Innholdsfortegnelse for 2021-10-26 i Cape Argus

Kelly-Jane Turner ALMOST 50 000 teenagers in the 12-17 age group have been vaccinated against Covid-19 since the rollout extended to that age cohort last Wednesday. The Department of Health on Sunday revealed that the country reached a milestone as 11.5 million people were fully vaccinated, inching closer to 30% of the population being vaccinated. Health Minister Joe Phaahla says the country is on track to reaching the target of vaccinating 70% of people by the end of the year. Teenagers are able to get their shots from any official vaccination site and they don’t need their parents’ permission. Parents, caregivers and legal guardians are encouraged to educate and assist eligible young people to register and vaccinate, said the Health Department. “The Children's Act 38 of 2005 stipulates that children…

Mwangi Githahu mwangi.githahu@inl.co.za A WOMAN has lost the battle to represent her parents in a high court bid to set aside a bank’s repossession of their property after they defaulted on the loan. Lynn Akers, the eldest daughter of Roland Carelse and his late wife, wanted the court to rescind a judgment granted in favour of Standard Bank against her parents. The couple obtained a home loan in respect of a vacant plot from the bank. However, they fell into arrears with the bond repayments and the bank obtained a default judgment against them in March 2008 for an amount of R330 000. In November 2016, the bank’s attorneys told Carelse that the outstanding balance on the account was R170 632.58 excluding future legal costs and interest. They also…

Kristin Engel kristin.engel@inl.co.za GOOD Party councillor candidate Lulama Benge for the areas of Gugulethu and Nyanga in ward 38 said he intends to take his community and environmental activism further as councillor after his involvement in a community-led clean-up campaign that aimed to transform illegal dump sites in Nyanga into gardens. After seeing the need for service delivery improvements in his community, the lack of infrastructure, unemployment (especially among the youth), lack of housing and expensive water and electricity tariffs, Benge said he was empowered to bring positive change by running as ward councillor. Benge initiated a clean-up campaign with a group of Nyanga residents last year during the Covid-19 pandemic to transform neglected areas in their community that often turned into illegal dump sites into green gardens. He…

We have had a hectic week in the homeless sector. A shocker was the City Safe Spaces eviction of all residents that were there for longer than six months. We are talking of close to 300 people. This is ridiculous. The City's new by-laws say you cannot live on the streets but the City throws people out on the streets. The safe spaces have, after we launched a campaign against the evictions, reconsidered their position and stopped evictions. But for how long? Till after the elections, I presume? In a response to our press release on the evictions, the City's mayco member for community services and health, Zahid Badroodien, said the City had the right to end their hospitality at the safe spaces as everyone knows, going in, that safe…

Samaoen Osman | Crawford THE US is complicit in Israeli war crimes and crimes against humanity against Palestinians who, for decades, have been struggling for freedom and the right to remain on their land with dignity. With its unconditional financial, military, and diplomatic support of the Israeli apartheid regime, the US bears responsibility for the violence of Israeli oppression, military occupation, and allowing the Israeli security forces to wield deadly force against Palestinians, with impunity. For Palestinians and their allies, the past few weeks – during Ramadaan, the holiest month of the year for Muslims – have again demonstrated the devastating consequences of US patronage of Israel. The US gifts $3.8 billion (about R56 billion) of taxpayers’ funds annually to the Israeli military. The US’s unwavering support of…

PREGNANT or not? Decuplets or not? Government cover-up or not? These questions have plagued the media and the public since the announcement of the miracle birth of the then disappearing “Tembisa Ten” was first broken by Pretoria News editor Piet Rampedi in June 2021. Tomorrow, Independent Media will release the findings of the highly anticipated investigation into what really happened with the “decuplets” and their story. The news of Gosiame Sithole’s 10 babies has travelled to the farthest reaches of the globe. Initially welcomed and received as a much-needed good news story amidst the omnipresent Covid pandemic, the story soon took a very different turn. Although initially confirming the birth of the babies, role-players in the ensuing drama, including South African authorities, did an abrupt about- turn and declared the…

Thandi Mgwebi RIGHT now, the class of 2021 is preparing for year-end exams. Despite coping with many challenges to get to this point, the past 18 months of staggered and disrupted learning have affected students in different ways. Some may have grown in confidence from adapting to a hybrid learning approach, while others may have become discouraged in their learning altogether. But as many students take steps closer to achieving their career aspirations, struggling to find employment is a stark reality that awaits them. High levels of youth unemployment have been a stumbling block for the classes and cohorts of previous years. A Community Agency for Social Enquiry study in 2000 revealed that unemployment was the single biggest challenge facing young South Africans. Today, more youth are unemployed compared…

