Table of contents for CT-2021-03-31 in Cape Times

Siphelele Dludla siphelele.dludla@in.co.za THE BANK OF America (BofA) has warned that the ongoing energy crisis constituted the most serious risks to South Africa’s economic outlook in the medium term. BofA yesterday said Eskom’s electricity supply challenges could delay the country’s economic rebound in the next three years in spite of a faster recovery expected in 2021. The bank said its outlook ahead was of a 3.5 percent consensus growth this year. BofA raised its 2021 gross domestic product (GDP) growth forecast to 3.8 percent from 2.9 percent while maintaining its outlook for 2022 at 2 percent. BofA’s head of South Africa research Paul Steegers said they were cautiously optimistic about South Africa’s output this year, but medium-term outlook was faced with headwinds. “Despite the upgrade, we acknowledge…

XPATWEB’S Critical Skills Survey 2020/21 showed 77 percent of organisations were struggling to recruit and obtain critical skills in South Africa for their local and cross-border operations. A further 76 percent further confirmed that an international search would assist them in meeting business objectives,” Xpatweb MD Marisa Jacobs said in a statement yesterday. According to the latest survey, the top ten skills businesses were struggling to recruit include engineers (18 percent), ICT (13 percent); foreign language speakers (10 percent); media and marketing specialists (9 percent); artisans (8 percent); C-suite executives (7 percent); senior financial executives (6 percent); health professions and related clinical sciences (5 percent); science professionals (4 percent) and accounting (1 percent). The usinesses indicating that engineers were difficult to recruit rose to 18 percent from…

Dineo Faku dineo.faku@inl.co.za THE MINERALS Council South Africa has urged mine employees to avoid travel where possible and to behave responsibly if travel is unavoidable ahead of a possible third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. The council, which represents 80 percent of the mining industry, yesterday advised mining companies to discourage employees from travelling over Easter where possible, and chief executives, management and union leadership should be seen to be leading by example. The council recommended that public holiday work incentives should be used to encourage employees not to take leave over the long weekend and, where possible, the offer of four days’ leave later in the year should also be considered. It said existing measures related to high-risk travel and high-risk activities should be maintained, such as negative…

Thobile Mazibuko thobile.mazibuko@inl.co.za The wait is over: Design Indaba has announced the emerging creatives Class of 2021. Running for 16 years, Design Indaba is a programme supported by the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture to nurture new talent. The list of 40 creatives is divided into categories such as fashion, visual art, graphic design, film and photography, illustration, jewellery, interior, furniture, and ceramics. Here are the 40 members of the Class of 2021: Representing the world of fashionistas under fashion are Azola Tanzi, Mashoto Tshoga, Nikiwe Dlova, Aria van Rooyen, Tristan Shaun Henry and Lunga Mzimba. From visual art, we have Lerato Lodi, Akhona Mbange, Alizwamazizi, Boikanyo Mashigo, Brad Jackson, Chelsea Robin, Danielle Jordaan, Gerald Genie, Mboma and Pule Magopa. Under graphic design are Caleb Pillay, Clinton Myeni, Ntobeko…

Nicola Daniels nicola.daniels@inl.co.za PART of the provincial education department’s R24.5 billion budget will go towards making room for an additional 342 teaching posts in areas where they are most needed. This was announced in Education MEC Debbie Schäfer’s 2021/2022 budget speech yesterday. The new posts are in addition to the 429 posts added in 2020, she said. “In addition to the extra staffing provisions, we have seven new and replacement schools due to be completed by the end of the year. Six extra classrooms at Saldanha Laerskool (LS) and eight extra classrooms at Tulbagh High School (HS) are also scheduled to be completed this year,” said Schäfer. New schools are planned for Sir Lowry’s Pass, Hout Bay, Mfuleni, Mooreesburg, Hermanus and Klapmuts, along with an aeronautical sciences school and…

Lisa Isaacs lisa.isaacs@inl.co.za SOUTH Africans will once again be barred from buying alcohol for off-site consumption as part of the government's efforts to curb the spread of the Covid-19 and a possible third wave of infections over the Easter long weekend. For the second year in a row, the country has to again limit interactions, particularly during the Easter period, President Cyril Ramaphosa said when addressing the nation last night. Given the role of alcohol in fuelling reckless behaviour, sales for off-site consumption would be prohibited this coming Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday, Ramaphosa said. On-site sales at restaurants, shebeens and bars will be allowed, in accordance with licensing conditions, up until 11pm. “In just a few days, the country will begin the annual Easter break. Many of us have…

