Indholdsfortegnelse for 2023-04-20 i Cape Argus

With horror becoming such a popular genre in recent years, especially with the proliferation of content on streaming platforms, film-making companies like Universal Pictures are ensuring they are not left behind. This is evident in the latest release, Renfield, inspired by characters from Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel Dracula and a sequel to the 1931 movie. And it’s got a stellar cast to boot, with Nicolas Cage, Nicholas Hoult, Awkwafina, Ben Schwartz, Adrian Martinez and Shohreh Aghdashloo. At a recent press junket ahead of the film’s release, Cage and Hoult shed light on their characters as well as why they gave the nod to the project. Cage slips into the skin of an overbearing and narcissistic Dracula while Hoult, in the title role as Renfield, cajoles empathy as Dracula’s long- suffering…

Residents are being called on to maintain their water saving habits, with the provincial dam levels hovering at 50% and the Western Cape expected to receive another season of below-average rainfall this winter, says the SA Weather Service seasonal outlook. Local Government, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning MEC Anton Bredell reiterated his call for Western Cape municipalities and residents to save water now. City took a proactive measure at the beginning of summer to encourage residents to keep their collective water usage to less than 850 million litres per day (MLD). Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis congratulated Cape Town on Monday for maintaining another week below the 850 MLD target for water use as the dashboard recorded an average total daily water use of 845 MLD. At the last meeting with the…

A man who refused to move from a property in Constantia that was sold after a creditor obtained a default judgment against him, has had his application to appeal against an eviction order nullified. In his ruling, Western Cape High Court Judge Matthew Francis said the litigation had a long history beginning in April 2019, when one of Mohammed Moosa’s creditors obtained a default judgment against him. Moosa was unable to settle the judgment debt and the creditor initiated sequestration proceedings during June 2020. Following a failed settlement agreement, Moosa’s estate was placed under final sequestration on March 17, 2021. In June 2021, the applicant, a company called Ribbon Dancer Investments, offered to purchase the property from the trustees of Moosa’s insolvent estate. The trustees had sold and transferred the…

THE ongoing food shortages to feed learners has caused a stir and a public outcry within the KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) school sector. The problem of food shortages was apparently caused by the suppliers, who failed to do proper planning before the schools re-opened. This had resulted in non-deliveries to most of the schools, while those that did receive any only got short rations instead of what they were supposed to receive. Some of the food was said to be in a rotten state. Ongoing school feeding scheme shortages within KZN schools has forced thousands of learners to take their lessons on empty stomachs. When the schools re-opened on Wednesday last week, many schools in KZN were met with the shocking news that there were no food deliveries made to schools, and…

KADE Wolhuter had just put together a solid run of games after recovering from a major knee injury, but now the talented Stormers and Western Province flyhalf’s career has sustained another setback. The 21-year-old pivot announced on Instagram on Tuesday night that he has now suffered yet another ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) injury – which generally keeps players sidelined for ninth months – in his right leg, having recovered from one on his left leg in 2021. He had to wade through the mental effects of such a significant injury as well, and took enough time to make his comeback to the pitch last year. Wolhuter began at Currie Cup level, and then produced an assured performance for the Stormers in a 36-19 win over the Scarlets in Cape Town…

FORMER Springbok No 8 Joe van Niekerk said he felt “just absolute joy” after being inducted into French club Toulon’s Hall of Fame on Tuesday. At a glittering ceremony at the Zenith de Toulon arena, Van Niekerk, whose nickname is ‘Big Joe’, was surrounded by the cream of the crop from the club’s all-star team that won three consecutive Champions Cups in 2013, 2014 and 2015, as well as former coaches, administrators and current players. It turned out to be a bit of a South African affair as Van Niekerk – now 42 and running a healing sanctuary and organic farm in Costa Rica – was joined at the function by his girlfriend Cato Vermeulen and teammates Bryan Habana and Bakkies Botha, as well as Cheslin Kolbe, who is currently…