A Munich court yesterday sentenced a German woman who joined the Islamic State group to 10 years in prison over the war crime of letting a 5-year-old Yazidi “slave” girl die of thirst. The court handed down the verdict to Jennifer Wenisch, 30, in one of the first convictions in the world related to the IS jihadists’ persecution of the Yazidi community. Wenisch was found guilty of crimes against humanity in the form of enslavement, and aiding and abetting killing and membership of a terrorist organisation. | AFP…

Unvaccinated players will be allowed to compete in the Australian Open but must stay in quarantine for 14 days, according to a leaked WTA email yesterday, although a government official insisted the matter was “not settled”. The rules would also likely apply to the men’s tour, leaving the door open for world No 1 Novak Djokovic to defend his title at Melbourne Park in January. The email to players from the women’s governing body was leaked to New York Times tennis writer Ben Rothenberg, who posted it on Twitter, and contradicts officials’ earlier statements implying unvaccinated players would not be granted visas. The email said that players fully inoculated against coronavirus would not have to quarantine or remain in bio-secure bubbles, enjoying “complete freedom of movement”. Unvaccinated players can come…

HERMAN GIBBS Comment South African football quietly expanded its continental footprint over the weekend when SA coaches performed giant-killing acts against insurmountable odds in hostile Tanzania and DR Congo in the top two tiers of Caf club competitions. In stark contrast to its continental fortunes over the past decades, SA teams enjoyed a full house of Caf wins in the Champions League and Confederation Cup at the weekend. In the wake of these results, for the first time, no less than four SA coaches will be plying their trade in the upcoming Champions League. In the past, it has always been a matter of SA teams competing against conditions in African countries rather than African teams. There was also the ever-present gamesmanship that hamstrung SA teams’ efforts to conquer opponents,…

Viwe Ndongeni-Ntlebi viwe.ndongeni@inl.co.za The pandemic has changed how many people do life, and it also has placed self-care as a priority not just for women but for men as well. Now, men are normalising self-care and moving away from the conventional association of self-care with women. It’s acknowledged self-care knows no gender because it is the art and act of putting yourself first. While the idea of self-care may differ from person to person, in general, it refers to the practice of taking care of oneself by participating in behaviours that promote personal health and well-being. Paul Tran, founder and chief executive of MANSCAPED, a company that specialises in male grooming, said: “Since there is not a one-size-fits-all approach to self-care, it’s up to the individual to determine what type…

Nomalanga Tshuma nomalanga.tshuma@inl.co.za COMMUNITY leaders and activists in Kraaifontein, Wallacedene, say they are looking forward to ushering in a new local councillor who will represent the interests of the residents to the best of his or her ability once in council. This comes as candidates contesting ward 6 – which stretches from Wallacedene, south of Mphandle Street to Scottsdene, north of Eoan Way and La Boheme Avenue – are tying up their campaigns in the area in the hope of securing enough votes to be the next councillor. Residents and community leaders belonging to the Wallacedene Development Forum said they were hoping their next councillor would be able to pick up where the outgoing councillor left off and work alongside the community to resolve some of the pressing challenges the…

Loyiso Sidimba loyiso.sidimba@inl.co.za THE ANC wants to wrestle the City of Johannesburg from the DA, President Cyril Ramaphosa said yesterday. Ramaphosa took his party’s campaign to Orange Farm, Soweto and Alexandra. “We want our councillors to work for you,” he said. The president promised that ANC councillors would not steal from the public coffers. ANC councillors have signed to abandon corruption, he said. “We are serious about it,” Ramaphosa said. He admitted there were problems in Alexandra and that the ANC did not want to take voters for granted. “This is not a party of leaders but people,” he said. Ramaphosa has promised voters that the party’s candidates were not going to work for themselves but the community. “When they get into office they will do one thing: work for…

Colin Bosman | Newlands Trawling through the media a few days ago, I came across an utterance supposedly made by Thabo Mbeki while on the municipal election campaign trail. In the article, Mbeki is quoted as saying that without the ANC the country “would collapse”. Perhaps I’ve missed something, as to even the casual observer it’s apparent the country has long passed the point of collapse – with over R1.3 trillion stolen, misappropriated, call it what you may, from the fiscus, billions stolen during the Bosasa years at the hands of Gavin Watson, the crash of SAA and billions lost under ANC apparatchik Dudu Myeni, the arms deal which cost the country billions under the watch of Jacob Zuma, billions stolen via crooked PPE tenders, close to a hundred ANC…

Sonri Naidoo sonri.naidoo@inl.co.za A WITNESS in the Nathaniel Julies murder case said on the day of the fatal shooting one of the accused had assured his mother her son was still alive, and she was extremely relieved. The witness, Maygen Brownley, who was testifying yesterday in the Palm Ridge Magistrate’s Court, said she was in bed when she heard a gunshot. She testified that a friend in the house told her to check what was happening outside and told her “Lockies was geskiet” (Nathaniel has been shot). Brownley said they then walked towards the crowd at the scene filled with people from the neighbourhood. “A green Polo Classic arrived at the scene. The door behind the passenger seat opened. Accused number three, Vorster Netshiongolo got out of the car…

