Innholdsfortegnelse for Sunday, January 24, 2021 i Sunday Independent

STATE CAPT Zuma’s offer to Zondo The former president told the judge in Chambers he could only give his version in writing MANYANE MANYANE and AMANDA MALIBA FORMER president Jacob Zuma told Justice Raymond Zondo in Chambers before walking away that he was willing to give his version of events, but only in writing because didn’t want to be humiliated by evidence leader advocate Paul Pretorius, sources said. They told the Sunday Independent this week that Zuma told Zondo shortly before staging a walkout in November last year that he would not appear before him unless he was allowed to make written submissions answering specific questions in line with the state capture commission of inquiry’s identified areas of interest. The sources, who are familiar with what transpired between Zuma, Zondo…

MATTER OF FACT In our Sunday, 13 December 2020 edition, in the article headlined ‘Deliberations on Hlophe’s conduct, remarks’, we reported as fact in one line that Judge [Tati] Makgoka had said gross misconduct “is serious, possibly criminal”. It has since been pointed out to us that the comment we attributed to Judge Makgoka was in fact not made by him. We hereby wish to retract the statement and apologise unreservedly to Judge Makgoka for the inconvenience this error may have caused him.…

EXPERTS RIDICULE GOVERNMENT BAILING OUT STATE-OWNED ENTERPRISES BUT STRUGGLING TO FIND FUNDING FOR VACCINES Tax plans slated by economists MANYANE MANYANE manyane.manyane@inl.co.za AS THE government scuttles to find funds to cover the cost of a Covid-19 vaccine, its proposed plan of increasing taxes to foot the bill has been slated by economists. Professor Chris Malikane, director of the Macro-Financial Analysis Group at the School of Economics and Business at Wits University, said the tax increase in a recession cannot be justified in both theory and policy. “No well-trained economist would ever suggest raising taxes in a recession. It is the same as cutting spending in a recession, it is as horrible as it is incompetent. Any student of economics would be horrified by this proposal. Raising tax rates when incomes…

NOKULUNGA NKOSI STILL HOPEFUL THAT 8-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER WILL BE FOUND ‘One day Amahle will return to my arms’ LESEGO MAKGATHO lesego.makgatho@inl.co.za ALMOST two years after the disappearance of her daughter Amahle Thabethe, Nokulunga Nkosi clings to the hope that she will return to her arms. Amahle, 8, disappeared while playing outside her home in Tsakane on April 6, 2019, and was allegedly abducted by an unknown man. Searches have yielded no results. However, Nkosi said this week that 2021 seemed to have brought with it a bit of light as the police were speaking to her regularly. ‘While the police have not given me details of the investigation, as of late, they have given me feedback on the case and they have told me that they are still investigating,” she…

Found dead WHILE the cases of the missing children remain open and police continue to search, some families who have had their children go missing have not been so lucky. Their children tragically returned in body bags. Those children include: ◆Anothando Mhlobo, who went missing in August 2020 and was found dead in December 2020, in Hout Bay, Cape Town. His decomposed body was discovered by a 44-year old man in a rocky, sandy area while digging for sand in an open field, about 100m away from his home. This week, police said DNA tests confirmed it was the toddler’s body. ◆Boipelo Sesele (Mesi), 9, was found dead and stashed in the wardrobe of a neighbour. She had been missing for 12 days when the gruesome discovery was made. The…

TERTIARY EDUCATION Online learning set to continue, financial outlook for institutions gloomy EDWIN NAIDU SOUTH Africa’s Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation, Blade Nzimande, has outlined plans for the reopening of tertiary institutions amid the Covid-19 pandemic, but several key challenges remain, and university bosses are predicting a tougher year ahead, with many institutions facing a possible financial crisis. In a statement on January 18 regarding the reopening of post-school education and training (PSET) institutions, Nzimande said the Covid-19 crisis was connected to a wider set of crises: social inequality, climate change, technological disruption – and, linked to these, a crisis in the global capitalist system. Despite the pandemic, the National Students’ Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS), which provides government-funded loans to students, received more than 750 000 applications for…

