Innholdsfortegnelse for 2025-01-20 i Cape Argus

The vibrant and often chaotic family dynamics of an all-women household comes to life in extraordinary fashion in the Mzansi Magic reality show The Matshai Sisters. It chronicles the daily lives of five sisters and their mother. They are 43-year-old Thoko, the family’s feisty eldest child who is convinced their family is cursed and is on a mission to heal their fractured bonds. It also features Phumzile, 41, who is ready to step into her own power after sacrificing for her family, 35-year-old twins Zanele and Zandile and Busi, 25, the youngest sister. They are all held together by the family’s matriarch Ntombi Matshai, 68, who frequently gets caught in the storm of her daughters’ relentless disputes. The women are all bold and candid as they take viewers on their…

CAPE Town teacher Kelly Manus’s allegations of sexual harassment have led to community protests and police involvement, as she pursues legal action against her ex colleague at Symphony High School in Belhar. The case has gained significant attention since Manus took to social media last week to share her experience of sexual harassment. Several community members and political parties held placards reading “Stop harassing teachers and kids” and “Justice for Kelly” as they picketed in front of the school on Friday. A memorandum was handed over to members of the school, which demanded a fair and independent investigation. Vanessa le Roux of Parents for Equal Education, who has been speaking on behalf of Manus, said they now demand answers from police as to why the case was not registered…

AT LEAST three provinces have indicated they would need more than R7.7 billion to complete more than 260 housing projects that have stalled for various reasons across the country. Five other provinces have not disclosed the amounts to be budgeted to resuscitate their stalled projects, a move that sees the expenditure to be incurred totalling further billions of rand. This was revealed by Human Settlements Minister, Thembi Simelane, who was replying to EFF MP Marshall Dlamini, who enquired about the blocked housing projects in each of the provinces and the reasons the projects have stalled. Simelane said there were 271 blocked projects comprising 262 blocked projects for Breaking New Ground housing units and nine distressed social housing projects. “These projects face diverse challenges ranging from contractor abandonment to infrastructure shortages…

THE spat between police and labour union, the General Industries Workers Union of South Africa (Giwusa), over allegations regarding the blasting of shaft 10 at Buffelfontein Gold Mine near Stilfontein, continues. This was after Giwusa demanded that police allow a public inspection of the shaft and that this must include the right to document any findings. The union accused police of bombing shaft 10 in the abandoned mine. About 78 bodies, as well as 240 illegal miners, have been hoisted to the surface as part of a rescue operation after the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, ordered operations to commence last weekend. Giwusa released a statement on Saturday, stating that it was shocked to the core by the news that police bombed shaft 10 in Stilfontein. “There are miners, including Ayanda…

DELAYS to the Table View Beachfront upgrade project have not gone unnoticed by residents, who express frustration at not being able to use the area. The City said the project faced significant challenges last year, which caused delays in upgrading civil infrastructure. On Saturday, the City issued a statement announcing that the contractor’s agreement was terminated in November due to ongoing performance issues and failure to meet construction milestones. “Despite efforts to resolve delays, the contractor failed to adhere to the approved schedule and address defaults within the required period, resulting in the termination of the contract. The City has, however, developed a revised plan to ensure the completion of the project.” The Table View Beachfront covers a stretch of 3km of coastline, from Dolphin Beach in the south to…

Manchester United crashed to a dismal 3-1 defeat against Brighton as Ruben Amorim’s problems mounted on the day Old Trafford paid a sombre tribute to legendary striker Denis Law. Amorim’s side were hoping to mark Law’s death aged 84 by producing the kind of entertaining display that was the hallmark of the United star’s teams. Instead they crumbled to a sixth defeat in 11 league games since Amorim arrived from Sporting Lisbon to replace the sacked Erik ten Hag. United are languishing in 13th place and although they are 10 points above the relegation zone, they are far from certain to avoid being dragged into the survival fight on the evidence of this wretched display. Yankuba Minteh set the tone for United’s moribund performance with an early opener for Brighton.…

