Indholdsfortegnelse for 2024-09-05 i Mercury

AFRICAN Rainbow Minerals (ARM), which is expecting headline earnings for the full year to June 2024 to plunge by at least 40%, has effected board changes that will see Alexander Komope Maditsi and Wilson Mangisi Gule stepping down from different positions while David Collen Noko and Bongani Nqwababa have been roped in as new appointments to the board. Maditsi will be stepping down from the position of lead independent non-executive director of ARM while Mangisi Gule will cease to be a director for the company. ARM said in a statement yesterday that although Maditsi was also stepping down from the positions of chairperson of the nomination and non-executive directors’ committee with effect from September 3, he was continuing to serve as independent non-executive director for the board of ARM. Noko,…

A Spanish craze encouraging single people to seek partners in supermarkets by using a fruit-based code has caused chaotic scenes and even led to the police being called to restore order. In recent days, according to the BBC, many single Spaniards have been drawn to branches of supermarket chain Mercadona between 7pm and 8pm by claims they can find romance at that time, particularly if they put a pineapple upside down in their shopping trolley. The phenomenon seems to have been driven in great part by the actor and humorist Vivy Lin, who posted a video on TikTok of herself pushing a trolley around a Mercadona store talking about the supposed window. “The time to hook up in Mercadona is 7pm to 8pm,” she said. On its official TikTok account,…

We are not all the same and not every day is the same. We all have our ups and downs. Sometimes it rains and the weather is cold and miserable and we can hardly bend our fingers without pain. On other days, the sun shines and the birds sing, making the day simply beautiful. What is important is that we take each day in our stride, try our best not to become overwhelmed by the moment and always remember the Creator gave us an opportunity to say thanks. Where am I going with all this sentiment? As we go about our day, we must spare a thought for those in hospital, struggling with difficult illnesses that cause great pain and suffering. We must also be grateful that we have no…

DURBAN Preparatory High School (DPHS) pupil Harry Finnemore, 12, who survived the crash that killed his parents and older brother, is recovering well in hospital. Harry’s brother Garth and his parents Olivia and Gareth Finnemore died in a head-on collision on the R622 Greytown Road while travelling to Durban from a rugby sevens tournament at Michaelhouse last Saturday. Harry was the only survivor. He was found in a critical condition and placed on a manual ventilator at the scene before being rushed to a specialist hospital for further care. Messages shared on the DPHS parents group chat stated that a parent from the school had visited him at the undisclosed hospital. It was said the boy managed to stand on his feet on Monday and a physiotherapist was preparing him…

ITHALA’s FSP licence was suspended due to non-compliance issues which included a consistent deficit (liabilities exceeding assets) in the last four years. This was revealed by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FCSA) and the Prudential Authority (PA) during their presentation to the standing committee on finance held in Durban yesterday. The FCSA said it was actively engaging with Ithala Bank to explore possible options for a remedial plan. The standing committee on finance chairperson, Dr Joe Maswanganyi, said he believes that Ithala’s compliance issues can be resolved. Last week, KwaZulu-Natal MEC for Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs, Reverend Musa Zondi and KZN Premier Thami Ntuli said they would be taking the matter of Ithala Bank to the Office of the Presidency. The FCSA said given Ithala’s previous bank-like status…

DEPUTY Minister for Higher Education Buti Manamela’s failure to appear before the standing committee on public accounts (Scopa) left MPs fuming that they were forced to cancel its meeting despite him being delegated to address the committee. Manamela had to step in for Minister Nobuhle Nkabane, who is on a state visit with President Cyril Ramaphosa in China. The cancellation of yesterday’s meeting meant the more than 20 officials from the National Skills Fund (NSF), Special Investigating Unit and National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS), many of whom flew in from Pretoria, returned without making presentations to the committee. They were to brief the committee on the investigations conducted by the SIU into NSFAS and the NSF, among other things. Scopa chairperson Songezo Zibi said the absence of the minister…

AFTER being saved from life-long abuse for human entertainment in a circus and zoo, elephant Charley, who was released into a new enclosure at Shambala Private Reserve in Limpopo, is rapidly adapting to his newly won liberties, according to animal welfare organisation Four Paws. Born in Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe, Charley was captured as a youngster along with nine other elephants and imported by the Boswell Circus in 1984. For 16 years Charley performed in the circus before being transferred to the Natal Lion Park in May, 2000. He arrived at the zoo on July 30, 2001. Over the past 23 years, Charley has witnessed the deaths of his four elephant companions and has shown signs of distress, including repetitive head-swaying, a behaviour commonly found in captivity. His captivity has…

