Table of contents for 2021-05-06 in Cape Times

Sandile Mchunu sandile.mchunu@inl.co.za RMB HOLDINGS (RMH) share price declined by more than 38 percent on the JSE yesterday morning after the investment holding company’s shares went ex-dividend yesterday. This comes after the group was given approval by the exchange control to declare a special dividend of 80 cents a share, which equals to R1.13 billion out of income reserves, on April 21. The group also announced that the special dividend would be subject to a dividend withholding tax at a rate of 20 percent, which would result in a net special dividend of 64c a share. The shareholders are expected to receive a total of R903.49 million after tax. RMH announced on April 21 that the last day to trade in order to parti- cipate in…

SUPPLIES of critical minerals essential for key clean energy technologies, like electric vehicles, need to pick up sharply over the coming decades to meet the world’s climate goals, creating potential energy security hazards that governments must act now to address, a new report by the International Energy Agency (IEA) said yesterday. The special report, The Role of Critical Minerals in Clean Energy Transitions, is the most comprehensive global study to date on the central importance of minerals such as copper, lithium, nickel, cobalt and rare earth elements in a secure and rapid transformation of the global energy sector. Building on the IEA’s longstanding leadership role in energy security, the report recommends six key areas of action for policymakers to ensure that critical minerals enable an accelerated transition to clean energy…

Nicola Daniels nicola.daniels@inl.co.za BELHAR residents say they are tired of students living at the South Point student accommodation, partying outside of curfew restrictions, littering and disturbing the peace in the neighbourhood every weekend. The Belhar Ratepayers and Residents’ Association (BRRA) said the issue has been going on for over two years and despite meetings with South Point there has been no improvement. Videos have circulated on social media showing cars blocking the road, people drinking outside and singing and dancing on cars. “We are having a tough time with them as they are unlawfully partying outside of curfew restrictions, as well as basically destroying the value of our properties along with mass littering when they have their street parties. “On top of that, they have moved as far as Belhar…

Zintle Mahlati CONCERNS about a possible third wave of the coronavirus pandemic remain high, despite assurances from Health Minister Dr Zweli Mkhize that the government had upped surveillance on possible new variants. The growing fear over a possible rise in Covid-19 cases have been driven by reports of individuals, who had travelled to India, testing positive on arrival in South Africa. The number of case has been rising in the past week. A shipping vessel that landed in KwaZulu-Natal has fuelled concerns, as some passengers have tested positive and were in isolation. India is experiencing rising Covid-19 cases, suspected to be driven by a variant first identified in the country. Mkhize said the government remained concerned about coronavirus cases being detected at border posts. However, the government has yet to…

PIET RAMPEDI and BALDWIN NDABA DEFIANT ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule has rejected his temporary axing by the ANC, saying the move is unconstitutional, factional and flawed because the suspension letter was signed by his deputy Jessie Duarte who had no powers to do so. Magashule said last night he had since suspended President Cyril Ramaphosa as ANC leader in terms of resolution 8.2 of the party’s 54th national conference held at Nasrec in 2017. He urged ANC members not to “bow” to illegal and unconstitutional actions. But ANC spokesperson Pule Mabe said the party’s decision to suspend Magashule stood, adding: “The NEC will be meeting over the weekend and will accordingly respond to the secretary general. The ANC requested that the secretary general respect the decisions of the…

Lisa Isaacs lisa.isaacs@inl.co.za THE People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA) in George suffered a serious setback when part of its premises burnt down this week. The non-profit animal welfare organisation relies heavily on the generosity of sponsors and has appealed to the public for help to rebuild the affected part of the facility. PDSA George administrator Moira Gibbs said the fire broke out at around 8.25am on Monday when the incinerator was switched on for a cremation that had come in to the PDSA at the weekend. “All was well until approximately five minutes later when a passing staff member noticed flames in the crematorium. She alerted the other staff members and we all went to investigate, but unfortunately by this time the whole room was engulfed in flames. “With…

