Indholdsfortegnelse for 2022-12-19 i Cape Argus

The police are on high alert this festive season as they battle to relieve the province of drugs and illegal guns and ammunition. Police spokesperson Joseph Swartbooi said: “Committed to keeping their communities safe and free from drugs, police members responded to the call of the community and arrested suspects in possession of unlicensed firearms and ammunition and drugs in two isolated incidents.” Operation restore, a tactical response implemented by SAPS yielded results when they responded to information pertaining to drugs and firearms at a house in Kalossie Street in Roosendal, Delft. According to police, they confiscated a revolver with ammunition. “A 24-year-old man was arrested and detained on a charge of possession of an unlicensed firearm and ammunition. “The members continued with an intense search of the premises and…

A gifted storyteller, Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu brings us The Quality of Mercy, the final book in the trilogy that began with Theory of Flight and was followed by History of Man. The good news is that each book stands alone, so well does she craft her characters and her stories, but you will want to read the others after finishing this, simply for the satisfaction of extending your stay in the City of Kings. As she says, “This novel began many years ago as a story my grandmother told me … any story that was fortunate enough to find its way on to her tongue was brought to colourful life.” Ndlovu has truly inherited that gift of storytelling and, while the origins of the story may have been a while…

Jan Glazewski is a skilled writer and his memoir has as much to do with his quest to find the family silver as a life in which he won the battle against haemophilia. Glazewski’s story often reads like a thriller as he describes how his father and family fled the family estate near Lviv (now Ukraine) during World War II, but not before burying the family’s treasured collection of silver in a forest near the then family manor. Glazewski was born in Paarl in 1953, and almost like his brother before him, he came close to dying of haemophilia. The family then moved to a farm near Durbanville and when his father re- marrried after his birth mother died, the family grew exponentially as she had many children. Despite his…

The Western Cape Education Department (WCED) and the Department of Basic Education (DBE) have declared that schools may not withhold report cards due to non-payment of school fees. This after confusion at Ned Doman High on Wednesday, when some parents reported that their children’s reports were being withheld, and that parents had to pay R1 500 for unpaid school fees. Education MEC David Maynier said the department was following up on these complaints. Maynier said schools may not withhold a report card due to non-payment of school fees, but schools can request the report card to be collected from the principal/school management in order to discuss outstanding school fees and possible payment arrangements. “After this discussion, a school cannot refuse to hand over the report card. “If the parent…

Fifteen years after being appointed editor of Cape Community Newspapers – formerly in the Independent Media stable, now called Cape Community Media (CCM) – Chantel Erfort has been promoted to a national editorship. Her recent appointment to editor-in-chief of Africa Community Media, publishers of CCM, will have Chantel overseeing and managing the digital and national expansion of ACM’s community titles. The group includes the 15 CCM titles in the Western Cape, the Diamond Fields Advertiser in the Northern Cape, Isolezwe lesiXhosa in the Eastern Cape, and YOUR eThekwini in KwaZulu-Natal, which was launched in August. A veteran of community media, Chantel joined the team at CCM 21 years ago after working at the Cape Argus, and as a communications officer in the NGO sector. After serving as a reporter and…

LIMA: The political crisis roiling Peru deepened at the weekend, as President Dina Boluarte’s new government edged toward collapse and protesters across the country refused to back down in spite of the military enforcing a state of emergency. A total of 20 demonstrators are reported to have been killed in clashes with security forces, including eight allegedly shot on Thursday by soldiers using live ammunition in the southern mountain region of Ayacucho. Protesters have stormed several regional airports, looted businesses and blocked roads, primarily in the impoverished mountain regions of the Andean nation. Last year, those areas voted heavily for Pedro Castillo, a rural schoolteacher and former wildcat-strike leader, who was impeached as president last week after he attempted to dissolve congress and restructure the judiciary. The violence prompted two…

TOKYO: Only a quarter of the Japanese approve of the government’s job performance, a record low for Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s cabinet, according to a poll out yesterday. The government’s approval rating continued its downward trend in December, falling 6% from last month, a phone survey conducted over the weekend showed. A slip in approval ratings below 30% may trigger a snap vote and is seen as dangerous for a prime minister in Japan. Of the 1 013 adults sampled in the survey, the number of those who distrusted the government stood at 69%. | Sputnik…

Argentina won their third World Cup in extraordinary style last night, beating France 4-2 in a penalty shoot-out after Lionel Messi scored twice in a 3-3 draw that featured a hat-trick for Kylian Mbappe, as the holders recovered from 2-0 down after 80 minutes. It was an incredible night of drama and fluctuating fortunes, delivering one of the all-time great finals to cap a wonderful tournament. Argentina had looked to be cruising to a one-sided victory after Messi’s penalty and a brilliant goal by Angel di Maria in the first half put them in total control, but Mbappe converted an 80th-minute penalty and volleyed in an equaliser a minute later to take the game to extra-time. Messi put Argentina ahead again but Mbappe levelled with another penalty, becoming the second…

