Innholdsfortegnelse for 2021-06-27 i Sunday Independent

Wesley Diphoko wesley.diphoko@inl.co.za WHEN President Cyril Ramaphosa was called upon to speak at the Port of Cape Town, for a moment he froze and revealed how important his iPad was in his life. It was as if the president could not speak without the notes on the First iPad. What was it about the iPad that kept the president from delivering his speech, even though he knew his core message for the day? He was not concerned about the iPad itself but the data and information on the iPad. He knew that some State information, no matter how small (assuming he does not store everything in the Apple device), would be compromised. For many, the moment became the joke of the day, if not the week. However, it should be…

Camille Malplat At only 29, Nigerian pop-artist Osinachi has sold paintings on Microsoft Word for several thousand euros, or the equivalent amount in “ether”, a cryptocurrency often used to buy digital art. One of his works, Becoming Sochukwuma, shows a black dancer wrapped in a tutu made of African fabric, dreadlocks tied in a bun, swirling on a computer screen. But what makes the painting truly unique is its endorsement with an NFT (Non-Fungible Token) – a set of data stored in a blockchain that is used as a certificate of ownership. The digital painting was sold in April for $80 000 (R1.1m) worth of virtual money on the crypto-art market, a growing business in Africa’s most populous country. Worldwide, NFTs, which serve as a unique identifier, has reassured…

Siphelele Dludla siphelele.dludla@inl.co.za CONSUMERS should expect to pay even more for vegetable cooking oil as prices could remain elevated in the short term before moderating in the latter part of the year. The price of cooking oil in South Africa has risen by more than 70 percent due to poor harvests of oil-producing crops such as sunflower, palm, soya and canola last year. Last week, FNB senior agricultural economist Paul Makube said crop production of sunflowers in South Africa fell 12 percent, creating a shortage as demand had not declined. Makube said South Africa did not produce enough vegetable oil to meet local demand, meaning the rest had to be sourced from Europe. He said South Africa produced about 800 000 tonnes of sunflower seeds per annum at its highest…

Nosipho Nyide Vlogging had a slow start on the video sharing platform YouTube, but nowadays the industry has become worth millions, and almost all creators on the platform post vlogs. Vlogging refers to the act of putting together a video blog or vlog for short. The beauty of vlogging is that anyone can do it, whether you are someone who simply wants to share your life with others or a business owner wanting to engage with your audience on a more personal level. Because creating a YouTube account is free, vlogging is an affordable way to market yourself or your business especially if you already have a camera. Before you jump into it here are some tips from Calvin Fisher, who owns Pandabomb, a digital production house that specialises in…

Vinayak Chakravorty LUCA talks of inclusion, and the importance of accepting those that are perceived as different by society. Like all Pixar productions, the film serves its message in a good-looking package that brims with feel-good verve, and animation that is as striking as you'd expect from the banner. The core adventure aims to regale children, and is served with suitably cute relish. The action is sanitised and the thrills, it is ensured, are never dark. What Luca could have done with is more of the hallmark quirk that usually makes Pixar films irresistible. Apart from a central plot twist pertaining to the film's two lead characters, the film remains predictable as the story unfolds. If you've loved Coco, Inside Out or Up, you might find that bit sorely…

Manyane Manyane manyane.manyane@inl.co.za Residents of Helen Joseph Women’s Hostel in Alexandra, north of Joburg, are threatening to boycott the upcoming local elections and bar political parties from canvassing their votes because of poor service delivery. They say they have been engaging the provincial government and City of Joburg about the dilapidated state of the hostel but their pleas have fallen on deaf ears. The Sunday Independent team visited the hostel this week and found dysfunctional sewerage systems, which led to sewage flowing into the overcrowded rooms, kitchens and dark hallways. Water supply was not good either as water is delivered by tankers. Hostel resident and member of the committee, Lebogang Sekgole, said they were fed up with the situation. “And it’s not like there is a shortage of water. We…

Today marks 36 years since the murder by the apartheid state of anti-apartheid activists Matthew Goniwe, Sparrow Mkonto, Fort Calata and Sicelo Mhlauli, known as the Cradock Four, on June 27, 1985. Goniwe and Calata were perceived by the apartheid state as threats and described as being “in the forefront of a revolutionary attack against the state”. The four activists were coming from the meeting of the United Democratic Front (UDF) in Port Elizabeth, when they were intercepted at a police roadblock. They were abducted, tortured and their bodies later burnt. While the bodies of Mhlauli and Mkonto were found soon afterwards near Port Elizabeth, those of Goniwe and Calata were found only days later in bushland near Bluewater Bay. There had long been rumours that Goniwe and Calata in…