YOUR edition on May 3, “Firefighters face heat of a different kind”, refers. This is once again a story showing how some of the unions use their members as “cannon fodder”. Unfortunately, in this particular instance, the unions brought their members out on a strike which they must have known was unprocedural and illegal. The unsuspecting firefighters were exposed to possible dismissal. At this point, it would be extremely valuable for each firefighter to apologise and to give an undertaking that it won’t happen again. It is an independent chairperson who will be making the recommendations. Strong mitigation evidence given to the independent chairperson would be a very useful exercise. |…

Mfezeko Bunu | Khayelitsha IT IS perplexing that Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi is every day, referred to as the prime minister of the Zulu-speaking people. The English definition of a prime minister is the head of government or a leader of ministers in a parliamentary system of government. Buthelezi was a leader and president of a political party whose majority was and continues to be in KwaZulu-Natal, and it must be noted that not all Zulu-speaking people are members of Inkatha Freedom Party. Giving Buthelezi the prime minister title suggests that all the Zulu-speaking people support the principles that Buthelezi stands for. To show that this mis-representation of Buthelezi as the prime minister of the Zulus is misguided, KwaZulu-Natal is under the ANC government and not the IFP rule.…

Chevon Booysen chevon.booysen@inl.co.za THE State has confirmed it anticipates to reopen its case in light of defence witness Locrisia Goliath’s “very important, crucial evidence” when she testified that Davidene Lucas was last seen with her slain toddler, Orderick Lucas, the night he went missing. This as the defence’s cross-examination continued in the Western Cape High Court yesterday in the murder trial against Melvin Volkwyn. State prosecutor Mornay Julius said they anticipated reopening the case as the new evidence which Goliath had given became the “crux of the case”. Goliath was also challenged, during cross-examination by Julius, about how her evidence differed from her initial testimony, and maintained the defence witness was “lying” and making up evidence as she went along. Goliath denied this, maintaining she had seen Lucas on the…

OWN Correspondent HUNDREDS of people arrived in the Mozambican provincial capital city of Pemba, Cabo Delgado after fleeing from the violent attacks that took place in Palma last week. Together with the government and other humanitarian organisations, Doctors Without Borders (MSF) said they would contribute to the response by providing medical support to the displaced people who are being temporarily sheltered at a stadium. Zainabo and Margrete share their stories: Zainabo is a mother of three and is sheltering in a stadium. “I lost everything, including my eldest son. I and my youngest son arrived here (Pemba) by helicopter. My daughter came later by boat. “But I didn’t want to leave. I told the people who were helping us in Afungi that I couldn’t find my son. But they…

Wim Naudé UNTIL Covid-19 hit, the quality of life of youth (age 15 to 24) in sub-Saharan Africa had been steadily improving. According to the World Bank, by 2019 the youth literacy rate stood at 73%. Gross secondary school enrolment rates increased from 13% in 1971 to 43% by 2018. Youth unemployment rates have remained at around 9%, even below the world average of 13.6%. Across sub-Saharan Africa, extreme poverty among young workers declined from 60% in 1999 to 42% in 2019. Moreover, the youth literacy gender parity index, measuring the ratio of females to males ages 15 to 24 who can read and write, has improved significantly, reaching 93% in 2019. And for this first time, the unemployment rate of young women is similar to that of young…

IF THERE were South Africans worthy of global recognition, it would be the Gift of the Givers founder Dr Imtiaz Sooliman and his team. Time after time, Sooliman and his humanitarian organisation have reminded the nation about the meaning of Ubuntu. It would be an understatement to say that Gift of the Givers has gone beyond the call of duty. Very often, they are the first to respond in crisis, sometimes in the middle of the most dangerous disasters. We have often used our news pages to highlight the incredible work that these people, mostly volunteers, continue to do in assisting those in desperate need. Just a few weeks ago, they led the humanitarian relief efforts when a fire destroyed iconic buildings at UCT, with thousands of students being evacuated.…