Morocco coach Walid Regragui said he believes an African team will win the World Cup in the next “15 to 20 years” after his team finished fourth in Qatar. The Atlas Lions, who became the first African World Cup semi-finalists in history, lost Saturday’s third place playoff 2-1 against 2018 runners-up Croatia but captured the imagination in Qatar. The next World Cup in 2026, held across the United States, Canada and Mexico, will be expanded to 48 teams and Africa will have at least nine slots – up from five at present. “With nine participants, we’re going to learn. In 15, 20 years, I’m sure an African team will win the World Cup because we’ll have learned,” said Regragui. “We have a stage to get past. We need to build…

Ousted Western Cape provincial legislature speaker Masizole Mnqasela says he will not give up on his quest to be reinstated as a member of the DA and that despite the Western Cape High Court dismissing the urgency of his application, he will be back in court again in 2023. Mnqasela was speaking following Judge Matthew Frances’s dismissal, with costs, of his application against the DA and other respondents, including the new speaker and Premier Alan Winde. Mnqasela, who is facing allegations of fraud relating to abuse of travel and entertainment allowances, had gone to court last week to challenge the DA’s termination of his membership, which led to him losing his membership of the legislature. Addressing a small group of his supporters outside the court after the decision, Mnqasela said…

Murder mysteries are wonderful holiday reads. It’s rather odd, if you think about it – they’re about killing people … while we feel so safe when reading them! In a class all of her own is the late Agatha Christie whose clever, plot-twisting murders turned her into the world’s best-selling author of all time, with 66 novels, and many famous movies and plays based on her work. When I think of Agatha Christie, I picture a slightly frumpy old lady in pearls. Yet she was considered a tall, slender beauty in her day, born to a wealthy English family in 1890; she was full of fun and energy, and above all, a hard-working talent, turning out at least a book a year. She was, in fact, an extraordinary pioneer in…

The Radisson Red Hotel at the Waterfront has lit up its Tree of Hope – made from recycled gin bottles – and decorated it with donation tags to raise funds for the Animal Welfare Society of South Africa (AWSSA). The tree of hope is used every year to draw guests’ attention to a charity that the hotel group supports. “Over the past three years, if anything, we have seen how resilient South Africans are and how the nation comes together to support the less fortunate. “As a pet-friendly hotel, we wanted to raise funds and awareness for the work of AWSSA this year. We have seen a dramatic increase in pet cruelty and abandonment, therefore we have dedicated the tree’s message this year to the ones with literally no voice,”…

EU member states and parliamentarians yesterday announced an agreement for a major reform to the bloc’s carbon market, the central plank of its ambitions to reduce emissions and invest in climate-friendly technologies. The deal aims to accelerate emissions cuts, phase out free allowances to industries and targets fuel emissions from the building and road transport sectors, according to a European Parliament statement. The EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) allows electricity producers and industries with high energy demands such as steel and cement to purchase “free allowances” to cover their carbon emissions under a “polluter pays” principle. The quotas are designed to decrease over time to encourage them to emit less and invest in greener technologies as part of the EU’s ultimate aim of achieving carbon neutrality. Negotiators representing member states…

ANKARA: Turkey has said its warplanes gave a “necessary response” to an attempt by Greek aircraft to “block” a Turkish-Nato mission in the Aegean. “Combat and support aircraft of our Air Force and the Awacs aircraft commissioned by Nato performed the Nexus Ace training mission in the international airspace over the Aegean Sea,” the Turkish Defence Ministry said in a statement on Saturrday. Greek aircraft tried to block the mission which was “successfully completed” after Turkish planes responded, it said. Relations between Turkey and Greece have long been at odds over a series of issues. | Xinhua…

The National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) has reported that the body of the 17-year-old Nyanga boy who went missing at Monwabisi Beach a week ago has not been found. This follows the drowning at Kommetjie this week of another 17-year-old boy. NSRI spokesperson Craig Lambinon said: “On December 15, NSRI Kommetjie duty crew were activated following eyewitness reports of a drowning in progress at Kommetjie Beach.” He said in spite of efforts by the City and paramedics the boy did not survive. “The NSRI commends the efforts of everyone involved in the extensive efforts to try to save the life of the teenager,” Lambinon said. Recently, a 58-year-old Durban man, Dion Kuter, was commended for saving a young surfer caught in a rip current at Wilderness Beach off the Garden…

POLICE are looking for information that could lead to the arrest of men who shot and killed two people in Langa. The two were inside a white Mercedes-Benz on the corner of Ndlwana and Nkumo streets on Saturday after they were shot during the day . SAPS spokesperson Joseph Swartbooi said police found the men’s bodies inside the vehicle at 3.15pm. Medical personnel declared them dead at the scene. Swartbooi said the suspects fled and were yet to be arrested. The motive for the attack was unknown, and police were investigating. The recent incident follows two weeks after the murder of four people over one weekend in the area. Anyone with information can call Crime Stop at 08600 10111.…