Odwa Mkentane odwa.mkentane@inl.co.za Zanele Mvana zanele.mvana@inl.co.za GUGULETHU police are investigating a double murder after the bodies of two men were found in an open field next to the N2 Highway in Barcelona informal settlement. Police spokesperson Andrè Traut said the motive for the incident was unknown and no arrests had yet been made. “Gugulethu police are investigating a double murder case after the bodies of two males, aged 23 and 40, were found on an open field next to the N2 Highway in Barcelona squatter camp,” said Traut. According to the community, the men are believed to be from Zimbabwe. At the scene, resident Jongikhaya Buzwayo said: “I was with one of those guys last night, then his friend came to fetch him. He said we will meet tomorrow and…

ANIL SOOKLAL Beijing is considered to have elevated Africa’s position in its foreign policy planning and increasingly regards the continent as a proving ground for this core foreign policy vision of “building a community with a shared future for mankind”. To step up engagement with Africa in a more comprehensive and targeted manner, the administration is seen to have focused on the principles of sincerity, pragmatism, affinity and good faith, while supporting it with major economic and financial initiatives, for example, the Belt and Road Initiative and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. It is said that China’s development and governance model represents an alternative to the hitherto under- delivering Western approach that has been practised by many African nations over the past decades. Beijing respects Africans’ political and economic choices,…

Myanmar faced growing criticism yesterday over a surge in violence against opponents of military rule that killed more than 140 people in one day, with a new offer to help promote dialogue by neighbours alarmed by the crisis. Myanmar has been in turmoil since the army ousted an elected government led by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi on February 1, detaining her and reimposing military rule after a decade of tentative steps towards democracy. At least 512 civilians had been killed in nearly two months of protests against the coup, 141 of them on Saturday, the bloodiest day of the unrest, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners advocacy group. Fighting has also flared in old wars between the Myanmar army and ethnic minority insurgents in frontier…

JAKARTA: Indonesia’s Mount Merapi yesterday spewed ash clouds again as far as 1 500 metres to the southwest, according to the Geological Disaster Technology Research and Development Centre. “The seismogram records hot cloud avalanches with an amplitude of 60mm and a duration of 135 seconds,” the centre’s head Hanik Humaida said. The seismogram also noted that the most active volcano in Indonesia emitted incandescent lava 19 times from midnight to 6am as far as 1 000m to the southwest. In 2010, Merapi erupted, killing more than 200 people. |…

MOGADISHU: AU Mission in Somalia (Amisom) forces have provided free medical services to hundreds in the Gedo region of Jubaland state as part of civil military co-operation activities. On Monday, Amisom said it undertook the exercise to provide access to local communities, who often lack proper medical attention, the commanding officer for the Burahache forward operating base said. The forces urged locals to work closely with the government and Amisom against Al-Shabaab terrorists to help improve security in Somalia. Last week Amisom supplied clean, potable water and food to Burahache and Gherrile residents.…

All THREE major commercial property sectors – retail, industrial and office – remained oversupplied in the first quarter of 2021, although noticeably less in the industrial property market, according to FNB’s Property Broker Survey. Brokers in the office and retail property markets perceived, on average, a rise in average time of properties on the market prior to sales, with a slightly declining average time on market bias only seen in the industrial property sector, FNB Commercial Property Finance Sector Strategist John Loos said in the survey yesterday. The broker group perception was tilted strongly towards the existence of an oversupply, and this was most severely the case in the office property market. As many as 96.6 percent of respondents in the office sector pointed to oversupply, 90 percent…

Chevon Booysen chevon.booysen@inl.co.za TELKOM has been the ire of a Somerset West resident who facilitates online lectures, after he was left with no internet or landline connection for nearly four weeks. Werner Richter, a professor facilitating online classes, said he was appalled by the lack of service delivery from a company he had been loyal to for about 35 years. “On February 18, my internet via a Telkom ADSL line, and my phone connection, disappeared. I rushed off to an internet café in the Somerset Mall area on the 19th to cancel online maths and physics classes that I teach. I didn’t have my Telkom account with me, which has a service number, so I looked for a Telkom number where I could report my problem. You could not access…