The Spar netball Proteas will be having nightmares of Jamaica goal shooter Shimona Jok, whose dominance of the shooting circle led the Sunshine Girls to a hard-fought 55-47 win in the first Test of the three-match Margaret Beckford Sunshine Series in Kingston. Proteas head coach Jenny van Dyk had warned before the series opener of the threat posed by the giant 1.95m Jamaican in the absence of first-choice goal shooters Jhaniele Fowler-Nembard and Romelda Aiken-George. The powerful, athletic Jok lived up to that billing as she netted 38 goals from 39 attempts on Saturday (early Sunday morning SA time), according to the Sportsmax website. She gave the Proteas defenders a torrid time, plucking balls out of the air with almost majestic ease, especially after South African goalkeeper Nicola…

Paarl Boys High scored a massive surprise in beating visitors Wynberg by 39 runs in a single innings unlimited overs schools game. It was the first time in a decade that Boishaai were able to record a win over the team from the Southern Suburbs. The Cape Winelands side won the toss and had no hesitation to bat on a wicket that was slow and bereft of any grass. After losing opening batter Bjorn Berry (10) early on, it was left to fellow opener Neil Louw (49) and Brent Goosen (28) to stabilize the innings. Both showed excellent application in seeing off the new ball and effectively blunting the much vaunted Wynberg attack. They also benefited from dropped chances as they took the score to a solid 81/1. It was…

Disney+ has added an intriguing title to its streaming library with the upcoming release of Nightb***h. Set to premiere on Friday, this highly anticipated film, adapted from Rachel Yoder’s critically acclaimed debut novel, promises to transport audiences into the surreal realm of contemporary motherhood. It is directed and written by award-winning director, writer, actor and producer, Marielle Heller. Set in the suburbs, the film follows a woman, played by award-winning actress, Amy Adams, who pauses her career to become a stay-at-home mom. She experiences a transformation that makes her feel like she is turning into a dog. ​ ​ Inspired by her personal journey, Yoder penned Nightb***h after encountering her own struggles with identity as a new parent. “I was by myself, a stay-at-home mom, something I never thought I’d…

HOUSING lobby group, Reclaim the City, has urged Capetonians to take a stand against the displacement and lack of meaningful engagement as the public participation period for the disposal of Cissie Gool House (CGH) comes to a close on January 31. Cissie Gool House, formerly the old Woodstock Hospital, has been a contentious site for the City of Cape Town, which has gone to court to remove the occupiers. The site was occupied in 2017 in protest over the City and Western Cape Government’s alleged “abject failure to deliver a single affordable home in the inner-city and surrounds since the dawn of democracy”. In October 2018, the Western Cape High Court granted the City an order interdicting and restraining Reclaim the City from “inciting persons to enter or be upon…

The Stormers coaches were proud with the fight the players showed against Racing 92 despite being light of a few stars against some world class international opponents. It took a late 76th-minute try for the French giants to bury the Cape outfit, but the visitors will also look back on some missed opportunities on the attack, which prevented them from getting a famous win at the La Defense Arena in Paris. Racing knocked the Stormers out of the Champions Cup with a 31-22 victory, and the result on Sunday evening between Sale Sharks and Toulon will determine if they qualify for the Challenge Cup or not. “It was a disappointing loss in Paris, but there is lots to be proud of,” Stormers director of rugby John Dobson reflected after the…

Durban’s Super Giants: 115/8 (Williamson 44, Naveen-ul-Haq 30*, Dawson 2/11, Gleeson 2/19, Jansen 2/23, Baartman 2/30) Sunrisers Eastern Cape: 117/4 (Bedingham 39, Markram 31*, Maharaj 2/18) Sunrisers Eastern Cape won by six wickets GQEBERHA – The Sunrisers Eastern Cape had a date with Carte Blanche on yesterday evening as they raced to a second consecutive bonus point victory over Durban’s Super Giants at a stirring St George’s Park. The defending champions are suddenly looking like the team that have won back-to-back SA20 titles and not the bumbling group that stumbled to three consecutive defeats at the start of this season’s competition. And the revival has been kickstarted by their bowling unit once again. The Sunrisers have always relied on their pacemen to set the tone and it was Marco Jansen…