A journalist who disappeared last month in Mali’s northern city of Gao appeared in a video yesterday, appealing to authorities to do everything they can to free him from Islamist militants holding him. “I’m Olivier Dubois. I’m French. I’m a journalist. I was kidnapped in Gao on April 8 by the JNIM (al-Qaeda North Africa). “I’m speaking to my family, my friends and the French authorities for them to do everything in their power to free me,” Dubois said in a 21-second video shared on social media. French civilians have long been favoured targets for kidnapping by criminal and Islamist groups in West Africa’s arid Sahel region, partly because of perceptions that the French government is prepared to pay ransoms to secure their release. “We confirm the disappearance in Mali…

BAMAKO: The sheriff of the court is set to attach the property of former Malawian president Peter Mutharika to pay legal costs. In a seizure and sale order by the registrar of the high court, the sheriff was ordered to seize and sell property belonging to Mutharika due to his failure to pay legal costs amounting to 69 million Malawian kwacha (about R1.3 million). Mutharika was found to have abused his office by attempting to force Chief Justice and Justice of Appeal Edward to go on leave pending retirement. Meanwhile, police arrested one of Mutharika’s former bodyguards on allegations of theft of a government car. | African News Agency (ANA)…

GENEVA: World Health Organization experts have “very low confidence” in data from Chinese state-owned drugmaker Sinopharm on its Covid-19 vaccine regarding risk of serious side-effects in some patients, but overall confidence in it preventing the disease. The “evidence assessment” document was prepared by the WHO Strategic Advisory Group of Experts for its evaluation of the Sinopharm shot, authorised by 45 countries and jurisdictions for use in adults, with 65 million doses administered. Vaccine efficacy in multi-country Phase 3 clinical trials was 78.1% after two doses, the document said. This was a slight drop from 79.34% announced earlier in China. | Reuters…

LONDON: A British woman is facing bankruptcy after losing more than $150 000 through an online dating scam. Rachel Elwell, from the UK’s West Midlands, said the man claimed he lived nearby and that he had gone abroad for an engineering contract in Ukraine. Elwell, 50, said the man convinced her with documents and pictures that he needed money for issues he was facing and said he had been taken captive by loan sharks. Elwell has now created a Go Fund Me page and has already received a little over $319. Her target is to raise $138 975. According to Forbes, many online dating scams originate in Nigeria. | African News Agency (ANA)…

JAPAN is considering extending a coronavirus-spurred state of emergency in the capital, Tokyo, and other major urban areas, sources said yesterday, a move that could cast doubt on the planned Summer Olympics. Extending the measures, which were imposed on April 25, would likely fan persistent concerns about whether the Tokyo Olympics, scheduled to begin on July 23, can be held as planned. One proposal that has emerged is an extension until the end of the month, according to two of the sources. International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach is expected to visit Japan later this month, but a longer state of emergency could prompt renewed calls from the public to cancel the games. Under the restrictions in Tokyo and other urban areas, the government has required restaurants, bars, and karaoke…

Sandile Mchunu sandile.mchunu@inl.co.za STEINHOFF International’s share price leapt by more than six percent on the JSE yesterday morning after its subsidiary Pepco Group published its prospectus, which paves the way for its separate listing on the Warsaw Stock Exchange later this month valued at up to R100 billion. Steinhoff said it had decided to launch the initial public offering of Pepco Group of up to 102.72 million ordinary shares, which represents approximately 17.9 percent of the company’s total issued share capital. Steinhoff holds 98.8 percent of the shares that are up for an offering that will be made available to retail and institutional investors in Poland, at an offer price of between 38 Polish zloty a share (R143.69) and 46 zloty, valuing it between €4.8 billion (R83bn)…

THE JURY is still out on whether certain clauses of the 2018 Mining Charter will be reviewed and set aside. The Pretoria High Court reserved judgment on the issue yesterday following a three-day hearing held virtually. The Minerals Council South Africa approached the court for a judicial review and the setting aside of the 2018 Mining Charter, saying the document did not recognise past empowerment deals. Among the elements of the charter is that new mining rights require a minimum 30 percent black economic empowerment (BEE) shareholding, distributed to qualifying employees, communities, host communities and BEE entrepreneurs. Advocate Christopher Loxton, representing the Minerals Council, told the court yesterday that the charter was not the sole source of community rights and did not operate in isolation. “It is wrong to see…

