Innholdsfortegnelse for 2022-01-06 i Cape Argus

Cher lives “a very strange life”. The 75-year-old singer – who is one of the best-selling artists of all time – has revealed that she communicates with people from “every walk of life” in an effort to stay grounded. “I’m usually on the road, travelling in a group that’s always together, unless I go out of my way, or if I see people on the street and talk to them.” Cher comes from a humble background and she’s always been determined to remember her roots and where she’s come from in life. The chart-topping star also thinks she’s “learned” a great deal from people from different walks of life. “I’ve talked to homeless people on the street and have had better conversations than with some head of a company.”…

Cayla Murray | Spokesperson for Premier Alan Winde The review of Premier Alan Winde’s performance by the Cape Argus (January 4, 2022) is inaccurate and disappointing. The fact is that Premier Alan Winde heads the best-run provincial government in South Africa, with the lowest unemployment rate, the best public health system, an extensive provincial safety plan with more than 1 000 additional boots on the ground, a quality education system with improved retention rates and the highest bachelor pass rate, and when doing so, delivers corruption-free, clean government (the most clean by some margin). He has led a government responsible for, by far, the best, corruption-free response to Covid-19, with the highest vaccination coverage in South Africa. The journalist questions the premier’s intention to procure vaccines as a…

MOHAMED SAEED | Pietermaritzburg I wish to express my disappointment with Queen Elizabeth of England’s decision to award Tony Blair a Knighthood Companion of the Most Noble Order of the Garter, which is the oldest and the highest-ranking British Order of Chivalry. May I ask what outstanding public service and achievement Blair accomplished or what act of bravery he did? Blair is the least eligible person of any public honour for his lies about Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction and the illegal war and invasion in 2002 and 2003 on Iraq, a sovereign country. The Chilcot Report into the Iraq War in 2016 found Blair presented the case for invasion with “a certainty which was not justified” and based on “flawed” intelligence. It is incomprehensible how the…

Rafieka Williams rafieka.williams@inl.co.za ECONOMISTS say a proposed national minimum wage (NMW) increase will most likely have a more negative impact on the economy than good. Minister of Employment and Labour Thulas Nxesi confirmed he is yet to make a decision on a proposed minimum wage increase for 2022. The NMW commission suggested the wage of R21.69 per hour be increased by +1% of the CPI inflation which is at 5% which means that the new proposed wage will be 23.10 per hour. The commission proposed that domestic workers be entitled to receive the same amount as the NMW. Previously this was at 88% of the NMW, bringing the adjustment on domestic workers wages to more than 20%, from R19.09 to R23.10. Economist Daniel Silke said, “South Africa is facing rising…

Mwangi Githahu mwangi.githahu@inl.co.za The opposition’s criticism is important as a catalyst for public discourse, which is vital for democracy. However, choosing when to seek consensus and when to be strictly adversarial can be tricky – even for old hands at the game. ANC provincial Community Safety spokesperson Mesuli Kama After a stellar 95 percent committee meeting attendance rate in 2020, Kama seems to have been less eager in 2021, only managing 77 percent attendance. Nevertheless, he asks the right questions and probes the activities of the department he shadows but could sharpen his communication skills to more effect and not be shy to score against MEC Fritz. 5/10 ANC provincial Agriculture spokesperson Pat Marran Marran has one of the best records of standing committee attendance, scoring 100…

How can the anti-corruption enforcement institutional framework be made stronger? How can it be improved to better realise corruption prevention, and effective investigation and prosecution? There are three main points which need to be highlighted in answer to these questions. First, the need for a proper diagnosis: South Africa has been cautioned on the danger of the fifteenth agency, it has to think about that option very carefully. Second, on the question as to what is needed: is that a new agency or a new modus operandi? Thirdly what lessons may be leveraged from what has been shepherded in by Western anti-corruption agencies which has led to increased enforcement and prevention-focused compliance? What lessons can South Africa glean from these best practices? It is useful to situate this discussion within…

Brigitte Macron, Michelle Obama and Jacinda Ardern are among some of the world’s most powerful women who have fallen victim to a growing trend: disinformation about their sex or sexuality to mock or, worse, humiliate them. For months messages have appeared on social media claiming that Macron is a transgender woman originally named Jean-Michel. The fake news flared up in December, only a few months before presidential elections in April. New Zealand’s prime minister Ardern and former US first lady Obama were also the target of false rumours, in 2018 and 2017, that they were born as men. The rumours spread like wildfire on social media. It doesn’t matter that virtually nobody believes that Macron is a transgender woman; the lies open the door to insults, scorn and even cyber-harassment.…

Shakirah Thebus shakirah.thebus@inl.co.za METRORAIL is taking a firmer approach to even the pettiest of crimes against its infrastructure. This comes after the railway operator opened a case of malicious damage to property after a group of youths stoned its new train. Acting spokesperson Nana Zenani said the incident took place on Tuesday and the complaint was lodged with the police on the same day. The train was stoned at Steenberg Station while en route to Fish Hoek Station. “The stone caused damage to the side window of the driver’s cabin which will now have to be replaced. More damage could have been caused and a commuter hurt. Fortunately this was not the case,” Zenani said. The cost of the damage is R20 000. “The assets were bought and are being…

