Table of contents for 2021-07-06 in Star

Siphelele Dludla siphelele.dludla@inl.co.za THE GOVERNMENT has thrown financially struggling employees a lifeline by allowing them to withdraw more money from their retirement funds as part of a broad retirement fund reform. The government also increased the ceiling for contributions to the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF), to shore up the fund that was nearly depleted by the impact of Covid-19. The National Treasury yesterday gave effect to increase the de-minimis amount, or threshold, in relation to withdrawals for paid-up annuities. The gazetting of these regulations follows an announcement in Chapter 4 of the 2021 Budget Review tabled by Finance Minister Tito Mboweni in February. Draft regulations were published for public comment on the National Treasury’s website in February and the public was given more than 30 days to submit their…

Mayibongwe Maqhina mayibongwe.maqhina@inl.co.za BASIC Education Minister Angie Motshekga has revealed that 19 Cuban maths and science subject specialists brought into the country were paid R13 931 883 in salaries in this financial year. Motshekga made this revelation while responding to parliamentary questions form DA MP Sicelo Mabika, who asked whether her department has concluded any employment agreements with any Cuban entity since 2010/11. Mabika also asked the details of the Cubans’ employment, including the cost of employing each of them. In her written response, Motshekga said South Africa and the Cuba government concluded an agreement in the field of basic education in November 2016, which was valid for five years, from 2017 until next year. “The agreement is for the DBE (Department of Basic Education) to employ 20 Cuban…

Itumeleng Mafisa There is an air of expectation among public service unions waiting for the government to unveil its new wage offer today. Talks between the government and public servants had hit a stalemate, drawing parties into a facilitation process. Some unions had even gone as far as threatening strike action but it is hoped that the new offer will be the light at the end of the tunnel in the talks. Speaking on behalf of Cosatu, Mugwena Maluleke, said the revised offer will be presented at the Bargaining Council today. The offer looks at an increase for the different grades of employees. “The government will do a sliding scale. Those who are on level one to ten will be able to pocket R1 000 a month and those on…

RAPULA MOATSHE rapula.moatshe@inl.co.za Black students at the University of Pretoria (UP) who participated in the 2021 Initial Test of Competence for the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (Saica) achieved a 100% pass rate, while their whites counterparts obtained a 99% pass rate. This was confirmed yesterday by UP director of institutional advancement Rikus Delport after the results of the exam that took place in April, were released on July 2. Delport said the results again placed UP in first position in South Africa, with an unprecedented 100% pass rate for first-time writers, and an overall 99.4% pass rate for all candidates. “We achieved a 100% pass rate for our first-time writers (169) and a 99% (173/174) pass rate for all our candidates. “Not only did the number of African…

John Whitlock | Germiston WHAT a load of absolute nonsense. I’m referring to Thami Zwane’s letter “Codesa sold indigenous people down the line” (The Star, June 30). On October 25, 1991, 92 organisations, under the chairmanship of Judges Corbett, Petrus Shabort and Ismail Mahomed, gathered in Durban to discuss establishing an interim government, and to adopt a democratic constitution. There were no foreigners. This led to Codesa 1, consisting of 228 delegates from 19 political parties, who signed the Declaration of Intent, laying the foundation for multiracial discussions. Again no foreign interference. A whites only referendum was then held, where the majority agreed to a handover of government and for the establishment of a new democratic constitution. Codesa 2 then took place, but failed because consensus couldn’t…

TRADITIONALLY, mentoring involved a more experienced individual providing guidance, motivation and role modelling for a newer, younger individual in the workplace. This transfer of knowledge and industry insights entails the mentor having authority over the protégé. But this model of mentorship has changed. Now, the dynamic is different. Younger entrants to the workplace can make a valuable contribution via reverse mentorship – pairing younger employees with experienced executives to mentor them on trending topics of strategic and cultural relevance. Both sides of the generational gap stand to learn important lessons that can deliver real benefits to the business. Future proofing The biggest threat to business is “we’ve always done it this way”. Reworking the traditional mentoring hierarchy is an important tactic for companies to ensure they remain relevant by keeping…