Nicola Daniels nicola.daniels@inl.co.za THE issue of hairstyles will be brought up at Heathfield Primary School’s next school governing body (SGB) meeting following a deadlock between the school and parents. Parents of an 11-year-old Grade 5 pupil from Retreat said they changed their child’s hairstyle to build his self-esteem, following the trauma of a bullying incident last year, where they said the school did nothing to help him recover. “I asked my teacher if I could go to the toilet, then the two boys were standing in the toilet. They first wanted to look over my shoulder so I pulled up my pants and went to the other toilet then they still looked over my shoulder and they said I have a small thing,” the emotional pupil said recalling the incident.…

Staff writer OUR hands do incredible work but can also be the cause of illness if not kept clean. Observing World Hand Hygiene Day yesterday, the provincial health department said regular hand washing, like hand hygiene, plays an important role in maintaining your health and the health of those around you. “Covid-19 has shown us the importance of hand hygiene, it is one of the non-pharmaceutical interventions of preventing the spread of the virus. “Washing hands can keep you healthy and prevent the spread of respiratory and diarrhoeal infections from one person to the next.” Germs can spread from other people or surfaces when one: ■ Touches your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands. ■ Prepares or eats food and drinks with unwashed hands. ■ Touches a contaminated surface…

Sibusiso Mboto sibusiso.mboto@inl.co.za banNING canned hunting would have dire implications for the hunting industry and South Africa could lose billions of rand each year as a result. So said wildlife hunting bodies after Environment, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Barbara Creecy recently announced that a high-level panel had recommended a ban on the captive breeding, hunting and petting of lions in South Africa. Hunting associations said if a ban was imposed, it would have a dire impact on the hunting industry and result in job losses, while the South Africa National Parks (SANParks) has come out in full support of the minister’s announcement. Confederation of Hunting Associations in South Africa chief executive Steven Paulos said that while members were still going through the report, there were already worrying signs for the…

Staff writer THE National Oil Spill Contingency Plan and its subsidiary, the national Oiled Wildlife Response Contingency Plan, being developed, are key instruments that will guide a co-ordinated response to an oiling incident. This was the advice from CapeNature, which said spills at sea are a threat to the South African oceans and coastline because the oil gets washed out along the shore. “The hazards for wildlife include toxicity during exposure or ingestion, injuries such as smothering and deterioration of thermal insulation, and damage to reproductive systems and behaviours. “Seabirds, particularly those that cannot fly, such as the endangered African penguin, are at risk. There has been a dramatic increase in the number of African penguins oiled. Since 1990, 30 000 were oiled in two spills. Animals try to clean…

Barbie Sandler | Constantia ONE reads again about the police letting down a rape victim. If the reporting is correct, Khayelitsha police station is a disgrace to their profession. How dare they say the rape victim needs to find the suspect and conduct her own investigation! Also, that she looked “too relaxed”. The mind boggles. I am not sure what police spokesperson Andre Traut means when he says: “Kindly encourage your source to approach the management of Khayelitsha police station to report the alleged ill treatment”. Good grief. She has already been told to investigate her own case by the station and had very little help from the men in blue. Why should going back to the station make any difference? Traut needs to take over the case…

Athandile Siyo athandile.siyo@inl.co.za NEW valves and their installation at the Rheinmetall Denel Munition (RDM) plant near Somerset West where eight people were killed were queried yesterday, as the public inquiry into the 2018 explosion continued. The inquiry was expected to continue today, but was postponed until July to call more witnesses. The spotlight was yesterday put on whether or not it was necessary to change a butterfly valve, as well as the process of installing the replacement mucon valve at N16 – the affected building. Four witnesses – mechanical engineer Michael Roberts, technical assistant Charl Roux, fitter Vernon Johannes and maintenance supervisor Brent Bennet – testified on the technicalities of installation as well as the designing of an adapter for the mucon valve. Roux said that the reason that the…