ICYMI | IOL.CO.ZA  ROBBEN ISLAND CANCELS VALENTINE’S DAY WEDDINGS Books are the quietest and most constant of friends; they are the most accessible and wisest of counselors, and the most patient of teachers.CHARLES W. ELLIOTAcademic Held on February 14 annually, the event was cancelled after Minister of Home Affairs Dr Aaron Motsoaledi recently announced the temporary suspension of applications for IDs, passports and marriage services, due to some DHA staff testing positive for Covid-19. | IOL…

ICYMI | IOL.CO.ZA WHO IS MORE NEEDY? If want to understand the The earth is the mother of all people, and all people should have equal rights upon it.CHIEF JOSEPHWas a leader of the Wal-lam-wat-kain band of Nez Perce, a Native American tribe. you why taps Chatsworth ran dry and why your tap is next, you’d need to understand how the city spends its money. eThekwini will spend well over R50 billion in the current financial year, money it raises from you from various services and taxes. From this, the City allocates just under R10 billion for water. | See more on IOL…

ICYMI | IOL.CO.ZA GREENLIGHT FOR ZUMA You can no longer see or identify yourself solely as a member of a tribe, but as a citizen of a nation of one people working toward a common purpose.IDOWU KOYENIKANWealth for all Africans: How Every African Can Live the Life of Their The arms deal corruption trial involving former President Jacob Zuma and French arms company Thales is edging closer to kicking off at the Pietermaritzburg High Court. This comes after the court dismissed Thales’ attempt to challenge the racketeering charges it faces, with costs. | IOL…

LETTERS Graft unmasked, cripples democracy UNDER the fangs of a deadly plague, our nation is in a crisis of astronomical proportions and an accountable governance has ceased to exist. Corruption in our country has become an acceptable way of life and has found its way into every section of our national existence. This is because the indicators of corruption, like embezzlement, bribery, misappropriation, conversion of public funds for personal use, manipulation of procurement processes, falsification of official financial records, awarding of contracts by public office holders to cronies and personally held companies, have become the norm in virtually all public offices. The most perilous thing about rampant and endemic corruption is that it affects other dominions of various state institutions, from security to economic growth and infrastructure development. President Ramaphosa…

The People Senate delays impeachment trial to February WASHINGTON: US Senate leaders have agreed to delay the impeachment trial of former president Donald Trump to the week of February 8. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer indicated the move would give President Joe Biden more time to move forward with his policy agenda. Trump is facing an unprecedented second impeachment trial based on a charge of incitement of insurrection over the storming of the Capitol by pro-Trump rioters on January 6. “We all want to put this awful chapter in our nation’s history behind us, but healing and unity will only come if there is truth and accountability and that is what this trial will provide,” Schumer said. Nancy Pelosi, leader of the House of Representatives, had said earlier that the…

ZIMBABWE Country loses more ministers to Covid-19 HARARE: Two ministers serving in the Zimbabwean government died of Covid-19 within a matter of days, prompting the country to announce plans yesterday to tighten lockdown measures further. On Friday, the government announced that transport minister Joel Matiza had died after falling ill with Covid-19, less than two days after, the country lost Foreign minister Sibusiso Moyo to the same disease. Four government ministers have succumbed to the coronavirus in Zimbabwe so far. According to unconfirmed media reports, several other cabinet ministers are fighting for their lives in a private hospital. “We are in a dark cloud that we have to clear very soon,” deputy health minister John Mangwiro said. Mangwiro revealed plans to intensify the lockdown, which has been in place since…

TREND Increase in sales of non-alcoholic drinks noted NATHAN ADAMS THE trend of “mindful” drinking and selection of non-alcoholic beverages and cocktails has been on the increase in SA. With the ban on alcohol firmly in place, there’s been a dramatic increase in sales and interest in these drinks. From zero alcohol beers and ciders to spirits that look and taste like the alcohol versions, there is something for everyone who wants a drink without the buzz. In comparison to American and European drinkers, South Africans have been slow in taking up what has been called the “mindful drinking trend” over the past few years. A May 2019, European white paper showed that 61% of UK consumers wanted better choice when it came to non-alcoholic drinks and that there was…

