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South Africa
2010 FIFA World Cup
Construction
company linked to 2010 bribe - 9 July
An East London-based construction company says it was asked for a
R6-million bribe to be awarded a contract to build a 2010 World
Cup stadium in Mthatha, a report said on Thursday. The Daily
Dispatch reported that two people allegedly approached Rumdel
Construction with an offer to secure the R500-million contract for
the company. A representative of the company confirmed the
incident took place, but declined to comment further for fear of
the safety of his workers in the Mthatha area in the Eastern Cape.
- IOL
website
See
also : Special
courts set up for 2010 crime victims
Arms and
Ammunition
Court
judgement leads to hitches in Firearms Act - 15 July
Firearm owners, whose licenses have expired, may remain in
possession of the guns despite the 30 June deadline imposed by
government. "Legal firearm owners may poses, sans use, their
firearms ... and the 'old green licence' will be sufficient proof
of the legal possession of the firearm," said police
spokesperson, Director Phuti Setati on Wednesday. The Firearms
Control Act, which was being phased in over five years
ending 31 June, was aimed at forcing licensed gun owners to
re-apply for their licences, including applying for competency
certificates, failing which they must dispose of their firearms,
or could have them forfeited to the state. However, a hitch in
implementing the transitional provisions of the Act came about
after a High Court judgement on 26 June. - BuaNews
Online website
See
:
North Gauteng High Court
26 June 2009
33656/2009
[2009] ZAGPPHC 93
South
African Hunters and Game Conservation Association v Minister of
Safety and Security
Gun
licensing deadline row rages
- 16 July
The police have vowed to intensify their communication with gun
owners after a court order which provides a temporary reprieve for
those who failed to meet the licence-renewal deadline. The
SAPS and SA Hunting and Game Conservation, which applied for the
interdict, addressed the media at a National Press Club briefing
yesterday to clarify the implications of the ruling. - IOL
website
Black
Economic Empowerment
BEE
deal promises to be good for Spar - 17 July
The Spar group's issue of 10 percent equity to broad-based black
economic empowerment (BEE) trusts will increase loyalty with its
franchise operators, retail analysts agree. Spar's proposal will
see 18.9 million redeemable, convertible preference shares, with a
par value of 0.06c a share, issued to employees and retailer
employees. Forty percent of these new preference shares will
be allocated to Spar's 2 700 employees (excluding senior
management) with the remaining 60 percent allocated to the 25 000
retailer member employees. In terms of the scheme, shares
will be issued to employees on service-based criteria. - Business
Report website
Communications
Motlanthe
appoints SABC interim board - 13 July
Acting President Kgalema Motlanthe has appointed the SABC's
interim board for a period of six months, the presidency said
today. The new board is comprised of Irene Charnley
(chairwoman), Philip Frederick Mtimkulu (deputy chairman), Libby
Lloyd, Leslie Kgopotso Sedibe, Suzanne Vos, Gab Mampone, Robin
Nicholson, and Charlotte Mampane. - Business
Day website
Compromised
Icasa toothless against SABC - 14 July
"(Icasa) is a systemic failure in exactly the same way the
SABC is a systemic failure. The SABC is imploding first, and
Icasa will be next", says broadcasting lawyer Justine
Limpitlaw. Limpitlaw says the regulator suffers from
juniorisation and a lack of skills. She blames Parliament for
recommending councillors with insufficient experience and who
had not demonstrated a commitment to independent regulation. - Business
Day website
Why
RICA will fail - 14 July
A number of serious problems were highlighted when RICA, or the Regulation
of Interception of Communications and Provision of
Communication-Related Information Act, was required to
come into full effect in 2006. At the time, then-CEO of Vodacom
Alan Knott-Craig questioned how possible the enactment of this
law would be. Issues which didn't (and still don't) make sense:
like the difficulty in registering "15m to 20m South
Africans who simply don't have a residential address".
Knott-Craig also added that "we don't seem to be able to
convince anybody that it's just practically impossible".
The deadline back then was 12 months from June 2006. Knott-Craig
and the heads of the other operators had managed to appeal to
Parliament that the proposed plan was impractical. We don't
really know how passionate this plea was, but it seemed to have
worked. The need to frantically get everybody "RICA'd"
disappeared. That was three years ago. - Moneyweb
website
New
South African telecoms law roundly condemned - 17
July
South Africa's legislation to allow state security to access
mobile phone calls and SMSes has been roundly criticized by
human rights groups, diplomatic missions and general members
of the public. Prominent human rights lawyer Gabriel Shumba,
argues that the new law would be challenged and tested in the
Constitutional Court citing infringment of people's privacy.
An ambassador from the West African region argued that the new
law came as a surprise "considering that SA is regarded
as the mother of democracy" in Africa. - ITNews
Africa website
Correctional
Services
Prisons
fire fraud busters - 17 July
In a major setback for the fight against corruption, the
correctional services department has terminated its contract with
Willie Hofmeyr’s fraud-busting Special Investigating Unit (SIU).
The true commitment of Mapisa-Nqakula and her department to
fighting graft is again called into question by the termination of
the contract with the SIU. According to SIU spokesperson Trinesha
Naidoo, the department did not renew its contract with the unit
when it came to an end on March 31 this year. The timing of the
cancellation of the contract is curious for various reasons. - Mail
& Guardian website
Mapisa-Nqakula
suspends senior officials - 13 July
Correctional Services Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula has placed
the National Commissioner of Correctional Services Xoliswa Sibeko
and the Acting Chief Financial Officer Nandi Mareka on
precautionary suspension with immediate effect. - BuaNews
Online website
Minister
orders probe into luxury homes - 15 July
National prisons commissioner Xoliswa Sibeko and the department's
chief financial officer, Nandi Mareka, were suspended on Monday
following allegations that they rented accommodation for senior
officials - including Balfour's wife, Thozama Mqobi- Balfour -
"at exorbitant cost" to the taxpayer.
It is alleged that Sibeko and Mareka rented luxury apartments at
a golf estate at a cost of R30 000 a month for each of the
officials. - The
Times website
'Balfour
gave nod to hefty house rentals - 15 July
Correctional Services Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula has
admitted that her predecessor, Ngconde Balfour, approved the
suspended prisons head's expensive rental of a golf estate house
at taxpayers' expense. Mapisa-Nqakula has since placed national
commissioner Xoliswa Sibeko and acting chief financial officer
Nandi Mareka on cautionary suspension, saying if Sibeko was
found guilty she would definitely have to go. - IOL
website
Minister
corrects 'sensational' reports - 15 July
The correctional services department moved to counter
"inaccurate and sensationalist" reports about rented
accommodation for senior officials. The department said
Mapisa-Nqakula stated in her briefing to the media yesterday
that Balfour had approved the acquisition of alternative
accommodation for national commissioner Xoliswa Sibeko at a cost
of R60 000 a year. - The
Times website
Balfours
in housing controversy - 18 July
As more details came to light this week of the rental of a
private home with state money for two prisons bosses, new
questions emerged about former Correctional Services minister
Ngconde Balfour's role in the controversy. - IOL
website
Warders
at New Prison in union row - 16 July
Warders at Pietermaritzburg’s New Prison will march to call for
the dismissal of Police and Prison Civil Rights Union (Popcru)
national leadership if Cosatu fails to resolve the deadlock
between them and their union. Their warning comes barely a week
after the warders threatened the union with legal action. On
Tuesday, the warders said they are raising funds among themselves
to take the union to court over its decision to sign an
occupation-specific dispensation (OSD) agreement which it
apparently was not mandated to sign and which was allegedly not in
the best interest of the members. - The
Witness website
Courts
Special
courts set up for 2010 crime victims - 14 July
Courts will operate around the clock in KwaZulu-Natal during the
soccer World Cup to allow 2010 visitors, who become victims of
crime, to testify before returning home. - IOL
website
Keyphrase :
2010 FIFA World Cup
Court
rejects paedophile's claim of consent - 11 July
Adults need to be reminded that children cannot lawfully consent
to sexual acts. So said Pretoria Sexual Offences Court Magistrate
Jakkie Wessels after a paedophile claimed the four boys he
indecently assaulted had consented. Mark Lock, a former panel
beater, was on Friday sentenced to 20 years in jail. Lock was also
found guilty of sodomy. The boys did not report Lock nor did they
wish to testify against him, apparently because they liked him.