Staff writer THE world is facing a shortage of 900 000 midwives, which represents a third of the required global midwifery workforce. So found the 2021 State of World’s Midwifery report by the UN sexual and reproductive health agency (UNFPA), World Health Organization International Confederation of Midwives and partners, which evaluates the midwifery workforce and related health resources in 194 countries. Yesterday marked International Day of the Midwife and in the Western Cape Premier Alan Winde said the province’s health services had also been deeply affected, having lost 67 healthcare workers, a third of whom were nurses. The midwifery report noted that the Covid-19 crisis had only exacerbated problems, with the health needs of women and newborns being overshadowed, midwifery services being disrupted and midwives being deployed to other health…

They struggle to manage online learning, research on pandemic’s effects shows Emmanuel Ojo, Annie Burger, Anthony J Onwuegbuzie, Bryan Jason Bergsteedt, Samantha Adams and Talitha Crowley INSTITUTIONS of higher education worldwide are undergoing unprecedented change because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Universities and colleges have been forced to switch to online teaching and learning. Many were unprepared for this move to what is termed emergency remote teaching and learning. It is now just more than a year on from many countries’ initial lockdowns. Many universities have adopted some form of hybrid learning approach. They are attempting to combine face-to-face and online instruction into a single, seamless experience. This situation is likely to remain the status quo for some time, especially in the Global South. That is because, although a variety of…

The advent of Instagram in recent years has helped create an international black market for migrant workers, in particular women recruited in Africa and Asia who are sold into servitude as maids in Persian Gulf countries. Unlicensed agents have exploited the social media platform to place these women into jobs that often lack documentation or assurances of proper pay and working conditions. Several women who were marketed via Instagram described being treated essentially as captives and forced to work gruelling hours for far less money than they had been promised. “They advertise us on social media, then the employer picks. Then we are delivered to their house. We are not told anything about the employers. You’re just told to take your stuff and a driver takes you there,” said Vivian,…

Facebook Inc’s oversight board yesterday upheld the company’s suspension of former US president Donald Trump but said the company was wrong to make the suspension indefinite and gave it six months to determine a “proportionate response.” Trump called the decision and his banning across tech platforms “a total disgrace” and said the companies would “pay a political price”. The board’s verdict has been watched for signals on how the world’s largest social media company will treat rule-breaking political leaders in the future. The board said the company was right to ban Trump following the January 6 storming of the US Capitol by pro-Trump supporters. But it said Facebook inappropriately imposed a suspension without clear standards and that the company should determine a response consistent with rules applied to other users…

WASHINGTON: Jared Kushner is forming a group to promote relations between four Arab states and Israel, normalised under agreements he helped broker as a top adviser to his father-in-law, former president Donald Trump, the group said yesterday. Kushner, who is married to Trump’s daughter Ivanka Trump, is founding the Abraham Accords Institute for Peace, to work on deepening agreements Israel reached last year with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco. Kushner is writing a book about his experience in helping broker the deals. He will be joined in the new group by former US envoy Avi Berkowitz and ambassadors to the US from Bahrain, the UAE and Israel. The group describes itself as non-partisan. The founders “intend to add additional Democrats to the group as well as…

ANTWERP: An Iranian diplomat sentenced to 20 years in prison for planning a bomb attack in France has dropped an appeal in Belgium and will serve his sentence, his representative said. Belgian authorities have said they will oppose any potential swop deal with Western prisoners, lawyers said. Assadolah Assadi was found guilty of attempted terrorism in February after a foiled plot to bomb a 2018 rally of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), a French-based dissident group. The Belgian court said he ran a state intelligence network. Assadi bought explosives for the Paris plot with him on a commercial flight to Austria from Iran, it said. | Reuters…