Damelin, a higher education institution under the Educor group, has been provisionally reinstated after its de-registration by the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) earlier this year. The institution says it has since taken corrective action and has been provisionally reinstated subject to strict conditions, including full compliance with accreditation requirements, submission of monthly reports, and financial transparency. Educor institutions, City Varsity (Pty) Ltd, Damelin (Pty) Ltd, Icesa City Campus (Pty) Ltd, and Lyceum College (Pty) Ltd had failed to provide evidence of their financial stability to the DHET and were therefore de-registered earlier this year, leaving over 13 000 students hanging. According to the department, the four institutions exhibited non-compliance with the stipulations set forth in the Higher Education Act and its accompanying regulations. They neglected to…

The passage of the Affirmative Action (Gender Equality) Bill by the country’s parliament on August 9, 2024 marked a victory for women’s rights in Ghana. The bill, which has been years in the making, is the result of several actors, allies and activists lobbying and protesting for more than a decade. The bill makes it compulsory to have women either elected or appointed to major decision-making organs of public life. What are the key aspects of the new law? The bill attempts to ensure the achievement of gender equality in the political, social, economic, educational and cultural spheres of Ghanaian society. Major decision-making sectors covered by the current version of the bill are public offices such as ministerial positions and the Council of State (the advisory body of the president).…

The UK’s Grenfell Tower fire disaster that killed 72 people was the result of “decades of failure” by government and construction industry bodies and the “systematic dishonesty” of building material firms, a damning final report said yesterday. Unveiling the damning findings of an independent probe into the 2017 tragedy, inquiry chairperson Martin Moore-Bick said the deaths were “all avoidable” and the victims had been “badly failed”. Some of those who played a part in sowing the seeds of the disaster had shown “incompetence”, as well as “dishonesty and greed”, he said. The fire in the early hours of June 14, 2017 spread rapidly through the 24-storey block in west London due to highly combustible cladding fixed to the exterior. Starting in a faulty freezer on the fourth floor, the blaze…

Madrid: Colombian pop star Shakira accused Spain’s tax office of confiscating all the income she earned when she lived there, comparing the institution to “the Inquisition” in a letter published yesterday in Spanish daily El Mundo. “For me, the Spanish decade was a lost decade financially, and not because I worked little, as everybody knows,” she said. Shakira settled with prosecutors on the opening day of her trial in Barcelona in November 2023 over charges that she had defrauded tax authorities of €14.5 million (R286m) earned between 2012 and 2014. Shakira denied that she lived in Spain for more than 183 days a year between 2012 and 2014, the threshold above which a person is considered a taxable resident. | AFP…

The Hague: A Dutchman who claims to have fathered 550 children via sperm donations said this week that he was suing Netflix over The Man With 1 000 Kids. Jonathan Meijer, 43, said he was taking legal action against the documentary that he said slandered him and the families he helped to create. The number of children the documentary said he could have fathered, up to 3 000, was incorrect, he said. “It’s 550 … Anything above that is just speculation,” he said. Last year a court ordered him to stop donating after he had helped produce 550 to 600 children since 2007. | AFP…

Cricket South Africa (CSA) director of cricket Enoch Nkwe believes the Proteas Women’s campaign at the T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates will not be derailed due to the side not having a full-time head coach. CSA has yet to replace Hilton Moreeng, who guided the team to a first T20 World Cup final last year, after the long-serving coach vacated his post back in April to take on a new role in the US. At the time Nkwe indicated that “the process of recruiting for a new coach is already under way” with former bowling coach Dillon du Preez appointed on a temporary basis. Du Preez oversaw the tour to India, where the Proteas were swept 3-0 in the ODI series and lost the one-off Test, but…

THE South Africa national men’s squad have reconvened for two crucial Africa Cup of Nations Afcon) qualifying matches with head coach Hugo Broos adding fresh faces to his roster. Bafana will tackle the challenge of Uganda at Orlando Stadium on Friday (kick-off 6pm) before jetting off to South Sudan to play their second match in the group on Tuesday. Having formed what seems to be his core in the last 10-12 months, Broos has handed first-time call-ups to two or three new players, who are expected to make a huge impression on the Belgian mastermind. Here, Smiso Msomi takes a look at five players desperate for Broos’ nod of approval in the upcoming Afcon qualifiers. 1 Thalente Mbatha Durban-born Mbatha has been one of Orlando Pirates’ most enterprising revelations over…

