Innholdsfortegnelse for 2022-01-27 i Star

Dieketseng Maleke dieketseng.maleke@inl.co.za IN AN EFFORT to reduce costs and maximise existing cash reserved for its Spanish Toral project, Europa Metals has announced that it has cut the salaries of three directors. The JSE-listed company said yesterday that the cost reduction programme started on January 1. “The company’s existing directors Myles Campion, Laurence Read and Evan Kirby have agreed to the deferral/accrual of 50 percent of their director remuneration (comprising consulting fees and/or salaries) in respect of the 2022 calendar year, with such accrued remuneration to then be settled via the issue of new ordinary shares,” Europa Metals said. Europa Metals chief executive Laurence Read said: “Our cost-cutting programme aims to ensure that our resources are directed as far as possible on project-related expenditure and existing operations, as well…

Farouk Araie | Benoni FRANK Dutton, an NPA investigator, has died. His death leaves our fractured and beleaguered nation immeasurably poorer, for we have lost a dedicated man who was our country’s servant in every meaning of the word. There are few men or women who could equal his devotion to the principles upon which our democracy was founded. Our nation is diminished by the death of a patriot who was one of the greatest defenders of freedom under the rule of law. He leaves a legacy that we are grateful to inherit. He had the rare combination of a good court personality and the qualities of a profound lawyer. He argued the points of law involved in any case with logic and had high standards of craftsmanship…

Morgan Bolton morgan.bolton@inl.co.za AS MY esteemed colleague and cricketing guru, Stuart Hess, noted on Wednesday on the backpage of this paper that there was not enough praise that can be heaped on Proteas captains Dean Elgar and Temba Bavuma. Both men – Elgar in the Test, and Bavuma in the ODIs – have been the paradigm of leadership qualities this month in a tough India Tour of South Africa. At the start of the international season in the country, the Proteas were largely written off as a serious challenge to the Indian side. The first Test loss seemed to give credence to this thought. But then we did not account for Elgar. Much like his batting style, the 34-year-old is a tough, no-nonsense player with a strength of will to…

Anita Nkonki anita.nkonki@inl.co.za THERE is no denying that amapiano has infiltrated the entertainment industry by taking centre stage all over the country and commanding global attention. The domination of this much-loved music genre has seen it hailed as the new sound of South Africa while also being widely recognised outside our borders. And it is evident that people want to see more of this hot music genre dominating the screens as well, as MTV Base is gearing up to premiere a new amapiano show, Yanos Roundtable, with Tshego Koke at the helm as the host. The show will be graced by the industry’s finest as the panel of judges deciding which amapiano hit dominated 2021. DJ and internet sensation Uncle Waffles, film director Thando Mokeona, artist manager and businessman…

The fire that recently devastated the Parliamentary precinct is a stark reminder of the importance of insurance, and ensuring that your home is equipped with well-maintained and regularly tested fire protection equipment. “One of the biggest concerns around house fires is the belief that ‘it can never happen to me’,” says Ricardo Coetzee, Head of Auto & General Insurance. “The fact is that it can and will if you let your guard down. To prevent house fires, homeowners must ensure that all heating equipment is properly maintained and fit for the job.” The main causes of house fires include: Fireplace-related incidents, many of them due to poor maintenance. Heaters, stoves, irons, electrical blankets and other electrical equipment left on or unattended. Candles left unattended or left burning near curtains. Leaking…

Staff Reporter IT’S ALL systems go as Stats SA says it is ready to conduct the nationwide population and housing census from February 3 – 28. During the fourth population count post-democracy and the country’s first digital census, at least 165 000 fieldworkers will be deployed across the country to count everyone within the borders of South Africa. The census was due to be conducted in October last year but was delayed due to disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Deputy Minister in the Presidency Thembi Siweya visited Stats SA’s head office at Salvokop on Tuesday and was briefed on the state of readiness by Statistician-General Risenga Maluleke and Census 2022 project director Calvin Molongoana. “I am pleased that we can now have fresh data to help us with policy…

Kriben Reddy Who’d want to be in the automotive industry right now? It’s one of the sectors that’s been hardest-hit by the pandemic – and just when sales started picking up after a disastrous 2020, along came the civil unrest of July, the third wave of Covid-19 and a global microchip shortage that put a huge brake on new car supply and sales. But it’s not all doom and gloom. In fact, we’re standing on the brink of a brave new world for the industry. The way we buy, own and use vehicles is changing fundamentally, as is the technology that powers and connects them. What can we expect for the industry in 2022? Here are the top four trends we should be keeping an eye on in the next…