Okuhle Hlati okhule.hlati@inl.co.za TODAY is D-Day for the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) to process and assess about 3 745 remaining temporary disability grant clients. The social security scheme was given until today to medically assess 35 332 clients and said it has managed to finalise 31 587 of them. According to Sassa’s Shivani Wahab there have been challenges and some clients missed their appointments. “Out of the 35 332 booked clients, 1 216 clients missed their medical assessment appointments. These appointments will now be rescheduled, with feedback provided directly to the affected clients. “There are, however, some in the same category that are being assisted depending on the availability of slots with appointed doctors conducting the medical assessments,” said Wahab. There were also…

Francesca Villette francesca.villette@inl.co.za CITY firefighters are planning to further mobilise as they continue to face disciplinary action over a working hour and standby allowance strike they participated in three years ago. More than 500 firefighters are currently affected, the SA Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) said, as some of its members yesterday gathered at the Civic Centre and showed solidarity at various stations across the metro. Samwu regional secretary Mikel Kumalo said some of the working conditions of firefighters were unfair and outdated, and he alleged it was not being changed as it suited a small minority of seniors. In 2018/19 Samwu representatives stated that firefighters could work between 72 and 80 hours a week on average. “As a fire service today we have about 90% of the operational staff and…

THE length of four rugby fields, more than a rugby field wide, nearly 50m high with 11 tiers of containers on the foredeck and over 12 tiers in places in the midships section and down aft, very little space on each side, thousands of tons of heavy fuel in her bunker tanks, and a strong wind on the beam. That was the scenario – an accident waiting to happen – when, en route from China to Europe last week, the almost fully-laden Ever Given entered the Suez Canal at about 10 knots. Imagine the windage on that enormous ship, and imagine her momentum when something went wrong, her stern touched the port side of the canal, and she ploughed into the starboard bank. That her propellers and rudder escaped damage…

Staff writer THE Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) has confirmed a Western Cape High Court order relating to the sales agreement of a R22.5 million heritage property in Oranjezicht. The appeal related to an agreement concluded between an appellant and first respondent for the sale of immovable property, the Manor House, which dates back to the 1760s and is worth R22 250 000. The high court had previously agreed with the respondent that clause 22.1 of the sales agreement contained suspensive conditions. These included that the St John’s homeowner’s association (HOA), as the body vested with the interests of all homeowners in the scheme, had to sign the Undertakings and Consents Agreement for the sale to be enforceable between the parties. According to court documents, consequently, and in the absence…

Okuhle Hlati okhule.hlati@inl.co.za TWO of the 10 men accused of robbing and kidnapping a 49-year-old man will face the long arm of the law. Thirty-year-old Luyanda Kalipi from Crossroads and Siyabulela Mendu, 32, from Nyanga made a brief appearance in the Bellville Magistrate’s Court yesterday. They were arrested in Nyanga with eight other suspects following a special police operation. National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila said yesterday that the State withdrew charges against the eight other accused and charged Kalipi and Menduthe with kidnapping and extortion.…

THYAGARAJ MARKANDAN | Kloof MILITANTS are right at our doorstep. Islamic State (Isis)-backed militants and jihadists didn’t concern us much as they seemed so far away, spreading fear and mayhem in Nigeria, the horn of Africa and the volatile Middle East. Now they have moved all the way down the east coast of the continent and are right next to us, Malawi and Zimbabwe, destabilising the oil and gas-rich northern Mozambique region. These insurgents have captured parts of the strategic town of Palma and killed dozens of people. Tourists fleeing from a hotel were ambushed by the militants. One South African was among the casualties. Islamic terrorists have found it easy to infiltrate Mozambique. The country has a long history of strife and instability ever since it…

AN UNLICENSED fishing pirogue sank off Guinea’s coast early on Monday morning, leading to 14 deaths, one person missing and 15 persons injured. According to the Guinean government, the tragedy occurred at around 7am local time in the administrative region of Boke on Monday, located more than 300km northwest of the capital Conakry. The fishing pirogue with passengers on board was sailing in the dark and without any safety and security measures, the government said. The provisional toll established by the Guinean government is 14 deaths, one missing and 15 injured, with the injured currently being cared for, the government said in the statement. The government also announced the opening of an investigation by competent services to find out the causes and circumstances of the tragedy. With more than 300km…