Proteas white-ball coach Rob Walter’s fast bowling headaches multiplied on Sunday after Gerald Coetzee was ruled out of the remainder of the SA20 with a hamstring injury. The Joburg Super Kings tearaway played in his team’s opener against Durban’s Super Giants last week but subsequently missed the next match against Pretoria Capitals and the “El Clasico” against MI Cape Town at Newlands. The Proteas have already been rocked by Anrich Nortje’s withdrawal from the Proteas’ Champions Trophy squad due to a back injury last week. Coetzee, who was the Proteas’ leading wicket-taker at the 2023 World Cup in India, was being lined up as a like-for-like replacement in the pace department. Cricket SA have not officially ruled Coetzee out of Champions Trophy contention as yet with squads only needing to…

Ryan Rickelton is certainly putting his best foot forward for a starting berth at the ICC Champions Trophy next month. The flamboyant opener returned from a bout of Covid19 - “I was a man down for four or five days” - to the MI Cape Town starting XI with an explosive 39-ball 89 at a rousing Newlands on Saturday evening. Rickelton’s love affair with the majestic ground at the foot of Table Mountain has been raised to new levels after his mammoth 259 in the New Year Test against Pakistan earlier this month there too. The 27-year-old has yet to feature in a major ICC tournament though after failing to crack a game at last year’s ICC T20 World Cup in the US and Caribbean. But considering his red-hot form…

DESPITE his returns of 1/122 in three SA20 matches that Paarl Royals fast bowler Lungi Ngidi has managed since coming back from injury earlier this month, the 28-year-old has looked strong at the crease and thus bowled at a decent pace. For a team such as the Royals, an experienced fast bowler such as Ngidi forms a big part of the bowling plans, especially in an encounter such as tonight’s clash against Joburg Super Kings at Boland Park. Ngidi's skills, which include all the slower balls and cutters in the game, and his composure in high-pressure moments, make him a formidable bowler against a strong Super Kings’ top-order which includes Faf du Plessis, Devon Conway and Jonny Bairstow. Understanding this, Paarl Royals head coach Shane Bond alongside captain David Miller…

ADVOCATE Jeremy Gauntlett, a respected South African lawyer, has recused himself from the panel reviewing the Anglican Church of SA’s handling of reports of abuse by former camp master, John Smyth. This comes after allegations that he carried out similar acts with a teenage boy, who is now a lecturer at Wits University. The news went viral on Twitter at the weekend, after Archbishop Thabo Makgoba of Cape Town released a statement that he accepted Gauntlett’s offer to step down from the panel set up to examine the activities of the alleged serial abuser, Smyth, in South Africa. The panel consisted of civil society leader Dr Mamphela Ramphele, Gauntlett, and Judge Ian Farlam, a retired judge of the Supreme Court of Appeal. Makgoba explained via the statement how…

IN ANOTHER twist, King Msuzulu kaZwelithini has denied cancelling his traditional wedding to his third wife-to-be, Queen Nomzamo Myeni. A letter with the kingdom’s official letterhead and logo purportedly signed by the king, claimed yesterday that Misuzulu directed the director-general of the KwaZulu-Natal provincial government, Nonhlanhla Mkhize, to withdraw Myeni’s security and other benefits as a result of him cancelling the wedding. The letter alleged the reasoning was beyond the royal family’s control. In an exclusive telephone interview with both the king and queen yesterday, the couple denied the authenticity of the letter. Myeni reacted with shock to the news of cancellation of her wedding. “What cancellation? What are you talking about? I’m with the king here and we do not know what you are talking about. The king has…

ANC spokesperson, Mahlengi Bhengu-Motsiri, has revealed that the party is considering two options in relation to the future of Gauteng and KZN Provincial Executive Committees (PECs). At the weekend, the party hosted its first ordinary national executive committee meeting at the Birchwood Hotel in Boksburg. Initially, ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula presented three potential pathways: the disbandment of the provincial structures, reinforcing their positions, or maintaining the status quo. However, after comprehensive discussions among NEC members, the options have been refined. Bhengu-Motsiri confirmed that the focus has shifted to either reinforcing the provincial leadership or dissolving it altogether, given the ANC’s electoral setbacks. The pivotal meeting comes on the heels of disappointing results in the recent elections, adding pressure to the party’s already fragile dominance in key provinces. Since losing control…