Wessels said the court could not ignore Lock's previous conviction
on eight similar offences in 1994. He was diagnosed as a
paedophile and received counselling. - IOL
website
Cyberlaw
Domain
name disputes are costly and can be avoided - 13 July
The rapid growth of the Internet has created rich pickings for the
unscrupulous who take advantage of companies’ goodwill and
trademarks. So much so that it has become increasingly important
for business owners to register their domain names promptly to
ensure that their brands and trademarks are protected on the
Internet. If this is not done businesses may be dragged into
unnecessary and costly litigation, warns Mia Krog of Shepstone
& Wylie. - Moneyweb
website
Dinokeng
Scenarios. May 2009
Who
will lead SA along the road less travelled? - 9 July
As the dust settles on SA's new political landscape, millions of
South Africans are hopeful that the country’s leaders will
deliver on their campaign promises. SA is at a crossroads and
exceptional leadership - at every level of society - is needed.
We face a crisis of leadership at the moment. It is time for
leaders who are capable of taking the country and our
organisations down a road less travelled, a road where
collaboration lights the way - especially during these
recessionary times when it is far easier and more comfortable to
default into an easy authoritarianism where the "leader
knows best". - Business
Day website
The
absent president, again, and arrogance of dominance -
13 July
Jacob Zuma has been president for three months but where is he?
Mamphela Ramphele, who readers of The Weekender newspaper
voted South Africa's top intellectual, has been travelling the
country explaining the Dinokeng scenarios. She suggests that a
culture of silence for fear of losing future tenders is
endangering our future. - Charlene Smith on the Thought
Leader blog
You
can be engaged - 14 July
Last week I went to a well presented report by Dr Mamphela
Ramphele on the Dinokeng Scenarios at the Wits Business School.
At the base of the Walk Together Scenario, the only one of the
three that takes SA "north" as opposed to
"south" as Ramphele put it, is the need for an engaged
citizenry that holds the government, including public servants,
to account. In response to a question from the floor as to how
an individual not in any position of leadership could do this,
Ramphele said that if she saw anybody in the public service
behaving in an unacceptable way she would challenge them. We
went home reflecting on this, and resolved to be more active. - Business
Day website
Environment
Syndicates
stripping Cape of flora and fauna - 17 July
Biocriminal syndicates are stripping the Western Cape of its
indigenous fauna and flora, using methods similar to the drug mule
system that moves vast amounts of narcotics around the world.
"The last syndicated group was made up of three Slovakians
and one Czech who were caught smuggling close to 100 Angulate
tortoises," said Paul Gildenhuys, CapeNature's Biodiversity
Crime Unit (BCU) programme manager. - IOL
website
SA
earmarks R250m for more energy efficient State buildings
- 12 July
Energy Minister Dipuo Peters on Friday announced that over
R250-million has been earmarked for investment in the energy
efficiency retrofit of government buildings, and as part of the
government drive to ensure promotion of energy efficiency, 19
municipalities would also be receiving funding towards their
energy efficiency initiatives. Speaking at The Star energy
efficiency exhibition at Gallagher Estate in Midrand, she added
that this municipal focus would be on street lights and traffic
lights in particular. - Creamer
Media's Engineering News website
Family Law
Secret
divorce shock : men surprise wives with orders - 13
July
Thousands of women are sitting at home happily kissing their
husbands, oblivious to the fact that the men they wake up next
to every morning have secretly divorced them years ago. The
courts are dealing with a growing number of cases in which women
are battling to reverse divorce decrees granted to their
husbands without their knowledge. Sowetan is aware of six cases
at present in the Johannesburg family court. But a highly placed
justice department official says there are hundreds of such
cases in the country's courts. - Sowetan
website
Government
Deputy
ministers to get jobs spelt out - 4 July
President Jacob Zuma has told cabinet ministers to work out with
their deputies how they will share government responsibilities.
The plan - the first serious attempt to resolve tensions that
have been crippling relations between ministers and their
deputies - is likely to produce a performance agreement into
which both sides will enter. - The
Times website
No
bonuses for civil servants - 17 July
Senior
civil servants whose departments receive qualified audits will
no longer be entitled to bonuses, according to co-operative
governance deputy minister Yunus Carrim. He revealed this
yesterday at the launch of Operation Clean Audit 2014 - aimed at
reducing the number of municipalities, government departments
and other state institutions whose books are annually found by
the Auditor-General’s office to not be in order. Of the 256
state institutions and departments audited by the office in
2007, only 56 were given a clean bill of health. Co-operative
Governance Minister Sicelo Shiceka said that his department will
be signing a memorandum of understanding with security agencies
and that a mandate will be given to them to arrest and prosecute
those caught in corrupt activities. "In the process of
implementing this programme we are going to be stumbling into a
lot of corruption and that is why we have the Hawks with the
mandate to arrest those found to be corrupt". -
The
Times website
Ambassador
named in R21m scandal - 18 July
A company part-owned by a South African ambassador has emerged
as the biggest beneficiary of R615-million worth of tenders
awarded to firms whose directors or board members were civil
servants. Meropa Communications, of which Yacoob Abba Omar owns
8%, was awarded a R20.9-million tender. Omar is also the
ambassador to the United Arab Emirates. Meropa's contract for
the Department of Health's Khomanani HIV/Aids awareness
campaign was the single biggest government commission awarded
during the 2005-2007 financial years to a company with a civil
servant as a board member. The auditor-general found that of the
2319 government officials who had interests in companies, only
75 had approval to perform remunerative work outside their
official employment. Themba Godi, the chairman of parliament's
Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) said
directors-general of the national departments listed in the
auditor-general's report have been summoned to appear before the
committee on August 7. - The
Times website
Dodgy
database links two to state contract - 20 July
A less-than-reliable government database could mean trouble for
a suspended prisons official and a former judge because it links
them to a fat state contract through a business deal 12 years
ago. This week both the official and the former judge flatly
denied having anything to do with the billion-rand contract,
saying the government database was wrong. On Thursday the Public
Service Commission (PSC) warned public servants it was their own
responsibility to check that their business dealings were
accurately recorded on the Company and Intellectual Property
Registration Office (Cipro) database. Cipro is part of the
Department of Trade and Industry. - The
Star website
Health
7
July 2009
Policy
debate on the Health Budget Vote Speech of Honourable Dr A
Motsoaledi, MP, Minister of Health, delivered to the NCOP
SA
Government Information website
Keyphrase :
National Health Insurance
Minister
goes ahead with national health insurance - 15 July
Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi is determined to press ahead with
a national health insurance scheme that will provide all South
Africans with free basic services. "The time has come for us
to stop debating and start putting something on the table, that we
start implementing. Many South Africans are waiting for that. We
don't have an option", Motsoaledi said. The minister will
participate in a TV debate on the topic on e.tv's Big Debate with
stakeholders from the health sector, including representatives of
medical aids, labour and private doctors. - Sowetan
website
Medical
scheme to be probed - 11 July
An investigation has been ordered into the the country's third
largest medical scheme Bonitas Medical Fund, as well as into the
scheme's administrator Medscheme after Bonitas allegedly used
members' money for investments and incomplete property development
including one in Pretoria. It is alleged that Bonitas, which has
500 000 members, has left about R80 million of members' money at
risk. - IOL
website
'Don't
panic about Bonitas' - 17 July
The medical schemes industry must not panic about the status of
the country's third largest medical scheme, the Bonitas Medical
Fund, the Council for Medical Schemes said on Friday. This
followed media reports on an investigation ordered by the
Johannesburg High Court into the Bonitas Medical Fund and its
administrator Medscheme Holdings, the council said in a statement.
