Indholdsfortegnelse for 2024-06-26 i Cape Argus

Standard Bank said that it believes the South African Reserve Bank (Sarb) will cut the interest rate two times before the end of the year. The bank argued that these cuts are the outcome of last month’s successful election and will provide a much-needed financial boost to the economy. Standard Bank predicts that the first repo rate cut could be by September. Standard Bank’s CFO, Arno Daehnke said that South Africans could expect a 50 basis points (bps) cut by the the end of 2024. “We expect a continued commitment to the fiscal consolidation plan and ongoing traction to the growth-supportive reforms under way. This should support moderating inflation and monetary policy easing. We expect 100 basis points (bps) of cumulative interest rate cuts,” Daehnke said. “But we expect them…

THE PUBLIC spat between news broadcaster eNCA and the EFF has escalated after the party accused the newscaster of censoring radio and television host JJ Tabane. Yesterday, the Red Berets called eNCA a “white supremacist propaganda house”. The two organisations have been in a bitter fight since 2019 after eNCA announced it would no longer be covering the party’s 2019 elective conference in the wake of the EFF’s banning of some media outlets. In June 2021, a video went viral on social media showing EFF members making threats to some eNCA journalists during a protest in Tokai, Cape Town. Following eNCA’s announcement that Tabane’s show Power to Truth would not be aired this week, South Africans on social media began speculating about Tabane’s future at eNCA. It was fuelled by…

THE relocation of the Department of Employment and Labour centre in Mitchells Plain has been widely welcomed as the cold and windy weather conditions seep in this winter. Yesterday, the department said its Mitchells Plain Labour Centre located in the Old Post Office Building, Polka Square, would be relocated to 321 Merrydale Avenue. The department warned to expect interruption to services during the transition and advised residents to make use of other labour centres in and around Cape Town, or online services, until tomorrow. The Mitchells Plain Labour Centre will be closed on Friday, with services to resume from the new premises on July 1. Ward 116 councillor Solomon Philander said he was in support of the relocation. He said clients would be better assisted due to the new space,…

THE South African public is privileged to have received excellent media coverage of the elections and the events afterwards. Seasoned commentators were freely used. They also deserve credit for sharing their expertise. Unfortunately, it was sad to learn that certain newspapers would be closing. That it was published by a foreign newspaper made the grief worse. To me, it felt like an obituary of a close family member. What is strange is that one important part of the Government of National Unity, the officialdom, never received attention. From 1994, officials, especially senior officials, were quickly replaced by untrained, inexperienced people. The consequences are visible. Changing this after 30 years will not be easy. It is no secret that the ANC has followed a policy of cadre deployment. Now, ministers from…

WHEN political parties were happily coming together and joining hands to form a government of national unity to take the country forward to peace and prosperity, out pops a racist, grunting the k-word, spoiling the GNU broth. Renaldo Gouws is seen on video spewing explicit hate speech, calling for the killing of black people. What makes his abhorrent racist comments even more outrageous is that he is not an ordinary citizen but a MP from the DA. How could an evil man who uses such derogatory language at his fellow human beings sit in a democratic institution as our Parliament, the highest legislative authority in the land? The video was made 16 years ago and lay hidden from public scrutiny. It now surfaces at the most inopportune time for the…

The reconfiguration of the new Cabinet of National Unity (CNU) after the ANC failed to win an outright majority in the elections is a cynosure of all eyes and, obviously, President Cyril Ramaphosa is in an invidious position in his political career. It is notable that this is not the traditional ANC Cabinet where the ANC and its alliance partners dominated the proverbial playing field. This is the CNU where the president must exercise enough caution to satisfy a myriad stakeholders outside the ANC alliance. The ANC Women’s League is putting pressure on Ramaphosa to zero in on gender equity in the appointment of new Cabinet members. The alliance partners are also exacting pressure on the president to “do the right thing or to do things right”. The demanding stakeholders…

Kenyan police shot dead at least five protesters and wounded 31 near parliament yesterday, as crowds opposed to proposed tax hikes breached barricades to enter the parliamentary complex where a fire erupted. The mainly Gen-Z-led rallies, which began last week, have caught the government off guard, with President William Ruto saying at the weekend that he was ready to talk to the protesters. But tensions sharply escalated yesterday afternoon, as crowds began to throw stones at police and push back against the barricades, making their way towards the parliament complex, which was sealed off by police in full riot gear. Police fired at the crowds massing outside the parliament building, where MPs had been debating a contentious bill featuring tax hike proposals. “Police have shot four protesters, as witnessed by…

A MAN who was unlawfully detained and severely assaulted by police was awarded R160 000 in damages after the North West High Court ruled against the Minister of Police. Mmadu Ifechukhu, 34, was living in Vryburg when the incident occurred on November 17, 2018. He said at about 8pm, he was about to take his girlfriend home when he was confronted by a group of people who he identified as members belonging to the Zion Christian Church. These people asked him about a plasma TV and he told them he knew nothing about it. Police were called to the scene and four officers arrived, one of the officers handcuffed him and then took him to his room. He said was assaulted and strangled until he lost consciousness, poured with water…