AFRICA is at a pivotal crossroads in harnessing its potential, particularly among its youth and women. While early projections by McKinsey’s Lions on the Move report suggested substantial job creation and economic growth, the continent has struggled to meet these expectations due to slow economic growth, high inequality, and persistent structural barriers. Migration has historically shaped societies, The Bantu migrations, which occurred over several millennia, were one of the most significant population movements in African history. The Bantu-speaking peoples spread from their original homeland in West Africa across much of the continent. They introduced agriculture, iron working and new languages, significantly shaping the cultural and social structures of Central, Eastern, and Southern Africa. However, today’s restrictive policies, the significant gender disparity, compounded by the rising trend of migration among Africa’s…

As parents, we entrust grocery stores to provide us with safe, nutritious options for our little ones. However, a recent study has uncovered a disturbing reality – a staggering 60% of baby food products sold in US supermarkets fail to meet the nutritional guidelines of the World Health Organization (WHO). The study, published in the journal Nutrients, analysed over 650 infant and toddler food products across 10 major grocery store chains. The findings were nothing short of alarming. Seventy percent of the products did not meet protein requirements, while 25% failed to meet calorie recommendations. Even more concerning, 44% of the products exceeded the WHO’s sugar recommendations, and a quarter contained added or hidden sweeteners. These substandard nutritional profiles are troubling given that proper nutrition in infancy and early childhood…

I cannot play chess. I am useless at it. However, I do have a rudimentary knowledge of the rules and terms associated with the game and I am (kind of) smart enough to recognise a stalemate when I see one. A stalemate is a situation where the player whose turn it is to move is not in check and has no legal move. A stalemate usually results in a draw. If only Benjamin Netanyahu’s government had enough self-awareness to recognise that this is Israel’s position on the bloodied chessboard that is this war. Nearly a year on, and what has Israel achieved in Gaza? Hamas lives to fight another day, and every day the pressure mounts on the government from within Israeli society to bring the hostages back home. The…

IT IS unbelievable that there are professors at UCT who object to the decision to break ties with Israel. Just the threat against organisations that boycott Israel alone should raise questions, because entities elsewhere are being boycotted. What makes Israel so special? UCT, and rightly so, supported boycotts against the apartheid governance here, but now, some academics want to cuddle up with the apartheid government there. The Israeli/Jewish academics who stand for the truth, like Ilan Pappe and Antony Loewenstein, would be available for discourse. One of Pappe’s books, The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine, has been reprinted 24 times since 2006, and Loewenstein received the 2023 Walkley Book Award (the Australian equivalent of the Pulitzer Prize) for his book, The Palestine Laboratory, which shows how Israel markets weapons and spyware…

A victim of land extortion by criminal syndicates in KwaZulu-Natal has revealed the terrifying experiences he and his family have faced at the hands of an extortion syndicate. The beneficiary of a land trust, whose name is known to The Mercury but has requested to remain anonymous for fear of reprisal, said that despite having obtained several court orders to prevent the land from being illegally sold and developed, a land Mafia syndicate had managed to sell about 80% of the property. The man said they had also gone to various government departments and the police but no one had been able to help them. He said that on one occasion he had organised a crew to demolish illegally built houses in the presence of police when the “Mafia” arrived…

THE Stop Stockouts Project (SSP) has cited the unavailability of termination of pregnancy services as among the key challenges concerning access to contraceptives. Their recent report titled “Contraceptive Supply Chain: Stockouts and their Causes” found most of the surveyed facility managers reported that they referred healthcare users seeking termination services to other facilities. The report details the experiences of healthcare users in accessing contraceptives and includes interviews with public health facility managers to establish the causes of poor access and the mitigation measures in place. This report analyses interview data provided by managers and directors from the National Department of Health, and the KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape, and North West health departments. Between April 2022 and June 2023, SSP together with the Ritshidze Project also surveyed public health users to assess…