ICYMI | IOL.CO.ZA THE BACHELORETTE SA Entertainment and art have power. Our culture is molded more so by entertainment than any other influenceMICHAEL LANDON, JR.American Actor SEASON one and two of “The Bachelor SA” had viewers on the edge of their seats so naturally when M-Net announced that the first ever “Bachelorette” was in production we already marked our calendars. Recently M-Net also dropped the names of the first five contestants on the first Bachelorette SA that will be vying for Qiniso come February. | See IOL for more…

NATURE Sir David on spiders: spinning charm FATIMA KHAN JURGEN OTTO WHEN the British royal tots interviewed Sir David Attenborough in October last year, the conversation between Princess Charlotte and the knighted naturalist went something like this: Charlotte: “Hello David Attenborough, I like spiders. Do you like spiders too?” Attenborough: “I love spiders and I’m so glad you like them, I think they’re wonderful things. Why is it that people are so frightened of them? “I think it’s actually because they’ve got eight legs which is much more than us and if you’ve got eight legs you can move in any direction, so you can never be quite sure which way that spider’s going to go. He could go this way … or that way. “So people don’t like them…

Moderate economic recovery rests heavily on vaccine SIPHELELE DLUDLA siphelele.dludla@inl.co.za SOUTH Africa’s economy is expected to bounce back to slight recovery in 2021 due to robust terms of trade and stronger exports. However, this rebound is heavily reliant on a successful Covid-19 vaccine programme and the relaxation of lockdown restrictions as economic indicators continue pointing to a sharp downturn in 2020. South Africa will next month begin rolling out the Covid-19 vaccine to 1.5 million mainly healthcare members and other workers in critical government sectors. This is expected to ease the pressure on the public healthcare system, boost confidence and open up more economic sectors as the rise in Covid-19 cases saw alcohol sales being banned. SA Reserve Bank Governor Lesetja Kganyago this week said that the risks to the…

‘Mzali Wami’ gets us asking about our partners BUHLE MBONAMBI buhle.mbonambi@inl.co.za TELEVISION DO we ever truly know who our partner is until it’s too late? This thought came to me recently as I watched the first two episodes of 1Magic and Mzansi Magic’s newest drama series, Mzali Wami. It left me asking one question – do we ever truly know what kind of person our partner is and the lengths they would go to hide the truth from you? And how when you’re closer to finding out the truth, you risk losing someone you believed is the love of your life? But you also stand to lose everything. The drama is created by Dineo Ranaka and seasoned TV writer Sipho Tshapu and is already an edge-of-your-seat television appointment. It stars…

Faf wary of Proteas getting into a spin STUART HESS STUART.HESS@INL.CO.ZA SHAUN ROY BackpagePix WITH mystery surrounding exactly what kind of conditions they’ll face in the first Test against Pakistan starting on Tuesday, the Proteas are trying to cover all their bases at training. “We’ve kind of looked at anything and everything,” Faf du Plessis said yesterday. “It’s a case of over preparing on; spin conditions, reverse swing balls, and also an element of what it looked like 13 years ago, when there were flat wickets. We’ve tried to do as best as we can.” There is very little knowledge about what to expect from the pitch at the National Stadium in Karachi where the first Test starts on Tuesday. Thirteen years ago, Mark Boucher, now South Africa’s head coach, played…

› CRICKET KAPP STARS IN PROTEAS VICTORY STUART HESS STUART.HESS@INL.CO.ZA SOUTH AFRICA 252/7 (M Kapp 68*) PAKISTAN 239/8 (Aliya Riaz 81, Nida Dar 51. A Khaka 4/40, M Kapp 3/44) South Africa won by 13 runs MARIZANNE Kapp produced one of the best all-rounder performances of her career, to help propel the Proteas to a series win at Kingsmead, on a day in which they highlighted the danger South African women endure at the hands of men. Clad in black, the South African team put gender-based violence firmly in the spotlight, their message pointing out what terror women in this country face from men. Kapp’s brilliance was needed by the hosts as the top order failed to build on good starts, while in the field, particularly towards the end of…

PSL Chiefs’ train stuck in station by Stellies ZAAHIER ADAMS, MIHLALI BALEKA AND ESHLIN VEDAN STELLENBOSCH FC halted the Kaizer Chiefs’ train at the Danie Craven Stadium by holding the Amakhosi to a goalless draw. Chiefs arrived in Cape Town on a three-game winning streak but could not break down Stellenbosch yesterday. Stellies coach Steve Barker admitted before the match that his men needed to be wary of the threat Chiefs posed in attack and his men were certainly prepared for the danger in the first half. With captain Robyn Johannes back in defence marshalling the troops, the Stellenbosch back four were compact and resolute and restricted Chiefs to mainly long range attempts on goal. Two of these within the first 20 minutes fell to Philani Zulu and the danger…