- IOL
website
Pmb
hospital crackdown - 15 July
A new medical manager has been appointed at the troubled
Edendale Hospital by the MEC for Health, Dr Sibongiseni Dhlomo,
who blames the hospital's "poor leadership" for its
recent slow ARV roll-out programme. This comes after a decision
by Dhlomo to remove the Pietermaritzburg district manager, May
Zuma-Mkhonza, after she failed to manage the hospital's ARV
programme roll-out. Dhlomo visited Edendale Hospital yesterday
evening where he listened to some of the concerns raised by
staff and patients. Some of the issues raised by the hospital's
staff members included poor working conditions and staffing
shortages. Dhlomo promised to try to improve the working
conditions and encouraged patients to join support groups that
would help them deal with their challenges. The MEC admitted
that the hospital is plagued by major problems which include
staff shortages in the pharmacy and poor management. - The
Witness website
Human
Rights
Foreigners
trafficked to SA for World Cup - 16 July
There are between 800 and 1 100 Thai woman in South Africa who
have been "trafficked" for sexual exploitation - and a
third have been lured here believing they are coming to do
honest jobs, a senior South African policeman has revealed.
Justice Department sources say they have information that with
the 2010 soccer World Cup looming, more women are being brought
in and kept "underground" in residential areas until
closer to the time. - IOL
website
Keyphrases :
2010 FIFA World Cup
Human trafficking
How
South Africa's women bring rapists to justice - 16 July
Until TAC opened its office in Lusikisiki in 2003, many rape
cases were routinely ignored by the police. "People were
just paying with sheep or goats, thinking that they could just
keep it within the community", Ms. Gqamane said. "We
want to change this culture. We say to people, ‘You have to go
to the police with these cases". The turning point came on
June 12, 2007, in the Eastern Cape town of Lusikisiki, located
in an impoverished swath of hillside farms near the birthplace
of Nelson Mandela. - The
Globe and Mail website
'Pushed,
teased, hit, raped' at school - 16 July
One teenager is being bullied so badly, his mother discovered
him cutting himself at the weekend. Another has a broken arm in
a sling because he was pushed down a flights of stairs. A mother
believes her 20-year-old son was raped when he was at school.
These are just some of the incidents of alleged bullying that
parents from St Benedict's College in Bedfordview have reported
to The Star in the past 24 hours. But the school has
said unequivocally that bullying is wrong. And it plans to
convene the school board to discuss ways of rooting out this
unacceptable behaviour. - IOL
website
MEC
acts on bullying in schools - 17 July
The high prevalence of bullying in schools has prompted the
Gauteng Education Department to devise new policies to curb
the scourge. This week The Star ran a story about a
14-year-old boy who was allegedly bullied by another boy in
his class at St Benedict's College in Bedfordview. The
parents of the alleged bully are suing the victim's parents
for R350 000 for defamation of character. The victim has
left the school. - IOL
website
Judicial
Service Commission, and, Judiciary
JSC's
new faces raise questions on Zuma - 11 July
New appointments to the body that interviews candidates for the
bench made this week by President Jacob Zuma have left experts
wondering how seriously to take recent presidential assurances
that he respects judicial independence. The appointment of
advocates Dumisa Ntsebeza SC, Ishmael Semenya SC, Vas Soni SC
and Andiswa Ndoni to replace advocates George Bizos SC, Kgomotso
Moroka SC, Seth Nthai SC and veteran trade unionist John
Ernestzen also come after the dramatic postponement of Judicial
Service Commission (JSC) interviews early this month. Pierre de
Vos says "I hope I am wrong, but these . . . appointments
do not bode well for the real and deep transformation of the
judiciary, by which I mean the appointment not only of more
black and women judges, but also of more judges who have
internalised the values of the constitution and would act in a
scrupulously honest and ethical manner". - The
Weekender website
12
July 2009
Replacement
and designation of new members to serve on the Judicial Service
Commission
SA
Government Information website
I'd
recuse myself from Hlophe matter : Ntsebeza - 12 July
Advocate Dumisa Ntsebeza, SC, who is among the lawyers nominated
by President Jacob Zuma to serve on the Judicial Service
Commission , says he would be willing to recuse himself from the
body if and when it hears the complaint against Judge John
Hlophe. Ntsebeza represented Judge Hlophe, the Western Cape
judge president, in the initial stages of his battle with
Constitutional Court judges who complained to the JSC that he
attempted to improperly influence them in a matter involving
Zuma. - The
Times website
New
JSC appointments bad news for Hlophe? - 10 July
Good news for the executive and for racial nationalists, but
(perhaps) bad news for Judge President John Hlophe and for those
who believe in real and deep transformation of the judiciary. -
Pierre de Vos on the Constitutionally
Speaking blog
DA
opposes Soni and Ndoni appointments to JSC - 14 July
The DA's submission to the President regarding his four
designations to the JSC. - Politicsweb
website
Zuma
appointees 'okay' - 15 July
There is nothing wrong with President Jacob Zuma selecting
jurists who are perceived to be in tune with the ruling party's
ideology, said a law expert yesterday. "There is nothing
untoward about a new administration making political
appointments that are in sync with its political objectives and
ambitions", Wits University law academic Kevin Malunga
said. - The
Citizen website
On
democracy and criticism - 16 July
Is it acceptable in a constitutional democracy for a governing
party to try and get judges appointed to the bench that share
its "political objectives and ambitions"? If the
governing party does so, is it justifiable to fear that the
independence of the judiciary is under attack? If one criticises
the maneuvers of the governing party to appoint more pliant
judges that will rule in the government’s favour (even in
cases where poor, marginalised and often black litigants
approach the court for help), is one not being hysterical and
perpetuating an Afro-pessimism born out of racism? My answer to
this perplexing set of questions is both yes and no. - Pierre de
Vos on the Constitutionally
Speaking blog
Hlophe
'immensely qualified' to be chief justice - 13 July
As the nomination process for SA's new chief justice gears up
, Western Cape Judge President John Hlophe's campaign is
gaining momentum. Hlophe's supporters have been vocal in their
lobbying for him to be appointed as chief justice and now
Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (Popcru) spokesman Benzi
ka-Soko has also endorsed that call. "Notwithstanding his
human fallibilities, I believe that Judge Hlophe should become
the next chief justice He is immensely qualified and a pure
jurist of note", Ka-Soko wrote in his personal capacity
at the weekend. "He vividly understands the need to bring
about serious radical transformation in the South African
judiciary". In an open letter, Ka-Soko described Hlophe
as the "embodiment of judicial fearlessness in the face
of judicial populism". - Business
Day website
ConCourt
: Hlophe accepts - 16 July
Supporters of Western Cape Judge President John Hlophe have
confirmed nominating him to a post on the Constitutional Court.
The deadline for nominations to the country's highest court to
replace four judges who are retiring ran out on Wednesday. They
also say Hlophe accepted the nomination in writing. They want
him to be the new chief justice. - iafrica
website
"Nomination"
of Hlophe is an insult to our President - 15 July
The (ironically named) Justice For Hlophe Alliance has issued
a press statement claiming that they have "nominated"
Judge President John Hlophe for the position of Chief Justice.