LAST week, Police Minister Bheki Cele issued a stern warning that transgressors of adjusted alert level 4 lockdown regulations, including those found organising or being part of gatherings, would be fined, jailed or both. However, this past weekend, as the situation outside former president Jacob Zuma’s homestead in Nkandla unfolded, many people questioned why the police did not enforce the lockdown regulations. Thousands of people descended on the home of the former president, despite lockdown regulations that prohibit all gatherings, and visuals from the homestead showed many people flouting the compulsory social distancing and mask-wearing rules. This all happened while the country battles the deadly Delta variant of Covid-19 and a third wave of infections. However, the large contingent of police officers who were deployed outside Nkandla have made zero…

More than 1 000 Afghan security personnel fled across the border into Tajikistan following Taliban advances in northern Afghanistan, the Tajik border guard service said. The crossings underscore a rapidly deteriorating situation in the country as foreign troops near a complete withdrawal after 20 years of war in Afghanistan. Hundreds of Afghan security force members have fled swift Taliban advances in the north, but Sunday’s retreats were the largest confirmed, coming just two days after the United States officially vacated its main base in Afghanistan as part of a plan to withdraw all foreign troops by September 11. The Taliban took over six key districts in the northern province of Badakshan, which borders both Tajikistan and China, following which 1,037 Afghan servicemen fled across the border with Tajikistan’s permission,…

NEW DELHI: The grandfather of an Indian-American astronaut said he was “overwhelmed with joy” as she prepares to become only the second Indian-born woman to visit space. Sirisha Bandla, 33, who was born in Guntur district of India’s southern Andhra Pradesh state, will be a part of billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic’s test flight on July 11 that will travel beyond the edge of the earth’s atmosphere. A successful flight by Branson aboard Virgin’s VSS Unity spaceplane would mark a milestone in the race to usher in a new era of private commercial space travel. Branson’s mission will be the 22nd flight test for VSS Unity, and the company’s fourth crewed spaceflight. Bandla’s grandfather, Dr Ragaiah, a retired scientist said: “I am very happy and overwhelmed with joy.”…

TUNIS: The Tunisian coast guard retrieved the bodies of 20 drowned illegal migrants near the coast of the southeastern city of Sfax, Murad al-Mishri, a regional director of civil defence, told Tunisian news agency TAP yesterday. Units of the coast guard and the civil defence recovered the bodies on Sunday evening, the official said, suggesting that the migrants drowned a long time ago, given the condition of their bodies. On July 3, a boat carrying 127 illegal migrants capsized off Tunisia’s southeastern coast while trying to reach Italy across the Mediterranean Sea. At least 43 migrants went missing as a result of the shipwreck, and 84 were rescued.…

Ashfak Mohamed ashfak.mohamed@inl.co.za DUHAN van der Merwe became the 11th South African to represent the British & Irish Lions when he faced Japan at Murrayfield on June 26. The powerful left wing left his country of birth in 2016 to seek his fortune at Montpellier in France, and then moved on to Edinburgh in Scotland in 2017. Such has been his impact for his club that the 26-year-old made his Scotland Test debut last October against Georgia, where he scored a try as well. Van der Merwe has now dotted down eight times in just 10 Test matches, but the upcoming series against the Springboks will be the first time that he will take on his native land. The change of allegiances started as far back as 1896, when Reginanld…

Dineo Faku dineo.faku@inl.co.za A KABWE medical doctor has filed an affidavit in the Zambian High Court in which he claims that Anglo American had been aware of lead poisoning at its mine. Dr Ian Lawrence, who was stationed where Anglo operated the world’s largest lead mine in the 1970s, said in an affidavit that the company was aware of lead poisoning to their employees as blood levels of staff were checked regularly. Lawrence said that there had been a high number of deaths among children under the age of five years in the township housing mine employees. “I became deeply concerned at the number of deaths among children under the age of five in the residential township where local employees lived (the township), particularly children between one and three…

Julie Zhu, Kane Wu and Scott Murdoch Investors were shocked by the announcement of a Chinese regulatory probe into ride-hailing firm Didi just two days after its $4.4 billion (about R63bn) New York stock market debut. While Didi’s initial public offering (IPO) prospectus did mention some of the regulatory risks to its operations, there was no indication that the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) would begin investigating the company and ban it from accepting new users during the review. Didi said yesterday that it was not aware of the probe announced by the CAC on July 2, which sent its shares as much as 10 percent lower, before its IPO. The stock closed down 5.3 percent and did not trade yesterday due to the US holiday.…