There are three sets of bad news that we have to understand as a country. The first is that the system of energy production at Eskom is near collapse. The second is that all announcements of repentant renewals are distractions from the factionalism that is eating the ANC alive. The third is that despite the first two sets of bad news, opposition parties are still unable to rise to the required statesmanship to challenge the ANC’s hegemony on political power. By all accounts, the ANC should be defeated in the 2024 poll. The Zondo Report on State Capture, the deepening energy crisis and the Durban political and economic mayhem should be enough to unseat the ANC from power in 2024. The ANC of 1994 is not the ANC we will…

Tony Park has penned more than 20 books including this one and if there’s one thing you can be assured of, it’s that his books are veritable page turners. Here the protagonist Sonia Kurtz, rough-around-the edges but with a complicated back story, shows herself in fine fettle – or not – after several gigs doing what she does best at fighting insurgents, terrorists and baddies as a mercenary. But this time she’s fighting to protect her own – daughter Emma – against the ruthless Carrington Wu and Vincent Hendricks his sidekick. From an idylllic seaside spot in the Cape to the wilds of Zimbabwe and the treacherous beaches of Mozambique, Park weaves a tale that is filled with intrigue and cold-bloodedness as well as love and loyalty as Sonja leaves…

All 151 police stations in the Western Cape have Victim-Friendly Rooms (VFRs) which are largely dependent on volunteers. VFRs in the province can see from one to 45 volunteers per station, with the exception of Table Bay Harbour and Thembalethu Police Stations, which do not have any VFR volunteers. Police Oversight and Community Safety MEC Reagen Allen said the condition of the VFRs varies. Of the 151 stations, 149 (98.7%) have volunteers who serve victims of crime per police station. Allen said the station’s dependency on volunteers made it difficult for each station to consistently have volunteers or a high number of volunteers. “These rooms play a vital role in making victims feel safe and secure, so that they are able to fully express how they might have been violated.…

The best of youth club cricket was on display at Primrose Cricket Club in Kenilworth when the annual Awqaf SA Hundred Cricket Tournament was held from December 14 to yesterday. Twenty community cricket clubs from across the Cape metropole and Boland districts played for top honours in the Under-14, Under-16 and Under-18 age group categories. Spectators enjoyed some top-class action and a few sterling performances that included a five-wicket haul for just five runs by Primrose Under-14 bowler Imraan Slamdien. There was some impressive batting from Primrose Under-18 player, Yaseen Moos, who scored 109 not out. Clubmate Fawaaz Hendricks from the Under-14 team scored 101 not out and Tygerberg Under-14 batsman, Matthew Florence, scored an undefeated 100. Another notable performance was that of Primroses’ Mohammed Ra’id Davids who scored an…

The 2022 World Cup in Qatar was one for the ages! It quenched the thirst of staunch footballing fans which the 2026 edition would do too well to use as a perfect reference point when the US, Canada and Mexico host the World Cup. So often supporters, pundits and punters preview the finals, giving their predictions that range from teams that’ll disappoint to the ultimate winners. And that’s why it’s noteworthy that those stakeholders were vindicated when the finalists included France and Argentina, who were regarded as favourites. But there was no predicting most of the developments that occurred before the final in Lusail last night – a development that made the showpiece even more significant. Regarded as the last dance for fierce rivals Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, the…

BAGHDAD: At least seven members of Iraq’s federal police were killed yesterday during an attack near Kirkuk in the country’s north, where remnants of Islamic State group jihadists are active, police said. A bomb blast initially targeted a truck transporting the men. It was followed by “a direct attack with small arms”, near the village of Chalal al-Matar, said a police officer who attributed the assault to IS. No group claimed the attack. “An assailant has been killed.” IS seized swathes of Iraqi and Syrian territory from 2014 before its defeat in 2017, but it still has an underground network of up to 10 000 fighters to attack. | AFP…

VATICAN CITY: Pope Francis marked his 86th birthday at the weekend by rewarding three people involved in charity work, including a homeless man who gives other street dwellers part of the alms he receives. The pope gave the three the Mother Teresa Prize as recognition of their different forms of charity. The nun, who died in 1997, worked among the poorest people in India and founded the Missionaries of Charity. The homeless man was identified by the Vatican only by his first name, Gian Piero and his street name, Wué | Reuters…

The curtain came down on the Khaya Majola Schools’ Cricket Week with unbeaten Western Province scoring a comprehensive 146 run win over KZN Inland in the main match. Batting first, Western Province were dismissed for 218 with Bongile Mfunelwa, their leading run maker of the tournament, top scoring. Together, with captain Juan James they resurrected the innings after losing early wickets. In reply, the KZN Inland side lost wickets at regular intervals and were unable to put any meaningful partnerships together. Province speedsters Asakhe Tsaka and Liyema Waqu were instrumental in bundling them out for a paltry 72. It came as no surprise that Mfunelwa, James and Waqu were included in the SA Schools side. In the Jukskei derby, the Lions proved too strong for their neighbours - the…