Indholdsfortegnelse for 2021-12-17 i Cape Argus

Mwangi Githahu mwangi.githahu@inl.co.za THE CITY has been accused of infringing on the constitutional rights of citizens by restricting water supply to households in arrears with their water bills. During the City’s last council meeting for the year, Freedom Front Plus councillor Grant Marais asked mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis whether he would consider the immediate scrapping of the “humiliating, shameful and undignified water dripping system for all households currently in arrears”. Marais said it would be an act of goodwill to allow unrestricted access to open-flow water, especially while children are home for the holidays, while in the fourth wave of the pandemic. He said many people were unable to pay for water as they were unemployed as a result of the pandemic and wondered if the mayor was prepared to look…

Mthuthuzeli Ntseku mthuthuzeli.ntseku@inl.co.za RECENTLY released key findings from a survey launched by civil society movement Amandla.Mobi in October on the R350 SRD grants applications has shown the need for Sassa’s urgent intervention. Findings from the survey showed more than half of those who applied for the grant were unsuccessful. Most had their applications rejected or could not send their application due to technical issues with the SA Security Agency’s (Sassa’s) system. Nearly 40% of people said they had to find or borrow money for airtime or data to apply, while many unemployed people have had their R350 applications “unfairly” rejected. The grant will be paid until the end of March next year. Amandla.Mobi said that for months grant applicants and recipients had been demanding that Sassa fix the flaws with…

Colin Bosman | Newlands THREE cheers to President Cyril Ramaphosa for stopping just short of telling the West to kiss South Africa’s royal backside for their knee-jerk reaction in shutting their borders to South Africa, which was nothing but an underhanded political move to appease their own backbenchers in Parliament and to score cheap political points with their electorate. It is worth mentioning here that South Africans stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the allies during World War II , many giving their lives for the freedom that the West enjoys today. No one asked South Africans to fight alongside British and American troops in North Africa, Egypt, Italy and on the beaches of Normandy in the fight against Nazi world tyranny. We were there because it was the right thing…

DIFFERENT to what some claimed the gathering would be, the state memorial last Sunday of FW de Klerk did not present any dramatic turn, even with demonstrators attempting to disrupt the start of the ceremony. President Ramaphosa explained that the state memorial was for his role as former deputy-president of South Africa and not as the last president of the apartheid state. His death and funeral foregrounded debates regarding his contributions to a peaceful political transition, as much as it did debates of apology, forgiveness, reconciliation, and societal transformation. However, it is a video with a final message to the nation that the FW de Klerk Foundation released after his death, that electrified the public discourse on how the man and his role in history must be regarded. In the…

Rafieka Williams rafieka.williams@inl.co.za STATISTICS SA urges the public to register online as the census goes digital next year. As the first digital census, Census 2022 will use digital devices to capture data in real time for reduced turnaround time to release results as they outline the profile of the country’s population and its living conditions. While the country continues to battle the Covid-19 pandemic, Stats SA is implementing its digital census as a safety measure against Omicron. The census is scheduled to take place from February 3 to 28 next year, with fewer than 50 days to go before the population is counted. The digital process will see citizens registering online to provide their data digitally and by phone. Calvin Molongoana Census 2022 project director, said: “Census 2022 has…

Alcohol consumption is associated with various public health problems. These include high rates of trauma- related injuries and death. In South Africa, around 62 000 people die from alcohol-related causes each year. Most of these are personal injury and trauma. Alcohol-related trauma from interpersonal injury and road traffic accidents accounts for a significant proportion of admissions to emergency units in the country. In countries like the US, policies that restrict provision, acquisition and sale of alcohol are effective in reducing overconsumption and associated social and public health challenges. But implementing these policies in South Africa has been a challenge. In the past, South Africa has tried to regulate the labelling and advertising of alcohol. But the country still doesn’t have comprehensive alcohol policies. One of the reasons for this delay…

ESHLIN VEDAN eshlin.vedan@inl.co.za THERE is no doubt that AmaZulu’s current form will be very embarrassing to coach Benni McCarthy. He is a proud coach with big ambitions. Usuthu are currently on a run of seven consecutive draws. They have drawn 12 games so far this season, which is the most for any side in the South African top-flight. They are unlikely to be given an easy time in their clash against resurgent Marumo Gallants at Peter Mokaba Stadium today (5.15pm kick-off). The Limpopo-based side started the season in poor form but their results have improved since the appointment of Dan Malesela as coach. Gallants are unbeaten in their last five league games, having won three in the process. Despite their draws this season, the one positive that AmaZulu can draw…

