Innholdsfortegnelse for 2023-02-05 i Sunday Independent

When the anchor of a TV series passes on, it often puts a kibosh on the project. That means there are shows that become synonymous with an actor. For example, The Blacklist wouldn’t be the same if James Spader wasn’t in it. Or imagine How to Get Away with Murder without Viola Davis. The point, I’m making is that it isn’t often a show can live on without its protagonist – but it is possible. And that is what Netflix’s Kings of Jo’burg proves, with Zolisa Xaluva stepping up as Mogomotsi “Mo” Masire. In a similar vein to how Black Panther took the franchise forward in Wakanda Forever following the death of Chadwick Boseman, Ferguson Films and Samad Davis Production have done the same with the untimely passing of Shona…

The 2023 Grammy Awards is set to take place on Sunday and unlike the past few years, the who’s who on the music scene will be headed over to Los Angeles’s Crypto.com Arena to celebrate the star-studded night. Former The Daily Show host Trevor Noah will be hosting the event for the third time, which means we’re in for a treat. This year sees Harry Styles, Bad Bunny, Lizzo, Sam Smith, Mary J. Blige and Luke Combs performing on stage. Executive producer Ben Winston and Noah chatted to The Hollywood Reporter about the show and Beyoncé’s potentially record-breaking moment among other things. “I feel really great about the show this year. It’s going to be the most star-studded room the Grammys has been for many, many years,” said Winston. He…

You People, a very, very fresh and funny love story starring Jonah Hill and Lauren London, has all the bones of its rom-com antecedents: the opening meet-cute, in which Hill’s Ezra mistakes London’s Amira for his Uber driver; a scowling father of the bride (Eddie Murphy) who can’t stand the unworthy groom; several hilariously awkward meet-the-parents scenes; and not one but two kooky wedding planners (Deon Cole and Andrea Savage). And yet there is something in the socially conscious comedy of its DNA, which includes a bracing splash of Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, that subverts almost every genre convention it invokes. I suspect that is due largely to director Kenya Barris, the creative genius behind the smart shows Black-ish and Grown-ish and the co-writer of the raunchy hit comedy…

THE ANC has promised action against incompetent leaders, forcing those who want to lead the party to disclose their funders, and subjecting them to lifestyle audits as part of its organisational strategy, renewal and sustainability. The governing party announced after the inaugural meeting of its national executive committee (NEC) elected at its national conference in December, and the subsequent extended NEC lekgotla this past weekend, that it would be receiving written submissions from NEC members and deployees within the next two weeks to conclude and adopt conference resolutions through a special NEC meeting. Among the resolutions taken at the national conference, which was concluded in early January, were those on organisational strategy, renewal and sustainability. Some of these could have a far-reaching impact on campaigning for leadership positions in the…

South Africa has seen a significant increase in cooking oil prices at a time when there has been widespread concern over food price inflation. Global shortages of oil-producing crops have largely contributed to the crisis, which has lasted over a year. This shortage of edible oil has caused prices to rise by 60% on shelves since January 2020. Over the last 17 months, sunflower oil, which was once a staple in South Africa, has nearly doubled in price, making it an expensive item for the average consumer. Avhaathu Queeneth Mutele, 37, from a small village named Ha-Maelula in Venda, Limpopo, is the founder of Q-ton cooking oil. Q-ton cooking oil was established in 2018 and launched in 2022 under the Nyitombuya Trading and Consulting Company. The company was established as…

ENERGY regulator Nersa has been accused of hiding the reasons for its decision to grant generation licences to Turkish company Karpowership in the R218 billion deal to provide additional electricity from South Africa’s coastline. Nersa (National Energy Regulator of SA) has been hauled to the North Gauteng High Court by the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) in a bid to have its awarding of three electricity generation licences in Ngqura in the Eastern Cape, Saldanha Bay in the Western Cape and Richards Bay in KwaZulu-Natal to Karpowership reviewed and set aside. The deal is part of the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy’s risk mitigation independent power producer procurement programme (RMIPPPP), which aims to procure 2 000MW in new generation capacity from a range of source technologies to address the…

