Innholdsfortegnelse for 2025-05-23 i Cape Argus

The EFF, uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MK Party), the African Transformation Movement (ATM), Cosatu and the Federation of Unions of South Africa (Fedusa) have all expressed strong dissatisfaction with the 2025 National Budget, dubbed Budget 3.0, which was tabled by Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana on Wednesday. The organisations have vowed not to support the passing of the Budget in Parliament. They criticised the Budget for its failure to address the country's pressing issues, including unemployment, poverty, and inequality. In tabling the reviewed Budget, Godongwana confirmed that the VAT hike was scrapped, but announced an increase in fuel levies for motorists. The EFF rejected the Budget outright, describing it as "weak, misguided, and utterly disconnected from the lived reality of South Africans". The party's concerns centre on the massive expenditure cuts, particularly…

A FATHER who was errant in paying his court-ordered maintenance amounts was ordered to serve jail time if he did not cough up his arrears amount owed to the mother of his two minor children. The mother and father, who are divorced under Sharia law, although their civil marriage still stands, both turned to the Western Cape High Court (the father in a counter-application) but the court found in favour of the mother as the primary caregiver of the children. The father – a repeat contempt of court offender – was sentenced to 240 hours of periodical imprisonment over weekends from 6pm on a Friday until 6am on a Monday until the stipulated number of hours had been reached. The sentence would have been suspended if he was able to…

SOUTH Africans might have escaped the dreaded 1% VAT hike proposed in the original Budget, but fuel taxes are now set to rise from the beginning of June. In his revised 2025 Budget proposal, announced on Wednesday, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana announced that the General Fuel Levy (GFL) would increase by 16 cents for petrol and 15 cents for diesel. Although the modest fuel price decrease forecast for June, due to the current price over-recovery, is likely to cancel out the petrol levy increase, the effects of the tax hike will be felt further down the line when international oil prices inevitably rise again. Following the fuel tax hike, which takes effect in June, the GFL will now total R4.01 per litre for petrol and R3.85 for diesel. The total…

THE Western Cape Government has cautiously welcomed the 2025 National Budget, highlighting relief over the avoidance of a VAT hike but expressing concern over ongoing fiscal pressures that threaten essential services. Premier Alan Winde described the Budget process as “difficult and contentious” but acknowledged that key compromises had been made to shield struggling South Africans from further financial strain. “We are relieved that key compromises have been made and that already over-burdened citizens will be spared from the punishing VAT hike proposed in the previous two Budget frameworks,” said Winde. “Our province and country need a Budget that fast-tracks economic reforms, cuts wasteful expenditure, and reprioritises spending towards economic growth and job creation.” The Western Cape’s provincial budget is expected to be tabled in the first week of June. Despite…

THE George Municipality has confirmed that the final report involving the independent structural investigation of the site which was commissioned and undertaken by the Engineering Design Services (EDS) has been handed over to the South African Police. Chantèl Edwards, Manager Communications & IGR, Office of the Municipal Manager told Cape Argus this report will not be made public and involved a bundle of official evidence, which forms part of the criminal investigation. “George Municipality confirms that an independent structural investigation of the site was commissioned and undertaken by Engineering Design Services (EDS) on behalf of the Municipality,” she explained. “The final report has been submitted to the South African Police Service (SAPS) and forms part of the official evidence bundle in the ongoing criminal investigation. Therefore, the report…

Tottenham ended a run of 17 years without a trophy by winning the Europa League, and it could spark further success at the club, whether coach Ange Postecoglou stays in his job or not. The Australian led Spurs to their first European trophy since 1984, but could be sacked, with the team 17th in the Premier League and in their worst domestic campaign since they were promoted back to the top-flight in 1978. Their 1-0 win over Manchester United in Bilbao earned Tottenham Champions League football next season and potentially £100 million as a result. It is money which could be used to bolster a squad that lacks quality in some areas, but was also hampered by injuries. However, the biggest step forward for Spurs could be on a psychological…

