Innholdsfortegnelse for 2022-11-09 i Pretoria News

THE Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department said it has noted a video circulating on social media of its officer receiving about R1 800 from an unknown individual. From the video footage, the officer in the department’s uniform is seen receiving money while sitting in a parked car. The unidentified motorist narrating the video, while driving to the police officer and handing over the money, mentions repeatedly he is going to hand over R1 800 to the police officer. “I am going to enter his car now, and he is going to take the money,” the man says. As soon as he enters the police officer’s white vehicle, the officer asks him: “Why did you take so long?” Joburg Metro Police spokesperson Xolani Fihla said it was not known under which circumstances…

POLICE bungling will cost the taxpayer R2 million in damages. The compensation was awarded to an innocent man who was locked up in jail for more than two years, under harrowing conditions. One day, he was simply told he could go home. But, also as a result of the police’s actions, he contracted HIV/Aids. The man, whose identity is not revealed due to his health status, said the police had ruined his life. Not only did he lose slightly more than two years of his life for no reason, but other inmates had tattooed a large part of his body, by force. The Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, which ordered the police to pay the damages, was told that he contracted Aids from being tattooed. He had to endure all this…

TAXPAYERS paid about R2 million to buy generators to keep the lights (on) during load shedding at the state-owned houses of ministers and their deputies. Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Patricia de Lille revealed this in a parliamentary question. IFP MP Themba Msimang wrote to De Lille asking for the updated figure of the total amount of taxpayer money that was spent on generators for private use by the ministers. “I have been informed by the department that generators are supplied to ministers and deputy ministers in state-owned houses and not private houses. “The Department of Public Works and Infrastructure spent R1.3m before April 1 and a further R680 000 from April to June,” she said. De Lille’s written response comes on the heels of an announcement by President Cyril…

SMALL business owners subcontracted to refurbish intensive care unit (ICU) beds and high care units for Covid-19 patients at Kopanong Hospital in Vereeniging, say they are drowning in debt after the government failed to process their outstanding payments. The infrastructure division of the Gauteng Department of Human Settlements and Infrastructure Development contracted a company named Condocor, which then subcontracted the work to small businesses. Now, six of these businesses – owners of which include two individuals with physical disabilities and two women – have been facing the possibility of closing, due to mounting debts and lack of working capital. The Kopanong ICU project began in August 2020, but was brought to a halt when the contract was terminated in February 2021. The termination of the contract affected the subcontractors,…

THE two-day second Presidential Summit on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide came and passed. It was a high-charged session on day one when delegates representing various interest groups demanded answers from President Cyril Ramaphosa on what government was doing to end the scourge. Ramaphosa admitted the National Strategic Plan on gender-based violence and femicide was not being implemented effectively. Just before the event, the mortal remains of Bokgabo Poo, aged just 4, were found in various places in Ekurhuleni. The child, initially reported missing, was finally laid to rest on Monday. The family had held off the funeral for weeks hoping that police would find her missing body parts after her alleged killer refused to co-operate. In Pretoria, a man was arrested for allegedly raping his 2-year-old niece. The mother…

Leaders from poor countries criticized wealthy governments and oil companies for driving global warming, using their speeches on Tuesday at the COP27 climate summit in Egypt to demand that they pay up for damages being inflicting on their economies. Small island nations suffering the brunt of climate change want Big Oil to pay for mounting damage from ocean storms and sea-level rise, Antigua’s prime minister told delegates at the COP27 climate summit in Egypt yesterday. The comments by Gaston Browne kicked off the second day of speeches from heads of state and government at the two-week conference in the seaside resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh. “The oil and gas industry continues to earn almost $3 billion (about R53bn) daily in profits,” Browne said, speaking on behalf of the Alliance of…

SHARM EL-SHEIKH: World leaders, policymakers and delegates from nearly 200 countries are in Egypt at the COP27 UN climate summit, which delegates kicked off with a deal to discuss compensating poor nations for mounting damage linked to global warming. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen urged countries to hasten action on climate change, speaking at the COP27 summit in Sharm El-Sheikh yesterday. “The global fossil fuel crisis must be a game changer. So let us not take the ‘highway to hell’ but let’s earn the clean ticket to heaven,” she said, echoing remarks by UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Monday. In a separate statement, European Council President Charles Michel said that Russia had chosen to make energy “a weapon of mass destabilisation”. |…

NAIROBI: Kenya Airways plans to cancel its bargaining and recognition agreements with its pilots union, saying their strike is unlawful and it amounts to economic sabotage. Members of the Kenya Airline Pilots Association – a union that represents about 400 pilots at the carrier – went on strike at the weekend after failing to resolve a dispute over their pensions contributions and settlement of deferred pay. Dozens of flights and stranded thousands of passengers. The carrier, which is one of the biggest in Africa, wants to withdraw from its collective bargaining agreement with the union, a letter by signed by its CEO Allan Kilavuka showed on yesterday. |…