There is something of a renewed sense of optimism hanging over the Kaizer Chiefs camp after the team snapped a three-match goal drought and a three-match winless run last week against Royal AM. Chiefs will be looking to build on that performance and the new fan favourite Saile Basomboli is at the ready to spearhead the attack against high-riding TS Galaxy at the Mbombela Stadium in Nelspruit today (3.30pm). There was a sense of pride for the DRC striker Basomboli when he made his debut around the hour mark last week. Four minutes after he joined the fray Chiefs opened the scoring and later he provided the assist for Ashley du Preez to wrap up the 2-0 result against Royal AM. His cameo may have been enough to convince Chiefs…

“FEEL it, it is here!” And with the opening game at Newlands just a week away, Proteas Women’s captain Sune Luus wants to keep the ICC T20 Women’s World Cup here in South Africa. “I’m extremely excited to be here as part of this historic moment for South African cricket, hosting a women’s T20 World Cup for the very first time,” Luus said at the official captain’s press conference at the foot of Table Mountain yesterday. “As a team, we’re really excited to be representing our nation here at home and we’re looking forward to doing everything we can to keep the trophy here at home. “The excitement that we’ve experience from people here in Cape Town and all over the country, telling us how excited they are to…

Hong Kong leader John Lee unveiled yesterday a promotion campaign that will include 500 000 free flights to lure back visitors, businesses and investors to the financial hub after more than three years of tough Covid-19 curbs. The “Hello Hong Kong” campaign was launched with dancers and flashing neon lights in the city’s main convention centre, next to its famous harbour, with a backdrop bearing the slogan in several languages, including Russian and Spanish. Lee, speaking in English, said the campaign would show that the city was open for tourism and was aimed at boosting business and investment in the Chinese special administrative region. “Hong Kong is now connected to mainland China and the whole international world, and there will be no isolation, no quarantine and no restrictions on experiencing…

BARRE is a low-impact exercise you can perform at home or in a studio to increase your strength, stamina, and other qualities. This kind of training combines ballet-inspired dance steps with other exercises including yoga, pilates, and aerobics. Exercise attire and a chair and mat are all that is needed to participate in barre sessions. This type of exercise can help you retain a healthy weight, improve your general fitness, and keep your body strong. Depending on the sort of class and its arrangement, barre lessons can include a wide variety of various workout components. You’ll most likely utilise a bar or another item that is waist-high to stabilise yourself when performing ballet exercises like pliés and relevés throughout your workout. These workouts concentrate on isometric movements, which target the…

THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN (Cinemas nationwide) A black tragicomedy film directed, written and co-produced by Martin McDonagh. Set on a remote island off the west coast of Ireland, the film stars Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson as two lifelong friends who find themselves at an impasse when one abruptly ends their relationship, with alarming consequences for both of them; Kerry Condon and Barry Keoghan also star. Manifest Day By Day: How to get the life you want, starting now, by Alanis Cooper (R240 on loot.co.za) If you are feeling stuck, need help achieving your goals or want to make positive changes in any area of your life, this is the book for you. Alanis Cooper has been using manifesting to change her life since 2020. In the book, she shares…

THE man who confessed to robbing and killing Hillary Gardee in April last year told police that he used a state-issued firearm to kill her. In the chilling confession, seen by the Sunday Independent, Hlabirwa Rasie Nkune, told police in August last year he acted alone when he robbed Gardee of R1 500 and shot her in the back of the head while she was running away from him in the bush near Sabie in Mpumalanga. Nkune admitted that he used a 9mm PX4 pistol that he had earlier robbed from a traffic officer in Kanyamazane near Nelspruit. Police in Mpumalanga had initially arrested Sipho Mkhatswa, Philemon Lukhele and Albert Gama and accused them of raping and killing Gardee at Insika Guest Lodge owned by Lukhele in Nelspruit. The men…