KAMPALA: African states need to start co-operating on a regional level to combat terrorism, Deo Akiiki, deputy spokesperson of Uganda’s People Defence Force, said after the attack on Mozambique’s Palma that destroyed the town and claimed lives of over 50 civilians. “We have not yet made any collaborations with regional troops as we sorely rely on our own military in fighting terrorists. “Other countries like Mozambique can only achieve this through regional co-operation,” the spokesperson said. According to him, Uganda has already successfully provided military assistance to regional neighbours, including Congo.…

CAIRO: At least three days are necessary to resolve the “traffic jam” from the ships at the Suez Canal after the blockage incident with the Ever Given container ship, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Sisi said yesterday. “The situation in the Suez Canal has returned to its place, we expect that within three days the traffic jam from the ships will be eliminated, the movement will return to normal,” said Sisi, who is visiting the canal. The canal’s administration has said that 140 more cargo ships need to pass through the Suez Canal until midnight. Sisi also said that an investigation will reveal what caused the blockage incident. |…

ASHFAK MOHAMED TRUE champions know when they need to step up and deliver their best, and that is exactly what Wayde van Niekerk did to beat Akani Simbine in a 200m event in Johannesburg yesterday. Running in the Athletics South Africa invitational meeting at the Ruimsig Athletics Stadium in Johannesburg, Van Niekerk posted a superb time of 20.10 seconds – it would have been the second-fastest in the world this year, and also significantly quicker than the Olympic qualifying time of 20.24, but a strong wind of +2.1m/s means that it cannot count towards the official world list. It’s not that Simbine ran a bad race at all. In fact the 100m star was the first to take the lead as he sprung out of the blocks, an advantage…

SOUTH Africa recorded foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows of R16 billion in the fourth quarter from outflows of R12.2bn in the third, the central bank said yesterday. The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) said in its Quarterly Bulletin that the inflows in the latest quarter were caused by non-resident parent entities increasing equity investments and granting loans to domestic subsidiaries. The country saw FDI inflows of R51.1bn for all of last year, down from inflows of R74bn in 2019. Portfolio investments, reflecting a record of buying and selling of securities such as bonds and shares, recorded inflows of R24.1bn in the October to December quarter compared with outflows of R39.5bn the quarter before. Annual portfolio outflows, however, were at R159.3bn, against inflows of R87.5bn in 2019. South Africa is…

BR Reporter Business Report online MTN, AFRICA’S biggest mobile operator, has been appointed as a service provider to the SA government through its new mobile communication services contract, known as RT15-2021. The partnership is over a five-year term. The contract, the value of which was not disclosed, will come into effect tomorrow. In a statement yesterday, the service provider said the RT15-2021 Transversal contract allowed for all entities of State to use the contract for mobile communication services, which would “further assist with cost containment”. The contract allows for unmetered, uncapped data, but personal voice and SMS bundles will be charged at a flat rate. MTN, which for the year to December said that it had a total of 280 million subscribers across 21 markets, will be replacing Vodacom,…

Odwa Mkentane odwa.mkentane@inl.co.za A GROUP of Samora Machel women held a peaceful march to hand over a memorandum to their local police station to prioritise reported cases of gender-based violence (GBV). The march began at the Weltevreden Library and from there the women walked to the local police station. Their march followed the brutal rape and murder of 50-year-old Nokuzola Mbola, found dead in her home on March 21. The memorandum was received by station commander Eric Malindi. Community activist Boleka Gcwabe condemned shortages of police vans to attend to reported incidents. “We are here as the women of Samora Machel to hand over a memorandum of demands. We haven’t seen or heard (of) any progress on the investigations regarding (Mbola’s) murder. People are being raped almost every day and…