The nature of black politics or socio-political dynamics in this country has now become reduced to discrete pieces characterised by rhetoric propelled by celebrations and commemorations of epochal days and events of our painful freedom struggle. Central to this scenario is the contestation over these events by black political groupings in this unprincipled milieu of electoral politics. The struggle in this neo-colonial and neo-apartheid post-1994 society has therefore been truncated into celebrations of, for instance, Human Rights Month, Africa Month, Youth Month and commemoration of the demise of our heroes such as Charlotte Maxeke, Chris Hani, Solomon Mahlangu, Steve Biko, Kenneth Kaunda, Patrice Lumumba, Mama Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, Thomas Sankara and so forth. The result is that we have a plethora of activities which mark and symbolise these epochal days and…

Zambia’s United Party for National Development Alliance has resumed its campaign activities for the August 12 general election. Last week the party announced that it was suspending its campaigning in honour of the revered African leader Kenneth Kaunda. The founding father of Zambian liberation died aged 97 on June 17. Hakainde Hichilema is the National Development Alliance’s candidate challenging Edgar Lungu of the governing Patriotic Front for the presidency. |…

BELGIUM’S Romelu Lukaku believes he should be classified now as a world-class striker and says everything fell into place for him in the season just finished, as he looks ahead to meeting Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal in the European Championship today. The comparison with the two has dominated the build-up to the last 16 clash between holders Portugal and top-ranked Belgium in Seville, in what could be the clash of the round. Ronaldo is one goal away from setting a new record for most national team goals, while Lukaku is Belgium’s top scorer with 63 in 96 international appearances. “At his age, he continues to shine and I’m going to try and get as close to his achievements as possible,” Lukaku said of his Portuguese rival, who he added was a…

THE latest injury to Gio Aplon has just laid bare the desperate situation the Bulls find themselves in ahead of their next Currie Cup match against the Cheetahs on Wednesday. Apart from Springboks Morné Steyn, Marco van Staden, Trevor Nyakane and the injured Duane Vermeulen, they are also missing Stedman Gans and Kurt-Lee Arendse, who are at the Springboks. Then there are also numerous youngsters with the Junior Springboks, including front-rower Jan-Hendrik Wessels. But there are a whole host of others who are injured and are trying to get back, while new signings Johan Goosen and Jacques du Plessis will be eligible to play from July 1. Coach Jake White mentioned ahead of the 32-27 victory over the Pumas on Friday night that he has signed “some…

Debashine Thangevelo Tonight, M-Net’s original African true-crime series, Strangers You Know, premieres on the channel. Violent crime in SA is a daily occurrence. Sometimes it sparks outrage, at other times it leaves the public in their default state of numbness. But there are times when heinous crimes need to be revisited. As painful as it may be for loved ones, there is a sense of comfort to know that justice has been served. Episode one looks at the disturbing case of Anisha and Joey van Niekerk, a happy-go-lucky couple from Mooinooi in the North West. They were killed on December 10, 2017. The mastermind behind the killing was Koos Strydom, who operated a panel beating business on the couple’s property. His motive was greed. He wanted to buy the couple’s…

Wesley Diphoko ON JULY 1, South Africans will be expected to adhere to the watered-down version of the Protection of Personal Information Act (Popia). The Information Regulator has extended the commencement date of the provision that requires organisations to obtain prior authorisation if they process certain categories of personal information. The commencement date of that provision is now February 1 next year. The section that has been extended is section 58(2), in relation to the section 57, which is Application for Prior Authorisation that now has a deadline of February 1 next year. This means that an organisation that is required to obtain prior authorisation from the Information Regulator does not need to suspend its processing of personal information during such time that the Information Regulator is processing its…

Manyane Manyane manyane.manyane@inl.co.za RESIDENTS of Stjwetla informal settlement, near Jukskei river in Alexandra, face health hazards and violation of human rights as they are forced to live with mountains of trash. The residents also get water from the communal taps, while they are forced to share less than 20 chemical toilets that were placed near the main road. The informal settlement is one of the poorest and under-served areas in the city. When the Covid-19 pandemic began last year, it didn’t take long for health experts to point out that informal settlements such as Stjwetla were vulnerable. Resident Solly Madau said: “Life in this area is a mess. There’s a shortage of toilets and we have to wake up in the middle of the night and walk distances to relieve…

