Innholdsfortegnelse for 2021-12-20 i Cape Argus

Kedibone Modise kedibone.modise@inl.co.za The holiday season is finally upon us and we’ve compiled a list of top South African movies to binge on while you unwind at home with family and friends or on vacation. I Am All Girls Written by Wayne Fitzjohn and Marcell Greef, this garnered heaps of praise for its captivating storyline. It features the crème de la crème of the South African television and film industry, the likes of Deon Lotz, Hlubi Mboya, Erica Wessels, Masasa Mbangeni, Israel Matseke Zulu, Mothusi Magano and Mampho Brescia. Directed by Donovan Marsh, this thriller centres a relentless detective who discovers she has more in common with a killer than she first thought, after discovering their target is the perpetrators running a powerful child-trafficking ring. Currently streaming on Netflix. Toorbos…

Nomalanga Tshuma nomalanga.tshuma@inl.co.za CAPE Town’s enforcement and security agencies hosted several anti-crime initiatives involving police visibility to raise awareness among the public of safety measures over the festive season. In several areas across the city, the City’s safety and security directorate hosted integrated and joint patrol operations, and reported the lowest rate of road offences since the beginning of the month. However, despite the seemingly pleasing figures, the directorate said it would be increasing its operations over the coming days as it expected to see an upsurge in the number of incidents and accidents on the roads. Mayco member for safety and security JP Smith said: “There has been a reduction in drunk driving cases, and arrests so far this festive season. “While formal statistics have not yet been released,…

Kristin Engel kristin.engel@inl.co.za ON the back of the protest action across the country against Shell’s seismic blasting along the Wild Coast, a second urgent interdict to stop the blasting was heard at the Grahamstown High Court on Friday by Judge Gerald Bloem. The case lasted seven hours. The application was brought by the Legal Resources Centre (LRC) and Richard Spoor Attorneys on behalf of small-scale fishing and coastal communities in Amadiba, Dwesa-Cwebe, Port St Johns and Kei Mouth after the previous urgent interdict was denied. While the seismic blasting began earlier this month, vested groups and organisations hoped they would get a positive outcome on Friday after the judge said he would be reserving his judgment until further notice – despite Shell advocate Adrian Friedman’s insistence that the final matter…

Staff Reporter ORGANISERS of the Awqaf SA Hundred Youth Cricket Tournament have hailed the inaugural event as a resounding success. This year’s display of youth cricket was hosted in partnership with Primrose Cricket Club and Western Province Cricket Association. Players in the under-16 and under-18 age group categories from Durbanville Cricket Club, Fish Hoek, Mitchells Plain, Ottoman, Primrose, Ryland, Solomon Makhosana, Stellenbosch and Sunningdale, put on a show-stopping display of skills and talent, with some exceptional team and individual performances. In the under-18 category, in a close-fought match against Mitchells Plain Cricket Club, Ottoman Cricket Club batsman Yazeed Arendse scored 126 runs from just 47 balls, before retiring hurt. In another stand-out performance, Rylands Cricket Club’s Thaakier Davids scored an unbeaten 101 runs, also against Mitchells Plain. For Tygerberg…

Shifaan Ryklief shifaan.ryklief@africannewsagency.com AMID the rising global infection rates from the coronavirus variant Omicron, tensions between China and the US have escalated while Australia and South Korea signed a new defence deal. Omicron is likely to continue to top headlines this coming week with the festive season is in full swing. The risk of reinfection with Omicron is more than five times higher. The results of a study by Imperial College London were based on UK Health Security Agency and National Health Service data on people who tested positive for Covid-19 in a PCR test in the UK between November 29 and December 11. On Saturday, the World Health Organization (WHO) emphasised an urgent need to scale up public health and social measures to curtail its further spread. Governments are…

HERMAN GIBBS Christmas came early for 10-man Cape Town City, who took a first-half hammering but recovered well in the second half to run out 2-1 winners after a stunning late goal by Mpho Makola against Swallows FC at Cape Town Stadium on Saturday evening. Makola was overlooked for the Player of the Match award, which was awarded to City goalkeeper Hugo Marques. City coach Eric Tinkler, however, felt the accolade should have gone to Makola. In his post-match interview, Tinkler said he was disappointed that City did not execute what was decided for Saturday’s match. “I was not very happy with our first-half performance,” the Citizens’ coach said. “In my pre-match interview, I spoke about the importance of playing with high intensity, especially at home. “I had asked…

SPAIN’S Rafael Nadal said he cannot guarantee he will make the trip to Melbourne for next month’s Australian Open after returning to action at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi. The 20-time Grand Slam champion’s comeback at the exhibition event – his first appearance since the Citi Open in Washington in August – ended in close defeats to Andy Murray and Denis Shapovalov. Nadal, 35, spent four months on the sidelines with a foot injury. He was knocked out at Roland Garros in the semi-finals and was forced to withdraw from Wimbledon, the Tokyo Olympics and the US Open. “The idea is to go there and try my best there in Australia … Being 100% honest, I can’t guarantee it,” Nadal said. “I need to speak with my…