GOOD Party’s Herron wants it disbanded Mwangi Githahu mwangi.githahu@inl.co.za Police Minister Bheki Cele has been asked to investigate the legality of the City’s Safety and Security Investigation Unit (SSIU), which was until recently known as the Special Investigation Unit (SIU). The request was contained in a letter from GOOD Party secretary-general Brett Herron, who also wants the unit dismantled. Last night Police Ministry spokesperson Lirandzu Themba said it had not yet received the letter. Herron, who also addressed his request to national police commissioner Khehla Sitole, said the City had a policing/intelligence structure that operated outside the parameters of the Police Act and, unlike the municipal police service, was not subject to provincial oversight. “The SIU (or SSIU) is a rogue and dangerous arrogation of unlawful policing, security and intelligence…

WE HAVE unfair discrimination in the workplace despite a wonderful Constitution and much legislation since 1994. The issue has become a complex part of labour legislation and is often difficult to implement properly. We need to look carefully at discrimination – including racial, gender and disability problem areas. The preamble to the Employment Equity Act states that we need to promote the constitutional right of equality and exercise of true democracy. We need to eliminate unfair discrimination in employment and ensure the implementation of employment equity to redress the effects of discrimination. Our Constitution saw fit to implement the rights of redress and social engineering to try to correct the imbalance of the past. Although I do not believe that it is e ffective, it is important as it is…

Manya Bredell | Sunningdale WITH reference to the article in the Cape Argus (Sunningdale residents bemoan homeless people, January 5). The matter of the homeless has spiralled out of control, not only now under Covid-19 conditions but for the last 30 years. It is not only in Sunningdale but the whole wider Table View, other suburbs and the city centre areas. Surely the homeless need to have a place to stay? They are not interested in shelters; that has been a known fact for 30 years. What they want or not does not give them the right to harass and threaten the public, make fires, destroy, sleep at MyCiTi bus stations and residences or dump rubbish all over public open spaces. If they have the right to do…

Mthuthuzeli Ntseku mthuthuzeli.ntseku@inl.co.za LOBBY group Stop CoCT and ratepayers are seeking clarity on the City's prepaid electricity metering software update which began last week in the Milnerton, Table View, Blaauwberg, Parklands and Melkbosstrand areas. Stop CoCT founder Sandra Dickson said while this was a good idea, there was scant information available on what changes the new software would bring and how this would benefit the ratepayers. The City said failure to upgrade would result in customers not being able to recharge their meters with new tokens and they would be left without a power supply. It said the upgrade would follow a phased approach, with Plattekloof, Parow and Goodwood to follow from February 1. Dickson said the City should be more forthcoming with information about the upgrades. “These meters have…

The case of a 37-year-old man accused of being involved in a cash-in-transit heist was postponed until January 12 for bail information at Worcester Magistrate’s Court yesterday. Sebenzile Macebo made a brief appearance in the court, where he was charged with armed robbery after he handed himself to the Hawks’ on Monday. He is alleged to be one of the two armed men who accosted a G4S crew member while he collected money from a grocery store in Zwelethemba, Worcester. Hawks spokesperson Philani Nkwelase said these men disarmed him and grabbed the cross-pavement-carrier (CPC) box that had been activated and fled the scene with a getaway vehicle. Macebo will remain in custody. Elsewhere a 26-year-old man appear at the Thembalethu Magistrates’ court on charges of possession of suspected stolen property…

Bongani Kona Mandla Langa and Mphuthumi Ntabeni’s new novels, “The Lost Language of the Soul” and “The Wanderers”, intersect in their reflections on the lives of Umkhonto we Sizwe freedom fighters. NOVELIST, poet and short story writer Mandla Langa’s latest book, The Lost Language of the Soul, is a coming-of-age tale set in Zambia and apartheid South Africa in the late 1980s. The novel chronicles the odyssey of Joseph Mabaso, the son of an Umkhonto we Sizwe soldier who goes in search of his mother after her disappearance from their home in Lusaka. The search takes Langa’s teenage protagonist through towns and borders until he ends up in South Africa. History is also at the heart of Mphuthumi Ntabeni’s fiction. He won the University of Johannesburg Debut Prize in 2019…

Asian financial hub Hong Kong banned flights from eight nations yesterday as part of strict new virus curbs, with Omicron outbreaks spiralling out of control from Europe to the US. The new coronavirus variant is spreading rapidly across continents, leaving governments rushing to roll out vaccine boosters and bolster health-care systems as infection numbers reach new highs. Britain, the US, France and Australia have all announced record case numbers in recent days, while China has imposed lockdowns in two cities and rolled out mass testing for millions as it doubles down on its “zero Covid” policy ahead of the Beijing Winter Olympics. Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam said the city was shuttering bars and gyms and cancelling evening restaurant dining after Omicron was detected in the international business hub. The…