It is that time of the week where we get into what your favourite celebrities have been up to in the world of entertainment! From global music tours to gripping courtroom drama, these are the entertainment stories making headlines. 1 Chris Brown granted bail ahead of world tour After reapplying for bail, American R&B singer Chris Brown has finally been granted bail in connection with an assault case in the UK. The Under The Influence singer was released after agreeing to pay a guarantee of R120 million to a UK court. As part of his bail conditions, Brown is allowed to continue with his international tour, which starts on June 8 in Amsterdam. He is required to return to the UK for performances starting June 15. If he fails to…

CAPE Town municipal officers have confiscated 1 670 illegal firearms between 2021 and January 2025; however, only 81 of these cases have resulted in convictions, raising concerns about what the City describes as a failing criminal justice system. Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis revealed the figures during a safety briefing in Hanover Park yesterday, stating that while City policing operations are successfully removing hundreds of illegal guns from the streets every year, the vast majority of these cases collapse before trial. “Our investments to grow policing operations are now resulting in over 400 illegal firearms confiscated annually,” Hill-Lewis said. “These efforts should lead to the removal of hundreds of violent criminals from society each year, but a broken criminal justice system has so far secured convictions in just 5% of the 1…

Umkhonto weSizwe Party (MK Party) spokesperson Nhlamulo Ndhlela has criticised President Cyril Ramaphosa following his meeting with US President Donald Trump on Wednesday, calling him a “fugitive from justice” in connection with the Phala Phala farm scandal. Ndhlela said Ramaphosa should have been held accountable for the undisclosed dollars found on his property (farm) in 2020 and questioned under the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). ‘’What you have there sitting next to Donald Trump is a fugitive from justice. What should be happening is that they should be prosecuting him and asking him to respond to how all those dollars ended up in his couch. This is what should be happening because they are sitting with a person who has caused criminality, and that farm of his is a…

THE grandmother of a boy born in 2019 with cerebral palsy told the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, that the midwife under whose care her daughter was pregnant shoved a forceps into her daughter when she had difficulty in delivering the baby. The grandmother, who may only be identified as Mrs B to protect the now five-year-old child, was the second witness who accused former Pretoria East midwife Yolande Maritz Fouchee of being responsible for the fact that the babies were born with brain damage. Carien Möller (who does not mind being identified) earlier this week testified that her daughter Sophia was also born with cerebral palsy in 2019 while she was under the care of Fouchee. Fouchee is facing 14 charges, including one of culpable homicide and several charges of…

Ruben Amorim said if Manchester United no longer want him he will quit “without any conversation about compensation” after his team’s painful Europa League final defeat to Tottenham. Brennan Johnson scored the only goal of the game shortly before halftime in Bilbao on Wednesday, and toothless United were unable to find a reply. Defeat compounds a disastrous season for the club, who will finish in their lowest league position since they were relegated in 1974. United are 16th in the table with one league game remaining, against Aston Villa on Sunday. An emotional Amorim told reporters after the game that he would stick to his guns despite a terrible run of results since he took over from the sacked Erik ten Hag in November. The former Sporting Lisbon boss, who…

The trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs, has taken another sensational turn as a series of incendiary claims have emerged during his sex-trafficking and racketeering proceedings at the US District Court in Manhattan. The 55-year-old music mogul is accused of running a sex trafficking ring and abusing multiple women over two decades, including his ex-girlfriend, Casandra “Cassie” Ventura. Combs is facing five federal criminal charges, including racketeering, sex trafficking and prostitution. During the trial, his former assistant, David James, testified. He detailed his duties, which had included setting up hotel rooms for Combs, laying out Combs’s clothes and toiletries and procuring “personal items” such as baby oil, lubricant, condoms and snacks. He also described Combs’s medicine bag, which allegedly contained dozens of pill bottles that contained ecstasy and Percocet. During his…