The Washington Post Spider-Man: No Way Home, for fanatic followers of the webslinger, is a big, fat Christmas present, covered in shiny, blue-and-red wrapping paper and all tied up with a pretty web bow. For more casual consumers of the costumed comic-book superhero’s exploits, mileage may vary. But there's a whole lot to like here. No spoilers, but trailers for the new film make it clear that Spider-Man’s effort to use the magic of his crime-fighting colleague Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) to undo the repercussions of the last film’s climax – in which Spidey’s secret identity as Peter Parker (Tom Holland) was revealed – have, to put it euphemistically, made things worse. Not only did the doctor’s spell not take, and not only has Peter been publicly accused of…

Shakirah Thebus shakirah.thebus@inl.co.za A 21-YEAR-OLD Mthatha woman drowned in the Clanwilliam Dam on Saturday, according to the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI). Shortly after 4pm, the NSRI’s Clanwilliam Dam lifeguards, who were on patrol, were alerted by the public to a drowning in progress, lifeguard operations manager Stewart Seini said in a statement. “Lifeguards immediately initiated a free dive search for a 21-year-old female from Mthatha, who was reported to have disappeared under the water while swimming with family members, shortly prior to the NSRI lifeguards’ arrival at the scene,” Seini said. The woman’s body was speedily located and recovered, with CPR efforts taking place on the shore. The woman was taken to a nearby hospital where doctors and nurses continued CPR, but were unable to resuscitate her. She was…

Itumeleng Mafisa itumeleng.mafisa@inl.co.za LEGENDARY people’s poet and Umkhonto we Sizwe veteran Mzwakhe Mbuli has slammed President Cyril Ramaphosa for attending the memorial for ex-president FW de Klerk but failing to visit the Marikana widows. Mbuli said the president had promised to visit the widows with EFF leader Julius Malema but had not done so. It was almost 10 years since 34 miners were killed by police in what he called “blacks killing other blacks”, but there was still no closure for the families, he said. Mbuli was speaking to The Star, reflecting on issues affecting the country and the ANC following his being honoured in a ceremony last week by the Umkhonto we Sizwe Military Veterans Association for his role in the underground Struggle in the 1980s. He said…

Thobani Dlamini Thobani.Dlamini@inl.co.za THE ANC’s Moses Mabhida region held a successful seventh elective conference which elected the current mayor of Msunduzi Municipality, Mzimkhulu Thebolla, as its new chairperson. The two-day conference took place over the weekend at Pietermaritzburg’s Harry Gwala Stadium. The region is the second largest support base for the ANC in KwaZulu-Natal, and has over the past been marred with controversial appointments such as the nomination of corruption accused and now ward 29 councillor in the Msunduzi Municipality, Sphamandla Madlala. Before the commencement of the conference, former regional secretary and mayor of uMgungundlovu, Mzi Zuma, was tipped as the frontrunner for the position of chairperson, which prompted reports of rising factions in the region. However, speaking to the Daily News after the announcement of the results, outgoing…

Gontse Riet Gontse.Riet@inl.co.za SPECTATORS flocked to Plettenberg Bay beach over the weekend to witness the release of three endangered African Penguins, whose numbers have declined considerably due to a myriad factors, leaving the small population extremely endangered. As part of the objectives of the National Biodiversity Management Plan (BMP) for African Penguins to curb and reverse the decline of the African Penguin population over the past decade, and as part of the objectives of the National Biodiversity Management Plan (BMP), the Nature’s Valley Trust and Birdlife South Africa collaborated with Tenikwa Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre to arrange their release from Plettenberg Bay. The penguins are taken in and cared for by the Tenikwa Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre. The centre is one of the largest active wildlife rehabilitation centres in the province and…

Kristin Engel kristin.engel@inl.co.za AN ENORMOUS increase in pets being handed over and abandoned during the festive season is behind the Mdzananda Animal Clinic in Khayelitsha’s #MyFirstChristmas campaign where it introduces homeless pets up for adoption to the public to expose the animals to Christmas cheer. Mdzananda Animal Clinic communications manager Marcelle du Plessis said many people from Khayelitsha went to the Eastern Cape for the festive season and not having a solution, handed their pets over or abandoned them at Mdzananda. “The public can sponsor a shelter pet and our staff and volunteers will make their day special.” Sponsoring options include a good cuddle for R100, a good cuddle and a treat for R200, a good cuddle, treat and play time for R400, and R500 for all of…

staff reporter THREE young musicians triumphed in the 2021 National Youth Music Competition (NYMC) held recently at a gala concert in the Hugo Lambrechts Music Centre in Parow. Six finalists competed against each other with the accompaniment of the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Brandon Phillips. Gerhard Joubert, 19, a pianist and second-year music student at UCT, walked away with the R30 000 first prize and the gold medal. He also bagged the first prize of the piano category, plus two additional prizes, as well as R5 000 for the best performance of a concerto in the final round. The silver medal and R12 500 prize went to the 19-year-old viola player, Eike Coetzee, a matriculant at the Musikgymnasium Schloss Belvedere in Weimar, Germany. Coetzee was…