Rafieka Williams rafieka.williams@inl.co.za DELFT residents came out on Reconciliation Day yesterday to get informed and learn more about gender-based violence as part of the City’s initiative to tackle community issues. The event took place at Delft Central Sports Centre to raise awareness about GBV and to bring the community together, highlighting the issues faced by the residents of Delft. The programme featured councillors, neighbourhood watch representatives, civil society organisations, businesses and local artists. Siyasamnkela Vutula, the City’s mayoral Urban Regeneration Programme facilitator, said the event was a response to the outcry from Delft residents. “From here we can try to be united because you’ll find that we know the perpetrators, but because we are not united, we can’t stop this because you will never be brave enough to report something…

Orielle Berry orielle.berry@inl.co.za This is the story of how a community comes together, of how innovation, collaboration, inspiration and ideas can come about against the odds to create an item of beauty that represents the many facets and bounty of our city and country – saying come enjoy and celebrate. Hanging proudly in the Al-Ikhlaas Academia Library and Resource Centre in Lansdowne is a colourful quilt, measuring 2m by 1.85m, depicting the narrative of our country and city with its elements that can be enjoyed by all passing by. The South African Foundation for Islamic Art (Safia) represents the fine art of the Islamic community, and at the start of Covid 19, members put their heads together to decide how to raise money for their annual fund-raiser, scheduled to…

AS THE 2021 academic year ends, one reflects on the year’s successes and failures. South Africa, compared to many African countries, spends a large part of its national budget on education. We must compliment the government for making education compulsory for children up to age 15. Since 1994, this made a huge difference in the lives of children. The government must also be congratulated for its humanitarian effort in allowing learners from other African countries to attend school here. It regularly feeds thousands of learners, who, in many cases would have gone hungry. At university level it has made education free for students whose parents earn less than R300 000 a year. At further education training centres it has made funding available for students. I highlight these achievements because…

Anita Nkonki anita.nkonki@inl.co.za AS CHRISTMAS approaches, so does the excitement for people to have their homes look special for the day. Reality television star and businesswoman Shauwn Mkhize, known as MaMkhize, gave her followers a sneak peek into her La Lucia, Durban mansion with her snow-white themed Christmas decorations. The socialite is known for her fashion sense and for living an opulent lifestyle that many fantasise about. MaMkhize described Christmas as her favourite time of the year – and said she goes all out to make her home look and feel the part. She took to Instagram with a video showing off her home: the lights covered in silver, the staircase wrapped in white trees with a touch of green down which MaMkhize paraded, Christmas carols playing in the background.…

Mthuthuzeli Ntseku mthuthuzeli.ntseku@inl.co.za NURDEEN Joshua from Lavender Hill, whose home burnt down in 2016 while he was preparing for his matric exams, has graduated four years later at UWC as an educator. During the devastating fire that almost killed his grandmother, 23-year-old Joshua lost everything, including his study material, sports accolades and coursework. Joshua, who was 18 at the time, was also preparing for the Cape Argus Food Lover’s Market High School Quiz and was featured in the paper. Looking back at that fateful day, Joshua said he was filled with confusion and constantly questioned the timing of the fire. However, he said the incident motivated him as he knew that should he let the circumstance dictate how he performed at school, things would never end well for him. By…

Tens of millions of migrants may be denied Covid-19 vaccines from a global programme because some major manufacturers are worried about legal risks from harmful side effects, according to officials and internal documents from Gavi, the charity operating the programme, reviewed by Reuters. Nearly two years into a pandemic that has already killed more than 5 million people, only about 7% of people in low-income countries have received a dose. Vaccine deliveries worldwide have been delayed by production problems, hoarding by rich countries, export restrictions and red tape. Many programmes have also been hampered by hesitancy among the public. The legal concerns are an additional hurdle for public health officials tackling the coronavirus – even as officials say unvaccinated people offer an ideal environment for it to mutate into new…

ESHLIN VEDAN eshlin.vedan@inl.co.za KAIZER Chiefs defender Happy Mashiane believes his side will be looking to gain revenge over Royal AM, who mauled them 4-1 in the last encounter between the teams back in September. “It was not a nice feeling losing against them. It was an embarrassment for us because we know that we are playing for a big team and cannot afford to concede four goals in a game at home,” said Mashiane. “Going to them, we have to fight to ensure that the same thing that happened previously does not happen again.” Chiefs recently experienced a crisis of their own. They were forced to withdraw from their fixtures against Cape Town City and Golden Arrows owing to a Covid-19 outbreak in their squad. However, they returned to the…

Gontse Riet Gontse.Riet@inl.co.za THE CITY’S Identikidz programme on beaches began this week. More than 30 900 children were tagged last year at the participating beaches, and 11 children were reunited with their families. Community Services and Health Mayco member Patricia van der Ross said the programme has been well received and has grown in popularity. “The project has developed quite a following as one of the ways the City tries to ensure residents’ safety. While the responsibility of care remains with the caregivers, it’s heartening to know that there’s an extra layer of protection for our youngest bathers. “On priority days, teams will ensure that children who arrive at the beach are registered and issued with an armband with the contact details of their parent or caregiver. “Should the child…

