Innholdsfortegnelse for 2023-01-30 i Star

DJ Tira’s wife, socialite Gugu Khathi, is fed up that her court case with her old neighbour Cindy O’Neil is dragging on and is ready for the matter to be put to rest. In 2019, Khathi was embroiled in a nasty fight with her neighbour, Cindy O’Neil, that turned violent. The two lived at the upmarket Willowbrook Estate in Ruimsig, in Roodepoort, Johannesburg. Both parties laid charges of assault against each other at the Honeydew police station. Recently, Khathi shared with her followers that the court case was meant to be concluded but load shedding had different plans. In her video post, the businesswoman explained that after four years they were supposed to hear judgment at last but another postponement meant they would have to wait. “Today was meant to…

The Commission for Gender Equality has appealed to the public to stop sharing the video of a woman police officer allegedly forcing her young son into performing an act of sex on her. This comes after the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) confirmed it had launched an investigation into the alleged rape of a minor by a 40-year-old police woman stationed at Groblersdal, in Limpopo. The woman, believed to be a constable, was arrested on Friday after a video clip of her raping her 10-year-old son went viral on social media. Limpopo police commissioner Thembi Hadebe said the police’s family violence, child protection and sexual offences unit conducted an investigation leading up to the woman’s arrest. “The case of the rape of a minor child with extra charges of creating…

At JUST 20-years-old, Tshwane University of Technology student Mulamuleli Tshitangano is already an award-winning author. She said writing was a vessel through which she could express her emotions, especially writing poetry. She started writing in primary school, and the first poem she wrote was to honour Nelson Mandela. “As young as I was, I knew that writing was what I am destined for, but I did not think that one day my poems will ever get the opportunity to be published and read by other people,” said Tshitangano. The young writer said that she struggled a bit initially as there was no one to help her with the basics of writing. This resulted in Tshitangano going on a journey of self-education as even a local writer rejected her pleas for…

The extent to which opposition parties are so desperate to challenge the ANC government – at every opportunity – to indicate they are relevant to the electorate, sometimes reaches ridiculous levels. The DA has come out guns blazing that this year’s matric pass rate is not the 80% that is being claimed. Its argument is students who dropped out from Grade 11 are not factored into the equation, thus the real pass rate, it argues, is in the 50s. But this is cheap sophistry underlined by the crass obsession to challenge everything that appears to put the ANC government in a positive light. For, a pass rate is calculated on those who actually wrote the examination. It is not about factoring in dropouts. Indeed, if the DA is so strong…

According to recent media reports, the Roodeplaat Dam in Tshwane, the Vaal Dam, and Wemmer Pan in Joburg have been facing an environmental crisis for months now. While journalists, government, academics and environmental activists acknowledge there is a crisis in these dams, there are no indications that a lasting solution is being mapped out. The water pollution and contamination endured by these important water resources not only affect people, but have a huge bearing on the birdlife and the waning fish population. Water contamination is mostly caused by sewage spillage resulting from vandalised sewerage networks, contaminated stormwater runoffs, and the accumulation of metals and industrial effluence. This has turned Wemmer Pan, once a popular public recreational space, into a no-go area. The situation could have been different had a…

Copper is all around us. The metal is both ever-present and invisible in our world. Copper makes reading the words on this screen possible. And the global spread of artificial light, electric power and telecommunications all required ever-increasing quantities of copper. Where does all of this copper come from? How was it produced, distributed, controlled, and sold on an ever-increasing scale? These are some of the questions addressed in a recently published book, Born with a Copper Spoon: A Global History of Copper. The book is a global study of a metal that has transformed the globe. Contributors to the book cover North America, Latin America, Europe, Central Africa, the Middle East, East Asia and Oceania and stretch from the early nineteenth to the early twenty-first centuries. Our book looks…