Alliance partners and party structures are against the president’s bid for a second term IF ANC alliance partners had their way, President Cyril Ramaphosa would not be standing for a second term as party leader at the 55th party elective conference next month. This week, the ANC Youth League national task team said it preferred Dr Zweli Mkhize to become president of the party. The ANC Women’s League was supposed to hold a press conference to announce its preferred candidate yesterday, but it cancelled at the last minute. However, insiders said the Women’s League preferred Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma to become ANC president. At the same time, tripartite alliance partner SACP is considering entering the 2024 general elections, supported by Cosatu. The ANC Veterans League hinted that Ramaphosa was not…

THE DA has called on President Cyril Ramaphosa to urgently instruct the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) to probe a dodgy donkey cart donation in the North West. DA Shadow Minister of Transport Chris Hunsinger says that 20 carts came with a R780 000 price tag, with carts priced at R32 500 and R45 500 each, which is highly overpriced. The North West government apparently “donated” carts to some residents in the Dibono and Manawana villages outside Mahikeng, as a mode of transport to clinics, shops and a school which is 20 kilometres away in a neighbouring village. “Not only does this “donation” smack of brazen corruption, it also is a clear indication of the ANC’s complete disregard for the needs and dignity of these residents. “The 20 donkey carts are…

A SATURDAY afternoon walk by a teenager with her then 2-year-old nephew and two friends turned into tragedy after the teenager got trampled by a train when she tried to rescue the child, who ran towards the tracks. The teenager, only identified by her first name Zanele, so as not to identify her underage nephew, was killed while the toddler was seriously injured. The mother of the boy, identified as S in a Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, judgment, turned to the court to claim damages from Transnet. the tragedy could have been avoided and the goods train would not have hit her sister – the 17-year-old – and her child if there were adequate fencing to prevent pedestrians from gaining access to the tracks, she said. There was alo no…

At the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China held recently, General Secretary Xi Jinping announced that China has always been committed to its foreign policy goals of upholding world peace and promoting common development, and it is dedicated to promoting a human community with a shared future. This drew a grand blueprint for major country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics along the new journey and showed the way forward for human development and progress. China has worked hard on several important fronts: • First, lead the way in injecting new momentum into peaceful development. China faithfully fulfils our obligations as a permanent member of the UN Security Council. We sent more than 50 000 people to participate in UN peacekeeping operations, and we have become the second largest…

Polls opened yesterday in crucial US midterm elections that could decide the political future of both President Joe Biden and his predecessor Donald Trump – who has all but announced he will seek the White House again in 2024. Biden’s Democrats are facing a gargantuan struggle to hang on to Congress, after a race the president has cast as a “defining” moment for US democracy – while Trump’s Republicans campaigned hard on kitchen- table issues like inflation and crime. Trump – who has been heavily hinting at a new run – grabbed the election eve spotlight to flag “a big announcement” on November 15, while Biden made a final appeal to Democrats to turn out en masse at the polls. “The power’s in your hands,” Biden told a rally near…

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky yesterday urged the US to remain united, as questions hover over American support for his country following midterm elections to determine control of the US Congress. “I call on you to maintain unwavering unity, as it is now, until that very day when we all hear those important words we have been dreaming of ... Until we hear that peace has finally been restored. Democracies must not stop on their way to the victory,” he said in a recorded address, receiving the US Liberty Medal. The US Congress committed $40 billion for Ukraine in May with support across party lines and Ukraine’s defence minister thanked the US on Monday after Kyiv took receipt of more air defence systems. Meanwhile, Sputnik News reported yesterday that Zelensky…

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah says evidence suggests a prominent Pakistani journalist was the victim of a targeted killing in Kenya, not an accidental shooting,but he still needs more information. Kenyan police spokesman Bruno Shioso declined to respond to the minister’s comments on the death of TV journalist Arshad Sharif, who was shot dead on October 23 on the outskirts of Nairobi. Shioso said the case was being investigated by the police watchdog, the Independent Policing Oversight Authority. Pakistan’s government formed an investigation team to look into the matter, which caused uproar in the country. |…

Marseille: French prosecutors in Marseille said yesterday they had opened an inquiry into child abuse by a French cardinal after he confessed publicly to “reprehensible” acts against a 14-year-old girl in the 1980s. Jean-Pierre Ricard, a retired bishop of Bordeaux who was made a cardinal by Pope Francis in 2016, was named among 11 senior clergymen who face sexual abuse allegations, according to an announcement by the French Catholic church on Monday. Ricard asked for forgiveness and said he would withdraw from his functions and be available for legal and church authorities. He was a bishop from 2001 to 2019. |…