Mpiletso Motumi mpiletso.motumi@inl.co.za JESSICA Sithole stepped into the homes of many South Africans when she took on the role of Nyakallo on 1Magic’s popular telenovela The River. The show has been in need of some new characters to breathe some life into it and Sithole came right on time to shake things up. For those who don’t follow the series, Sithole’s character is a typical Mosotho girl who comes into the lives of the Dikanas (the show’s rich family) as a helper. She becomes too familiar with Zweli Dikana, the father and head of the household, and eventually he falls in love with her. Unfortunately, Sithole’s role on the show is short-lived as she gets killed off. Her character brought some drama to the telenovela and had great potential to…

IMAGINING new and better worlds is important. We need a magnetic north that will guide the compass we will follow from where we are to where we should be. Nthabiseng Moleko does a good job of outlining the gendered inequalities in South Africa’s labour market, and paints a convincing, if dismal, picture of the country’s macroeconomic position. She also starts to suggest where our economy should be headed if we hope to free women from their entrenched marginalisation. But if where we want to go is important, it must never come at the expense of where we are. We cannot lose sight of the immediate economic struggles women face and what it will take to win them in the here and now. Given that they were largely employed in sectors…

Addis Ababa: Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed declared yesterday that his government could easily recruit 1 million new fighters but wants to foster a period of “silence” in the country’s war-hit Tigray region. The 2019 Nobel Peace Prize winner’s remarks came one week after Tigray’s capital Mekele fell to the Tigray Defence Forces (TDF) rebel group and Abiy’s government declared a unilateral ceasefire in the 8-month-old conflict. The TDF has described its seizure of Mekele and most of the rest of the northern region of Tigray as a major victory, while Abiy and other officials have countered that federal forces executed a strategic pullback to focus on other threats. “In one, two or three weeks, 100 000 trained, armed and organised special forces can be mobilised,” Abiy told…

LOS ANGELES: Actor Matthew McConaughey congratulated Americans on the 4th of July in his unique manner, saying in a video on Twitter that the US is “basically going through puberty”, but also reassuring that the future of the country is bright. “Happy Birthday, America. As we celebrate our independence today, as we celebrate our birth as a nation, the day that kick-started a revolution to gain our sovereignty, let’s admit that this last year, this trip around the Sun, was also another head-scratcher”, he said.…

TOKYO: Rescuers in Japan searched yesterday for 80 people believed to be missing two days after landslides tore through the seaside city of Atami, destroying houses and burying roads under mud and rock. The official death toll from the landslides that hit early on Saturday is four, according to Atami city spokesperson Hiroki Onuma, while the number of missing had come down from 113 earlier. Two people were found alive and unharmed yesterday, the NHK public broadcaster reported. “My mother is still missing,” one man told NHK television. “I never imagined something like this could happen.” Atami, with a population of 36 000, is 90km south-west of Tokyo, set on a steep slope leading down to a bay.…

It amazes me that some South Africans were surprised when the British & Irish Lions smashed the local Lions in their tour opener. It was always going to happen for two reasons: Firstly and most significantly, the tourists have an exceptionally talented, vastly experienced, meticulously prepared, and highly motivated squad who have come to this country on a mission; and secondly, the local Lions (and the Sharks, Bulls, and Stormers) are under-strength and pale imitations of the provincial sides of the amateur era when the British Lions were given a torrid time by the likes of Transvaal, Northern Transvaal and Western Province, while even the platteland (country) sides had enough firepower to give the tourists a working over and soften them up for the Boks. Let’s have some context on…

Mike Greenaway mike.greenaway@inl.co.za The Sharks, or Natal in their previous incarnation, have never beaten the British & Irish Lions in over a century of trying, and current coach Sean Everitt is fully aware of the magnitude of the task facing his team if they are to make history tomorrow night at Ellis Park. In those bygone days of yore, the Natal team would have been at full strength and there were some monumental battles, one of them in 1980 when a late John Carlton try saved the Lions; another in 1974 when Lions fullback JPR Williams infamously attacked Natal captain Tommy Bedford with a flurry of fists; but in 2021 it will be a young team of Sharks up against seasoned international stars. And having watched the Lions overpower the…