Oluthando Keteyi Local DJ Prince Kaybee has shared the first glimpse of the child he welcomed late last year. In October, the award-winning producer and his partner radio presenter Zola Mhlongo had a baby. Prince Kaybee shared a snap of his bundle of joy being held by his mother. The Charlotte hitmaker simply captioned his post with a red heart emoji. Mhlongo also shared another picture from their family Christmas celebration. The picture has Zola and their bundle surrounded by Prince Kaybee’s mother and other family members. The DJ has always kept a low-profile around his relationship, especially after last year’s cheating scandal. He did not even post any snaps of his partner’s maternity shoot.…

Itumeleng Mafisa itumeleng mafisa@inl.co.za Those passing through Constitutional Hill yesterday were shocked to see the precinct around the court cordoned off with red rape. Police were scouring the area after a man shattered several windows. The damage to the Constitutional Court is the second attempt at paralysing the country’s national key points. Police said there were staff inside the court when the incident took place. They said: “Police responded to reports of a man breaking windows with a hammer at the Constitutional Court in Johannesburg. The suspect, who is 36 years old, has been arrested and charged with malicious damage to property and will appear in court soon.” Throughout the week, security experts warned that South Africa had to beef up its security at its national key points, such as…

Shakirah Thebus shakirah.thebus@inl.co.za WITH only a week left, members of the public and businesses operating in the city are urged to submit input for the drafting of the City’s new five-year Integrated Development Plan (IDP). The IDP focuses on the needs of Cape Town, service delivery, and how to involve communities and reach communities and residents. The IDP will be the City’s principal strategic guide for all planning, budgeting and delivery over the next five years. The draft IDP will be made available for public comment during March/April 2022. The City said: “Once approved, the IDP will set the City of Cape Town’s developmental goals and needs, and other strategic priorities for the period. Thus, it is an extremely important policy document as the City’s budget and performance targets for…

Another academic year has passed. There has been no report in the national newspapers about the results of Grades 1 to 11 students nationally. It would be good for the South African public to hear how the nation has done nationally. There is no reason for the public not to know. We should know so that we can have the discussion of what needs to be done to improve our education. Soon – on January 21, 2022 – the entire country will want to know how our matrics of 2021 fared in the national exams. In South Africa our students in matric are given a number and you can see the results in the national newspapers if you know the number of the student. Imagine if newspapers were only allowed…

Mwangi Githahu mwangi.githahu@inl.co.za WE conclude our review of how the provincial executive committee fared in 2021 looking at the vital Social Development, Agriculture, Education and Finance MECs. Social Development MEC Sharna Fernandez: In a province that has such a high incidence of GBV, it seems odd that in a bid to enable social workers in the department to deal with the scourge, only 50 social workers attended a trauma debriefing learning programme rolled out by the department. It also didn’t sit well that of the 1 657 children placed in foster care this year, only 8% were reunited with their families between January and August. More effort is needed in these areas. 4/10 Agriculture MEC Ivan Meyer: Meyer refuses to apply the Broad-based Black Economic Empowerment (BBBEE) code measures. He…

Zainul Dawood zainul.dawood@inl.co.za SOUTH Africans will once again be reminded of the important role that Joe Slovo played in the liberation Struggle at a commemorative event in Soweto today. Following the 1994 elections, Slovo was appointed Minister for Housing in then-President Nelson Mandela’s government, until his death on January 6, 1995 of cancer. Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (Popcru) spokesperson Richard Mamabolo said they supported the upcoming 27th Joe Slovo Commemorative event at Avalon Cemetery. “We join millions of South Africans from all walks of life in remembering and saluting the immense contributions made by comrade Slovo in our Struggle to liberate ourselves from the tyranny of apartheid and colonialism of a special type.” Mamabolo said Slovo had left a legacy that should continue to be cherished as…

Indian police are investigating an online Bulli Bai app that shared images of Muslim women for an “auction” in a case of alleged hate crime against minority groups. Police said an 18-year-old woman and two men in their early twenties had been detained in connection with the app. Bulli Bai is a derogatory term to describe Muslim women. Investigations are also continuing in the “Sulli Deals” mobile app, which surfaced in July using photos of Muslim women without their consent to “auction” them on the app. |…

Doctors in Ethiopia’s war-hit Tigray region say patients are needlessly dying of treatable conditions because a de facto blockade is preventing medicines and other life-saving supplies from reaching stricken hospitals. A dire shortage of oxygen, intravenous fluids and other critical equipment had made surgery and essential procedures almost impossible over the past six months, according to doctors from Tigray’s biggest hospital. “As a result, children who needed shunt surgeries are left to die, those with treatable cancers are denied their rights and those with fractures are forced to wait while being immobilised,” said a statement from doctors at Ayder Referral Hospital dated January 4. Thousands of people have died in Ethiopia’s 14-month-long war and parts of Tigray are experiencing famine conditions. The region is also under a communications blackout…