A FARM worker landed in hot water when he used his cellphone while driving a tractor on a farm, which resulted in him being fired – a sanction which the CCMA found was too harsh. But unhappy with the CCMA’s ruling that he had to be reinstated, his employer, Wiggill Farm, turned to the Labour Court in Johannesburg, where it was argued that the tractor driver infringed the road traffic rules and thus deserved to be punished. But on the day that he was caught using his phone, driver Vurayayi Mtombe was driving on the farm. While he did admit to his employer that he was speaking on the phone at the time, he later claimed that he was only looking at the device to see what the time was.…

INSTEAD of trying to undo the signing of the Basic Education Laws Amendment Bill (Bela Bill) into law, Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube must surely be preoccupied with finding a solution to a looming crisis that threatens the future of thousands of children. More than 2 400 teacher posts only in the Western Cape are under threat of not being renewed when the contracts expire at the end of the year. This means there will be fewer teachers for already overcrowded classes when our children return to school in the new year. The consequences of cutting teacher posts because there is not enough money to fund these vacancies will be dire, especially for a public education system that has long been saddled with a mountain of challenges. The Western Cape…

Good progress was being made in rolling out a polio vaccine to children in Gaza, but a permanent ceasefire in the 11-month war was needed to ease humanitarian suffering, the main UN agency for Palestinians said yesterday. UNRWA said that three days into the campaign in areas of central Gaza, around 187 000 children had received the vaccine. The campaign will move to other areas of the Palestinian enclave for the second stage. Israel and Hamas militants have agreed to daily pauses of eight hours in the fighting in pre-specified areas to allow the vaccination programme. No violations have been reported. Palestinians say a big reason for the return of polio is the collapse of Gaza’s health system and destruction of most of its hospitals during the war. Israel accuses…

Lviv: Russia struck the city of Lviv in western Ukraine yesterday, killing seven people and damaging historical buildings in a rare attack hundreds of kilometres from the front line. The strike came as several Ukrainian ministers, including top diplomat Dmytro Kuleba, offered their resignations, part of a major reshuffle President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said would bring “new energy” to government. The missile attack wounded 40 people, damaging schools, medical facilities and buildings in Lviv’s historic centre, Ukraine officials said. The assault on Lviv, which is sheltering thousands displaced by over two years of war, came a day after a Russian strike. | AFP…

Mexico City: Mexico’s lower chamber approved a controversial judicial reform plan yesterday, after a marathon session as protesters blocked access to Congress. The most contentious of the reforms proposed by outgoing President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador would have judges selected by popular vote, prompting an outcry from Mexico’s opposition while alarming the US and international investors. The measure was approved by a sufficient supermajority yesterday, after which several of its articles must be further debated before it moves to the Senate. Hundreds of judicial employees have blocked streets in protest. | AFP…

Just as a person can be physically run down, so also can one become emotionally depleted. Here are simple, but not easy, steps to getting your internal life into shape. Each will do your internal life as much good as frequent exercise does for a person who is physically out of shape: Speak up where you may previously have remained silent. Realise that not everything you think and feel has to be said or reported. Focus on your own behaviour, not the behaviour of others. Get rid of blame. Acknowledge you are where you are as a result of your choices. Set small, secret goals involving no one but you. Refuse to compromise when it comes to your time to read, write, and exercise. Forgive when…

Wesley Diphoko’s apparent endorsement of the need for “internet boundaries” (Business Report, September 3) is disappointing as it shows his lack of understanding of the real reasons states like Brazil, Canada, France, the UK, New Zealand and elsewhere are applying so-called boundaries. The first thing to appreciate, in what is the information war, is that the word “boundaries” is a cover word for censorship. The motive of the globalists is to shut down information and views which dissent from their narratives. That is precisely why the corrupt Lula regime in Brazil has shut down Musk’s X social media platform. It is to deny his opposition the means of mobilising against him by disseminating truths about his regime. Lula’s draconian action exemplifies what former New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern declared…

YOUR Monday edition, “Justice Maya inspires hope for young women”, refers. Dr Iqbal Survé, the chairman of Sekunjalo Investment Holdings, is correct in extending heartfelt congratulations to Chief Justice of South Africa Mandisa Maya. We are all looking forward to her term of office and certainly await her continuation of “speaking truth to power”. Over the past 30 years, during a democratic era, our judiciary has had to do an enormous amount of work to keep the government in check. The work has, to a large degree, irritated many politicians from the governing party. Now, under the Government of National Unity, we have a strong belief that the judges will carry on this fine tradition and ensure that our Constitution is upheld as the supreme document in South Africa and…