This is a bit like me issuing a press statement claiming that I
have nominated Evita Bezuidenhout, Steve Biko or Michael Jacskon
for the position of Pope : it might make headlines, but it is
utterly irrelevant to what happens in the Vatican when the
Cardinals appoint a new Pope. The problem is that nominations
are not invited for the position of Chief Justice and no one can
legally nominate anyone for that position. - Pierre de Vos on
the Constitutionally
Speaking blog
Hlophe
is best man for the job : group - 16 July
A lobby group hoping to see Cape Judge President John Hlophe in
the chief justice chair has been formed, the Justice for Hlophe
group said on Thursday. At a press briefing in Parktown, Justice
for Hlophe spokesperson Percy Gumbi said the group was formed by
professionals from the legal fraternity, business, finance and
information technology sectors. The group's stance was to
oversee transformation starting with the judiciary and that they
believed Hlophe was the best person for the job. Their goal was
to ensure that Hlophe becomes the next chief justice. - IOL
website
Hlophe
and the chamber of secrets - 17 July
The Justice for Hlophe Alliance, which according to chairperson
Percy Gumbi is funded from its members' own pockets, officially
announced Hlophe's acceptance of their nomination. He explained
that his movement was formed to support Hlophe because there
were "forces of darkness" bent on destroying his
chances of becoming chief justice. Pressed on who or what
constituted these dark forces, all he could muster was : "I
am afraid I can't comment". Gumbi also revealed that
Hlophe's lawyer, Barnabas Xulu, had confirmed that the Judicial
Service Commission (JSC) would still act against Hlophe on
long-standing allegations that the Constitutional Court
candidate attempted to influence the court's judges. - Mail
& Guardian wesbite
ConCourt
should be selected from a wider pool - 19 July
The nomination of judges to the Constitutional Court is once
again in the spotlight, with four vacancies in the court due to
be filled this year. One of the criteria for appointment will be
ensuring that the court continues to reflect the diversity of
South Africa, on issues of race and gender at least. The
Judicial Services Commission (JSC), judged by its past practice,
will be looking for skilled jurists who represent different life
experiences. - IOL
website
19
July 2009
Announcement
of new designated members of the JSC
Presidency
website
New
JSC members announced - 19 July
President Jacob Zuma announced the names of new members of the
Judicial Services Commission on Sunday, the office of the
presidency said. Advocates Ismael Semenya, Dumisa Ntsebeza, Vas
Soni and Andiswa Ndoni were announced as designated persons to
serve as members of the JSC, presidential spokesperson Vincent
Magwenya said in a statement. The four would replace advocates
George Bizos, Kgomotso Moroko, Seth Nthai and John Ernstzen who
resigned on July 13. - IOL
website
JSC
grills candidates for SCA vacancies - 19 July
Four judges were grilled on Sunday by the Judicial Services
Commission (JSC) for three vacancies on the Supreme Court of
Appeal. Held at the luxurious Twelve Apostles Hotel and Spa in
Camps Bay, the JSC will have more people in attendance when the
hearings for four vacancies on the Constitutional Court get
underway in Soweto on September 5. On Sunday judges Bennie
Griesel and Eric Leach, Lebotsang Bosielo and Francois Malan
were quizzed on their views on transformation and how this could
be achieved to make the judiciary more representative. - IOL
website
Appeal
court candidates put on spot
- 20 July
Racial transformation was the focus of Judicial Service
Commission (JSC) interviews for the Supreme Court of Appeal
(SCA) yesterday, when newly appointed commissioner Dumisa
Ntsebeza questioned candidates on whether the appeal court was
broadly representative of the South African population. Of the
four candidates interviewed for three available positions on
the bench - which has a full complement of 25 - only one,
Gauteng High Court Judge Ronnie Bosielo, was black. None were
female. Currently sitting on the appeal court are nine whites
- of whom three are women - nine Africans - of whom three are
women - three Indian men and no coloureds. Ntsebeza asked
candidates if it was not necessary for the JSC to have a
"targeted" and "aggressive" programme to
change the pattern. - Business
Day website
Judges
avoids JSC interrogation - 20 July
A prospective Supreme Court of Appeal judge was on Sunday
spared a grilling about his controversial discharge of the
kidnapping and molestation case facing a former senior
Namibian judge because that matter is sub judice. Four
judges - Ronnie Bosielo and Frans Malan of Gauteng, Bennie
Griesel of the Western Cape and Eric Leach of the Eastern Cape
- interviewed for three available positions. It is understood
however that only two positions are likely to be filled this
time around, to address the shortage of female candidates at a
future appointment process. - Cape
Argus website
JSC
grills Pretoria advocate over apartheid past - 20
July
A senior Pretoria advocate was asked to apologise for his
stint in the Conservative Party and defence of apartheid era
perpetrators as the Judicial Services Commission interviewed
nominees for judges on Monday. Advocate Hennie de Vos conceded
during questioning that he served as chairperson of the
Waterkloof branch of the far-right CP from 1982 to 1987, a
time when he said "the supposition still was that South
Africa must be divided in areas where black, white and
coloured are totally independent of each other". - Mail
& Guardian website
Candidate
judge tells of NPA 'pressure' - 20 July
A member of the National Prosecuting Authority who has been
nominated as a judge told the Judicial Service Commission
(JSC) today that she came under pressure from her bosses to
stop serving as an acting judge or quit her job. Nomonde
Mngqibisi-Thusi, who works for the NPA's Asset Forfeiture
Unit, said the threat was not stated explicitly but she
realised she had to choose between the bench and the unit.
"It was not put to me like that but I read between the
lines that I would be asked to leave if I carried on
acting," she said. - The
Times website
Zuma
gets his way with JSC choices - 20 July
President Jacob Zuma's four chosen nominees for the Judicial
Service Commission (JSC) have been appointed, prompting the DA
to warn that the appointment of Constitutional Court judges
later in 2009 could be politically influenced. - IOL
website
Judge
Hlophe
Hlophe
: I'm coming back to work - 10 July
Western Cape Judge President John Hlophe has informed Minister
of Justice and Constitutional Development Jeff Radebe that he
intends to return to work after the current court recess comes
to an end. Hlophe has been on self-imposed leave pending
hearings into his conduct by the Judicial Service Commission.
He faces allegations that he tried to exert improper influence
on Constitutional Court judges Bess Nkabinde and Chris Jafta
in a case involving President Jacob Zuma. This is the second
time Hlophe has sought to return to work. After his first
attempt, he was ordered to go back on leave by former justice
minister Ever Surty. - Mail
& Guardian website
'Africanise'
SA's law? - 10 July
Cape Judge President John Hlophe said on Thursday that South
Africa's legal system needs to be "Africanised", at
a symposium organised by the Progressive Professional Network.
Constitutional law expert and Hlophe's sometimes critic, UCT's
Professor Pierre de Vos, answered a few questions about
Hlophe's comments. - News24
website
Yes,
we should "Africanise" our law - 13 July
Controversial Cape Judge President John Hlophe created quite a
stir last week when he told a symposium in Durban that South
African law needed to be "Africanised" to make it
more relevant. I don’t see what the fuss is about. Clearly
Hlophe has a point. - Pierre de Vos on the Constitutionally
Speaking blog
The
iafrica.com debate - 15 July
The controversial Cape Judge President John Hlophe recently
suggested that in order for the South African judicial system
to be properly transformed, it needed to be 'Africanised'. Do
you agree? Ebrahim Moolla and Rebekah Kendal go
head-to-head… - iafrica
website
Second
Judicial Conference for South African Judges. Pretoria
Resolutions
We
will continue to act fearlessly : judges - 9 July
Judges have vowed not to give in to "any pressure,
regardless of its source", saying they are accountable only
to the constitution and the law. This follows two years of
tension between the bench and new ANC leadership, including
President Jacob Zuma, who once expressed his irritation with the
Constitutional Court. Chief Justice Pius Langa yesterday read a
declaration after the second judicial conference in Pretoria.
The judges declared: "We will continue to act fearlessly
and be guided by our conscience, as we are only accountable to
the constitution and the law. We will not bow to any pressure,
regardless of its source". - IOL
website
Labour
Issues
15
July 2009
Affirmative
action and the elusive search for equality : speech by F W de
Klerk to Solidarity's International Conference on Affirmative
Action, Centurion
Politicsweb
website
'Affirmative
action behind social decay' - 16 July
'Unbalanced" affirmative action has led to poor service
delivery, especially in municipalities, and was a threat to the
country's future stability, former president FW de Klerk has
warned. De Klerk said private companies were not always honest
with the government about the private discussions in boardrooms
about affirmative action. - IOL
website
Tutu
: race is not useful for anything - 15 July
Affirmative action is working against South Africa, Trevor Tutu
told a conference on the issue in Pretoria on Wednesday. Tutu, the
son of Nobel laureate Archbishop Desmond Tutu, said affirmative
action made young South Africans bitter and they then left the
country to work somewhere taking their skills with them.
