Indholdsfortegnelse for 2026-01-22 i Cape Times

Minister of Electricity and Energy Kgosientso Ramokgopa said on Wednesday his energy delegation has engaged with global and local CEOs of ferrochrome smelters at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, in a bid to cushion and develop the industry for beneficiation. The intervention aims to sustain a proposed tariff of 62 cents per kilowatt-hour for smelters, as the sector faces retrenchments driven by high electricity costs. Ramokgopa said stakeholders — including government, Eskom, labour unions and smelters — had worked to restructure the tariff from R1.35 per kilowatt-hour to save jobs, and that the WEF was being used to facilitate high-level discussions. “We are here engaging global CEOs of some of these entities. We have already engaged domestic CEOs, and we are aligned. Of course, the details still…

Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille has defended the stability and governance of South African Tourism (SA Tourism), dismissing allegations that her intervention at the entity undermined its independence through questionable board appointments. SA Tourism has been under intense scrutiny following the dissolution of its previous board and the suspension of its chief executive officer, Nombulelo Guliwe, developments that have fuelled concerns about governance instability at the state-owned tourism marketing agency. Democratic Alliance spokesperson on tourism, Haseena Ismail, on Wednesday said she had written to Parliament calling for urgent intervention and oversight following serious concerns about SA Tourism’s handling of Meetings Africa. Meetings Africa is South Africa’s flagship Pan-African business events trade show, hosted by SA Tourism, and plays an important role in securing future business events for the continent. Ismail…

South Africa’s inflation rate edged slightly higher in December, according to the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) figures released by Statistics SA on Wednesday. Inflation rose to 3.6% in December 2025 from 3.5% in November. Prices increased by 0.2% compared with November, meaning consumers paid slightly more for everyday goods and services during the month. Economists said the small rise was expected. Frank Blackmore, the lead economist at KPMG South Africa, said December CPI numbers, which came in at 3.6% for December 2025, are slightly higher than the 3.5% recorded in November. “Core inflation also rose marginally to 3.3% from 3.2% last year. The main contributor to this inflation was housing and utilities, which added one-third or 1.2 percentage points of that 3.6%, and most notably there it was obviously…

PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa has directed Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube and her Transport counterpart Barbara Creecy to lead efforts in exploring ways to prevent loss of life through scholar transport. He made the announcement when he delivered a keynote address at the three-day 2026 Basic Education Sector Lekgotla, at the Birchwood Hotel in Boksburg yesterday. The announcement came in the wake of the deaths of 12 learners who were killed in a horror crash when the minibus taxi they were travelling in collided with an oncoming truck on Monday. Ramaphosa said under normal circumstances, children are not meant to be buried by their parents; rather, children, once they are old enough, are the ones who should bury their parents. “We need to act now, and…

FORMER Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) head Robert McBride has conceded that some of the information provided by forensic investigator Paul O’Sullivan was ‘useful although it did not influence investigations’. “He did not influence us. No one on this earth can influence me. I always do the right thing,” he testified before the Ad Hoc Committee probing allegations made by KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, McBride. “I never sought information from him,” he said. Previous witnesses before the inquiry had claimed that O’Sullivan was in control of IPID and conducted some of its investigations. However McBride said O’Sullivan was one of the sources of information. “The fact that he provided information does not translate into controlling IPID. That is a fiction created by Phahlane. That is…

A worker caught with a roll of toilet paper allegedly belonging to his employer in his bag and subsequently fired must be reinstated and paid R120,000 in backpay. The Labour Court in Cape Town turned down an application by Mpact Operations, where Theodore April worked as a winder operator since 2009 until he was fired, to review an arbitration ruling that he must be reinstated. Acting Judge M Mkhatshwa ordered that apart from the backpay, which he must receive by the end of February, he must report for work on February 2. April was fired after he was found guilty at an internal disciplinary hearing after security found a roll of toilet paper in his possession after his shift had ended. The toilet paper was said to be the same…

Ford Racing has unveiled the Mustang Dark Horse SC, the most extreme interpretation of the Dark Horse yet. Unfortunately for local enthusiasts, the supercharged V8 Pony Car has not been confirmed for South Africa yet. Positioned between the standard Mustang Dark Horse and the exclusive GTD, the Dark Horse SC is the product of Ford Racing’s growing effort to align its road cars more closely with its global motorsport programme. Development The Dark Horse SC was engineered using lessons learned and data from the Mustang GT3 and GT4 race programmes, as well as technology developed for the GTD flagship. Ford says nearly every dynamic system was reworked, including the powertrain, suspension, braking, aerodynamics and cooling. “Mustang Dark Horse SC draws directly on what we’ve learned at the very top of…