Kleinvlei police station came under attack after recent gang arrests were made. Brazen gunmen, who fired shots at the station from a vehicle and caused damage to infrastructure, are being sought by the Hawks, the Directorate of Priority Crime Investigation. The gunmen were in a BMW and opened fire while driving past the building just before midnight on Wednesday. Police spokesperson Colonel Andre Traut said no one was injured. It is unclear what the motive was. “Unidentified assailants opened fire on the building from a charcoal-coloured VW Polo,” explained Traut. The incident resulted only in structural damage to the facility. The case has been handed over to the Hawks. This is not the first time that the station has come under attack; three years ago, a case of arson was…

THE appointment of three new commissioners of the Electoral Commission of SA (IEC) ahead of next year’s local government elections has been delayed after concerns were raised about the limited publicity surrounding the process. Last month, Chief Justice Mandisa Maya invited nominations to fill the vacancies to be created by the end of the seven-year tenures of IEC chairperson Mosotho Moepya, commissioners Judge Dhaya Pillay and Dr Nomsa Masuku later this year. Moepya, Pillay, and Masuku were appointed by President Cyril Ramaphosa in November 2018. The appointment of IEC commissioners is conducted through a panel chaired by Maya and includes Public Protector Kholeka Gcaleka, as well as representatives of the SA Human Rights Commission and the Commission for Gender Equality, which are all Chapter Nine institutions in terms of the…

FORMER president Thabo Mbeki and former Justice minister Brigitte Mabandla must wait for the commission of inquiry into the failure to prosecute cases referred by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) to set the record straight. This is the response by the families of victims and survivors of apartheid-era crimes to Mbeki and Mabandla’s application to intervene in the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, is an application challenging the government’s conduct in unlawfully refraining and/or obstructing the investigation and/or prosecution of apartheid-era cases referred by the TRC to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA). Additionally, the families and survivors of apartheid-era gross human rights violations also want the high court to declare that the conduct amounting to unlawfully abandoning or undermining these cases violated their rights to equality, dignity, and the right…

IF you can dream, dream big and bring international programs right to the children of Cape Town, like Delft. This is exactly what former Mitchell’s Plain resident, now living in the UK, SA Dart champion Devon Petersen is the founder of Dartboard Maths and the International School Darts League and is the only South African to become a professional dart player on the world circuit. A few years ago, Petersen created a module called Dartboard Maths, inspired by helping his child with mathematics. The first piloted Dart Math Centre opened in Cape Town last week at Rosendal High School in Delft and has already reached global status, starting in South Africa in Gqeberha two years ago and now home to over 400 young dart players. Petersen has partnered with NPC,…

The Stormers will be disappointed that Damian Willemse has been handed a three-match ban by a United Rugby Championship disciplinary panel, despite the Springbok entering what amounted to a plea bargain. Willemse’s role in the URC is possibly over as his ban starts with next week’s quarter-final against Glasgow, and would include a potential semi-final. The 27-year-old could play in a possible final if he attends “tackle school,” which would lop one of the games off his suspension. Willemse was red-carded in the Stormers’ defeat of Cardiff last Friday, and while there was no debate that contact was made with the head of wing Gabe Hamer-Webb, there appeared to be mitigating circumstances. As Stormers coach John Dobson put it, “Damian was stuck (in a gang tackle), and was trying to…

My brother-in-law is obsessed. No more obsessed than I am with my preferred hobby: jamming Assassin’s Creed on my Xbox, or musing about the importance of sport – like which angle to pursue on Mamelodi Sundowns’ upcoming CAF Champions League final against Pyramids, or how critical to be about my local rugby team’s recent performances – but obsessed nonetheless. The other day, he whipped out a newly acquired driver – I forget its name, but I do recall slick black lines and red trim – cradling it like a new-born. With that driver, he assured me, his game would be taken up a notch to the next level, in pursuit of the perfect round or perhaps a lower handicap. I stared blankly at the piece of, admittedly, impressive engineered equipment.…