Mwangi Githahu mwangi.githahu@inl.co.za HEAD of provincial health Dr Keith Cloete said the Western Cape’s new cases of Covid 19 were mirroring short-term predictions from the South African Covid-19 Modelling Consortium (SACMC), and more cases were expected than at the peak of the third wave. “The prediction from the SACMC for this week was 2 400 per day on the seven-day moving average, which is the number of daily confirmed new cases. By the end of this week, we expect to be at about 2 500 cases per day. He said the SACMC’s prediction for next week is that the province will get up to 3 770 cases per day. During the regular provincial health digicon on Wednesday, Cloete gave a summary of evidence collected on the Omicron variant to…

Mwangi Githahu mwangi.githahu@inl.co.za WHEN you think about social media influencers, politicians are probably not the first people that come to mind.However, a new report that ranks Premier Alan Winde among the top 10 most-followed accounts of provincial leaders across the country begs to differ. Research company Decode Communications has released its 2021 South African Government Leaders on Twitter report which looks into how South African government leaders use social media platforms such as Twitter. Decode Communications founder Lorato Tshenkeng said although Twitter was not as popular as Facebook in South Africa, the former was mostly relevant in assisting with the dissemination of key government information. Winde, who has 47 600 followers on Twitter, said social media is more democratic as it allows direct interaction that would otherwise not have been…

J Colin Jooste | Observatory THE Maya people who lived in central America predicted that the world would end on December 21, 2012. Nine years later, there are still some sceptics around the world who are filled with fear and apprehension when December 21 approaches. Many of our contemporaries have not heard of the Mayas whose civilisation dates back to 1500BC. They are renowned for their mathematical and astronomical systems, art and architecture, as well as developing the first written language in America, before the European explorer Christopher Columbus’s arrival. The Mayas believed the final cycle of the universe would end on December 21, 2012, signalling the end of the world, ushering in major changes affecting the harmony and balance between mankind and nature. If we take into…

TODAY sees the start of the annual AWQAF SA Youth Cricket Tournament held in association with the Western Province Cricket Association and the Primrose Cricket Club. First held in 2015, the event has grown to become one of the biggest youth cricket tournaments in South Africa. In its last pre-Covid edition of 2019, 68 teams and 1 000 players were hosted. The tournament is free for participants and offers equal opportunity to all, irrespective of their financial or social backgrounds. With its motivating brief being social cohesion and awareness, the tournament is held at the ex-South African Council of Sport grounds. After a break last year due to Covid-19, the tournament is back, this time as the AWQAF SA 100 Ball Tournament – albeit with stringent health and safety protocols,…

When Lewis Hamilton, an icon of excellence in Formula 1 Motorsport, had his 8th title “stolen” right under his nose, there was a loud uproar from many across the globe. This was the perfect moment to revolt against the entire Motorsport fraternity because the expected result was not attained. The outcome of the Formula 1 championship, which took a whole season to reach the finale, only to have a new but unexpected champion, mirrors the outcome of the local government election results in South Africa. The new champion, Max Verstappen, literally upset the perfect photo finish to the year. This is perhaps how the outcome of the local government elections may seem to many. Is this the outcome that we expected? Are we getting the right people? Are we moving…

Amnesty International said this week that thousands of people in Nigeria were at risk of forced resettlement ahead of a deadline to close camps for internally displaced people (IDPs). More than 2 million people in the country’s north-east were forced to flee their homes in the past 12 years after attacks by Islamic-state linked jihadists and rival group Boko Haram. Many live in sprawling camps and rely on humanitarian aid to survive. In a bid to encourage people to resume farming, the authorities in Borno – the state most affected by the conflict – initiated a plan in 2018 for people to return home voluntarily. The local government’s plan is to close all the camps in the capital Maiduguri by the end of December, and all the camps in the…

Eshlin Vedan eshlin.vedan@inl.co.za MAMELODI Sundowns up against Orlando Pirates: The one fixture that has never lacked fireworks, and more of that is expected when the two giants meet at Loftus Versfeld tonight. Sundowns co-coach Rulani Mokwena has been on the bench of Orlando Pirates as assistant coach and acting head coach but he refuses to claim to know what to expect. There’s a gulf in class between the two sides – Masandawana lead the standings with a massive 15-point advantage over second-place Kaizer Chiefs. They lead third-placed Pirates by 16 points but there is always an element of unpredictability with such big clashes. On paper, Sundowns should be the favourites to beat the Sea Robbers, whose form has been unpredictable this season. Masandawana will also be full of confidence as…