THE National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) has confirmed that it experienced a security breach to its information technology that compromised its systems and infrastructure. In a statement, the service, which supports national and provincial health departments in the delivery of health care, said the breach occurred on Saturday morning and it was working around the clock to rectify the problem. “Preliminary investigation suggests that our Enterprise Resource Planning (Oracle) environment, Laboratory Information System (TrakCare) database, and CDW are not affected. “Therefore, no patient data has been lost or compromised. All patient data is safe,” said service spokesperson, Mzi Gcukumana. Gcukumana said the investigation indicated that a ransomware virus was used to target selected points in the IT systems, rendering them inaccessible and blocking communication from databases. “All our systems remain…

Former president Jacob Zuma’s daughter Duduzile Zuma is now a new Member of Parliament (MP) after she was sworn in yesterday with other uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party members. Zuma was sworn in alongside MK Party members including impeached former Western Cape Judge President John Hlophe, Andile Mngxitama and Des van Rooyen. The party bagged 58 seats in the National Assembly, overtaking the Economic Freedom Fighters to become South Africa’s third-largest party after the May 29 general elections. “We are now the official opposition,” said former Western Cape High Court Judge John Hlope who was sworn in on Tuesday, becoming the MK Party’s chief whip. Party members were due to be sworn in last week but they boycotted the formal swearing in of MPs at the National Assembly sitting in protest…

SETTING off from London on March 13, three doctors have completed their overland journey from the UK to Cape Town through Africa in a 2010 Toyota Hilux D-4D double cab they named Edna. Friends Karen Cheng, James Weller and James Spence left London on March 13 with the aim of driving through Africa to Cape Town. The three friends shared their journey on their social media platforms as they travelled through countries, cities and villages, bribing officials and crossing rivers and dusty deserts. With 478 000 followers on social media, fans have been following their experiences, which included several setbacks along the way. These included border control issues, unexpected terrain and chassis problems with Edna, including when the Hilux snapped in half under the pressure of the journey. After a…

“Retired” paramedic Ivan Koopman and a host of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) veterans have collaborated to bring their decades-long experiences and insights working during apartheid to serve as a resource and literature, particularly for current-day first responders, and to pay homage to those who paved the way forward. Koopman is a retired paramedic who currently serves as a reverend and is also an author, with the book his 12th publication. “I’ve been a paramedic since 1981 until I left the ambulance service in 1998 and then I went over to the training department. “I then worked a number of years for St John’s Ambulance and I’ve trained first aid and also the basic paramedic course for a number of years. “And that led me to do training in the UAE,…

WE live in a fractured world that is breaking up in slow motion. The many gruesome conflicts and blood-letting continue unabated. These will birth new and more brutal conflicts in the years ahead. It is a sad fact that the entire world is in perpetual conflict, wars with no end. The entire fabric of stable global governance is being torn to shreds. Recovery, stability and sanity will evade us for decades to come. The bloody carnage in war-torn areas has morphed into brutal civil wars. Treachery has been a cardinal feature of US foreign policy for more than 50 years. History will record 2023/4 as a brutal year for humankind – with bombs, missiles and chemical weapons. History will record that regime change in various countries served as a catalyst…

Three thousand tons of flattened concrete and 33 bodies later, the question lingers as to what went wrong in George when the building collapsed? The cost of the two-week search, rescue and recovery programme and insurance claims would most probably run into millions of rand. But it is nothing compared to the loss of life, the pain and grief left in its wake. The aftermath of the 2013 Tongaat shopping mall collapse and the 2022 Jagersfontein Dam wall collapse immediately came to mind. Although not common in South Africa, building collapses are a global occurrence with India and Nigeria leaders in building construction structural deficiencies. Many building collapses are due to management and operational failure. A university case study research into the Tongaat mall collapse concluded that regulatory functions and…

Winter is one of the most dangerous seasons in South Africa, especially for the poor who have little or no access to a safe electricity supply. People who live in informal settlements, hijacked buildings and back rooms are most vulnerable to injury or death caused by fire as many use fire for cooking or for warming their homes. Faulty appliances, illegal connections and consistent power outages have also led to fires in Gauteng townships. The Children of Fire, a charity that helps child burn victims, said the most common cause of fire-related accidents in dwellings was open flames, followed by electrical faults, cooking, arson and smoking. In informal dwellings, the most common cause was also open flames, followed by arson, cooking, electrical faults and smoking. Almost 40% of all…

Belgium head into their final Group E game against Ukraine at Euro 2024 looking to grab top spot in a section where all four teams – including Romania and Slovakia – are level on three points. It is the first time in the tournament’s history each team in the same group has had the same number of points going into the last round of games. Belgium brushed off a surprise 1-0 loss to Slovakia in their opening match by beating Romania 2-0 as Kevin de Bruyne delivered a timely masterclass with his team at risk of another early elimination. There is still work to be done in Stuttgart for Belgium, who saw key members of a golden generation move on after the country’s group-stage exit at the 2022 World Cup.…