JUST days after the High Court in Bloemfontein made light of the fact that Ace Magashule’s former PA was a phone call away, throwing out any need for extradition or deportation to secure her appearance in court for the asbestos roofs trial, the US authorities pounced on Moroadi Cholota last week in Washington and detained her – exactly as the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) had wished. Those in Cholota’s camp have accused the NPA of reneging on an agreement made before Free State Judge President Cagney Musi in court a few days earlier on January 20. The parties had agreed that state prosecutor Johannes de Nysschen would communicate with attorney Victor Nkhwashu to secure Cholota’s voluntary appearance in court. It was expected that the agreement would see the NPA abandon…

THE legal field is one of the few respected professions in South Africa. Globally, it ranks number 35 out of the top 100 careers in the world. While the space is considered a fancy profession, there are those practitioners who bring shame to the good profession. Since the inception of the Legal Practice Council (LPC) of South Africa in 2018, almost 200 professionals have been struck off the roll for misconduct. When a lawyer is struck off the roll, they are prohibited from working as a lawyer or a solicitor. The most recent high-profile practitioner to be affected was advocate Malesela Teffo, who was part of the defence in the Senzo Meyiwa case. There was also the case of Isaac Makgobi, who represented kwaito artist Brickz. The former kwaito star’s…

THE philanthropy of cricket captain Temba Bavuma descended on a high school in Alexandra, north of Joburg, when his foundation donated 200 pairs of sneakers to needy children identified by teachers. Realogile High School is a no-fee school and many of the learners come from impoverished backgrounds where a pair of takkies, even hand-me-downs, is a luxury. The learners who benefited from this gesture led by the Proteas captain were visibly chuffed when the Temba Bavuma Foundation touched down at their school, among many others that could have been chosen. Project Run, an up-and-running collection campaign to benefit learners from disadvantaged backgrounds, partnered with the Temba Bavuma Foundation. Tyson Sithole, chairperson of the Temba Bavuma Foundation. is grateful that Project Run identified synergies to exploit with his organisation. “We ran…

THE DA wants increased parliamentary oversight and transparency on the perks enjoyed by members of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s executive, premiers and MECs in terms of the ministerial handbook. The call comes as the official opposition intensifies its battle against the ANC’s cadre deployment policy following this week’s South Gauteng High Court ruling forcing the governing party to produce information and records of its deployment committee to DA MP Leon Schreiber. Schreiber has introduced his proposed amendments to the Remuneration of Public Office Bearers Act to make provision for transparency and oversight when Ramaphosa makes a decision on allowances, benefits or tools of the trade for his deputy, ministers and their deputies. The new amended act, if promulgated, according to Schreiber, must provide for regular reviews of all allowances, tools of…

A legal battle is brewing over the awarding of the R4.2 billion contract to run the Working on Fire (WoF) programme to a Mbombela, Mpumalanga- based company amid whistle-blower allegations of irregularities. The South African Youth Movement (SAYM) and the Community Enterprise Fund (CEF), who entered into a joint venture to bid for the contract, are unhappy that it was awarded to Kishugu, despite their bid being R1.6bn less. Kishugu’s price was R4.2bn while the SAYM-CEF joint venture’s stood at R1.6bn. The SAYM-CEF joint venture has argued that since its price was substantively lower than Kishugu’s, it should have been appointed the preferred bidder. According to the partners, the bid evaluation process had alarming irregularities revealed by the whistle-blower, especially the R1.6bn difference in the tender price. “The bidders should…

THE quality of teaching and learning at Simunye Secondary School is severely impacted due to the shortage of classrooms and the continuous rotational learning system. The DA Gauteng spokesperson on education Khume Ramulifho, conducted an oversight inspection at the school, in Bekkersdal, Westonaria, to assess interventions needed to improve the matric pass rate. Simunye Secondary School is the worst-performing school in the province and obtained a 48% pass rate for the 2022 matric results. “The DA will engage with the school management and the school governing body (SGB) to ascertain the challenges faced by the school that are impacting the school’s performance. We will also assess the state of learning and teaching as well as the infrastructure. We want to establish how the school can be assisted to ensure that…