Siphelele Dludla siphelele.dludla@inl.co.za BUSINESS activity and sales were hit by the reintroduction of stricter measures in South Africa in June which saw the country put back to adjusted level 4 lockdown. The IHS Markit Purchasers Managers Index (PMI) yesterday showed the first output fall in 2021, falling for the second consecutive month to 51.0 index points in June from 53.2 points in May. Level 4 lockdown saw businesses in the hospitality, tourism and alcohol-related industries take a hit as restrictions on gatherings and sale of liquor were enforced. Though it stayed above the 50 level that indicates expansion, the PMI signalled a loss of momentum in the rate of improvement in operating conditions across the private sector economy. IHS said new business growth largely stalled after two successive months of…

Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez were seen embracing during a romantic walk in The Hamptons over the weekend. The Justice League actor and the In The Morning singer have reignited their romance recently, and spent the long weekend of the Fourth of July in Long Island, New York. The pair went for a casual stroll through the upmarket area and matched their casual outfits as they packed on the PDA. Affleck, 48, and Lopez, 51, had flown from Los Angeles with her 13-year-old twins Max and Emme – whom she has with ex-husband Marc Anthony. On Friday, the loved-up pair took their kids to Universal Studios Hollywood. Meanwhile, it’s believed Lopez is planning a move to Los Angeles from Miami for a “fresh start” with the Argo star. |…

Sihle Mavuso THE Zulu royal family has found itself even more entangled in the Jacob Zuma issue after Mgilija Nhleko, the “Commander of Zulu regiments”, hit back yesterday at Inkosi Mangosuthu Buthelezi, insisting that he is the commander of the structure. He claimed that he was given the position by the late King Goodwill Zwelithini, and Buthelezi should have questioned that while the king was still around. Nhleko is the famed “commander” of the regiments and shot to fame in mid-March this year when the regiments paid their culturally colourful last respects to the late king during his “planting” in Nongoma. It was at that time that the position started to gain prominence, so much so that Nhleko started receiving invitations to take part in prominent cultural events. On…

Itumeleng Mafisa JUNIOR doctors have made an impassioned plea to the government to hire them and help them complete their internships and community service. The Star understands that around 150 junior doctors are jobless. The 133 who were given placements are experiencing problems, with some being turned back by the hospitals they were placed in. In some instances, some of the junior doctors were working without a contract. Dr Sandile Mlungwane said the SA Medical Association (Sama) and an independent law firm were trying to help the students compel the government to take them in. The students were promised placement by July 1 but that did not materialise. Sama announced on Sunday that it has given the Department of Health, the acting minister of health, and the Health Professions…

Unfortunately, as the pandemic rebounds and the economy is still in the doldrums we have seen more and more dismissals and in particular retrenchments. There are still many employers who are ignorant of pieces of labour legislation and in particular the Labour Relations Act. It is the Labour Relations Act that governs fair dismissals and ensures that employers follow not only fair procedures but respect the laws when it comes to the merits of every single dismissal. These cases are often challenged by the individuals who have been dismissed. The entity set up by the Department of Employment and Labour, as required by the Constitution, is the Commission for Conciliation Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA). The CCMA ensures that our laws are respected and implemented and also ensures that justice is…

Mpiletso Motumi THEMBA Makamo is a sneakerhead. The founder and chief executive of VAYA Footwear has always been influenced by the sneakers he wears and wanted others to get a foot in too. “There is a specific type of feeling I get when I walk in sneakers and I thought to myself I would like to create something that could recreate that feeling in someone else.” Makamo said he wanted to design sneakers that would make people feel confident and go for their dreams. He connected his love for sneakers and confidence to create his brand. “For the longest time it has been at the back of my mind to have my own silhouette and my own design of a sneaker. But because of lack of information and exposure…