THE Omicron variant has swept in like a Mozambican cyclone, knocking the region on our backsides once again. We know the structural source: inequitable access to Covid-19 vaccines due to Big Pharma’s greed, backed especially by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and former German leader Angela Merkel who lead the push-back against Cyril Ramaphosa’s reasonable World Trade Organisation’s reform strategy, to briefly waive Intellectual Property. (And then the West has the nerve to wipe out billions in tourist revenue by red-carding South Africa once the travel period began late last month.) Just like we know how 2019’s mega-storms, Idai and Kenneth, and 2021’s Eloise killed 2 000 people, because the Global North’s combustion of fossil fuels warmed the Mozambique Channel – leaving as one result such profound misery that northern…

Sisonke Mlamla sisonke.mlamla@inl.co.za PLANS to take over Cape Town’s commuter rail network by the City have been slammed by critics, with its request falling on deaf ears. The City recently renewed its stance after Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana said the national government intended to introduce reforms in the rail sector by bringing in third-party operators and competition. Transport Mayco member Rob Quintas said for the past five years the City has been appealing to Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula for the necessary permissions that would allow it to begin a process of taking over from the Passenger Rail Agency of SA (Prasa). In 2018, the City intended to appoint a multidisciplinary team of specialists to assist the transport directorate with the undertaking, saying Prasa was failing to provide an efficient…

Sonri Naidoo INSTALIFE is Nomisupasta Nomsa Mazwai’s latest single, with a melodic vocal feature from her sister Thandiswa Mazwai. The song documents what used to only be for the political elite, now being done by the masses. Nomisupasta explains the single was inspired by the civil unrest that erupted in July this year in Kwazulu-Natal and Gauteng. “I heard my daughter coughing and saw her scratching her eyes. For the first time, I smelt tear gas, in a democratic South Africa. We had been sitting by the window watching the chaos unfold of the looting in Jabulani, Soweto. This song is an analysis of why there was widespread looting and makes a comment about the influence of social media on the psychology of the populace. This can’t be freedom,” says…

Sisonke Mlamla sisonke.mlamla@inl.co.za UWC has been accused of evicting hundreds of students, leaving many to sleep outside or on the streets, while others locked themselves in their rooms to avoid eviction. But the university denied the students were being evicted, saying the closing of residences was part of its response to Covid-19. A student, who asked to remain anonymous, said among them were students who were doing their research and used the university’s laboratories, students who have accepted job offers to pay for the 10% upfront payment by the university to register at the beginning of the year. He said the evictions started on Friday night, where students returned to their residences to find they had been locked out, and some were told to vacate the buildings. SA Students’ Congress…

Nomalanga Tshuma nomalanga.tshuma@inl.co.za HUMANITARIAN organisation Gift of the Givers (GOTG) has responded to yet another fire disaster, this time in the Drakenstein Municipality, where more than 400 people lost their homes in a blaze that destroyed 120 shacks. Drakenstein Municipality fire chief Derick Damons said the municipality’s fire services unit, assisted by the Drakenstein Farmwatch, responded to the incident in Drommedaris informal settlement in Mbekweni. “Approximately 100 shacks were destroyed, and one person was injured in the fire, which occurred at around 11.58pm on Friday. Information received points to arson, and the police are investigating. Drakenstein Municipality’s housing department will conduct an assessment of the area as soon as it is possible. It will provide disaster relief to all the affected residents,” Damons said. GOTG spokesperson Ali Sablay said: “Community…

staff reporter ROUGHLY six out of 10 children are multi-dimensionally poor, according to a report on child poverty in South Africa released by Statistics SA. The Covid-19 pandemic had impacted household income, resulting in increased vulnerability among children in underprivileged communities. The Love Foundation, an NGO, decided to take action to help alleviate some of the hardship felt by the most vulnerable on the streets, and local organisations. It recently initiated its Spread Your Wings campaign to spread Christmas cheer amongst the less privileged. Before schools closed for the holidays, Bergvliet Primary School responded to the call to join the campaign and held a civvies day, with children and staff donating toiletry items. Each pupil donated one toiletry item for a child’s wellness pack. They collected enough toiletries for…

KEITUMETSE CHOKWE NELSON Mandela once said: “No one is born hating another person because of the colour of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than it’s opposite.” I’m baffled by the fact that in 2021, we, as South Africans, are still in a steady war with racism. Apartheid is painfully engraved in the country’s history. At school, we are taught about this terrible system that ruined the lives of many who came before us. We are even encouraged, at times compelled, to write exams about apartheid and yet, as learners, we are far from learning valuable lessons about it. Apartheid doesn’t…

Stuart Hess stuart.hess@inl.co.za CHETESHWAR Pujara underlined India’s self-belief by stating that this summer represents India’s best chance of winning a Test series in South Africa. India have tried seven times in the past 30 years, and failed on each occasion to win a series in this country. Given their success in the past 12 months – winning in Australia; claiming two wins out of four matches in the shortened series with England; and their dominance at home – the three-match series that starts in Centurion on the Day of Goodwill does represent India’s best chance of ticking that empty box on their cricket CV. “I am sure there is enough time for us to prepare and the guys are looking forward to this series. This is the best opportunity for…