"What do you call it, when my daughter gets a scholarship to
study and her white counterpart could not get the scholarship,
based on colour". He said that 15 years into democracy South
Africa could have created equal opportunities for all and that
people should not be judged according to mistakes committed by
their forefathers. - IOL
website
Vets
face same issues as doctors : forum - 14 July
State veterinarians raised the alarm over their pay and working
conditions on Tuesday, saying their issues were very similar to
those of public sector doctors. "The South African Livestock
Industries are extremely concerned that veterinarians have been
removed from the list of professions eligible for the
occupation-specific dispensation," said a statement sent on
behalf of Dr Peter Vervoort of the Animal Health Forum. - IOL
website
Chemical,
Energy, Paper, Printing Wood and Allied Industries
'This
strike is going to hit hard' - 14 July
Workers in the petroleum, chemical, pharmaceutical and paper
industries are preparing to strike if a wage dispute is not
resolved, their unions said on Tuesday. "The clear mandate we
are getting from our members across the country . . . the offer,
they are rejecting it", Chemical, Energy, Paper, Printing,
Wood and Allied Workers Union (Ceppwawu) deputy general secretary
Thabani Mdlalose told a media briefing in Johannesburg. He said
the union was now willing to settle for a 10 percent wage
increase. - IOL
website
Labour
sector: construction strike, gold wage negotiations -
14 July
Interview with Andrew Levy, independent labour consultant, and
Alec Hogg on the Moneyweb
website
Chemical
workers set to strike - 16 July
A union representing workers in the energy, paper and
pharmaceuticals sectors said on Thursday it plans to start a
strike next week after wage negotiations with employers failed.
The Chemical, Energy, Paper, Printing, Wood and Allied Workers
Union (CEPPWAWU) said the supply of fuel, medicine and pulp would
potentially be affected by the industrial action. - IOL
website
Construction
Union
optimistic about 2010 wage talks - 14 July
The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) is "optimistic"
about Tuesday's talks to end the strike in the construction
sector. NUM spokesperson Lesiba Seshoka said the parties were
"very close" to reaching agreement. "The ball is in
the employer's court and if they play ball we'll have an agreement
; we'll sign," Seshoka said. - Mail
& Guardian website
Keyphrase :
2010 FIFA World Cup
Unions
issue SABC with ultimatum - 14 July
The South African Broadcasting Corporation's management body has
two days to meet the 12,2% salary increase demand by unions or
there will be dead air on the corporation’s television and radio
channels. - Mail
& Guardian website
NUM
: 2010 wage deal better than expected - 15 July
A wage agreement between employers and construction workers
following a week-long strike at Soccer World Cup stadiums was
better than expected, the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM)
said. "It is a very good agreement for labour. We hope our
members are going to be excited," said NUM spokesperson
Lesiba Seshoka. The agreement was made in the early hours of
Wednesday morning. - Mail
& Guardian website
The
true cost of wage hikes - 17 July
Above inflation wage hikes are making our construction players
uncompetitive the July 16 SAFM Market Update reinforced. Mike
Wylie, executive chairman of Wilson Bayly Holmes-Ovcon, said the
big issue for the industry is : "we at Safcec, whom it was
negotiated with, represent about 20% [of the market], so if we
have to have a whole lot of these rates [hikes], etc, we make
ourselves uncompetitive". - Moneyweb
website
Mining
Unions
snub new gold sector wage offer - 14 July
Workers in South Africa's gold sector rejected the latest
offer for a pay raise of between 8% and 10% and vowed to soon
escalate the dispute, the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM)
said on Tuesday. - Mail
& Guardian website
Union,
De Beers agree on 9% wage hike - 17 July
South African workers at De Beers, the world's top diamond
producer, have agreed to a pay rise of 9% and dropped a demand
for more because the industry has been hit by the global
crisis, their union said on Friday. The National Union of
Mineworkers, South Africa's biggest mining union, had
originally wanted 15%. That compared with the most recent
inflation figure of 8%. - Mail
& Guardian website
South
African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC)
Unions
reject SABC wage offer - 14 July
SABC workers on Monday rejected the latest wage offer made to them
by the broadcaster, the Media Workers' Association of South Africa
said. Mwasa general secretary Ernest Dlamini said the SABC's
latest offer included an increase of between 9,25% to 10,25%,
according to different salary scales. However, he said :
"They [SABC workers] want their 12,2%". - Mail
& Guardian website
Land
Affairs and Property
The
Zimbabwe-ification of South Africa? - 16 July
The dilapidated state of infrastructure and widespread poverty are
the results of the destruction of property rights and the rule of
law by the government of Zimbabwe. Yet South Africa's new Minister
of Land Reform and Rural Development, Gugile Nkwinti, clearly has
not been to Zimbabwe in recent years. Speaking in parliament late
last month, he announced that the ANC government would scrap its
current "willing buyer willing seller" land
redistribution policy, which allows the government to acquire land
only at a market price and only with the consent of the land
owner, and replace it with "less costly, alternative methods
of land acquisition." The new policy will almost certainly
include some form of land expropriation that could spell disaster
for the South African economy. - Wall
Street Journal website
Stones
and rubber bullets fly on Cape peak - 15 July
Police fired rubber bullets at about 100 stone-throwing people who
were demonstrating against the auction of a mountain peak in Hout
Bay on Wednesday morning. Inspector Tanya Lesh said the protest
started at 10am when the group gathered on top of the Sentinel
mountain peak above Hout Bay. - IOL
website
Stun
grenades fired at Hangberg protesters - 16 July
Police fired pepper spray, stun grenades and rubber bullets at
enraged residents of Hangberg in Hout Bay who had gathered outside
the Chapman's Peak Hotel to protest the auctioning off of Hout
Bay's famous peak, the Sentinel. In the end, the auction on
Wednesday failed to yield a single adequate bid, amidst a frantic
standoff between police and protesting residents who said the
mountain was a heritage site and "belonged to the
community". The residents were concerned that the new owners
may decide to move them off the land. - IOL
website
Iconic
Sentinel might be expropriated - 17 July
SA National Parks (SANParks) may expropriate the Sentinel, a Hout
Bay icon it believes should form part of the Table Mountain
National Park. It will also "strongly oppose" any move
to build new access roads across its land to reach the Sentinel,
which is surrounded on all sides by the national park. These two
factors, and the violent protest on Wednesday by members of the
local community opposed to the sale of the Sentinel, are likely to
make prospective buyers hesitant about becoming the new owner of
the mountain peak. - IOL
website
R30m
property shocker : Old Mutual unrepentant - 14 July
Old Mutual's property group decision-makers are standing by a
decision that cost policyholders R30m. Rather than selling a
building to the highest bidder, Old Mutual offloaded it to a lower
bidder - which in turn sold it for a juicy profit to the highest
bidder. Old Mutual cited "competitive" reasons to Hyprop at
the time it rejected an offer of R120m for Nedbank Gardens, in
Johannesburg's Rosebank, but Hyprop then bought a big share in the
building from the successful buyer. But Old Mutual's message when
asked to explain its decision was along the lines of this :
Policyholders should be grateful the property was sold at a profit
- albeit a dramatically lower one - and that therefore this was
not a problematic investment deal. - Moneyweb
website
Old
Mutual's R30m property clanger : and more - 14 July
The saying goes that no-one looks after your own money like you
do. Old Mutual, it seems, forgot that the money it has to play
with is not its own when it refused to sell Johannesburg's Nedbank
Gardens to the highest bidder, Hyprop, because of real estate
industry politics. Instead, it sold the property to another party
for less - and that company in turn offloaded 70% ownership of the
building to Hyprop, making money in the deal. - Moneyweb
website
Bid
to set up lodge hindered by inefficiency - 16 July
Simon Shoyisa's ordeal in trying to establish a tourist lodge in
KwaZulu-Natal highlights the plight of thousands who cannot get
capital for commercial ventures because of the government's
failure to reform land ownership rules in communal areas. State
inefficiencies in reforming land ownership in communal areas have
long been cited as an obstacle to development in some of SA's most
impoverished rural areas. - Business
Day website
Keyphrases :
Communal Land Rights Act
Department of Land Affairs
Department of Public Works
Department of Trade and Industry
Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife
Free Market Foundation
Hluhluwe-Umfolozi
Ingonyama Trust Board
Ithala
Neighbours
in high wall spat - 17 July
A Scottburgh woman who cannot use her car to leave her property
because a neighbour has built a wall in front of her driveway
gate, has appealed to the municipality for urgent intervention.