MEME-BASED virtual currency Dogecoin soared to an all-time high yesterday, extending its 2021 rally to become the fourth-biggest digital coin. Dogecoin, launched as a satirical critique of 2013’s cryptocurrency frenzy, climbed 41 percent in 24 hours to a record $0.68 (about R9.82), according to CoinMarketCap. This year alone, it has soared more than 14 000 percent, from $0.00468 on December 31, taking it past more widely used cryptocurrencies, such as the Tether stablecoin and XRP, to become the fourth-largest by market capitalisation. Dogecoin – whose logo features a Shiba Inu dog at the centre of the meme – remains little used in commerce or payments. Like other digital coins, it is highly volatile, and its price is heavily influenced by social media users. On Tuesday, the New York…

Siphelele Dludla siphelele.dludla@inl.co.za THE MANUFACTURING industry in South Africa soared to nine-year high in April as new business and output grew strongly as a result of a sharp rebound from the Covid-19 impact. The IHS Markit purchasing managers’ index (PMI), released yesterday, rose from 50.3 in March to 53.7 in April as demand begins to recover, indicating the strongest expansion since March 2012. As a result, IHS Markit said businesses were now much more optimistic about the year-ahead outlook, with the degree of sentiment linked to future activity at its highest since mid-2015. It said they attributed this to greater hopes that the Covid-19 pandemic will end and that business conditions will improve. IHS Markit said South Africa enjoyed a strong bounce in economic performance in April as output growth…

The Duchess of Sussex has penned a children’s book, The Bench, an illustrated story told through a mother’s eyes, which will be released on June 8. The former actress said the tale was inspired by the bond between her husband, Prince Harry, and their 23-month-old son Archie. The book is illustrated by Christian Robinson and Meghan, who is pregnant with the couple’s second child, a daughter, hopes the story “resonates with every family, no matter the make-up”. She said: “The Bench started as a poem I wrote for my husband on Father’s Day, the month after Archie was born.” | Bang Showbiz…

Chevon Booysen chevon.booysen@inl.co.za THE exhibition at Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa by Cape Town-born artist and activist Haroon Gunn-Salie, draws together a decade of site-specific interventions, public artworks, and interdisciplinary collaborations. During a virtual tour of the exhibition, called Line in the Sand, yesterday evening, Gunn-Salie took audiences through the works, which will be exhibited until May 9. Gunn-Salie, who is exhibiting past work and new work created while in the atelier space at the museum, said he enjoyed his No Sugar piece. The piece displays eight chipped coffee cups on a shelf, and Gunn-Salie said he had come across the cups while on breaks in the canteen in the basement as he was having his coffee with cleaning and security staff at the museum. “This is a site-specific…

Sihle Mavuso and Ntombi Nkosi AMID flaring tensions and pending litigations in the royal court, the mortal remains of the Zulu nation’s late Queen Regent, Mantfombi Dlamini-Zulu, were yesterday brought back to KwaKhangela palace in Nongoma to rest for the last time before burial. The 65-year-old would be buried according to the Swati royal culture of wrapping one in a cow’s hide and as per her wish, she would not go to the Zulu royal graveyard of Makhosini near Ulundi. The final homecoming journey started in Johannesburg yesterday when a high-powered delegation comprising Zulu and Swati royals made a long trek to fetch her body from Hillbrow mortuary in Johannesburg. After the performance of royal rituals at the mortuary, her body was taken in a convoy. The convoy became a…

ANA Reporter PARTS of the online economy have boomed since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, amid widespread movement restrictions, while some pre-pandemic big-hitters have seen a reversal of fortunes in the past year, UN economists have found. Experts in trade and development at the UN Conference on Trade and Development (Unctad) said the e-commerce sector saw a “dramatic” rise in its share of all retail sales, from 16% to 19% in 2020. “These statistics show the growing importance of online activities,” said Shamika Sirimanne, Unctad’s director of technology and logistics. “They also point to the need for countries, especially developing ones, to have such information as they rebuild their economies in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.” The digital retail economy experienced the most growth in the Republic of…