Baldwin Ndaba and Sihle Mavuso ANC alliance partners, Cosatu and the SACP, have vowed to support President Cyril Ramaphosa’s efforts to fight graft following the ANC’s decision to suspend leaders accused of fraud and corruption if they do not step aside. Some ANC provincial leaders have also weighed in and declared their full support for their national leadership. The long-awaited move was put into action on Monday night after Ramaphosa revealed that the party had given its secretary-general Ace Magashule and several others accused of fraud and corruption 30 days to step down from their official positions pending the conclusion of criminal cases against them. Other leaders facing criminal charges include ANC NEC member and former State Security minister Bongani Bongo; former ANC MP Vincent Smith; former Eastern Cape Health…

Okuhle Hlati okhule.hlati@inl.co.za FORMER Knysna municipal communication office employees say that alleged victimisation at the hands of their manager who told them that they were “not in the Eastern Cape” – among other derogatory comments – had made their work experience intolerable. Communications manager Christopher Bezuidenhout has been accused of mistreating staff. Two former employees, who asked not to be named for fear of victimisation, said they decided to speak out after current staff shared how they were allegedly also being mistreated and were scared to escalate their grievances. A former employee who worked in the communications unit for more than two years said they resigned with immediate effect due to their health deteriorating. “I enjoyed the actual job and had built good working relations with colleagues from other directorates.…

CRISIS has a particularly good way of generating a politically valuable kind of pandemonium. Politicians certainly know this, and they adore it too. The hullabaloo of crisis opens space for political parties to articulate public policy which attempts to soothe the worries of citizens – the hope is that these policies will ultimately lead to greater electoral support. The Covid-19 crisis has devastated the local economy. Just earlier this month, Statistics South Africa reported that the country’s economy was projected to contract by 7%. Business and retail confidence has dropped significantly, unemployment has surged, and a great sense of relative deprivation and hopelessness has engulfed citizens. As the pandemic rages on, and the 2021 local government elections approach, politicians are in a desperate search for a profitable political advance…

PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa affirmed his grip on the ANC when the NEC eventually concluded the so-called step-aside policy. However, history suggests that the matter may be far from over. Party secretary-general Ace Magashule’s world, in all its black, green and gold glory, crumbled around him when the NEC resolved that those facing criminal charges had to step aside within seven days. Magashule and his 15 co-accused are facing 74 charges of fraud, theft, corruption, money laundering and asbestos regulations contraventions before the Bloemfontein High Court. Magashule has previously said that only a special conference could remove him from his position. During the reportedly chaotic NEC sitting, Magashule received a lifeline when the resolution was changed after he asked for 30 days to consult party elders, including former presidents. While Magashule…

LONDON: London police acted appropriately at a vigil for a murdered woman earlier this month, an independent watchdog said yesterday, after the force was criticised for a heavy-handed approach which saw mourners dragged away by officers. The murder of Sarah Everard, 33, sparked a huge outpouring of grief and dismay in Britain at the failure of police and wider society to tackle violence against women. At a vigil in her memory, which police said broke Covid-19 lockdown rules, officers faced accusations of acting with undue force after a number of women were pinned down and then dragged away in handcuffs after the crowd refused orders to disperse. Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) investigated and cleared the Metropolitan Police (Met) of any wrongdoing. “After reviewing a huge body of…

BEIRUT: Hosting Syrian refugees cost neighbouring Lebanon about $46.5 billion (R695bn) in the first seven years since the Syrian conflict began, caretaker Prime Minister Hassan Diab said yesterday. “In Lebanon, the massive Syrian displacement weighs heavily on the economy and already cost our country around $46.5 billion, according to the estimate of the Ministry of Finance for the period 2011-2018. Moreover, it continues to affect the social fabric of Lebanon,” Diab told the Brussels-hosted Syria donor conference. Diab urged more international help for Lebanon’s plan to return displaced persons amid its own crippling financial crisis.…

Pope Francis adapted Shakespeare’s famous Hamlet quote in an appeal to people not to remain blind to the destruction of climate change and the mass migration it may cause, writing: “To see or not to see, that is the question.” Francis went on to urge people to work together to protect “creation, our common home” and not “hunker down” in individualism, in the preface of a document by the Vatican development office on the pastoral care of people displaced by climactic events. “I suggest we adapt Hamlet’s ‘to be or not to be’ and affirm: ‘To see or not to see, that is the question!’ Where it starts is with each one’s seeing, yes, mine and yours,” Francis wrote. “We are not going to get out of crises like…