Newly-elected Czech president Petr Pavel, a former Nato general, will promote close ties with the EU and offer firm support for Ukraine in the face of the Russian invasion, analysts said. The 61-year-old war hero beat billionaire populist Andrej Babis to win Saturday’s presidential election. A former chief of Nato’s military committee, he will replace outspoken, divisive incumbent Milos Zeman who had fostered closer ties with Moscow and Beijing before making a U-turn when Russia invaded Ukraine last year. Analysts said Pavel’s experience in military diplomacy would be a clear asset as he held a very different presidency than his predecessor. “We know that his contacts at Nato, as well as with peers from Nato member states ... are very strong, and foreign policy will be his domain,” said Pavel…

AMMAN: Lebanon’s top Christian cleric called yesterday for the judge struggling to investigate the Beirut port explosion to be able to pursue his work and get help from any outside authority to pinpoint those responsible for the devastating blast. Long-simmering tensions over the investigation have boiled over since Judge Tarek Bitar brought charges against some of the most influential people in Lebanon, defying political pressure to scrap the inquiry into the disaster that killed 220 people. The establishment struck back swiftly when the prosecutor general charged Bitar with usurping powers. | Reuters…

England 342/7 Buttler 94*, Brook 80, Moeen 51, Nortje 2/64, Parnell 1/54 South Africa 345/5 Bavuma 109, Miller 58*, Jansen 32*, Markram 49, Rashid 2/72 South Africa won the second ODI by five wickets to win three-match series 2-0 “Bavuma, Bavuma, Bavuma!” A name that has not echoed around a South African cricket ground with such fervour since that magical day at Newlands seven years ago. But for all the historical significance of that sunlit day in Cape Town, this arguably meant even more to the man himself, South Africa’s white-ball captain Temba Bavuma, at the Mangaung Oval on Sunday. Bavuma has been the centre of criticism for the past six months in SA cricket. The levels of condemnation crossed a line that no SA cricketer has ever had to…

ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula said party president Cyril Ramaphosa has not distributed any information about the resignation of deputy president David “DD” Mabuza. There have been widespread reports suggesting that Mabuza has resigned from his position. Mbalula was speaking on the sidelines of the ANC national executive committee (NEC) lekgotla – a two-day meeting that brings together the political leadership and senior government officials – to assess the performance of the ANC-led government. Mabuza did not attend the lekgotla, and Mbalula told the media that he sent an apology, which the leadership accepted. “Mabuza has been one of the most loyal servants of the ANC, and he has served our movement with diligence, dignity, integrity, and discipline,” said Mbalula. “If he apologises that he cannot make it to this…

Police Minister Bheki Cele has urged officers to defend themselves when confronted with danger, amid a wave of violent attacks and officer killings. Speaking over the weekend, Cele urged officers to use their tools, but emphasised that he was not encouraging them to be brutal. “I am not encouraging police officers to be brutal, but I am encouraging you to defend yourself – and defend yourself decisively.” He added: “That is why we give the teachers chalk, we give doctors stethoscopes and we also give you tools. Safety, as you know, is very close to the ministry.” Cele on Tuesday, along with Deputy Minister Cassel Mathale and the management led by General Fannie Masemola, paid a visit to the bereaved family of Warrant Officer Roger Mavundla in Port Edward, KwaZulu-Natal,…

TOO sick to work, but not sick enough to attend a wedding in another city! The decision came at a high price for Daniel Matras, a former employee at Mediclinic in Potchefstroom. He was dismissed more than 10 years ago after it was found that he was dishonest. Matras, represented by trade union Nehawu, has been unsuccessfully fighting his dismissal all these years. He was dealt yet another blow a few days ago, when the Labour Court turned down his leave to appeal against an earlier finding that his dismissal was fair. In the course of his legal battles over the years, it was never found that the sick note which he had obtained was fraudulent or that he was never ill. However, it was found that the sick note…

Is there something wrong with our judiciary and the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) in our country? All the various cases that have come up for trial ‒the Zuma arms deal, the Zondo Commission cases of corruption, the famous Dudu Myeni of SAA, the Free State asbestos case and now the Estina corruption case ‒ have all been postponed. Is someone not doing their job properly? The statement by André du Ruyter that some individuals have been charged with stealing hundreds of millions worth of diesel, get arrested and then released on bail of R500 is something one finds hard to swallow. One gets arrested when there is enough evidence to warrant an arrest for stealing and then gets released on R500? Is there some sort of Mafia interference going…