Brenda Hayle, 64, of Clansthal has been using the driveway to
enter and exit her property for 25 years. This stopped on Tuesday
last week when the wall went up resulting in a feud between Hayle
and neighbour 55-year-old Avlon Clopper. - IOL
website
Diepsloot
: bad news for shack dwellers - 14 July
Residents of Diepsloot township, north of Johannesburg, have been
told that they must move and make way for a development from which
they might never benefit. Gauteng housing MEC Kgaogelo Lekgoro
said yesterday that at least 320 families living in Diepsloot
Extension 1 would be moved to the nearby Adelaide Tambo informal
settlement, in Diepsloot Extension 12, to make way for the
development of low-cost housing and a sewerage system. But the
families told to move have not been promised new housing. - The
Times website
Land
Claims and Expropriation
Mthatha
subject of huge land claim - 18 July
A rural community has laid claim to the whole of Mthatha in the
Eastern Cape. All property sales, leasing, rezoning and
development have been put on hold in the city pending the claim,
worth billions of rands.
But city bosses say they are taking the battle to court.
The massive claim , found to be legitimate after a decade-long
investigation by the Land Claims Commission, covers existing
residential and commercial plots and more than 3000ha of vacant
land earmarked for development. - The
Times website
Land
Bank
Bad
debt threatens Land Bank's survival - 13 July
The embattled state-owned Land Bank has already repossessed 25
farms around the country, of which six are black-owned properties,
used as collateral against farm loans. The rest of the farmsteads
had belonged to white commercial farmers. Parliament's
agriculture, fisheries and forestry committee has called on the
government to forge ways of saving a further 350 black emergent
farmers who are in trouble and are costing the Land Bank about
R100 million a month - or R1.2 billion a year - on loan defaults.
The bank has warned that this is unsustainable. - Business
Report website
Land
Bank skeletons kick up debate in Parliament - 14 July
An angry war of words erupted between Deputy Finance Minister
Nhlanhla Nene and the DA in Parliament yesterday over what the
opposition party described as an attempt by Nene to protect senior
officials involved in alleged corruption at the Land Bank. Nene
stirred the hornet's nest last week when he told MPs that Land
Bank chief executive Phakamani Hadebe should be given
"political protection" from Land Bank fraud suspects. It
is estimated that the bank has wasted about R2 billion on projects
that were outside of its mandate or simply illegal. - Business
Day website
Net
closing in on former Land Bank executives - 12 July
Senior former Land Bank executives and a former Gauteng politician
will be arrested this month on charges of corruption, MPs have
been told. The revelation comes two years after auditors hinted at
massive corruption at the bank, which is responsible for helping
emerging farmers. - IOL
website
Land
Bank : what state is it in? - 14 July
Parliamentary Monitoring Group report on the presentation by the
Land Bank on its turnaround strategy to the parliamentary
committee on agriculture, forestry and fisheries, July 9 2009
Politicsweb
website
Media
Against
the current on the boat of an old mining boss - 8 July
To visit Graham Boustred is to go back in time. It doesn’t
appear that way at first, however. Just as my two colleagues and
I pull up outside the former Anglo American deputy chairman's
home, he arrives in his silver Lexus SUV, driving himself back
from the dentist. Although 84 and suffering from arthritis, the
man who retired only 12 years ago is immediately full of talk
and life. - Business Day
website
Anglo's
former deputy chairman's comments - 15 July
Interview with Clive Simpkins, marketing and communications
strategist and Alec Hogg on the Moneyweb
website
On
the morality of Boustred bashing - 15 July
Jeremy Gordin on the Moneyweb
website
Minerals
and Energy
Zuma
pours cold water over mines grab - 12 July
South African President Jacob Zuma said he did not intend to
nationalise the country's mines, as suggested by labour unions
that support his government. "People should not
worry," Zuma said this week after a summit of world leaders
in L'Aquila, Italy. "It is just a debate. Just because
someone raises it does not make it policy." - Business
Report website
Zuma,
Shabangu agree on mines - 13 July
President Jacob Zuma and Mining Minister Susan Shabangu have
poured cold water over calls for the country's mines to be
nationalised. Though both have encouraged debate on the issue,
they have unequivocally said that such calls run contrary to
policies adopted by the ANC since 1994. - The
Times website
Will
South Africa reclaim its mines? - 14 July
Nationalisation of the mines is a cry that goes echoing down
South Africa's history. For this country is built on its mines -
even today, they account for a good half of exports, let alone
foreign exchange, for this is perhaps the most fabulously
endowed nation on the planet. Gold, diamonds, platinum, copper,
coal, rhodium - you name it, South Africa's got it. - Mail
& Guardian website
SA's
nationalisation talk creating investor shivers : Canada-SA
Chamber - 15 July
Talk of the nationalisation of South Africa's mining industry
was creating shivers in the international investment community
despite the rebuttal of the South African government,
Canada-South Africa Chamber of Business president Bruce Shapiro
said on Wednesday. Shapiro told the Terrapinn African Mining
Congress in Johannesburg that it was important to note that
Africa faced competition from other regions, notably South
America, and, at the moment to a much lesser extent, Russia.
"The competition is mostly in the political arena",
Shapiro said, adding that several African governments had, of
late, been talking about, or actively implementing, policies
that could drive away investors. - Creamer
Media's Mining Weekly website
Simmers
pulls out of Pamodzi Gold's Orkney bid, focuses on Weltevreden
- 13 July
JSE-listed gold-and-uranium miner Simmer & Jack Mines
(Simmers) on Monday announced formally that it had withdrawn
from the reopened bidding process for the acquisition of the
assets of the provisionally liquidated Pamodzi Gold's Orkney
mine. Simmers MD Deon van der Mescht said that Simmers had
decided instead to focus its growth efforts on the development
of Weltevreden, a low-cost, low-risk project next to its Tau
Lekoa mine. - Creamer
Media's Mining Weekly website
See
also : Competition
Commission, Tribunal and Appeal Court. Xstrata / Anglo American
Mpumalanga
Government
responsible for violent protests - 14 July
Violent protests in Mpumalanga can be blamed on the provincial
government's failure to respond to community problems, Cooperative
Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Sicelo Shiceka said on
Tuesday. The minister said there was proof of letters written to
the previous provincial government about municipalities' lack of
service delivery but nothing had been done to address them. He
said a team made up of senior government officials from his
department will go to Mpumalanga to work with the provincial
government to find solutions to the problems that had led to
violent protests. - IOL
website
Municipal
Management and Procedure
Cape
Town
City's
anti-land invasion unit to stop land grabs - 20 July
The City of Cape Town has set up an anti-land invasion unit
(ALIU) to stop people attempting to illegally occupy land which
has been identified for housing people on the City's housing
waiting list. - City
of Cape Town website
eThekwini
No
rates appeals board yet - 19 July
About 5 000 Durban ratepayers may be paying inflated rates
bills because their properties were incorrectly valued by
eThekwini Municipality more than a year ago. And now that the
increases for the 2009/10 year have come into effect, these
ratepayers will be paying even more. This while the property
appeals board for the eThekwini metro region has yet to be
established, despite assurances that it would be operating by
July 1. It appears unlikely the board will be in place before
September. - IOL
website
Take
the wheel, Durban, says SACP -15 July
The South African Communist Party (SACP) in KwaZulu-Natal has
slammed the ANC-led eThekwini Municipality for what it called
the incompetent and insensitive handling of the issue of the
city's bus system and the Warwick precinct development. - IOL
website
New
bus company to operate on KZN routes - 13 July
KwaZulu-Natal’s transport department has confirmed that
Transnat Africa has been appointed the new operator of
eThekwini's municipal bus service, bringing relief to
thousands of stranded commuters in and around Durban.
The more restricted new operation will not take all the routes
that previously served the municipality.
Transport MEC Bheki Cele said about 100 buses would be
operating by next Monday. - Sowetan
website
Taxis
poised to take stake in bus deal - 9 July
The lucrative contract to run the Durban Transport bus service
has been split into two, with a group of taxi operators poised
to take a 40 percent stake in the deal, insiders have
confirmed. - IOL
website
Durban
buses are in turmoil again - 16 July
Durban's municipal bus service is in turmoil again after
hundreds of drivers marched on the city hall yesterday
demanding that the newly appointed operator employ all
workers retrenched by its predecessor.