Lesego Makgatho lesego.makgatho@inl.co.za THREE Wits University students have died from suicide in the past three weeks. A statement released by the Wits University’s Student Representative Council highlighted the issue of mental health and its impact on the student body. The SRC attributed the suicides to the pressure placed on students by the university. Wits SRC president Mpendulo Mfeka said the misconception was that these students took their own lives because of academic pressure. “This is not the case with this particular three as they were doing quite well academically. The LLB final year student had marks way above 70%, the BA dramatic arts student was in the final year, and the third student was doing a Master’s in pharmacy. They were doing well and they were well funded,” Mfeka…

A few weeks ago, South Africa’s social media and mainstream media platforms constructed a social outrage over remarks by Dr Lwazi Lushaba, a decolonial lecturer at the University of Cape Town. Whilst the outrage was defined by the typical factional and racist defined narratives, its silver lining is the fact that it brought to public discourse the political studies curricula and knowledge intercourse that is regrettably hidden behind high and inaccessible University walls. At the centre of this discourse must be the now rising and sound concepts of coloniality and decoloniality, which must shape and guide virtually all aspects of knowledge systems across faculties all over the world. While coloniality and decoloniality sound and appear like colonisation and decolonisation, they are not the same. Colonisation happened through violent take-over of…

Amanda Maliba amanda.maliba@inl.co.ca MEET 28-year-old Amahle Ntshinga, the proud owner and founder of a newly established e-commerce site LUNTU.co that prides itself on bringing together a range of products and brands that align with consumers’ values beyond just being “black-owned”. Ntshinga said she was inspired to establish this as a way of filling a gap she identified in the market while looking for an online marketplace that spoke to all her needs and values. And as an individual with values that run deep, ranging from being environmentally ethical and socially responsible, Ntshinga wanted more out of her shopping experience and thus LUNTU was established to offer a broader platform where a variety of products and brands are brought to shoppers’ fingertips. “This platform was born out of two main needs.…

Tshepiso Tshabalala THE 2021 local government elections are fast approaching and political campaigns to garner votes are in full swing. However, some eligible voters from poor communities such as Zandspruit, north of Joburg, are uncertain whether they will cast their ballots come October 27. “I will only vote if I’m free on the day. At this point, voting is not a priority for me. What is the use of voting for people who are only enriching themselves and not the community? “We vote for someone and put them in a leadership position but soon after that, they forget about us,” said Thapelo Bapela. Zandspruit is one of the townships with many informal settlements in the country, marred by poor service delivery. Walking into Zandspruit, one is met with streams…

JULIUS Malema must have a secret curry fetish. The leader of the EFF is always mouthing off angrily on South Africans of Indian origin in a distasteful manner. While it unfairly raises alarm with some fearing that he might morph into the despised Ugandan dictator Idi Amin, Malema has more charm and intellect than the former cook who is said to have murdered between 300 000 to 500 000 people before dying in exile in Saudi Arabia in 2003. But Malema needs to curb his inner “extra-hot” spice with a good dose of facts on who controls the economy, plus, an understanding of the history of those who contributed to the struggle. After all, with respect, he was in diapers when the struggle was being intensified in South Africa and…

Billionaire Richard Branson’s spaceship company Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc said on Friday it has received approval from the US aviation safety regulator to fly people to space, following a successful test flight last month. Virgin Galactic completed its first manned space flight from its new home port in New Mexico in May, as its SpaceShipTwo craft, which can hold six passengers, glided to a landing on a runway safely with its two pilots. |…

DAMN the South African online haters of Duhan van der Merwe! Show the British & Irish Lions big winner some love because while he plays for Scotland and yesterday made his Lions debut against Japan at Murrayfield, those bones, blood and flesh of his are all South African. Van der Merwe’s story is one that should be celebrated as you should Neil Wagner and Devon Conway’s brilliant career exploits in helping New Zealand to win cricket’s first ever World Test Championship trophy. Wagner left Pretoria for a new challenge in his early 20s and has taken over 200 wickets for his adopted country. Conway, who left Johannesburg as a 26-year-old, has been the talk of New Zealand cricket from the moment he arrived on the club cricket scene…