FAILURE TO PROVIDE HOUSING Ekurhuleni to pay R15m damages LOYISO SIDIMBA loyiso.sidimba@inl.co.za THE Ekurhuleni Metropolitan municipality has failed to build houses for 133 residents that it had promised in 1994 and is now blaming Covid-19 for the delay. The delay is now going to force the country’s fourth biggest metro, to pay constitutional damages amounting to R15 million to the residents of Winnie Mandela Informal Settlement in Tembisa, who have been without electricity, water and adequate sanitation since 1994. Ekurhuleni has missed several deadlines to build the houses, which were initially imposed by North Gauteng High Court Judge Mmonoa Teffo in December 2017. Judge Teffo ordered the municipality to provide each resident with a house before the end of 2018, register them as titleholders a year later, file progress reports…

VACCINE: Call for vets to be in national roll-out SAM SPILLER sam.spiller@inl.co.za SOUTH Africa’s vets want to be included in the government’s national vaccine roll-out plan, citing professional safety concerns. The South African Veterinarian Association, together with the Black Veterinary Forum, issued a request to the departments of Health, and of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development, for animal health and welfare workers to be added to the phased roll-out of the Covid-19 vaccine, citing professional safety concerns. Dr Leon de Bruyn, chief executive of the association, said the sector had not been considered. “It’s been problematic,” he said. “We’ve had two colleagues pass on a week ago. We had a husband and wife veterinary team pass away late last year. Quite a few of our clinic and health workers…

LABOUR Workers demand action over ‘factory of horrors’ NOKWANDA NCWANE AN Eastern Cape factory with an alleged poor safety record has been described by workers as a place of horrors. According to the staff at Truda Foods in Queenstown, worker Eugene Jali's hand was allegedly severed by a maize mixer while on duty on January 13 last year. He joins a list of at least 31 workers who were allegedly injured on duty in 2020 alone, the workers said. Xolile Mashukuca, general secretary of the SA Security and Allied Workers Union (Saswu) said the increasing numbers of injuries on duty was “unacceptable”. “Jali joins many workers who were injured on duty in that factory of hell without consequences, where profits are prioritised over safety because there is a gross ignoring…

MISSING Orange Farm family wants closure LESEGO MAKGATHO SUPPLIED AN Orange Farm family is in desperate need of answers following the disappearance of 28-year-old Mpho “Franky” Manqoba-Mntambo, who went missing in October. Sibongile Mntambo, Mpho’s sister, got news he had died from two men who are believed to be his friends, however, when the family asked to be shown where the body was or where it was last seen, details proved to be sketchy. The family was told he was last seen at Jeppe Hostel, in downtown Joburg. Mntambo said all the family now needs is closure. “I know my brother hung around friends a lot and spent a lot of time with them. He is indeed a nyaope boy which brings all the more worry to us. If indeed…

ICYMI | IOL.CO.ZA 2021 MATRICS NOT HAPPY WITH REOPENING DELAY Gender equality is more than a goal in itself. It is a precondition for meeting the challenge of reducing poverty, promoting sustainable development and building good governance.KOFI ANNANGhanaian diplomat A two week delay in the reopening schools is met with anxious grade 11 and 12 pupils who believe it would make an already compact academic year more difficult. The delay comes after the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic hit SA.…

HIGHLY CHARGED FEROCIOUS AND POLEMIC STAND Lies, power and the rainbow nation DAVID LETSOALO KIM Heller’s timely offering, No White Lies: Black Politics and White Power in South Africa, is a refreshingly unique book that confronts an age-old issue that is essentially the fulcrum of social injustice the world over, white supremacy. This monstrous issue is tackled through an unflinching and incisive commentary on the political dynamics in the post-1994 South Africa which has effectively failed to usher a post-apartheid society. This failure amounts to the indictment of the notion of the so-called rainbow nation, which is a mythical and nonsensical conception that has sadly been celebrated for most of the almost-30-years of the post-1994 political dispensation in the country. The massively sponsored narrative of the rainbow nation as utopian initially…