Rhino poaching is on the rise again in South Africa since the government loosened Covid-19 restrictions after a year-long lull, wildlife parks say. The strict limits on travel, including international travel, imposed in March last year had the happy side effect of keeping poachers at bay. In 2020, 394 rhinos were poached, 30% fewer than the year before and the lowest yearly tally since 2011. But then international travel restrictions were eased in November. “Since November, December last year and into 2021, this landscape and particularly Kruger National Park has been experiencing serious numbers of rhino-poaching incidents,” said Jo Shaw, the Africa Rhino Lead for WWF International Network. She declined to say how many incidents had occurred. “There is a very real and realised threat as poaching pressure has increased…

Nyaniso Qwesha | Wynberg I AM disturbed by what happened to Lindani Myeni in this darkest hour. What bothered me are the reports that this unarmed young guy was shot many times by the officers. What made it easy for this young life to be short-lived in the US by the country’s police officers? This sad reality comes at a challenging time in the US, in which race-related problems are on the rise. It is not easy, and the question remains: why was it easy for the US police officers to shoot a human being like that and there is no recourse? Another important question is whether the Myeni family will get justice as deserved, or is it going to be another long case with no actionable outcomes? What has…

Lisa Isaacs lisa.isaacs@inl.co.za A MORE-than-two-year battle ended in victory for small farmer and prize-winning entrepreneur Ivan Cloete, who has finally received written confirmation from the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform that the Colenso farm in Darling has been allocated to him. The Legal Resources Centre (LRC) said a 30-year lease agreement should be signed by the end of the month. Cloete was first awarded a lease agreement on Bellevue farm in 2013. He had to share it with another beneficiary, which led to the farm being sub-divided into portions that did not support Cloete’s scale of operation. He was subsequently moved to a new farm, Gelukwaarts, in Piketberg. It was then discovered that there was a person already living on the farm who claimed to have a valid…

Okuhle Hlati okhule.hlati@inl.co.za TENSION is brewing at Paint City, in Bellville, as it comes to light that the site occupied by refugees was intended for use by minibus-taxi operators who are now demanding it back. The City’s law enforcement had to intervene at the site on Tuesday after a stand-off between the taxi operators and refugees. Hundreds of refugees and asylum seekers were relocated temporarily to Paint City and Wingfield in Kensington because of the Covid-19 lockdown. As lockdown levels were lowered, traffic and congestion increased in the vicinity because minibus taxis had to wait in adjacent roads because of the occupation at the site. According to the transport Mayco member, Felicity Purchase, tensions arose after the City tried to remove a fence around the tent to make space for…

Chad Williams chad.williams@africannewsagency.com MECHANICAL engineer Edmond Nonie is the Sierra Leonean co-founder of a company that tracks construction projects with drones. In a recent interview in How we Made it in Africa, Nonie explained how his company’s journey from a small drone operator in his home country of Sierra Leone evolved into a comprehensive construction management platform used to monitor large-scale projects across West Africa and beyond. Track Your Build offers remote sensing services for construction and infrastructure management, as well as a project management and construction jobs cloud, according to the company’s website. Nonie said that his firm helps companies know how the construction project is progressing, how well the workforce is being utilised and where their money is going. He added that, typically, they would start by…

Modibe Modiba SOUTH Africa is a country of two halves, a place divided into portions of the rich and elites as well as that of the displaced, marginalised, poor and exploited majority of the country. Our land is where financial institutions exploit the black majority and where banks have been allowed to operate in a rogue manner. It cannot be that 27 years into our democracy, we have black businesses and SMMEs that struggle to get finance and assistance from banks that make a lot of money from the suffering and poor black majority. We cannot sit back and watch how many of the banks have stood against the transformation of this country and how they have, without shame, closed the accounts of black businesses. #RacistBanksMustFall is a continuous…

A shadow government of ousted Myanmar MPs said yesterday it has set up a “people’s defence force” to protect civilians, as the police and military deploy deadly arms against anti-coup protesters. The country has been in turmoil since the military deposed civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi, triggering a mass uprising of daily protests and a nationwide boycott from public servants. So far, nearly 770 people have been killed in deadly crackdowns, according to a local monitoring group – although the junta has a far lower death toll which it blames on “rioters”. A group of ousted lawmakers who call themselves the National Unity Government (NUG) and are working underground to oppose the junta announced their own “people’s defence force” to “stop the use of violence against people”. It is…