South Africa’s basic education system and the grading standard produce poor academic outcomes which leads to matriculants not qualifying to study further at university level. On top of this, the Bachelor, diploma and certificate passes at matric level create false hopes for learners, because they believe they automatically qualify to study at any university. I wrote a paper that looked at the mismatch between the weak education outcomes of the basic education system, including the grading practice for learners in their final year of school, and what’s required of them to transition to higher education. I argue that the basic education system and the grading standard produce poor quality learners, most of whom do not qualify to study at university level. In addition, the Bachelor pass, diploma pass and certificate…

Millions of Afghans, including children, could die of starvation unless urgent action is taken to pull Afghanistan back from the brink of collapse, the UN warned, calling for frozen funds to be freed for humanitarian efforts. The UN said that 22.8 million people – more than half of Afghanistan’s 39 million population – were “marching to starvation” compared to 14 million two months ago. In August, Taliban fighters drove out a Western-backed government, prompting donors to hold back aid. | Reuters…

OVER the next few weeks, South Africa will host a slew of high-profile tennis events which add impetus to burgeoning growth of the game on different levels countrywide. Tennis South Africa (TSA), the governing body of tennis in South Africa, are hosting an International Tennis Federation (ITF) junior boys event, which started yesterday. The tennis treat continues well into the new year with the world-class Rafa Nadal Academy camps in Gauteng, Cape Town and KwaZulu-Natal. The ITF Junior Grade A tournament underway in Cape Town is one of only six Junior Grade A tournaments every year. These tournaments are one notch below the Junior Grand Slams, the most prestigious events for juniors. Together with the Junior Grand Slams, it is the traditional launchpad for the finest talents to go on…

Viwe Ndongeni-Ntlebi viwe.ndongeni@inl.co.za Actor and TV personality, Siv Ngesi spots an incredible physique, and he credits his “crazy diet” for the body image. The Still Breathing actor lost 11kgs in 11 weeks and doesn’t keep his mouth shut. He constantly tells his social media followers: “I sacrificed too much not to show off my hard work!” Ngesi’s objective was to take part in a bodybuilding competition and the hard work and determination has paid off, as the 35-year-old came first in the Men’s Fitness Model category and second in Mr Fitness (pole and body) at Fitness South Africa 2021 in September. “I worked really hard, committed to the plan and sacrificed for it. “I always wanted to do a body competition. The Covid-19 lockdown gave me the opportunity. I started…

Sihle Mavuso sihle.mavuso@inl.co.za PIETERMARITZBURG High Court Judge Piet Koen is expected to hand down judgment today in the legal fight where former president Jacob Zuma wants National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) senior prosecutor Billy Downer removed from his corruption trial. Zuma has accused Downer of engaging in unethical conduct, while leading the prosecution for alleged corruption, during the arms deal of the late ’90s. He alleges that Downer has, without the authority of the director of public prosecution, been leaking information to the media and spies from the US Central Intelligence Agency. A few days before the matter was orally argued by parties before Judge Koen last month, Zuma upped the stakes and filed a supplementary affidavit, accusing Downer of persisting with his leaks. He accused him of leaking Zuma’s…

Mayibongwe Maqhina mayibongwe.maqhina@inl.co.za POLICE will be deployed at every voting station to ensure there are free and fair local government elections on Monday. This was the word from ministers in the justice, crime prevention and security cluster when they briefed the media yesterday on state readiness for the elections. Defence Minister Thandi Modise said they would ensure the elections were conducted in a safe and secure environment. “We are declaring that we are operationally ready to execute our mandate and ensure a safe and secure environment for all to participate in the free and fair elections in our country,” Modise said. The National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structures (NatJoints) had put measures in place to protect all citizens as they get ready to exercise their constitutional right to vote on…

IJ Saks | Table View THABO Mbeki made a statement that if the ANC fails the country then the country will fail. I’ve never heard such hogwash in my life. This just shows you how ignorant he is and their supporters will always vote them in, even though they have failed them. The ANC needs to lose power so that this country can be rebuilt and confidence can be restored among investors so that jobs can be created and the poor must be taken out of poverty and have a better life for all. This will never happen under the ANC, so Mbeki wake up and smell the roses. Also if Zuma’s RET faction ever get control of this country, we will collapse and land up like Zim…