The laid-off bus workers, mostly members of the Transport
and Allied workers Union (Tawusa), threatened "mass-scale
disruption of the new service" unless the new operator,
Transnat Africa, took on all the drivers employed by the
previous company. - Sowetan
website
'If
they want blood then blood will spill' - 16 July
There was a tense three-hour stand-off between police and
thousands of protesters, including disgruntled bus drivers,
outside the Durban City Hall yesterday as marchers demanded
the appointment of a commission of inquiry to investigate the
collapse of the city's bus company. Wednesday's protest has
raised questions over whether the new bus company will be able
to start operations on Monday as planned. - IOL
website
Durban
bus saga hits new pothole - 20 July
Thousands of Durban pupils were left stranded on Monday
morning as a new bus operator was unable start rounds as
scheduled due to a legal challenge. The Mercury newspaper
reported that about four operators applied for an interdict
against the eThekwini municipality and the provincial
department of transport, preventing the transfer of the Remant
Alton contract to Transnat. Transport department spokeswoman
Nonkululeko Mbatha confirmed that there was a legal challenge,
saying that the department would comment later on Monday after
the Pietermaritzburg High Court had heard the matter. - The
Times website
National
Prosecuting Authority
Directorate
for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI) (formerly Scorpions)
Hawks
ready to smash illegal mine syndicates - 14 July
South Africa's crack new special investigations unit, the Hawks,
is set to take on illegal mining syndicates as part of their fight
against crime.
It is understood that the new unit has prioritised rooting out the
gangs – also known as zama-zamas – following the death of 86
illegal miners, killed in an underground fire in an abandoned mine
shaft on Harmony Gold's Eland operation in Welkom, Free State, in
May.
The syndicates have been operating mainly in hazardous disused
mines since the late 1990s and are believed to cost mining
companies millions, as well as being a major threat to the SA
economy. - Dispatch Online
website
Hawks
spark political rumpus - 13 July
Hardly a week after the launch of the Hawks, their claim of having
snatched prey has sparked a political rumpus, with the Police
Ministry dismissing the police's admission that the new unit was a
one-man show. There is doubt about whether the claws of the Hawks
are as effective as the sting of the Scorpions, as the opposition
DA demands answers about who caught the criminals. But Ministry of
Police spokesperson Hangwani Mulaudzi has accused critics of
"conspiracy". - IOL
website
Hawks
fully staffed only in a year's time - 16 July
The police on Wednesday conceded it could take a year before the
Hawks had a full staff complement, after the DA insisted that
commander Anwa Dramat was still the only member of the elite unit.
Police spokesperson Sally de Beer said members of the defunct
Scorpions and the police who had applied to join the new
organised-crime-fighting unit that "were all still awaiting
finalisation" of their clearance process. De Beer would not
comment on how many members had formally joined the unit since its
launch on July 6, saying only that "within 12 months it will
be 3 500-strong". - IOL
website
SAPS
to inherit Scorpions' liability - 16 July
Along with cases, the SAPS has also been saddled with about
R250-million of the Scorpions' liability. National police
spokesperson Hangwani Mulaudzi said that the Scorpions's
investigative assets and liabilities were audited in February, and
had been transferred to the SAPS. - IOL
website
See
also : No
bonuses for civil servants
Nelson
Mandela Annual Lecture in Johannesburg (7th : 2009 : Johannesburg)
Grameen
founder takes aim at conventional banks - 12 July
Following the global financial crisis, conventional banks have
lost a trillion dollars, yet they are still not in favour of
lending to the poor, Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus said
on Saturday. The banker and economist was delivering the seventh
Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture in Johannesburg. - Mail
& Guardian website
A
'race to create a fantasy world of papers' - 11 July
Following the global financial crisis, conventional banks have
lost a trillion dollars, yet they are still not in favour of
lending to the poor, Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus said
on Saturday. The Bangladesh banker and economist was giving the
seventh Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture in Johannesburg. - IOL
website
Parliament
COPE
MPs refuse to move for Winnie and Manto - 14 July
A legal battle is looming between two Congress of the People
(COPE) members and the Department of Public Works, Minister Geoff
Doidge said on Tuesday. He said the two, Dennis Bloem and Bishop
Tolo, were refusing to move out of houses allocated to ANC MPs at
the parliamentary village. "Legal notices were served on July
6 and on July 9 they opposed it. We are now heading to
court". - IOL
website
Presidency
Outcry
over Zuma's presidential home - 11 July
Bullet-proof electric fences, motion and smoke sensors, watch
dogs and police on quad bikes are just some of the multi-million
rand security measures being put in place in an upmarket Durban
suburb for President Jacob Zuma - within walking distance of his
friend and erstwhile financial adviser Schabir Shaik. At least
R50 million is being spent on a 4-m high metal inner fence.
King's House, in Morningside Durban, is a stately 106-year-old
house that was once used by the governors of the colony of Natal
and governors-general of the Union of South Africa. It now forms
part of the Department of Public Works prestige accommodation
for the country's head of state. It is one of three official
residences for the president in the country, after Genadendal in
Cape Town and Mahlamba Ndlopfu in Pretoria. - IOL
website
'No
apologies' for R46m spent on Zuma's house - 14 July
Taxpayers are to foot R46-million for the refurbishment and
renovation of King's House, a presidential house in
KwaZulu-Natal. And the Minister of Public Works - whose ministry
is responsible for the work done on the house - said the project
had been in the pipeline for a number of years - and project was
unrelated to Jacob Zuma's presidency. - IOL
website
14
July 2009
Response
to reports on the refurbishment of Kings House and allocation of
accommodation to members of Parliament
SA
Government Information website
Provinces
Scrapping
the provinces a bad idea : Helen Zille - 10 July
The debate on the future of the Provinces has been simmering on
the backburner since July 2007, when the Minister responsible
for Provincial and Local Government Affairs, Sydney Mufamadi,
announced a comprehensive "review" of the Provinces
and their role. As soon as the ANC lost the Western Cape to the
DA on 22 April this year, the issue acquired a new urgency.
Turning up the heat, Minister Sicelo Shiceka (who succeeded
Mufamadi) asked : "Do we need provinces?"
South Africa is one country, he said . . . and "nobody is
expected to be out of tune". Shiceka announced that
the ANC would decide on the future of the provinces by March
2010. - Politicsweb
website
Social
Development
'Give
us a basic grant of R1 500 or we'll wreak havoc' - 17
July
A group representing the unemployed in KwaZulu-Natal has
threatened to set townships alight and unleash an army of
looters on shops unless all jobless people received a basic
income grant of R1 500 a month. National spokesperson for the SA
Unemployed People's Movement, Nozipho Mteshana, said a survey
the group commissioned had uncovered more than 26million
unemployed people in South Africa, more than half of the
population. The figures had gone up recently because of job
losses from the economic meltdown. "We give our government
and eThekwini municipality, which is our focus at this point,
seven days to give us answers". The group has handed the
municipality a memorandum of their grievances. - Sowetan
website
Sport
and Recreation
CSA
bars International matches at Wanderers - 11 July
Cricket South Africa have suspended international cricket at the
Wanderers after accusing the Gauteng Cricket Board (GCB) of making
unfounded allegations of mismanagement against CSA chief executive
Gerald Majola. The GCB, unhappy at Majola's handling of the
Indian Premier League (IPL) tournament which was staged in South
Africa in April and May, accused Majola of a "flagrant
disregard of his duties" and demanded to see a copy of the
contract between the CSA and the IPL. - IOL
website
AfriForum
welcomes SARU's decision that Bok coach must speak Afrikaans
- 20 July
AfriForum has welcomed the announcement of SARU President, Oregan
Hoskins, that the Springbok coach, Peter de Villiers, henceforth
has to speak Afrikaans during media conferences. According to
AfriForum, this not only is a way in which controversial
statements by the coach may be avoided in future, but it also is a
positive step towards the promotion of mother-tongue usage and
multilingualism in the country. - The
Richmark Sentinel website
Taxation
Law
South
African tax dodger jailed - 20 July
A businessman has been sentenced to 10 years behind bars for 235
counts of fraud involving a R250 000 tax claim, the National
Prosecuting Authority in the Western Cape said today. Deon Buys
appeared in the Bellville Regional Court on Friday and was
sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment, of which seven were
suspended. Head of the Western Cape Specialist Component,
Advocate Kevin Rossouw, said he hoped the sentence would serve
as a deterrent to other criminals. - The
Times website
Sars
goes after estates - 15 July
The draft Taxation Laws Amendment Bill,
2009, released recently for public comments, contains two
significant estate duty amendments. The first constitutes a
concession, while the second is an anti-avoidance provision.