POLITICS Is it prudent for Ace to step aside? MOLIFI TSHABALALA MOTSHWARI MOFOKENG African News Agency (ANA) TOUCHING on progress made to forge party unity in his last 2020 political overview, ANC president Cyril Ramaphosa said the governing party “increasingly appears like an organisation at war with itself”. His observation affirms the ANC cannot self-correct in that it seems not to understand the nature of its factionalism. Approaching its watershed 52nd national conference in 2007, the ANC had already split into two factions, one led by Thabo Mbeki and the other one by Jacob Zuma. Their leaders were the ANC president and the ANC deputy president respectively. Made up of two kinds of members, namely – to borrow from American author and public speaker Rick Joyner – “those who…

EDITORIAL It’s time for honest reform THE Section 59 investigation panel’s interim report that revealed racial discrimination against black, Indian and coloured medical practitioners by major medical aid schemes should not go unnoticed by the public and the government. The chairperson of the panel that investigated allegations of racism, advocate Tembeka Ngcukaitobi, is making the right call in saying that the Council for Medical Schemes (CMS) and Health Professions Council of SA (HPCSA) have to be strengthened in order to discharge their oversight duty optimally. The report fingered Medscheme, Discovery and the Government Employees Medical Scheme (GEMS) in racial discrimination. The final report is still coming, but this is an opportune moment for the medical aid schemes to begin the process of honest reform. Many medical practitioners have opted to…

RUSSIA Police detain 1 614 people at pro-Navalny, anti-graft rallies RUSSIAN police detained at least 1614 people at rallies held yesterday across the country in support of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, the OVD-Info protest monitor said. A day of protests showing support for imprisoned dissident Navalny and anger at state oppression began with the first arrests in the country’s far east. In the city of Khabarovsk, which is seven hours ahead of the capital Moscow in time difference, activists shared video footage of police officers beating demonstrators and bundling them into a van. The protests in Khabarovsk also focused on the arrest of the city’s popular former governor, Sergei Furgal. Hundreds of protesters also took to the streets in Vladivostok and Irkutsk, braving freezing-cold temperatures. Navalny’s supporters have announced protests…

Larry King Larry King dies WASHINGTON: Larry King, who quizzed thousands of world leaders, politicians and entertainers for CNN and other news outlets in a career spanning more than six decades, has died at age 87, CNN reported yesterday, citing a source close to the family. King had been hospitalised in Los Angeles with a Covid-19 infection, according to several media reports. He had endured health problems for many years, including a near-fatal stroke in 2019 and diabetes. Millions watched King interview world leaders, entertainers and other celebrities on CNN’s Larry King Live, which ran from1985 to 2010. Reuters…

CELEBRITY Lopez didn’t ‘love herself’ in her 30s THE 51-year-old singer and actress Jennifer Lopez revealed she attended therapy throughout her 30s, and although she believed at the time she had plenty of self-love, she now understands that her “personal relationships” were not ideal. Speaking to purpose coach Jay Shetty for #CoachConversations, Jennifer said: “I remember when I was going through therapy at the beginning, you know, kind of in my late 30s and there was a lot of talk about loving yourself and I was like, ‘I love myself’. “But obviously I was doing all these things in like my personal relationships that didn’t seem like I was loving myself, but I didn’t even understand the concept of it. It took time and it’s a journey and it's still…

THE VIRTUAL SAMW EVENT FROM JANUARY 26-28 WILL FEATURE CUTTING-EDGE TECHNOLOGY INNOVATIONS It’s music week for South Africa AMANDA MALIBA THE South African Music Week (SAMW), a cross-border collaborative, hits the shores of Mzansi for the first time this week, bringing together like-minded music enthusiasts. The event, to take place in January 26-28, 2021, will be divided into five categories - conference, festival showcase, virtual expo, B2B and an inaugural awards honouring trailblazers, all happening under the theme - Music in the 4IR. The event CEO Micheal Moeti, says that the SAMW emerged from the internationally acclaimed Canadian Music Week (CMW), which brings both countries to further explore ways in which to maximise how music, technology and business are converging, as well as forge a new path for success for…