FAROUK ARAIE | Gauteng SOUTH Africa is in turmoil. Our stalwarts designed a government that would resist mob rule. They did not anticipate how strong mob rule would become. Today the masses are being swayed by crude politicians playing on their emotions. In the aftermath of the most profound political judgment issued by the highest court in the land, many are resorting to mob rule and intimidation to subdue the masses into an act of political surrender. It is a spurious strategy to destroy trust in our election and to poison our respect for fellow citizens and institutions by bankrupt political leaders. Just as plate tectonics can set off an earthquake, political and financial greed, accompanied by chicanery, can set off an insurrection. The Concourt judgment was the…

COLLEEN TROLLIP | KwaZulu-Natal GOOD afternoon, Mr President. I write to you with hat in hand. At present, we are in adjusted lockdown level 4. However, as I type this, thousands of people are gathering, unmasked, en masse, with no social distancing, and a lot of them bearing firearms, at Nkandla. This is a super-spreader event of the most horrific proportions. The country on the whole has been law-abiding since March 26, 2020. We have listened, obeyed, and endured. A lot of us have vocally supported every move you have made. On the whole, the National Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC) has made some well-informed and solid decisions. I do not think that the current decisions made are for the good of the country, though. How can you even…

Q: On July 1, China held a grand ceremony to mark the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC). General Secretary Xi Jinping’s speech at the ceremony has received wide attention from the international community as well as South Africa. What do you think are the key points in President Xi Jinping’s speech for the outside world to observe China’s future development? A: July 1, 2021 marks the centenary of the Communist Party of China (CPC), on which day China formally announced the realization of the first centenary goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects. This means that we have brought about a historic resolution to the problem of absolute poverty in China. General Secretary Xi Jinping's speech at this important historical…

Gunmen kidnapped up to eight people, including the one-year-old child of a nurse, from a hospital’s staff residential quarters in north-west Nigeria, while assailants simultaneously attacked a nearby police station, police and hospital officials said. Kaduna state has been hit by a wave of kidnappings for ransom by armed men. Zaria, where the National Tuberculosis and Leprosy Centre hospital is, has been particularly hard hit, and the attack was the third on the hospital. The attack in the early hours of Sunday lasted for roughly an hour, hospital spokesperson Maryam Abdulrazaq told Reuters. She said six people had been abducted: two nurses, one with her year-old child, a laboratory technician, a security guard and one other staff member. Police gave the number of hostages as eight. “So far, (there was)…

YANGON: Ousted Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi seemed in good health as she appeared in court yesterday, her lawyer said. Suu Kyi’s lawyers cross-examined witnesses for the prosecution who allege she flouted Covid-19 restrictions during 2020 elections that her party won in a landslide. The court also heard testimony that she illegally imported walkie talkies. Suu Kyi, 76, also faces charges of accepting illegal payments and violating a secrecy law. She could be jailed for more than a decade if convicted on all counts.…

JAKARTA: The Indonesian government planned to allocate 90% of oxygen production for medical needs amid the surging Covid-19 cases, Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin said yesterday. “We have talked with the industry minister so that 90% of industrial oxygen is converted for medical use, so around 575 000 tons a year of domestic oxygen production will be allocated for medical purposes,” said Sadikin. All of these oxygens will be maximized for medical needs in seven provinces in Java and Bali, which are facing a surge in the Covid cases after a long Eid al-Fitr holiday in May, with the entry of the more contagious Delta variant. The provinces are Banten, Jakarta, West Java, Central Java, Yogyakarta, East Java, and Bali.…

HERMAN GIBBS Well-travelled coaches like Gavin Hunt and Pitso Mosimane have over the years told endless stories about how South African teams suffer at the hands of rank poor officiating in continental competitions. Mosimane, in particular, has often been riled by north African teams for bullying opponents, match officials and even ball boys. These days, however, Mosimane sits on the opposite side of the dugout, guiding the fortunes of north African giants Al Ahly of Egypt, the most successful club in Caf Champions League history with nine titles. Kaizer Chiefs, however, can make their way to Casablanca with a sense of calm as a Burundi referee with the first name of Pacifique will handle the one-leg Champions League final next Saturday. They have twice experienced Pacifique Ndabihawenimana’s calm demeanour…