I hate politics, therefore I write about it. Activists shouting very useful slogans from even atop the Statue of Liberty lose little sympathy even if it’s vaguely suspected that elections are around the corner and these do-gooders belong to some political party. It’s no surprise the DA leads the march to Luthuli House. It’s all part of the game. However, the man in the street, as much as he may be streetwise by now not to be fooled, is still mesmerised by the possible outcome of the party’s latest slogan, and how it can benefit him. So the party gets his vote. There is another avenue that the DA could usefully explore in a bid to finally oust the existing ruling party into obliteration. Use the angle closely endeared to…

SOUTH African cricket holds a delicate place in the fabric of sport in this country. It does not have the gravitas of the World Cup-winning Springboks but neither is it an anomaly as Bafana Bafana has become. People still care about the Proteas, but the lack of success at major tournaments in addition to the regular administration scandals have left the game in a precarious position. This has filtered down to domestic cricket where spectator support has virtually vanished at venues all around South Africa. Cricket in South Africa was in desperate need of rejuvenation. Fans needed a reminder that the game was played on the outfield and not in the boardroom. There have been previous attempts at launching a T20 – globally the most popular form of the game…

Wellington: New Zealand police yesterday said a fourth body was found after record torrential rain and flooding devastated Auckland. The country’s largest city saw 249 millimetres of rainfall on Friday, and Auckland’s 1.6 million residents remain under a state of emergency. Two bodies were found in floodwater at separate locations Friday night in the northern suburb of Wairau Valley, and a third was discovered on Saturday after a landslide brought down a home in central Auckland. Yesterday the body of a man was discovered about a kilometre from where he was swept away at Onewhero. | AFP…

MOSCOW: Russia said yesterday it will not hold annual talks with Japan on renewing a pact that allows Japanese fishermen to operate near disputed islands, saying Japan has taken anti-Russian measures. The islands, off the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido, are known in Russia as the Kurils and in Japan as the Northern Territories and have been at the core of decades of tension between the neighbours. Japan, a major US ally, imposed sanctions on dozens of Russian individuals and organisations soon after Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine last year. | Reuters…

Kaizer Chiefs (0) 2 Hlanti 60, Du Preez 85 Royal AM 0 A HOODOO that was threatening to make a mockery of Kaizer Chiefs’ standing as the aristocrats of South African football has been broken. Yesterday’s maiden win over the Premiership’s flamboyant outfit from KwaZulu-Natal following three previous losses could go a long way towards ensuring the success of Amakhosi’s rebuilding project. Coming as it did on the back of a three-match losing streak, the victory is just what coach Arthur Zwane and his team needed to put some spark into yet another disappointing season that will not see them ending their seven-year trophy drought. With habitual champions Mamelodi Sundowns set to retain their Premiership title, the rest of the teams are merely playing for second spot. And though still…

The world’s biggest Consumer Electronics Show, CES 2023, was held in Las Vegas and displayed numerous innovative, astounding and sometimes perplexing technologies. A few of these remarkable products were: A driver assistance system Comma.ai demonstrated their Comma 3 device installed in a KIA EV6. The Comma 3 device runs on Openpilot, an open source advanced driver assistance system that can be retrofitted to more than 200 models. The hardware consists of three high-dynamic range (HDR) cameras, cellular LTE, wi-fi, an inertial measurement unit (IMU), high-precision GPS and microphones, and costs about R25 797. During tests the Comma 3 advanced driver assist device provided a very smooth ride and was able to easily recognise and stop for red traffic lights. It further kept the vehicle centred in the lane, made assisted…

