government and several opposition groups under the Sudan Revolutionary Front have signed an implementation matrix and agreed to a two-year timetable for implementation of the Juba peace agreement. The Sudanese parties began a workshop in Juba last week to evaluate progress and challenges encountered in implementing the peace deal which was mediated by South Sudan. The key issues in the signed matrix include security arrangements for Darfur, South Kordofan, and Blue Nile state. The second issue is on wealth and power sharing with opposition groups in central and northern Sudan. South Sudan President Salva Kiir said the new roadmap is not an attempt at renegotiating the 2020 Juba peace agreement signed to end decades of conflict, but rather to facilitate dialogue among parties to transition the country…

Washington: George Washington, John F Kennedy, Dwight Eisenhower and Ronald Reagan are going on a hair-raising journey into outer space. Not the actual, and long dead, former US presidents, of course, but samples of their hair. Celestis, a Texas-based company that specialises in space burials, announced the plan yesterday, which was Presidents’ Day in the US. Celestis said it would launch “what we believe to be authenticated DNA” of the former presidents into space aboard a United Launch Alliance (ULA) rocket later this year. It said the hair samples were from an anonymous donor. | AFP…

Brussels: The EU has imposed asset freezes and visa bans on Myanmar’s energy minister, influential businessmen and high-ranking military officers over an ongoing crackdown on opponents two years after a military coup. The sanctions affect nine individuals and seven entities. It followed similar sanctions by the US and Britain around the second anniversary of the coup that launched a violent campaign against democracy activists. The military seized power on February 1, 2021, overthrowing the democratically elected government and removing president Win Myint and state counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi from office. | AFP…

TEHRAN: Iran’s troubled currency broke below the psychologically key level of 500 000 rial per US dollar yesterday, as market participants saw no end in sight to sanctions. The Iranian rial plummeted to a new record low of 501 300 against the US dollar, according to Bonbast.com, which gathers live data from Iranian exchanges. Facing an inflation rate of about 50%, Iranians seeking safe havens for their savings have been buying dollars, other hard currencies or gold, suggesting further headwinds for the rial. The re-imposition of US sanctions in 2018 by former president Donald Trump has harmed Iran’s economy by limiting Tehran’s oil exports and access to foreign currency. | Reuters…