Siphiwe Nyanda THIS is the last of a three-part series on how secret internationalist support for the armed Struggle by courageous individuals helped overthrow the apartheid regime, extracted from a new book, International Brigade Against Apartheid: Secrets of the People’s War That Liberated South Africa, edited by former intelligence minister Ronnie Kasrils. Here is an edited extract. In developing our armed Struggle, we owed so much to the courage, skill and devotion to African freedom by nationals of the front-line states. Here are just four examples to illustrate that magnificent international commitment. Bernardo: In 1979 I was introduced to a Mozambican panel beater by the name of Bernardo, with whom I discussed several options for reconfiguring vehicles for the purpose of infiltrating weapons into South Africa from Swaziland. He suggested…

Hundreds of Islamic State group fighters surrendered yesterday in a Syria prison where they had been holed up for days, as US-backed Kurdish forces tightened the noose around remaining jihadists. More than 100 jihadists of the Islamic State group last week attacked Ghwayran prison in the Kurdish-controlled northeastern city of Hasakeh. The brazen assault on the Kurdish-run facility involved a double suicide bombing and saw the jihadists free fellow IS members, seize weapons and take over several cell blocks, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. It is considered the most sophisticated attack carried out by the group since it was territorially defeated in Syria nearly three years ago. More than 1 000 men have so far surrendered to Kurdish forces combing areas inside and outside the prison,…

THE case of Kaizer Chiefs’ failure to honour some of their matches in December amid a Covid-19 outbreak at the club could be put to bed sooner than expected as the club and the Premier Soccer League (PSL) have to agree on an arbitrator by Monday. Early in December, Chiefs wrote to the PSL, pleading for their five matches to be postponed after no fewer than 50 personnel tested positive at their base, where they were forced to close down all operations. The PSL rejected Chiefs’ request, although the club pulled a no-show for matches against Cape Town City and Golden Arrows. However, two weeks ago, Amakhosi were subsequently found guilty by PSL prosecutor Zola Majavu. But Majavu couldn’t hand down his sentence last Friday after Chiefs referred the matter…

Morgan Bolton morgan.bolton@inl.co.za WANDISILE Simelane is seemingly going all in this year, cashing in all his chips and banking on his particular set of skills and talents as he pursues his dream of playing for the Springboks. After a brief taste of the senior national set-up last year during the training squad for the British & Irish Lions tour, the Lions centre wants back in. To do so, however, he will need to string together match-winning performances to help his Johannesburg-based franchise to a respectable standing in the United Rugby Championship. After a tough latter half of 2021, in which both Simelane and the Lions performed below expectations, pundits and supporters will no doubt be relieved to have noticed an upturn in both the player and team’s efforts this past…

Kedibone Modise kedibone.modise@inl.co.za Actor and TV presenter Sivuyile “Siv” Ngesi announced his latest international gig. Speaking to IOL Entertainment, the Knuckle City actor confirmed he will star in the highly anticipated American historical film The Woman King. Fans and industry friends including Pearl Thusi, Thando Thabethe, Lorna Maseko, Thembisa Mdoda-Nxumalo and Khaya Dlanga congratulated Ngesi. Written by Dana Stevens and directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood, the movie stars Academy award-winning actress Viola Davis, who is also the producer. The movie also features Mzansi’s golden girl, the award-winning Thuso Mbedu and British-Nigerian actor John Boyega. No stranger to international stages, Ngesi has featured in global productions including Invictus, Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom and 24: Redemption. South African composer Lebo M composed the musical score and created five original songs for the…

Baldwin Ndaba baldwin.ndaba@inl.co.za THE Gauteng Department of Infrastructure Development failed to follow legal procurement in the appointment of six contractors appointed to refurbish the Anglo-Gold Ashanti Hospital on the West Rand. This was revealed by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) report handed to President Cyril Ramaphosa this week. The department was stopped from making any payments to the companies. The report stated: “From the six contractors selected, only one was identified on the recommended list as indicated on the Bid Evaluation Report of the abovementioned tender, namely Yikusasa. Therefore, it seems unlikely Mr T Tabane selected these contractors from this appointed panel.” The SIU’s investigation also found that three sets of appointment letters were utilised to appoint the contractors. These were dated and issued on March 25, 2020, April 3,…