FAROUK ARAIE I Johannesburg THIRTY FIVE years ago, an aircraft crashed and killed the President of Mozambique Samora Machel. It was at the height of the Cold War, when alliances were made and betrayed. Questions as to who was behind Machel’s death remain alive today; many believe he was killed in an intricate plot by those with close ties to the apartheid regime. Mozambique and the then Soviet Union demanded an on site investigation, but South Africa, the third member of a tripartite commission after the disaster, stalled. It ignored protests, including from International Civil Aviation Organisation consultants, and did not hand over the black boxes until more than a month after the crash. Numerous, pivotal incidents occurred before and after the crash that were not properly…

Mwangi Githahu mwangi.githahu@inl.co.za REGIONAL prosecutor Derrick Grootboom has filed an urgent Labour Court application, asking the court to order the Justice and Constitutional Development Minister to stop the process of appointing a head control prosecutor in Malmesbury. Grootboom, a former Robben Island political prisoner, also wants the chairperson of the panel, his boss and chief prosecutor for the Bellville cluster, Esther Cross, to refrain from recommending anyone for the post and that the entire process be declared invalid or unlawful. Grootboom, who had applied for the promotion, found out last week that he had not been shortlisted for the job, and asked Cross why, despite having worked as a prosecutor with the NPA for the past 20 years. He also wrote to acting director of public prosecutions Nicolette Bell to…

Kristin Engel kristin.engel@inl.co.za AFTER Good party mayoral candidate Brett Herron said the City placed animals in danger by spraying public open spaces (where pets are often taken) with a poisonous weed killer, the City’s recreation and parks department confirmed it had sprayed public open spaces with a “selective” herbicide to kill off “broadleaf” weeds. The department said that in compliance with the Fertilisers, Farm Feeds, Seeds and Remedies Act 36 of 1947, it sprayed parks, sport fields and public open spaces, but grass was not damaged in the process. City media manager Luthando Tyhalibongo said this was done through a contract. “Strict safety measures ensure the use of herbicides is not lethal and neither humans nor animals are harmed,” he said. In a method statement prepared by Leonard Henchem, it…

Angie Vorster THE World Mental Health Day campaign chose “Mental Health in an Unequal World” as the theme for this year. This is partly to raise awareness of the distinct polarisation between countries and individuals, highlighted by the Covid-19 pandemic over the past two years. Access to health-care resources and stark inequality regarding access to vaccines have become visible across the world. Obtaining, storing and distributing vaccines have added another burden to financially and resource-impeded countries. Yet, once South Africa was lucky enough to secure enough vaccines, we faced a baffling dilemma. How to get residents to take it? Interestingly, the World Health Organization listed vaccine hesitancy as one of the top 10 threats to global health – well before the outbreak of the Covid-19 virus. To understand why…

Nigerian security forces recaptured 446 inmates who escaped from prison in a mass jailbreak over the weekend with nearly 400 others still at large yesterday, officials said. Heavily armed men used grenades to storm the Abolongo prison in south-west state Oyo at the weekend, in the third mass prison outbreak this year in Africa’s most populous nation. In addition to fighting jihadists, Nigerian troops are also facing violent criminal gangs across the country and separatist agitation in the southeast. | Reuters…

Facebook was well aware that hate speech was spreading on its site in India which could exacerbate ethnic violence, and did not deploy resources to curb the phenomenon, US media have reported, citing internal documents. The so-called Facebook Papers, leaked by whistle-blower Frances Haugen, have already revealed the impact of Facebook – as well as of WhatsApp and Instagram, both of which it owns – on the deep polarisation of politics in the US and on the mental health of some teenagers. But there have long been concerns over the social network’s impact in spreading hate speech fuelling violence in the developing world, such as the massacre targeting the Rohingya minority in Myanmar. The Wall Street Journal, the New York Times and the Washington Post focused on Facebook’s presence in…

Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer faced intense criticism and speculation over his future after his team’s humiliating 5-0 defeat at home by Liverpool in the Premier League on Sunday. United’s worst defeat at home to their arch-rivals killed in 90 minutes the short-lived hype that surrounded Cristiano Ronaldo’s return to the club and the hopes of a title challenge that it raised. But it also brought into the spotlight the Norwegian’s management and coaching of the team as he approaches three years in charge of the side. While United were booed off the field at half-time, as they trailed 4-0 at the break for the first time in the Premier League era, there were no chants for Solskjaer to be fired. But social media was much less forgiving and…

Zaahier Adams zaahier.adams@inl.co.za Throughout the history of the World Twenty20, no team have become champions without losing a match. This is good news and bad news for Temba Bavuma’s Proteas as they prepare to take on the West Indies at the Dubai International Stadium today. It means that stumbling over the first hurdle is not unique to the Proteas, but it is also a fact that a further defeat today could result in elimination with the tournament proper hardly five days old. Any wiggle room that might have existed was vanquished by Australia holding their nerve in the opener on Saturday in Abu Dhabi. It is imperative that they learn quickly from their woeful batting effort at the Sheikh Zayd Stadium for they do possess one of the more lethal…