Apple Music, Spotify, Deezer, Tidal and other streaming platforms seem to have removed a song generated by AI (artificial intelligence) that features unauthorised clones of Drake and The Weeknd vocals and which has been going viral on social media over the past few days. The song is titled Heart on My Sleeve and the “artist” (who goes by the name ghostwriter) used AI to clone the two artist’s voices for a song in which the two Canadian stars appear to sing about Selena Gomez. There have been several AI songs using clones of popular artists’ voices over the past few weeks, but this is by far the most successful yet. Since its release on Friday, it has garnered millions of streams. According to Music Business Worldwide, on Monday, Universal…

A humanitarian organisation from Cape Town, Hope For You Foundation, which partnered with the Al MO’EEN Foundation, returned to Cape Town on Tuesday after assisting with the Türkiye and Syria relief project. It has been more than two months since two earthquakes killed more than 50 000 people and injured 100 000 in Türkiye and Syria. After the 7.8 and 7.5 magnitude earthquakes, the focus has now shifted to providing essential support for the survivors. The organisation spent six days on the ground, moving from one place to another. Going to Türkiye, Hope For You spokesperson Aslam Dawood said everything was pre-arranged. They were in contact with the Deniz Feneri Foundation on that side, informing them about what they would like to do, based on funding. On arrival everything…

EIGHTY-FOUR SA Post Office (Sapo) employees have been placed on suspension for issuing fraudulent vehicle licences nationwide, while 15 have already been fired. This is according to Communications and Digital Technologies (CDT) Minister Mondli Gungubele. His revelation comes six months after the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) chief executive, advocate Makhosini Msibi, revealed that R3 billion was lost due to fraudulently-issued licence discs. Speaking to the Cape Argus, DA spokesperson on communications and digital technology Dianne Kohler-Barnard said the modus operandi included selling fake vehicle licences, while some officials found ways around the system to issue licences fraudulently. Msibi said the RMTC and the SIU were gung-ho in probing 800 cases. In December, DA MP Katlego Motshidi-Bodlani asked the department about whether charges were brought against any of the individuals…

Six Searle Street residents, among them pensioners, are once again preparing to do battle in their long-running fight against eviction in the courts in a case where they will be urging the State to expropriate the properties they live in so as to preserve them for posterity. This is not the first time that the residents, who survived apartheid’s forced removals in the 1960s and 1970s when almost all residents of District Six, a largely coloured area, were subjected to mass removals under apartheid's Group Areas Act, are going to court. However, their attorney Frankl Weber believes they have a very good chance of success with their unique case, which has been set on the roll of the Western Cape High Court for May 5. In their notice about the…

THE ashes that remained from invaluable literature and other historical material housed at UCT’s Jagger Library as a result of the devastating fire that ravaged the building will be used to create new literary works to fill the library once it is refurbished. On the second anniversary of the tragic event, UCT announced its partnership with DStv and Ogilvy South Africa for the launch of Stories from the Ashes on Tuesday. The book, Stories from the Ashes – Africa’s Story Through the Last Millennium, written with ash-infused ink, contains remnants from the fire and will be one of the first books to be placed in the library. DStv collected five tons of ash and remnants from the debris of the African Studies Literature in the Jagger Library. The book will…

THE quarter-final stage of the Nedbank Cup served up thrilling action, anxiety and abject shock as the minnows stretched their much-fancied opponents to their limits. The biggest result of last weekend’s action was Stellenbosch FC’s remarkable come-from-behind win to knock out defending champions Mamelodi Sundowns. The elimination of the all-conquering Brazilians from Chloorkop threw the final destination of the Ke Yona trophy into more open territory after Sundowns kicked off the campaign as favourites to retain the cup. The final four in this year’s edition of the Nedbank Cup sees Soweto giants Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs joined by Stellenbosch FC and Sekhukhune United, which begs the question, who are the favourites now in percentages? Kaizer Chiefs – 40% The Naturena-based club are into the eighth year of a trophy…

THE Delhi Capitals have had a dismal start to the Indian Premier League this season in the absence of South Africa’s Lungi Ngidi and Rilee Rossouw. To the shock of many South Africans, a few Proteas players are yet to play in the IPL this season. Three weeks into the tournament, South African stars such as fast bowler Ngidi and batter Quinton de Kock have not had a go while batter Rossouw has been used incorrectly and sparingly. De Kock is with the Lucknow Super Giants, and for the first time in his career he actually has real competition for the opening spot in the team. The explosive Kyle Mayers has easily been the best option for the opening position alongside captain KL Rahul. And with Proteas players having missed…

The Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital will see a lot more children eager to attend hospital visits and fewer children saddened by lengthy hospital stays, having added four new therapeutic play areas. The R12.6 million therapeutic play areas were launched by the Children’s Hospital Trust yesterday at a fair-themed event. The main therapeutic play area, located at the hospital’s main entrance, brings a burst of colour and various forms of amusement. The area consists of tunnels, ladders, bridges, slides, miniature walls to climb with ropes, and many other pieces of playground equipment. Hospital CEO Dr Anita Parbhoo said a multidisciplinary team of experts worked together with the Children’s Hospital Trust to ensure suitable play areas were created, taking into account the needs of the multitude of children attending. “We…

A second G4S prison guard, accused of helping convicted rapist and murder Thabo Bester escape from Mangaung prison, has been arrested. The 51-year-old was arrested on Tuesday at the prison, and is expected to appear in the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court today. Police spokesperson Athlenda Mathe said the suspect was facing charges of assisting an inmate to escape from lawful custody, and defeating the ends of justice. The number of arrests, including Bester and his girlfriend, Dr Nandipha Magudumana, is six. Police have also arrested former prison warden Senohe Matsoara, Integritron CCTV technician operator Tebogo James Lipholo, and the father of Magudumana, Zolile Sekeleni. Meanwhile, on Tuesday, Police Minister Bheki Cele promised “many more” arrests would be made. “Everything is going to be investigated, and there will be no stone…

An 11th-hour notice to oppose the City’s High Court application for evictions at various “tent city sites” in Cape Town’s CBD has upset the City’s plans to start serving eviction notices to homeless people. Johannesburg-based NGO Seri’s (Socio-Economic Rights Institute of South Africa) court application meant that the evictions which were meant to begin yesterday have been postponed to at least early October. The City had been hoping to serve the notices after a court hearing yesterday at which they had expected to be granted a final eviction order, but Seri’s application put a stop to those plans and the hearing has now been put off until early October. Mayor Geordin Hill Lewis said the City was very disappointed with the “extremely late” notice to oppose, filed by Seri. With…

The Department of Home Affairs (DHA) processed 10 643 newcomer asylum applications in five refugee reception centres during the 2022/23 financial year, and rejected 8 948 of them, Minister Aaron Motsoaledi revealed in Parliament. Although lobby groups are pushing against what they deem to be anti-foreigner sentiment from the DHA, a city activist grouping says Motsoaledi’s figures were slightly down from last year. The term “refugees” refers to people who have fled wars or persecution, while “asylum seekers” describes people who claim to be refugees but whose claim has not been reviewed. DA MP Adrian Roos asked Motsoaledi for the number of newcomer asylum applications processed for each refugee reception centre in the previous financial year, and how many were rejected as “unfounded”, “manifestly unfounded”, and those…

Yesterday marked 100 days to the Netball World Cup in Cape Town and the South African team have been hard at work preparing for the tournament. The Proteas showed off the kit they will don at the tournament and captain Bongi Msomi was thrilled with the attire, saying the team looked like warriors. And warriors are what they will have to become in July. They are optimistic despite their recent form. In the Quad Series earlier this year, when they took on the top nations England, Australia and New Zealand, formed part of their preparations. But the Proteas weren’t able to win a game, finishing with three loses and a 46-46 draw with the third-ranked English. The South Africans may not have been able to get a victory, but the…

IN the aftermath of the 27-13 victory over England at Twickenham last November, Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber made a couple of interesting comments about the way his team had played on the end-of-year tour. “We’ve had a couple of special results as a team, but this was the first win for Siya (Kolisi) and I at Twickenham, so it’s very special to us,” Nienaber said. “The forwards were outstanding and created a good platform for our backs to attack, so all in all, it was a fantastic team effort. “This was one of the most enjoyable four weeks we’ve had, even though we only got a 50% win record. The way the team, coaches, management and the game drivers made plans and worked tightly together with it was great, and…