THYAGARAJ MARKANDAN | Kloof IT’S winter in England and Liverpool’s light is dimming. They shone so brightly last year, winning the Premier League for the first time in 30 years. Their recent run of form shows a team that is looking tired and lacking the drive and ambition which drove it to the pinnacle of success last year. They drew with West Brom, couldn’t score against Newcastle, lost 1-0 to Southampton, had a goalless draw against Manchester United in the Premier League, were beaten 1-0 by Burnley and knocked out of the FA Cup 4th round tie with a 2-3 loss to Man United. Their manager Jurgen Klopp tries to explain his team’s drop of form and says he would fix it. Though he talks a lot he…

Peter Bachtis | Benoni A TREND has been developing among American presidents by making use of celebrated film stars to boost their ratings. Biden, whose popularity is decreasing at an alarming rate, has secured the services of non other than Tom Hanks … a devout Democratic supporter. Biden’s unusual and often incoherent utterances, are both disconcerting and bizarre. Americans are now coming to the realisation that “You have to make the best you can with what God gave you” and at this unfortunate time it’s the dubious Democratic Party under the leadership of an eccentric president. The groundswell of unhappiness among Americans may force Joe to emulate Forrest Gump … ”Run, Biden, run … ” Well, as Forrest once said … ”What’s normal anyways?”…

POPULAR media personality and actor Sivuyile “Siv” Ngesi has announced he will be part of the upcoming The Woman King. Ngesi will star alongside renowned American actress Viola Davis as well as Thuso Mbedu. Ngesi is set to play a supporting lead role in the film, which will premiere in September. His announcement that he is a member of the cast comes shortly after former Miss Universe 2019 Zozibini Tunzi was also recruited for the popular film. South Africans were fascinated at the prospect of having more local talent taking the international stage by storm. Entertainment commentator Phil Mphela broke the news on social media “Siv Ngesi stars in The Woman King. Ngesi is part of the star-studded cast of the Viola Davis-led film. Ngesi plays a supporting role which…

THE employment of non-South African citizens has reared its ugly head once again. Our Constitution is quite clear: every single employee in South Africa is entitled to fair labour practice. Unfair discrimination (unless positive unfair discrimination) is completely outlawed by the Constitution. This concept is elaborated in the Employment Equity Act. Specifically, Section 6 of the EEA prohibits unfair discrimination against any employee, in any employment policy or practice. Foreign nationals in employment have access to the same labour law system as any employee in South Africa. Foreign nationals obviously need to show that they have a right to be in the country and a right to work. If a foreign national has a forged permit and knows that the permit was forged, then this person could be subject to…

Russia issued an arrest warrant for the brother of jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny yesterday, part of efforts to silence voices critical of the Kremlin. The interior ministry said Oleg Navalny, 38, was wanted on criminal charges. This comes a day after Russia’s prison authority requested courts to convert a suspended sentence he is serving into real jail time for violating Covid-19 regulations. Almost all of Alexei Navalny’s allies have fled Russia after he was jailed and his organisations outlawed. | AFP…

THE last fortnight in SA cricket has created the impression that the sport has gone full circle. Once more it’s the players who have lifted the sport above the muck created off the field. The Proteas’ performances in recent weeks were inconceivable. To win against that Indian team, which rolled into the country high on confidence having played superb cricket at home and away in the last few years, must rank as one of the greatest performances by South Africa in 30 years. But the hugs and smiles from the players and coaches in the last few weeks, and the joy of South African fans – even as they missed out on watching inside the stadiums – took time to create. Therein may lie a lesson for everyone. It’s very…

Edward West edward.west@inl.co.za HARMONY Gold Mining said yesterday that production of the yellow metal had remained steady in the six months to end-December 2021 at 22 355kg (718 726 ounces) compared with 22 031kg produced during the previous six months period ended June 30, 2021. The mining group said in an update ahead of the interim results to be announced on February 28 that gold production over these specific periods was compared because they included a full six months’ production from Mponeng and related assets, whereas the same six-month period a year before included only three months’ production from Mponeng. Rand per kilogram costs for the South African operations remain broadly in line with what was originally guided at about R765 000/kg to R800 000/kg.…

