Sunday Tribune 2025-05-04

While there have been calls for Enoch Godongwana to resign, South Africa’s Finance Minister announced this past week that a third Budget Speech will be taking place later this month, on May 21. The announcement came after the 0.5% value-added tax (VAT) reversal, which was proposed in the March 2025 Budget, with the matter being taken to court by the DA and EFF. In February, the minister’s first budget attempt was thwarted by political parties in Parliament, as the minister proposed a larger VAT increase of 2%. Godongwana said that the Budget of March 12 and the proposed VAT increase sparked rigorous debate. “This is welcomed in a healthy democracy. Today there is clarity that VAT will remain at 15%. This decision was shaped not only by political debate but…

While the latest inflation data for South Africa showed an easing, food prices in the country saw a sharp increase. This past week, data released by the Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice and Dignity (PMBEJD) in its April 2025 Household Affordability Index showed that the price of a basic food basket increased by almost R100 month on month. Last month, consumers had to fork out R5 420.30 to fill up a basic food basket. That means the average cost of the Household Food Basket increased by R90.94 (1.7%), from R5 329.36 in March to R5 420.30 in April. The average cost of the Household Food Basket increased by R83.99 (1,6%), from R5 336.31 in April 2024 to R5 420.30 last month. In April, of the 44 foods tracked in the basket,…

Eskom’s latest push to enforce registration for all grid-tied solar systems, even those that don’t feed into the grid, has sent shockwaves through South Africa’s solar sector. As commercial and industrial businesses increasingly turn to renewables to escape erratic power supply, these new requirements raise serious questions about legality, cost, and Eskom’s role in shaping South Africa’s energy future. Eskom’s registration mandate Eskom recently intensified efforts to ensure all grid-tied solar power systems are registered, regardless of whether they feed electricity back into the grid. The power utility claims this move is primarily about safety, citing the need to maintain network integrity and referencing standards such as NRS 097-2-3 and the South African Distribution Code to manage power flow and mitigate risk. Yet, this approach has been met with criticism.…

Fans are in for a treat today as Lucasfilm announces the all-new animated anthology series of Star Wars: Tales of the Underworld, set to premiere on Disney+. Releasing on the Star Wars holiday, the highly anticipated series promises to take viewers on a journey to the darker side of the galaxy, exploring the untold stories of the underworld. The series follows two iconic villains, Asajj Ventress and Cad Bane, as they navigate the complexities of the dark side. Ventress, once a feared assassin and bounty hunter, is presented with an unexpected chance at redemption and finds herself on the run with an unlikely ally. Simultaneously, Bane is forced to confront his past when he encounters an old friend who has now become a Marshal. With a talented voice cast, including…

If you enjoy a slick action thriller in a similar vein to the Race and Dhoom franchises, then Siddharth Anand’s Jewel Thief – The Heist Begins won’t disappoint. Aside from the star-studded casting of Saif Ali Khan, Jaideep Ahlawat and Kunal Kapoor, the film is bolstered by a witty script, laden with deception and one-upmanship. The Netflix Bollywood film, with English subtitles, underpins the action with family drama as Rehan Roy (Ali Khan) is sought out by his younger brother Avi (Gagan Arora). Having been cut off by his principled doctor father, Jayant (Kulbhushan Kharbanda), who learned of his fraudulent lifestyle, Rehan has been harbouring lots of resentment towards him. However, when he learns that his estranged father has unwittingly gotten into business with Rajan Aulakh (Ahlawat), an unsavoury art…

Whodunits are immediately lapped up by viewers. And it attracts more attention when it centres on a missing child à la Broadchurch, Marcella, True Detective and Alert: Missing Person Unit. Disney+ recently dropped The Stolen Girl, a five-part series based on Alex Dahl’s 2020 novel, Playdate. The first episode transforms from calm to chaotic when Elisa Blix (Denise Gough) reluctantly agrees to let her daughter Lucia (Beatrice Cohen) sleep over at her new friend Josephine’s house. After briefly meeting the mother, Rebecca Walsh (Holliday Grainger), Elisa, a flight attendant, drops off some of Lucia’s things and makes arrangements to have her lawyer husband, Fred (Jim Sturgess), collect their daughter. The couple also share a son, George. However, when their attempts to reach Rebecca to collect Lucia go unanswered the next…