Covid-19, spending cuts hit sales DINEO FAKU dineo.faku@inl.co.za SOUTH African retailers are feeling the pinch due to Covid-19 restrictions after reporting subdued sales and lowered foot traffic at malls during the festive season . Massmart, and Truworths recorded the steepest declines in sales during December, while Mr Price managed to grow market share and The Foschini Group (TFG) reported a turnover surge. Massmart, owners of Makro and Builders Warehouse, recorded a 4 percent sales decline for the fourth quarter to R25.6 billion. The group said sales and foot traffic had remained muted in December, albeit with stronger sales performance in home improvement and DIY categories. Massmart said its total sales fell 7.7 percent to R86.5bn, compared to the previous year. The Covid-19 pandemic restrictions have added further economic uncertainty for…

BIZ 101 Recession: a good time to start new business ventures SOUTH Africa is in the midst of the second wave of Covid-19, having yet to recover economically from the first. Many would consider starting a new business venture foolish. But if history is anything to go by, recessions have served as a launch pad for some of the world’s most successful businesses. General Electric was launched by Thomas Edison right as America was heading into the Panic of 1893 and Disney, which was incorporated by Walt and Roy Disney, rose at the onset of the Great Depression in 1929. Here are five reasons why a recession may be the right time to start the small business of your dreams: 1 Competition When the economy is down, people are generally…

STARS TANYA OBREZA Aries (March 21 - April 20) It’s a week to find peace and quiet, Aries. Trust your instincts and understand that you need to give your mind, body and spirit time to rest and recover. No matter how much you’re being pushed to take action, stop and be still. Calm your mind – stop it from racing. Failure to do so may result in illness not far down the line. Taurus (April 21 - May 20) If there’s one thing you’ve learnt recently, it’s that you can survive – despite all the cliff-edge challenges you’ve had to endure. You’re a survivor. Even when times get tough, earthy Taureans maintain their practicality and persistence – tremendous assets in this busy week when instinct and intellect make a powerful…

MEDICAL AIDS ‘I had to close down my practice’ STAFF REPORTERS BLACK medical practitioners have welcomed a high-level report that acknowledges their unfair treatment by top medical aids and have called for the system – which has made treating patients difficult and forced practices to shut – to be urgently rectified. Some practitioners – which include doctors, psychologists and optometrists – have shared the harrowing treatment from the medical aid schemes which blocked payment claims for the services rendered to their patients. Discovery, Medscheme and the Government Employees Medical Scheme (Gems) were named in the report. The Council for Medical Schemes’ Section 59 Investigation was led by advocate Tembeka Ngcukaitobi who released his report this week. The investigation looked into allegations of racial profiling and medical unfairness against black medical…

RACISM ‘Gems has nothing to hide’ more likely to be identified as FWA cases compared to their non-black counterparts. The panel found that some of the current procedures followed by schemes to enforce their rights in terms of the law were unfair. “These findings are both serious and far-reaching... The evidence shows the unfair discrimination is in the outcomes (of claims),” the report said. The investigation followed allegations by members of the National Health Care Professionals Association that they were being unfairly treated and their claims were withheld by medical schemes because of the colour of their skin and their ethnicity. “The complaints of racial discrimination must be taken seriously by the schemes and administrators. In order to understand how a normative system creates unfair consequences, it is necessary to…

COVID-19 Parties, civil society warn on possible ‘vaccine tax’ SAMKELO MTSHALI POLITICAL parties and civil society organisations have warned that public borrowing and increasing taxes to fund South Africa’s Covid-19 vaccination drive could pile additional pressure on taxpayers. This comes as ANC President Cyril Ramaphosa told a meeting of the party’s national executive committee (NEC) this weekend that the government may possibly increase public borrowing to fund South Africa’s vaccination drive. Ramaphosa told the NEC that they would look at the question of raising debt to fund the vaccine. Health Minister Zweli Mkhize has said they were expecting the first shipment of the vaccine before the end of the month. Earlier in the week, National Treasury said that a tax hike was also a consideration as another means to fund…