If you are planning to visit South Africa, there are plenty of places to see. Leave the main cities and head out for some fun on the periphery. Exploring small towns or going off the beaten track is highly rewarding and pocket-friendly. All should be on your bucket list as they offer unique experiences with maximum fun. Mossel Bay Western Cape Known as the adventure capital of the Garden Route, Mossel Bay is a friendly seaside town with plenty to do. You can spend a day at the beach, go sailing, enjoy a boat ride exploring the seal islands or go zip-lining on the longest over-the-ocean zip line in the world. If gin is your thing, then take an affordable gin-making masterclass at the Cape Saint Blaize Artisanal Distillery and…

Travelling, whether for leisure or business, requires serious planning. As much as you might want to be spontaneous, there are plenty of things you need to consider ahead of time so you can have a stress free travel experience. You know the saying by now, “failure to plan is planning to fail” and this also applies to every aspect of your life, including travel aspirations. As you set your sights on new travel experiences for the year ahead, consider the possibility of dividing your travel wishes into a list of long, medium and short-term plans. So here are five expert travel tips to help you seamlessly plan for your next trip. Booking ahead Rest is an essential element for self-care. Consider planning days off from work for a weekend away…

Fruits and vegetables are available all year, but you may notice the quantity, quality and prices decline and flow throughout the seasons. Choosing fruits and vegetables in season is a sure-fire way to enjoy the freshest produce at the cheapest prices. Before you stop at the grocery store or swing by the farmer’s market, check out what is in this time of year. Eating fruit and vegetables when they are in season is a great idea for many reasons. First, produce is cheapest when it is at its most abundant. If you are working on a tight budget, eating seasonally can dramatically reduce your grocery bill. Second, fruit and vegetables contain the greatest number of nutrients when they are allowed to ripen naturally. Garlic Garlic, a staple of nearly every…

In their business management literature, mine owners such as Anglo-American would be quick to explain that the “business of business is to make business”. There lies the moral bankruptcy of all the mining companies in South Africa. They are determined to carry on with the journey through democratic South Africa in just the same way – albeit camouflaged – as they did during the tyrannical days of apartheid when they amassed billions of rands in minerals using cheap black labour. Back then, mining bosses could dine and wine with top government officials as they plotted ways to maintain the subjugation of African blacks. The difference today is almost non-existent. Profit-driven mine bosses dine and wine with the new political elite and other governmentally connected heavyweights, plotting how to rake in…

A SHOWDOWN is expected in Parliament this week when President Cyril Ramaphosa takes to the podium to deliver his State of the Nation Address (Sona). The EFF has vowed to disrupt the president’s speech again and instead wants him to resign. Ramaphosa’s reputation has been sullied by the Phala Phala scandal, in which millions of dollars were found stashed in furniture at his private game farm, instead of it being declared to the authorities. He has also been unable to deal with the ongoing electricity crisis that has crippled the economy. These are among the reasons some political parties, the EFF chief among them, want him gone. Sinawo Thambo, the EFF’s spokesperson, was adamant that they would not allow the president to speak. “He intends to repeat the same empty…

THE Department of Public Works and Infrastructure has been dragged to court over alleged unfair labour practices and victimisation of whistle-blowers who exposed alleged irregular appointments and abuse of power by Minister of Employment and Labour Thulas Nxesi. The employees told the Labour Court in Johannesburg that they had been targeted for blowing the whistle on Nxesi’s alleged shenanigans. This was after allegations that Nxesi, who was minister of Public Works and the chairperson of the SACP between 2011 and 2017, allegedly appointed SACP comrades to positions without due procedures. It was also reported that Nxesi appointed and promoted to senior managerial positions women he allegedly had sexual relations with. Nxesi is also accused of hiring Clive Mtshisa as the department’s deputy director-general of corporate services in order to manage…