Here are five ways to save money for your next South African trip: Sign up for newsletters Before you delete that newsletter that popped into your mailbox, you may want to check to see if there are any travel deals that you may score. Many businesses are using newsletters to announce new deals and discounts. Flight aggregator websites Shop around. That is where flight aggregator websites come in, offering you the cheapest available option. You can find cheap flights, cars for hire, stays and things to do without having to leave your couch. All you have to do is create a profile and you are ready to go. Look for new hotels or products The launch of new hotels and product offerings also means opening discounts. You can…

The Strandkombuis, nestled in the dunes between a nature reserve and the longest beach in South Africa, is in Yzerfontein. The attraction boasts 27 rooms with en-suite bathrooms and a famed Sunday seafood buffet. By booking only, the buffet includes everything from West Coast mussels, braaied prawns with garlic butter sauce, warm smoked fish to calamari and koeksisters. See www.strandkombuis.com. Most-Instagrammed SA neighbourhoods revealed Pretoria and Maboneng in Gauteng have been voted among the most Instagrammed neighbourhoods, according to new Stokemont.com research. Pretoria, in fourth place, garnered 1.4 million tags, while Maboneng, in 24th position, garnered 146k. Researchers wanted to find out which neighbourhoods around the world people lust over the most, and collated a list of 50 neighbourhoods from around the world. They researched hundreds of the coolest, most…

Nosipho Nyide nosipho.nyide@inl.co.za Most people think all young people do is spend too much time on their phones, or complain way too much. Luckily, this month South Africans remember the youth of 1976, who took part in the Soweto Uprising which played an important role in the country gaining its liberation from the apartheid regime. Even though some people think the youth of today cannot be compared to that of 1976, there are young people around the world who are doing amazing things and inspiring their counterparts to make the world a better place. Here are six young people to follow for some inspiration. Rishab Jain Named America’s Top Young Scientist for his award-winning tool which harnesses artificial intelligence to improve radiotherapy for pancreatic cancer patients in 2018, Rishab…

Thobile Mazibuko thobile.mazibuko@inl.co.za OVER the past few years, there has been a rise in beauty brands, and we have seen an increasing number of South Africa’s young beauty entrepreneurs coining it. So, to close off Youth Month, we celebrate the young change-makers within the beauty industry. Mbali Sebapu Sebapu, from Durban, was in the SANDF before starting her cosmetic brand, Hermosa Flor. The brand name means beautiful flower in Spanish was inspired by her name, Mbalenhle. Sebapu, who has always loved make-up, said her beauty journey started in primary school, where she would enter beauty competitions. “I loved getting dolled up for those competitions, and I started fully embracing it in high school,” she told lifestyle digimag, The Throne. Since the brand’s inception in 2019, Sebapu has launched a wide…

Bethonie Butler In January, Netflix users came across a new series about a charming con man out to avenge the death of his father. The mystery thriller Lupin quickly picked up a following – despite the fact that the series was in French and incorporated the adventures of the fictional Arsène Lupin, the distinctly French character at the centre of Maurice Leblanc’s novels. The show quickly became the streamer’s most popular non-English title, according to Netflix. Lupin: Part 2 arrived June 11, and a third instalment has already been announced. Lupin, watched by 76 million subscribers in its first 28 days, is the streamer’s biggest original series – regardless of language – so far this year. All Netflix series considered, Lupin is behind only Bridgerton, which Netflix says played…

Karabo Ngoepe karabo.ngoepe@inl.co.za VW CUSTOMERS in Gauteng have been left fuming following extensive damage done to their vehicles by one of the dealers. At least two customers have told the Sunday Independent how they took their cars to Strijdom Park Volkswagen for repairs but returned with an undrivable car. Instead of accepting fault and fixing the vehicles, the dealership has allegedly done everything possible to blame the clients. In one instance, they allegedly faked a client’s signature. Shawn Dziire and Nkosi Dube said they have been at loggerheads with the dealership’s management for years, with VW South Africa allegedly refusing to get involved or resolve the matters. Dziire claims that in 2016, he took his vehicle, a VW Golf R, to the dealership for a service and to check…

Don Makatile don.makatile@inl.co.za Plastic City in Brakpan, Ekurhuleni, is a squatter settlement: one of its own kind. It is the home of the down-on-their-luck folks who peddle recycling material. In other towns throughout the country, these folks can be seen jostling for space on the roads with the rest of the traffic, their trolleys piled sky-high with their wares. But Plastic City is their Mecca, their abode. The bulk of the residents here are African foreign nationals who have made a home for their families on this barren seedier side of the conservative town east of Johannesburg. They are a people low in the pecking order of the city fathers. There are two Jojo tanks and one communal tap for close to 5000 people – and counting. Harassment by the…