Four-year-old Liyolatha Baliso was killed in the crossfire as alleged extortion gangs exchanged gunfire in Milnerton, Western Cape – a victim of the extortion menace that has held many parts of the country in its grip. Sinovuyo Baliso said her daughter was rushed to hospital with a gunshot wound in her stomach, where she succumbed to her injuries a few days after the incident on August 24. “It is still very sore and traumatic. As a family we are all still trying to process what happened. She was ripped from us in such a brutal manner. “When it happened, Liyolatha was playing with her group of friends, they were about five, when we heard gunshots. She was shot. It hurts very much. I think I am still in denial about…

In what it described as “Day Zero”, the ailing South African Post Office (Sapo) could run out of funds next month. The situation is so serious that should the funding be not found, it could be at risk of being liquidated. This emerged when Sapo briefed the portfolio committee on communications and digital technologies on the progress made in the implementation of the business rescue plan. The presentation was, however, done in the absence of the business rescue practitioners Anoosh Rooplal and Juanito Damons, which did not please the MPs. Rooplal and Damons were appointed after Sapo was placed under business rescue in July last year. Speaking at the meeting, Deputy Minister Mondli Gungubele said there were “green shoots” since the business rescue plan was implemented. He said that when…

Ramaphosa’s state visit to China and the 2024 Focac Summit On SEPTEMBER 2, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa was warmly welcomed by Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, marking the beginning of a State visit that underscores the deepening ties between China and South Africa. This visit is a testament to the deep and growing ties between South Africa and China, a relationship that has evolved into one of the most crucial partnerships on the African continent. The timing of Ramaphosa’s State visit is particularly noteworthy, coinciding with the 2024 Forum on China- Africa Co-operation (Focac) Summit, a landmark event which started yesterday and runs until tomorrow. This summit is expected to further solidify the relationship between China and its African partners, with South Africa playing a pivotal role. In…

A China-Africa summit in Beijing this week takes place as a continent slowly emerging from a series of defaults seeks to define its future co-operation with the Asian nation that partly fuelled its debt binge and now faces its own economic headwinds. Africa and its ample mineral and oil resources and population of more than 1 billion people have become the focus of intense geopolitical competition between global powers like China, Europe and the US. With China now Africa’s top bilateral lender, the visiting heads of state bring expectations of a major concession on debt restructuring, said Yunnan Chen, research fellow at the UK-based think tank Overseas Development Institute. “I suspect it will end up being a bit more low key,” she said. China has been “recalcitrant” on the debt…

Dozens of viruses have been detected mixing in animals at fur farms in China, some of which are new and have the potential to spill over into humans, researchers said yesterday. Since the Covid-19 pandemic, scientists have been warning that farming mammals such as minks for their fur could make it easier for new viruses to cross over from the wild and spark fresh outbreaks. Virologist Edward Holmes, who has led research into Covid-19, said the global fur farming industry “is one most likely ways by which a new pandemic will start”. Holmes is a co-author of a new study looking at the potential danger posed by viruses in fur farms in the country where the first Covid cases emerged in late 2019. The Chinese-led team of researchers sequenced the…

KINSHASA: The Democratic Republic of Congo expected to receive its first delivery of mpox vaccine doses yesterday and a second delivery on Saturday, the head of the country’s mpox outbreak response said. Congo is the epicentre of an mpox outbreak that the World Health Organization declared a global public health emergency last month, but efforts to curb the spread of the disease have been hampered by a lack of vaccines. Washington and Brussels have pledged thousands of doses of a vaccine made by Bavarian Nordic. Health authorities face a challenge launching the campaign in the tropical country; the doses must be kept at -90°C. | Reuters…

WOLFSBURG: Volkswagen has “one, maybe two” years to turn its main car brand around, its finance chief said yesterday, as the auto giant weighs its first plant closures in Germany and its powerful unions threaten a fight. Arno Antlitz told a gathering of 25 000 workers at Volkswagen’s Wolfsburg headquarters that they needed to work with management in cutting spending to help the brand survive the shift to electric cars. He said Europe’s car market had shrunk after the pandemic and the company was facing a shortfall in demand of about 500 000 cars, equivalent to about two plants. There are mounting challenges for Europe’s car giants amid high labour and energy costs and rising Asian competition. | Reuters…