CAUGHT in a rip current for 45 minutes at Wilderness Beach along the Garden Route on Friday, Darren Sutton, a tourist from Northumberland in the UK, has released a video thanking the heroic lifeguard who risked her life to save his. The 59-year-old and his wife, Linda Barrett, while on a three-week holiday in South Africa, were staying at Beach House B&B in Wilderness for two nights when the incident occurred. In the video, a visibly shaken Sutton said that as a regular and proficient long-distance swimmer, he considers himself a strong swimmer, but that was no match for the current that swept him away. “I got into awful trouble this morning. I drifted and then drifted again, and I tried to swim hard to get in but I was…

AUDIOBOOKS are more popular than ever in 2025, becoming one of the fastest-growing trends in publishing industry. With people always on the move and struggling to find the time to read, audiobooks have become the go-to-option for enjoying stories and learning on the go. Over the past few years, the audiobook market has exploded with millions of listeners tuning in while commuting, exercising or even doing household chores and technology is one of the biggest reasons for the surge. Artificial Intelligence (AI) has also made it easier and cheaper to produce books, while narrators bring stories to life, making listening an engaging experience. Audiobooks are not only about convenience, they are helping those who might otherwise struggle with reading. People who are visually impaired or have learning disabilities such as…

Mfundo Vilakazi emerged as the hero for Kaizer Chiefs as they clinched a dramatic late 1-0 victory against Sekhukhune United at the Moses Mabhida Stadium on Sunday afternoon. The 19-year-old substitute provided the much-needed spark, scoring the decisive goal just three minutes before the final whistle as he danced through the defence to curl a shot into the bottom corner. The match’s turning point arrived shortly before Chiefs found the net when Sekhukhune defender Vuyo Letlapa was sent off after receiving a red card in the 84th minute. With a man advantage, the Glamour Boys capitalised quickly, showcasing their determination to snatch all three points. This victory marked the second win in three matches for Chiefs, propelling them to fifth place in the Betway Premiership standings, a mere four points…

Carlos Alcaraz reached his second Australian Open quarter-final yesterday when his opponent Jack Draper retired injured when trailing 7-5 6-1. The third-seeded Spaniard was well on top in the afternoon match at Rod Laver Arena against the Briton, who exited the court for a longmedical time-out between the sets. “This is not the way that I want to get through to the next round. I'm just happy to play another quarter-final here in Australia," Alcaraz said on court. “But really sorry for Jack. He doesn't deserve to get injured. He couldn't prepare the start of the season well." It was the second time Draper retired injured against Alcaraz, having cut short their 2023 match at Indian Wells due to an abdominal strain. Alcaraz will meet a red-hot Djokovic, who thumped…

MAMELODI SUNDOWNS (1)(1) Shalulile 13’ AS FAR RABAT (0)(1) Zauhzouh 83’ Mamelodi Sundowns are synonymous with their ‘seven sign’ as they reached the Caf Champions League quarter-final for the seventh season in succession. The Brazilians finished second in Group B with nine points, one behind log leaders AS FAR who held them to a draw in Pretoria last night. While they’ll be disappointed by their finish, they’ll, nonetheless, join fellow SA based side Orlando Pirates in the quarter-final of the premier African football…

JOSE RIVEIRO might be new to continental football, but the Spaniard is shrewd enough to know not to get carried away by good results. As The Ghost excitedly celebrated Orlando Pirates’ progression to the quarter-final of the CAF Champions League and many among the Buccaneers’ faithful already foreseeing a second star above the club’s crossbones and skull insignia, Riveiro was staying grounded. Speaking after Pirates’ 2-1 defeat of record champions and current holders Al Ahly in Cairo on Saturday night, the young coach rather focused on his team’s performance than the result. The interviewer asked the Buccaneers coach if Pirates topping the group by going unbeaten in the six matches was a clear message to the rest of the competitors that the South Africans are serious contenders. “No,” was his…