Manyane Manyane manyane.manyane@inl.co.za It’s been two years since the community of Alexandra, north of Joburg, took to the streets demanding service delivery and better living conditions, but their demands are yet to be met. Urban squalor remains the order of the day for many residents in the historic township that was once world icon Nelson Mandela's home when he moved to the City of Gold. Informal settlements with sewage flowing freely in the streets is a sight all too familiar. To add insult to injury, electricity supply is unreliable, streets have potholes and refuse collection is almost non-existent. According to the 2019-2020 crime stats, there were 151 rape and 180 sexual offences cases reported in Alexandra. The area also recorded 130 cases of car hijackings and 850 robberies with aggravating…

Forty-five years after school learners took to the streets in Soweto and elsewhere on June 16, 1976, our basic education system is in trouble. This is due less to the challenges of funding, of the preparation of our teachers, of the lack of equipment, than to our failure to produce a social imagination for the education of our children that serves them well and serves South Africa. We have sadly failed the generation of 1976. Around the world nations are shaped and reshaped at schools. They are places where social values and culture are developed and transmitted preparing young people for active engagement as citizens of complex, multilayered societies. It is at schools that the early seeds of global citizenship are sowed, when so many of the grand challenges facing…

The Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), has announced that parts of the country’s capital Accra will experience scheduled power outages from tomorrow until July 19 to allow for maintenance work. The ECG said it would implement the outages to facilitate the work of contractors to improve electricity reliability and system voltages. The exercise will cause an interruption in power supply to some 71 communities within the West African country’s capital city, the utility said. |…

The Bangladesh Cricket Board appointed Prince, who played 119 international matches for the Proteas, along with former Sri Lankan spinner Rangana Herath as the team’s new spin consultant, for their series of one Test, three ODIs, and three T20Is in July. Former Proteas coach Russell Domingo is the head coach of Bangladesh, who also have another former Proteas coach Ottis Gibson on board as the bowling coach. Fellow South African Ryan Cook is Bangladesh’s fielding coach. “We discussed Ashwell Prince’s appointment with coach Russell Domingo who rates him highly,” BCB’s cricket operations chairman Akram Khan told Cricinfo. “He will be with us during the Zimbabwe tour, after which we will decide. Herath will be with us till the World Cup T20. If things go well, we will think…

THE Netherlands have turned their sceptical supporters into true believers after three straight wins at Euro 2020 but they come up against an old nemesis in the Czech Republic in the last 16 tonight. Attitudes towards the Dutch team have swung from one extreme to the other as coach Frank de Boer had to weather a storm of criticism over his tactics and results, but his side are now fancied for Euro 2020 success – at home at least. They topped Group C with a perfect record, albeit all three wins came at Amsterdam’s Johan Cruyff Arena, to send their countrymen into ‘Orange fever’ with expectations ratcheting up dramatically. Yet the Netherlands will be wary of what lies ahead at the Puskas Arena in Budapest this evening, especially if they…

FOR the first time since the resumption of play after the Covid-19-enforced break, the Proteas will field a full strength side in the T20 format. They will also have a new leader in the form of Temba Bavuma, who has finally shaken off a string of injuries that kept him on the sidelines in recent times. The five-match series against the West Indies, which started last night in Grenada, is a perfect opportunity to determine where the Proteas actually are in preparation for the T20 World Cup, which is now reportedly set to be staged in the UAE in October. Independent Media’s ZAAHIER ADAMS, who has been present at every T20 World Cup since its inception in 2007, poses five questions the Proteas will hope to have answered by the…

Debashine Thangevelo debashine.thangevelo@inl.co.za Of late, I’ve been watching way too many whodunnits. Although I love the thrill of the chase and the suspense, I needed a break from the intense action. Then I latched on to Netflix’s Selling Sunset and binged all four seasons in two days. If you are wondering how I found the time to do so, I sacrificed my beauty sleep. Foolish in hindsight, but patience isn’t my strong suit. But the drama, the cattiness and the close-knit bonds forged by the cast left me envious as well as inspired. After that, I found myself in a bit of a conundrum. What do I watch next? Do I default to my preferred comfort zone? Even with the smorgasbord of options, I remained indecisive until I stumbled…