THE National Education, Health and Allied Workers Union (Nehawu) in Limpopo have called out the province’s Health MEC Dr Phophi Ramathuba labelling her a “cheap populist” and “shameless” after she appeared in a video scolding senior managers at Rethabile clinic in Polokwane. In the controversial clip that went viral last week and caused a stir, Ramathuba is seen in a screaming match accusing supervisors and nurses of sitting idle while patients were waiting in long queues. She was heard saying: “As a supervisor, I expect you’d be sitting here and working. When there is a disaster I can’t go on leave. When there is a disaster with Eskom, the president cancelled his trip to the World Economic Forum. You can't be the first to go to lunch when there is…

The multiparty coalition in the City of Tshwane could collapse should the DA administration fail to prove to ActionSA that the party is not corrupt. ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba said he was concerned about the issuing of several tenders in the City of Tshwane; one of the tenders included the R295 million Rooiwaal tender, which was being investigated by the Special Investigation Unit (SIU). Mashaba told The Star that he was also concerned about the adverse findings in the auditor-general’s report. He said ActionSA would not want to be associated with corruption. “I am actually worried about the coalition in Tshwane. If these issues are not solved, then we have a problem. ActionSA does not want to be part of corruption, and we hope that there was no corruption in…

accused sex-ring kingpin Gerhard Ackerman, who faces more than 740 charges, including rape, attempted murder, the production and distribution of child pornography and human trafficking, has been rearrested by the police after his no-show at his court hearing on Thursday. Director of Public Prosecutions in Gauteng advocate Andrew Chauke has subsequently extended his gratitude to the media and public for their vigilance, which he said led to Ackerman’s arrest on Saturday, after a warrant of arrest was issued by the High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Local Division, on the weekend. “The role played by the South African media in his apprehension must be applauded as the images circulated by the media led to members of the public spotting Ackerman in Florida on the West Rand. “They immediately arrested…

The recent news about dairy farmers being forced to discard 12 000 litres of milk because it had gone sour and the poultry industry being forced to slaughter 10 million chickens paints a bleak picture of what most businesses face as a result of load shedding. Managing director at Food Forward SA (FFSA), Andy Du Plessis, speaks about how load shedding is threatening food security and affecting many livelihoods. “The real impact of load shedding goes well beyond being unable to turn on our lights or charge our phones for a few hours a day. It’s triggering an unprecedented collapse of South Africa’s economy, infrastructure, and future. It’s threatening our fragile food security ecosystem, leaving more people in poverty and without access to healthy, nutritious food.” Du Plessis said…

at least 51 people were killed in two separate transport accidents in western Pakistan yesterday, when a bus plunged off a bridge and a boat carrying a class of children capsized. Forty-one are so far confirmed dead after their bus crashed into a ravine in southwestern Balochistan province, while at least 10 students died in the boating accident in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, officials said. Up to nine are still missing in the waters, local police said, with a rescue operation under way. At the remote site of the bus crash, north of the city of Bela in Lasbela district, senior administration official Hamza Anjum said “the dead bodies … are beyond recognition”. Anjum said 40 corpses were retrieved from the wreck alongside three injured, one of which died shortly after.…

LONDON: British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak fired Conservative Party chairperson Nadhim Zahawi from government yesterday after an investigation into his tax affairs found a serious breach of the ministerial code. Independent Adviser Laurie Magnus found that Zahawi had been misleading when he said that reports last July over his tax affairs were “clearly smears”. Zahawi did not correct the record until last week, when he said he had reached a settlement with the authorities “I consider that this delay ... inconsistent with the requirement for openness,” Magnus said in a letter to Sunak. | Reuters…

Midfielder Thabang Monare and striker Monnapule Saleng produced outstanding performances to spearhead Orlando Pirates’ dominant 2-0 win over Marumo Gallants at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium on Saturday night. Saleng was named the Man of the Match but Monare would have been an equally deserving recipient. After a sterling run down the left flank by Terrence Dzvukamanja, Saleng produced a classy finish with a first-time shot at goal after reading play splendidly. Saleng timed his run into the opposition goalmouth to perfection and connected with Dzvukamanja’s cutback into the penalty box. Mamelodi Sundowns, Pirates’ next opponents would have noted this excellent play and Saleng will no doubt be singled out for attention at Orlando Stadium on Saturday. Saleng was a constant threat down the right channels and this was his second…