Day two of the Craven Week being played in Krugersdorp produced high-quality rugby. In the Jukskei derby between the Bulls and the Lions the result was in doubt until the end when a penalty by flyhalf Ruben Pienaar saw the Bulls sneak home 35-34. The Bulls outscored the Lions by six tries to four but Pienaar could only convert one. His opposite number Vusi Moyo, in contrast, converted all the Lions’ tries to keep his side ahead for most of the game until Pienaar had the last laugh with the last kick of the day. It was typically a titanic struggle up front between the fierce rivals. The rucks and mauls were fiercely contested while the breakdowns were abrasive encounters. The Bulls’ strengths were their line-outs where lock James Schnetler…

TWO more victims have come forward following the arrest of three suspects in Woodstock accused of kidnapping and robbing their Grindr dates. Mlungisi Mbutu, 37, Bongani Zulu, 36 and Zwelakhe Ngwenya, 25 are accused of luring three victims they catfished on the gay dating app, only to kidnap, rob and assault them. The Hawks had closed in on the suspects after they abducted a 50-year-old man on June 14 who was subsequently rescued. Hawks spokesperson, Zinzi Hani, said analysis of suspicious banking activity and money transfer patterns by the suspects at various banks led them to the suspects. Prior to that incident, on June 11, the suspects allegedly robbed a gay man whom they tied up and forced to demand money from his relative. They got away with R3 000.…

DA Councillor in the Cape Agulhas Municipality Raymond Ross has been sworn in as the new executive mayor. This comes after former mayor and DA member Paul Swart was removed from the position following a motion of no confidence. The motion was based on a disciplinary committee finding that Swart was guilty of misconduct on two charges, including failure to disclose interests in contravention of section 6 of the code of conduct for councillors. Swart is believed to have transferred R30 000 to the Elim Community Trust in March 2021 while being a property owner in Elim, which made him a beneficiary of the trust. The funds were allegedly used for the construction of an Arts and Craft Centre and to refurbish a guest house. It was also revealed the…

OUR Cape Town Heritage is preparing to showcase the works of local and lesser-exposed artists at its upcoming exhibition in collaboration with the Bo-Kaap Deli. The non-profit organisation (NPO) was established to provide a platform to showcase the works of largely marginalised artists, and in an effort to preserve the rich heritage and traditions decades-long practised in Cape Town. The exhibition, EKSÊ! Echoes of Self will take place from July 4-7 at Bo-Kaap Deli. Founder and director Tashneem Abrahams said the exhibition, a fourth for the NPO, will expound on the “Coloured” experience and heritage in Cape Town. “We observe three distinct perspectives about culture and how each chooses to represent it visually, two fine artists Gary Frier and Kimberley Titus, and writer Nadia Kamies, who shares her personal family…

EXTENSIVE search efforts are still ongoing for a 9-year-old boy who went missing seven days ago. This, while he was playing in the surf at Skulphoek Beach, Hermanus. The boy was playing with friends with an inflatable lilo and a beach ball in shallow surf during an incoming tide. He is suspected to have been swept up by waves washing over the rocks before being caught in a rip current. Police spokesperson, FC van Wyk, said the search for the boy continued yesterday amid challenging sea conditions. “Preliminary information suggests that the 9-year-old and a friend, 10, were swimming at Skulphoek Beach near Dubai, Zwelihle in Hermanus, on Thursday last week at about 11am. The missing boy apparently slipped from a rock. He fell into the sea and disappeared.…

I’M NOT a pessimist but an optimist. However, I’m not sure if South Africa is coming or going. I’m also not sure if the Government of National Unity (Is it GNU or coalition?) will work. I hope it will work, for the sake of our country, children and generations to come. Since the May 29 general elections, there has been – and there still is – a political drama in our country. Former president Jacob Zuma’s MK Party (MKP) and its gang is pulling this way, while the ANC and its crew are pulling the other way, saying this and that. It’s all about political power. The official opposition party and second most powerful political organisation in the country, the DA, is part of the GNU. However, seemingly, the DA…

As South Africa waits with bated breath for the announcement of the new Cabinet, public frustration and anxiety are reaching a boiling point. The delays and heightened uncertainty come at a time when the nation is already grappling with significant political and social tensions, making the atmosphere akin to a dry powder keg waiting to explode. The anticipation for the Cabinet announcement has intensified public restlessness, with the nation seeking clarity and stability following a contentious election period. Many South Africans are expressing their impatience and concern over the delays, fearing that the prolonged uncertainty could exacerbate existing tensions. The situation has been fuelled by online threats, especially on X, against political party leaders and supporters, journalists and editors who have been exposing racism within political parties such as the…

AFTER an action-packed ODI series filled with a lot of disappointments, the Proteas women will shift their focus to the longer version of the game as they set their sights securing their second Test victory. The Proteas will go through another examination when they take on India at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, starting on Friday morning at 6am (SA time). South Africa suffered a heavy innings and 284-run defeat at the hands of Australia in February. Now they will take on India for the third time in their brief history in Test matches. India have won both previous encounters and these are the key Proteas players that could turn the tie in their favour. Marizanne Kapp The 34-year-old holds the record for the most runs scored in…