Kedibone Modise kedibone.modise@inl.co.za SOMIZI Mhlongo has came out guns blazing, slamming cyberbullies. According to Mhlongo, these cyberbullies may have contributed to thespian Patrick Shai taking his own life. Shai died at his Dobsonville home on Saturday morning. He was 65. Though sources close to the family told The Star it was Shai's wife Mmasechaba who discovered the late actor hanging from the garage ceiling, family spokesperson Amogelang Mmusi declined to confirm the cause of death. Shai’s death came just days after a video of him challenging Cassper Nyovest to a boxing match in which he refers to the rapper as a “son of a b...h” went viral. Shai later issued an apology but even then trolls continued to bash him. In a video shared on his Instagram on Sunday, Mhlongo…

Ntombi Nkosi ntombi.nkosi@inl.co.za THE LEGAL department of the National Education Health and Allied Workers Union (Nehawu) is currently drafting papers to file at the high court to make sure that the ANC pays salaries to its members. Speaking to Independent Media yesterday, Nehawu acting national spokesperson Lwazi Nkolonzi said the union was looking at other avenues to make sure the ANC paid workers. Staff have been on an indefinite stayaway since January 17 due to non-payment of salaries. They have not been paid for nearly four months and toward the end of last year, management had promised to pay all outstanding amounts owed to them but failed to do so. “Recently we wrote to the ANC enquiring when will they pay our members and we have not got any…

THE Augrabies Falls National Park has closed three of its seven viewing decks as a safety precaution because of the increasing flow of the Orange River. “The mighty Orange River has increased at Augrabies Falls National Park (AFNP) to over 3 000 cubic metres a second,” South African National Parks (SANParks) said yesterday morning. The Department of Water and Sanitation says the Orange River will remain at this rate of flow until the weekend, then slowly decline over two weeks. “This means there will be high levels of water for approximately the next three weeks,” said SANParks. “Due to these high levels, SANParks management has temporarily closed three of the seven viewing decks at the falls as a safety precaution, and to ensure all guests enjoy the waterfall with peace…

Farouk Araie | Johannesburg THE drums of war are beating louder, the Doomsday Clock is ticking towards Armageddon, the nuclear sabres are being unsheathed. Every day that passes brings us all closer to total nuclear annihilation as Russia, China, the USA and their allies trade nuclear threats and prepare for the inevitable. We are too complacent about the risk of absolute destruction as we grimly witness brinkmanship by all the world’s nine nuclear powers and their 14 500 nuclear weapons. Once a nuclear weapon is used by design, accident or inadvertence, nuclear escalation will intensify and develop into a titanic battle on land, at sea, in the air and the stratosphere. Putin, Biden and Xi Jinping are blissfully ignorant about the insanity and futility of nuclear war. Their…

Back to school is a busy time of year filled with late nights, early hours, and lots of homework. But it can also be a time when children and teens are vulnerable to being lured into human trafficking and other forms of exploitation. In general, human trafficking goes largely unnoticed at schools and higher learning institutions. Some victims might be unaware that they are being trafficked until it’s too late. When I was researching this topic, I was often surprised at the lack of knowledge people have about human trafficking. If a parent was asked what they thought the signs of trafficking were, they might say “a tattoo on their ankle” or “a small brand on their skin”. While some traffickers do brand their victims, there are other ways for…

CORRUPTION in South Africa has had long-lasting and far-reaching effects. It has deterred investment, created huge economic losses, exacerbated poverty and inequality, engendered public sector dysfunctionality, service delivery protests and unrest, resulted in human rights violations, and fanned public frustrations. Corruption has led to a continuous erosion of institutional integrity, transparency, and a lack of trust in the political and administrative institutions of the state. Corruption has also had a corrosive impact on the rule of law and democratic processes. Policies, however well intended, lack credibility, and fail to secure citizen, business and civil society buy-in, if there is a perception that the government is corrupt. In addition, the allocation of public procurement contracts through a corrupt system has led to a lower quality of infrastructure and public services. Corruption…

Spain’s sea rescue service yesterday picked up more than 300 migrants trying to reach the Canary Islands in rickety boats, with nine of them clinging to a semi-sunken dinghy. The rescue service said it was unaware of any drownings as reported Walking Borders migration monitoring group, which said 18 people had died trying to make the crossing to the island of Lanzarote from Africa. The rescue service said 319 migrants were rescued off six boats, including one carrying 120 people. | Reuters…