Antarctic melting could cause a “dramatic” rise in sea levels if countries fail to keep global warming below 2°C, posing a serious threat to low- lying and coastal regions, researchers said yesterday. If the upper temperature goal set in the Paris Agreement is exceeded, the melting Antarctic ice sheet could cause annual average sea-level rise of 0.18cm globally in 2060 and beyond, said the study published in the journal Nature. Under the 2015 Paris Agreement, more than 190 countries agreed to hold global average temperature rise to “well below” 2°C above pre-industrial times and strive for a limit of 1.5°C. Warming of 3°C – a scenario that is more consistent with current policies – would push sea levels up by a “catastrophic” 0.5cm a year globally after 2060, the study…

LONDON: the Group of Seven wealthy democracies yesterday worked on plans to scale up global Covid-19 vaccinations, as calls mounted for a drastic increase in funding to help developing nations. The foreign minister of India, where Covid cases have soared in recent weeks, participated in the London meeting virtually after potential exposure to the virus. More than 1.2 billion doses of Covid-19 vaccines have been administered globally, but fewer than 1% in the least developed countries. Britain’s former prime minister Gordon Brown urged the G7 to provide the bulk of $60 billion that is needed over the next two years to vaccinate the whole world. | Reuters…

MADRID: Spain’s conservative People’s Party (PP) said yesterday that its resounding win in Madrid in regional elections signalled “the beginning of the end” for Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s government. However, Sanchez’s mandate runs for two more years and analysts said there was little incentive for him to hold an early national election. The Madrid region’s incumbent leader, the PP’s Isabel Diaz Ayuso, won re-election elections boosted by her refusal to close down bars and shops during the Covid-19 pandemic. The PP does not have enough MPs in the national parliament to force Sanchez to call a snap election. | Reuters…

Wynona Louw What will the Lions class of 2021 look like? Now that the trophy for the three-Test series between the Springboks and the British & Irish Lions has been unveiled, the excitement will continue to build, with Warren Gatland naming his squad for their tour of South Africa today (12:45pm SA time). The B&I Lions' eagerly-awaited trip to South Africa will see the tourists attempt to repeat the heroics of 1997 as they battle it out for the ‘first perpetual trophy in the history of the British & Irish Lions’, as SA Rugby proudly said in a statement Monday. So, with less than two months to go before the quadrennial blockbuster kicks off, here are three points of interest ahead of Gatland’s squad announcement. 1 Who will don…

HERMAN GIBBS MAMELODI Sundowns opened up a four-point lead at the top of the Premiership standings after a 2-0 win over a highly competitive Maritzburg United side at Loftus yesterday. Sundowns led 1-0 at half-time but on numerous occasions in the first half, Maritzburg looked the more likely to score but they failed to convert their opportunities. Sundowns served early notice of their attacking threat and had the ball in the net in the fifth minute, but the effort was ruled offside. In the 16th minute, Sundowns were foiled by the woodwork twice in quick succession. Ace striker Peter Shalulile produced both efforts via a low drive and a header from a corner. Once Maritzburg absorbed the pressure without conceding a goal, they produced several assertive passages of play…

Stuart Hess stuart.hess@inl.co.za The South African cricket season is over, but it’s still a very busy period for the sport in the country. Cricket South Africa (CSA) have ensured that through dragging its feet over the administrative restructure, they brought the federation to the brink of collapse. Thankfully, that is behind us now. The mechanisms for choosing a new board are in place and a date of the annual general meeting has been set. And then the work begins. In and among an overflowing in-box later this year will be feedback in the shape of a report or otherwise from advocate Dumisa Ntsebeza, the Transformation Ombudsman, heading up the Social Justice and National (SJN) building project. The project itself started inauspiciously. Perhaps the attachment of former CSA director Eugenia Kula-Ameyaw…