PARLIAMENT Political funding act gets approval from all parties SAMKELO MTSHALI PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa’s signing of the Political Party Funding Act into operation has been backed by parties with the act now expected to come into effect on April 1. Ramaphosa signed a Proclamation on the Commencement of the Political Party Funding Act, 2018 (Act no 6 of 2018), which regulates public and private funding of political parties. The act establishes funds to provide political parties represented in Parliament and legislatures with funding to undertake their work. It also requires that donations be disclosed by parties and donors to the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC). “The act prohibits donations to parties by foreign governments or agencies, foreign persons or entities, organs of state or state-owned enterprises. “Parties may however…

‘LESSONS LEARNT HAVE RAMIFICATIONS FOR TRUTH AND FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION’ Ombud says her work at UCT is far from over THE recently departed guardian of the moral conscience of UCT, fearless ombudsman Zetu Makamandela-Mguqulwa, has cleared out her office with a whimper than the acrimony which marked the past two years of her tenure. She says, however, the lessons she learnt have ramifications for truth and freedom of expression on campuses way beyond UCT, to ensure that people have a solutions-driven outlet for their challenges without fear of repercussions – as at UCT. Her decade at UCT ended on December 31 as the university conveniently ran down the clock on her term without addressing the bullying complaints against the vice-chancellor Professor Mamokgethi Phakeng in her 2019 Ombud report. The…

NATION The deep roots of South Africans’ relationship with Kruger National Park DON MAKATILE don.makatile@inl.co.za IT is thanks to the pursuit of scholarship that some important subjects like the relationship black people have with the Kruger National Park (KNP) are fleshed out from being just esoteric narratives into mainstream topics of discussion. Safari Nation, A Social History of the Kruger National Park, that grew from a dissertation into a book, is one such subject, and the reader will find reason to be chuffed. “The biggest natural zoo in the world” began its life as the natural habitat and home for both man and beast. Up until the early 2000s it was still possible to find people sharing tales of their forced removal from the park, people like Samuel Nkayinkayi Mavundla.…

LAND Sheila fuels dreams and aspirations MADALA THEPA Kabo Modubu KABO MODUBU PEOPLE in the small village of Sheila in North West will not easily give up on their farm. At least until the crisis is sorted. The farm fuels dreams and aspirations. Even without a strong, coherent direction and some parts of the farm in ruins – vandalised and looted – De Paarl Communal Property Association (CPA) is a gift few people will ever receive. Running on a precarious shoe-string budget, the farm has not seen anything grounded in revenue and not even tasted the arbitrary good fortunes of a farming season. This is according to the farm’s beneficiaries. What is worse, the ratio of people to dividends is too big with 800 “beneficiary expectants”. But the signs of…

60TH ANNIVERSARY OF DEATH BY FIRING SQUADS The courageous spirit of Patrice Lumumba lives on DR LEHLOHONOLO KENNEDY MAHLATSI THIS year marks the 60th anniversary since the brutal murder of Patrice Emery Lumumba. Born on July 2, 1925, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, into the Batetela peasant family in a small village, he did not dream only of an independent Congo and an independent Africa, but also of a political reality where the Congo, and African states in general, are equal to their counterparts in world affairs and not pawns in a geopolitical chess game between powerful nation-states. In October 1958, Lumumba founded the Congolese National Movement (CNM). The CNM opposed regional egocentrism and tribal demarcation, and demanded unconditional independence and basic democratic freedoms for the Congolese people. They appealed to…

ITALY TikTok under fire after girl’s death linked to ‘challenge’ ITALY’S data protection watchdog ordered TikTok to step up enforcement of its age restrictions on Friday after a young girl reportedly died from taking part in a social media challenge. The Italian Data Protection Authority, a parliamentary body, demanded that TikTok immediately suspend accounts for which it could not verify the age of the user. Media reported that a young girl called Antonella strangled herself with a belt at home in Palermo, Sicily, and was rushed to hospital on Wednesday evening by her family after she was discovered by her sister. Doctors were unable to save her and declared her brain dead, a spokeswoman for Di Cristina hospital said. The Italian judiciary and youth protection officials are investigating the circumstances…