THE High Court in Joburg has granted a final forfeiture order for 23 pieces of gold, worth R9million, seized at OR Tambo International Airport from Tashinga Nyasha Masinire, who had landed from Zimbabwe, last year. “Nyasha was arrested by members of the Hawks’ serious organised crime with the assistance of customs officials at OR Tambo International after he landed from neighbouring Zimbabwe,” said Gauteng Hawks spokesperson Captain Lloyd Ramovha. “He consequently appeared in the Kempton Park Magistrate's Court facing charges of illegally dealing with precious metals. “The court granted him R100 000 bail, and he has been in attendance since. His next appearance is scheduled for later this year. In May last year, Masinire was granted R100 000 bail. The Hawks said the 34-year-old has been attending court, and his…

ONE cyclist who was looking forward to taking part in the Tshwane Classic bicycle race was left dejected after he flew all the way from England, only to be told at the 11th hour that the event had been postponed. The cyclist, Lenka Ramothello, yesterday said the cancellation was “a big disappointment for the guys based here and those based in other parts of the world”. “I am originally from here, but I am based in the UK. Usually when I plan my trips to see family and friends I schedule them around races. “So, part of the big reason why I came here at this point in time was the race,” he said. He spent a substantial amount of money on travelling, which he said he accepted was “money…

The choice of leadership will make or break the ANC leading up to and beyond its forthcoming national conference. The past few days have seen events that have profoundly impacted our country’s political landscape. It was unprecedented that three former presidents – Thabo Mbeki, Jacob Zuma and Kgalema Motlanthe – openly expressed their displeasure, on the same day, but at different events, about the state of the ANC, its leadership and that of our country, and the direction that our country is taking. The public comments also covered the rising unemployment numbers, energy insecurity as rolling blackouts persist, ever-increasing cost of living and the cloud over the head of President Cyril Ramaphosa after the reported theft at his Phala Phala farm. The fact that the story has ignited a national…

China showed off its first domestically produced large passenger jet after the aircraft was approved by regulators, unveiling the C919 at a major airshow yesterday. The sleek, narrow-body aircraft took to the runway at the China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition, circling through cloudy skies over the southern city of Zhuhai before touching down in front of hundreds of onlookers. Chinese authorities hope the C919 – built by the state-owned Commercial Aircraft Corp of China (COMAC) – will challenge foreign models like the Boeing 737 MAX and the Airbus A320. Beijing also hopes its first homegrown jetliner with mass commercial potential will cut the country’s reliance on foreign technology as ties with Western countries deteriorate – although most of the plane’s parts are sourced from overseas. Chinese regulators approved the…

Sweden’s new prime minister vowed yesterday on a firmer stance on fighting crime and terrorism during a visit to Türkiye where he will seek the approval of President Tayyip Erdoğan for his country’s bid to join Nato. Sweden and Finland applied to join Nato in May in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. But Nato member Türkiye raised objections, citing security concerns related to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and other groups, and over the Nordic states’ ban on arms exports. The three countries signed a memorandum in June that lifted Türkiye’s veto while requiring Sweden and Finland to address remaining concerns. “The new government will have an even firmer approach in (relation to) the Nato application from Sweden,” Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson told reporters in Ankara. “One of…

LILONGWE: Malawi has received a consignment of 2.9 million doses of Oral Cholera Vaccine (OCV) for a single dose reactive campaign to the cholera outbreak, which has killed over 200 people since the country reported the first case in March. A joint statement released by the WHO, Unicef and Malawi government says the OCV consignment arrived “at a critical time as the country continues to respond to the ongoing cholera outbreak”. The outbreak has been reported in all the country’s 28 districts but, according to the statement, the OCV doses will prioritise the country’s 14 districts with high numbers of cholera cases. |…

Brussels: The EU announced yesterday it would suspend visa-free access for citizens of Vanuatu because of the Pacific island nation’s “golden passports” scheme, which offers nationality to investors. The suspension will come into effect from February 2023, said the European Council. It broadens a partial suspension for Europe in place since March after negotiations failed to resolve the issue. Brussels is seeking to crack down on “golden passport” programmes, among EU member states and against non-EU countries whose citizens are allowed to enter the bloc for temporary stays without visas. It sees the initiatives as a risk to internal security in the EU. |…

New Zealand, cricket’s quiet achievers, and Pakistan, the game’s most unpredictable side, clash in the opening T20 World Cup semi-final today after making their way to the knockout rounds by starkly contrasting paths. The Black Caps hammered hosts and champions Australia in their tournament opener, had a match washed out and lost a high-quality contest to England before reaching a fifth successive white-ball World Cup semi-final as group winners. Pakistan’s journey started with a remarkable loss to India in front of 92 000 fans at Melbourne Cricket Ground which was followed by an equally dramatic upset at the hands of Zimbabwe and a rain-disrupted win over the Proteas. They scraped into the last four by beating Bangladesh, but only after a stunning upset of South Africa by the Dutch in…