THE importance of having a sounding board for ideas has never been greater than in today's world. It’s easier to come up with new ideas, brainstorm, and solve problems with two heads and more. Metropolitan has encouraged the spirit of working as a collective by launching the “We start 2023 Stronger Together” campaign, which urges Mzansi to harness the power of the collective. As part of the campaign, Mzansi is encouraged to set shared goals with family, friends, colleagues and/or community members to enjoy a more robust and better year together. Metropolitan chief marketing officer Tlalane Ntuli said one of the biggest impediments to achieving great things was the trap of a non-supportive collective mindset. “This year, we want people to change how they view their finance and lifestyle goals…

In a country as diverse as South Africa and with its varied religious landscape, religious rights are protected when it comes to observances being conducted at public schools. The starting point would be section 15(1) of the Constitution, which guarantees “everyone” (including teachers and pupils) the right to freedom of conscience, religion and belief. This means that children do not leave their religious convictions at the doorstep when they leave home for school in the morning, but take them with them into the school environment. But what happens when religious rights trample on discipline in schools? After Roosevelt High School issued the letter to parents regarding detention on Fridays, the DA spokesperson for Education, Sérgio Isa Dos Santos, conducted an oversight inspection at the school. The purpose of the inspection…

WHILE residents are suffering due to a lack of service delivery in the area, the Sedibeng District Municipality has opted to beef up security around one of its councillors. The municipality hired four VIP close protection minders for chief whip Mamohale Moloi. Sources said this was done without the consent of the council. They said this was a waste of public money because Moloi’s life was not in danger. The sources added: “This was not tabled before the council for debate. It shows that they are stealing money from the public. “They could have tabled the issue before the council before they decided. “This is corruption. They are abusing state resources.” The DA said it had written to the municipality to explain the reasons for the extra security which were…

Siyabonga Hadebe APARTHEID was infamous for promoting the separation of different races in every possible way. Its spatial settlement policies dictated where people could live and where they could not. This legacy is still evident today. Soweto is black, and Sandton white. However, since the late 1900s, there have become “grey” areas, meaning previously white-only areas that are now mixed. Others have become black and host many foreign migrants from the continent. Generally, the upper layers of the apartheid racial hierarchy, particularly Indians and whites, have opted for isolationism. In this case, isolationism refers to the legalised forms of apartness manifesting in politics and economics. Their stance has been to remain apart from the affairs or interests of other groups. Consequently, they have no appetite to mingle at a social…

EBEN Etzebeth would have woken up today as one of the happiest men in the world. He got married to actress and singer Anlia van Rensburg in Franschhoek yesterday, was named as the SA Rugby Player of the Year earlier this week, and can enjoy a proper honeymoon as he is on a few weeks’ break from rugby. Etzebeth has made a successful start to life at the Sharks, where he and Van Rensburg have also settled down in Ballito after his move from Toulon. After all of that, there is another important event coming up: the 2023 Rugby World Cup, and there is nothing more Etzebeth and his teammates would want than to defend the Webb Ellis Cup in France in September and October. The Boks face a tough…

A Twitter user’s very honest post left tweeps shocked or giggling. The hilarious post read: “I hate Serena Hotel’s towels, they are so thick. Now my bag has refused to close.” I swear, social media gave humans the balls to say and do whatever they want, even if it includes low-key thieving. The tweet posted by @Sammie Manini was retweeted by Serena Hotels-Africa with the question, “Did it fit though?” That probably had him shooketh. But to be fair, his bio does state: “Tiktoker. Tour guide. Massage therapist. Never take my tweets serious, I only tweet for fun.” So, was he really trying to steal towels? Other tweeps went wild, with some even sharing their opinion on the towels. One wrote: “Stayed in the Serena resort in Entebbe…

LOCAL and international tourists and holidaymakers are seeking some of the top-notch spots in South Africa. More and more hosts are coming to the party, too, owing to inflation and the rising cost of living, and earning extra money and saving more in 2023 are near the top of many people’s New Year’s resolution lists. If you think your home is worth giving it a shot in this business, why not? Becoming a host on Airbnb might just be your solution to making extra cash. The average new host earned over R8 350 per month between January and September 2022. Additionally, this year, hosts are joining the ongoing travel resurgence, and new economic opportunities are arising for communities. New insights from Airbnb show that about 15% of South African hosts…