The proposed concession relates to the R3.5m abatement allowed
in calculating the dutiable value of any estate. In terms
of current law, spouses are each entitled to the abatement, but
unused portions may not be transferred between them. The
draft explanatory memorandum to the draft bill recognises that
many married couples utilise structures, such as trusts, to
ensure that the benefit of the total R7m abatement is passed on
to their children. - Article by Tim Desmond, director of
tax and commercial departments at Garlicke & Bousfield, on
the Moneyweb
website
"Pay
now - argue later" - 16 July
The draft Taxation Laws Second Amendment
Bill, currently being considered for submission to
Parliament, proposes amendments to section 88 of the Income
Tax Act and section 36 of the Value-added
Tax Act which stipulate that the payment of any tax
assessed shall not be suspended by any objection or appeal. - Moneyweb
website
Penalties
imposed on a taxpayer : treble tax and interest - 13
July
The Income Tax Act, Act 58 of 1962,
as amended, imposes various penalties on a taxpayer for default,
omission, error or the late submission of tax returns. Section
75 creates various offences under the Act, for example, if a
taxpayer submits a late return , fails to register as a tax
practitioner for the relevant year of assessment, fails to
submit any return or document so required or defaults in a
material sense as is envisaged by that section. The regulations
under section 75B have now been promulgated which allows the
taxpayer to request a remission of the administrative penalties
imposed under section 75B but this does little to ameliorate the
additional tax and interest that may be imposed under section 76
and section 89quat respectively. - Moneyweb
website
Trade
and Industry
SA
faces Doha Round 'challenge' - 13 July
South Africa faces major challenges when the stalled Doha round of
trade talks finally get back on track, according to Xavier Carim,
the deputy director-general for international trade. Carim said at
the weekend that South Africa stood to make "the deepest and
widest cuts to its industrial tariffs of all member
countries" under current demands on the Doha table. - Business
Report website
Cosatu
slams 'anti-developmental' Doha trade negotiations - 16 July
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) on Thursday
said that the current Doha development round of negotiations
regarding world trade, were anti-developmental, would remove
policy space for poor countries to integrate into world trade, and
would result in job losses. "Cosatu notes with dismay the
commitment of the recent G8 summit to conclude the Doha round of
world trade negotiations in 2010 without addressing the concerns
of developing countries", stated the organisation. - Creamer
Media's Engineering News website
See
also : Botswana
signed controversial deal with EU to protect its commercial
interests
Transport
and Roads
State
asked to withdraw Roadlink's licence - 14 July
The SA Transport and Allied Workers Union (Satawu) has asked the
government to withdraw SA Roadlink's operating licence pending
an in-depth investigation into its fleet, staff and management.
The independent and wide investigation into all aspects of the
company should include site visits to depots and interviews with
staff. Transport Minister Sibusiso Ndebele has said there will
be an investigation in conjunction with the SAPS. - IOL
website
Bus
company ignores safety protocols : union - 9 July
Passenger safety is not a priority for SA Roadlink managers,
the Transport and Omnibus Workers' Union (Towu) claimed on
Thursday. Drivers were forced to drive for long hours without
taking time to rest, the union's secretary-general Gary Wilson
said in a statement. - IOL
website
Miscellaneous
Mandela
disowns a London exhibition - 11 July
Nelson Mandela has distanced himself from a London exhibition of
disputed lithographs bearing his signature, his lawyer said
Friday. Bally Chuene said the Belgravia Gallery had scheduled a
party and exhibition of artwork purported to be drawn by Mandela
for Thursday - two day's before the elderly statesman's 91st
birthday. He said the artworks were part of ongoing litigation
between Mandela and his former lawyer in South Africa. "He
(Mandela) did not sign those artworks," he said. "It
is important to tell the public that they are being
deceived". - AP on Google
website
Mandela
upset by exhibit of sketches - 11 July
Speaking through his lawyers on , Mandela, who turns 91 next
Saturday, said he "strongly disassociates himself"
from the Belgravia Gallery's planned party and exhibition
organised for Thursday. In 2008 Mandela launched legal action
against the gallery, saying the artworks were fake and that
money raised from the sale had not gone to charity as was
agreed. - IOL
website
See
also :
Legal
wrangle over Mandela's drawings - 23 July 2003
Mail & Guardian website
[InfoUpdate
26 of 2003]
New
twist to Ayob, Madiba tussle
- 13 June 2006
IOL website
[InfoUpdate
23 of 2006]
'Ayob
tried to cover up unlawful spending'
- 8 July 2006
IOL website
[InfoUpdate
27 of 2006]
Ayob
runs out of cash but accuses Mandela again
- 10 March 2007
allAfrica website
[InfoUpdate
8 of 2007]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ismail_Ayob#Nelson_Mandela_lawsuit
Official
fired over Merc scandal - 17 uly
The woman who cost Gauteng MEC Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko her job
has been fired. Mamoorosi Qasha, chief financial officer
of the Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural
Development, authorised the bungled purchase of a secondhand
Mercedes-Benz worth R920 000 for the newly appointed MEC
last month. Qasha was found guilty of committing fraud
amounting to millions of rands. Two weeks ago, she was served
with a letter of dismissal when it emerged that she had
authorised and processed two payments for the purchase of
Nkomo-Ralehoko's Mercedes. - IOL
website
MTN
competition 'unlawful' - 14 July
The National Lotteries Board has found that the recent
controversial MTN SMS competition is in contravention of the Lotteries
Act. MTN terminated the competition ahead of schedule
earlier this month, because the controversy surrounding it was
not "in line with its values", it said. Africa's
largest cellular company processed the last entries a month
early, as the competition was initially intended to run until
9 August. MTN launched the competition at the end of April to
celebrate its 15th birthday and it has since been dogged by
controversy. - Moneyweb
website
MTN
competition : subscribers fuming
- 25 June
Subscribers have reacted with anger to the news that the
winners of an MTN competition allegedly knew the rankings of
players. Independent Newspapers' website, IOL,
on Wednesday received numerous comments about the competition
with many readers wanting their money back. Banking giant FNB
has also told the Pretoria News that it pulled its sponsorship
of the MTN15 competition one week before the paper exposed the
alleged team of winners who knew how many SMSes they needed to
send to win the game. - IOL
website
Did
you get your share of R6-million?
- 7 July
A controversial quiz-based SMS competition run by cellphone
giant MTN has been closed more than one month ahead of
schedule. The MTN15 competition, run to celebrate the
cellphone provider's 15th birthday, closed down abruptly on
Sunday. The competition was due to close on August 9. Last
month The Star reported that winners who walked away with a
Toyota Fortuner knew exactly how many SMSes they needed to
send to win the vehicle. MTN denied the allegations, saying
they had done an internal audit which came out clean. - IOL
website
MTN
stops SMS competition
- 7 July
Bad press and consumer backlash prompts MTN to wind up SMS
competition. MTN launched an SMS competition to celebrate its
15 year anniversary in late April, which the cellular operator
said was skills based and hence complied with the Lottery
Act.
While the competition may have proved profitable to the
company, the high cost of entering the competition - R 7.50
per SMS - and the fact that multiple entries were encouraged
were slated by concerned consumers. - MyBroadband
website
SA
drug mule jailed in Ireland - 14 July
A Cape Town woman has been sentenced to seven years behind
bars after trying to smuggle drugs into Ireland. This brings
the total number of South Africans in Irish prisons to at
least 11 - many for drug-related crimes. Bianca Butzer, 22, of
Durbanville, was caught arriving through customs at Dublin
Airport with a kilogram of cocaine in her hand luggage last
year. And after a year behind bars awaiting trial, she was
finally sentenced last week. - IOL
website
Keyphrase
:
Drug smuggling
Irish
judge warns SA drug mules
- 14 July
An Irish judge has sounded a warning to South African drug
mules by jailing a Cape Town woman for five years for trying
to smuggle cocaine into that country. This brings the
number of South Africans in Irish prisons to at least 11 -
many for drug-related crimes. The total of South Africans in
prisons abroad is now estimated to be 1 009. - IOL
website
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