GHANA ‘Baby-harvesting’ syndicate arrested CAPE TOWN: Members of an alleged “baby-harvesting” and child-trafficking syndicate have been arrested in Ghana. According to media reports, personnel of Ghana’s Economic and Organised Crime Office and the Medical and Dental Council issued a statement saying that the anti-crime operation was carried out as part of joint investigations launched late last year. According to the Xinhua report, two doctors, four nurses, a social welfare worker, and two other individuals were named as the brains behind the syndicates. BBC news reported that the arrests followed a sting operation where two babies were sold to investigators for about $5 000 (about R75 000) and $4800 respectively. They were allegedly operating from health facilities in the Ghanaian capital Accra, and the city of Tema, the BBC reported. The…

DRAG From Siv Ngesi to Sivanna SAM SPILLER SIV Ngesi is taking a swing at drag and with the debut of his new persona, Sivanna. The 35-year-old actor and comedian took to Instagram this week to reveal the transformation process of him becoming the all-new character. “I want her to be taken seriously,” he explained. “I want her to be a person who is multi-layered, opinionated, but I don’t want her to be a comedy piece. That’s too easy. You see a man in a dress and you want to laugh instinctively. I want her to be involved in the conversations.” Ngesi said the idea for Sivanna had been around for some time, but he was only able to pursue her now due to a simple reason. “For the last…

REAL NUMBERS A tribute to a thorough but unassuming fellow SOUTH Africa is as old as Rwanda. When we celebrated the arrival of democracy, Rwanda was immersed in an intense genocide madness. At that point, the South African flag was raised and many who had gone into exile streamed back home, while in Rwanda many were fleeing from the freshness of the genocide. A young family, like many who married across the ethnic lines, found itself in this theatre of ethnic trauma. They ended up in Botswana. Jean-Marie Hakizimana would move from Botswana to South Africa in 1997 to join Statistics South Africa (Stats SA). Hakizimana’s contribution in the data processing of Census ’96 was memorable. His main quality was his broad mind that cut across any subject. Hakizimana was…

INJURY TIME STUART HESS STUART HESS stuart.hess@inl.co.za CRICKETERS KIDS … PART 1 YOUR dad’s the Director of Cricket for CSA. He’s got a lot on his plate in that job and was trying to explain it to all interested. But there were more important matters to deal with. His little boy, Sebastian, was urgently in need of assistance, and cricket be damned. “Doesn’t matter where in the house you try and hide, they’ll find you,” Smith chirped. Talk of schedules, bio-bubbles, squads and form could wait. “I’ve got to tie his shoelaces.” Sweet. CRICKETERS KIDS … PART 2 CHETESHWAR Pujara copped 11 blows to various parts of his body on the last day of the fourth Test between India and Australia in Brisbane. Not only was it painful to watch,…

TV GUIDE TODAY Cricket: ANZ Bank Women’s Super Smash: Wellington Blaze v Otago Sparks, 12.05am, CRI; Wellington Firebirds v Otago Volts, 3.35am, CRI, VR2; Test Series: Sri Lanka v England, Second Test, Day 3, 6.15am, VR1; Momentum One Day Cup: Warriors v Imperial Lions, 9.45am, CRI, GSD (3.30pm); Big Bash Twenty20: Sydney Thunder v Adelaide Strikers, 7am, VR2; Sydney Sixers v Hobart Hurricanes, 10.10am, VR2 Cycling: UCI Cyclo-Cross World Cup: Women Elite, Belgium, 2.30pm, VR1; Men Elite, Belgium, 3.55pm, VR1 Golf: PGA Tour Champions: Mitsubishi Electric Championship, Hualalai, Day 3, 2am, GOL, GSD; European Tour: Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship presented by EGA, Day 4, 9am, GSD, GOL; LPGA Tour: Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions, Day 4, 9pm, VR1, GOL (9.30pm); PGA Tour: The American Express, Day 4, 10pm, GOL, GSD…

Sharks ruin Province’s Newlands farewell show WYNONA LOUW A proper send-off to Newlands Stadium was the goal. Disappointment was the result. This game was such a big one for a number of reasons. It was a Currie Cup semi-final, it was the last professional game played at Newlands, and the fact that it was the first time these two sides met since their Super Rugby clash in March last year (their previous games this season were cancelled due to Covid-19) just added to the pre-match spice. But there was nothing spicy about this game, and while the Sharks can be pleased with the result and their performance overall, Province were poor. In a match one would have expected them to come out firing with passion and desire to make the…