The Bulls deserve a pat on the back for grinding out a gutsy Champions Cup win over classy Pau, who are second on the French Top 14 points table, but fans are not getting carried away just yet. Seven painful losses preceded the 26-24 win at Pau; the sentiment is that one swallow doesn’t make a summer, and only a win tomorrow night in Edinburgh will convince fans and critics alike that the Bulls have turned the corner under Johan Ackermann. Encouragingly, the Bulls tightened up their defence last week. Until that match and excluding their tight, 13-8 tussle with the Stormers, the Bulls were conceding an average of almost six tries per game in their pursuit of a more attacking, adventurous style of rugby. The Bulls have, in fact,…

The old cliche “never meet your heroes” has not come about without reason because often we are left disappointed when our real-life experience does not match the expectations we had built up from afar. So, having previously heard that Eoin Morgan, former England World Cup-winning captain, could be a bit testy at times, I was naturally apprehensive when approaching him earlier this week in the commentary box at Boland Park. I had nothing to worry about. In fact, the interaction was stunningly pleasant with Morgan coming across as humble, engaging and quite funny in fact. Okay, the former England World Cup-winning captain is not exactly a “hero” of mine, but he was responsible for giving me the best quote of my entire 20-year journalistic career. It was in the bowels…

Minister de Lille says SA’s presence in Davos is meant to reposition tourism economic growth Minister of Tourism Patricia de Lille has urged international investors to look into South Africa as a potential destination for global meetings, conferences and entertainment events, and thus replicate the Club Med model across the country. Club Med SAS, commonly known as Club Med and previously known as Club Méditerranée SA, is a French travel and tourism operator headquartered in Paris, specializing in all-inclusive holidays. The multinational hospitality group is opening a R2.5 billion beach and safari resort in KwaZulu-Natal in July, the most expensive destination-scale tourism venture in the country’s history and reinforcing economic prospects in critical logistics infrastructure in the province. Speaking on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting…

Karooooo, the JSE and New York-listed owner of vehicle telematics and fleet management company Cartrak, accelerated its growth in the three months to November 30 even as it continued to build distribution capacity, CEO and founder Zak Calisto said yesterday. Cartrack's quarterly subscription revenue increased 20% to R1.24bn and ARR (annual recurring revenue) increased 22% to R5.11bn, representing a significant acceleration in growth, compared to the 2024 third quarter, where subscription revenue and ARR each increased 14%. There were record Cartrack subscriber additions of 111 478, versus 86 617 in the third quarter of 2024. Third quarter ARR growth of 22% also accelerated compared to 20% in the previous quarter, and ARR increased 28% in US dollars to $298 million. "This growth, and growth in earnings, came even though we…

Despite an improvement in investor confidence in South Africa, a Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) Empowerment organisation has highlighted concern about a R350 billion SME funding gap that persists because many businesses are not funding ready. CEO of SME Empowerment organisation, Unconventional CA, Hiten Keshave, said the funding gap is most visible among smaller, micro businesses and informal traders. “Formal micro enterprises account for more than 86% of SME funding applications and contribute over 80% of SME job creation, yet they are the least likely to secure funding approval.” Keshave added that there are growing signs that business and investor confidence is beginning to stabilise in South Africa. “Inflation has eased, energy supply has improved, and economic forecasts point to modest growth following several difficult years marked by weak demand,…

US President Donald Trump once again amplified his false claim of a “white genocide” against Afrinakers in South Africa after addressing the the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos yesterday. “What’s happening in South Africa is terrible. It’s a terrible situation. What they’re doing to people, a certain group of people, is unbelievable. You wouldn’t think it could happen today,” Trump told reporters. “Well, we have seen the numbers, we’ve seen the records, and it is taking place and it’s gotta be stopped.” The US and South Africa’s diplomatic relations have hit rock bottom of late over Washington’s false claims that Pretoria was implementing race-based laws and grabbing land that belongs to white Afrikaners. Trump has on many occasions claimed that “bad things were happening in South Africa” over…

THE University of Pretoria (UP) will welcome first‑year Medicine student Andru van Zyl next month, whose inspiring matric holiday has captured the country’s attention. Van Zyl achieved six distinctions and an 85% average in the 2025 National Senior Certificate exams. But it was his decision to cycle from Polokwane to Cape Town on his father’s 20‑year‑old bicycle — raising more than R500 000 for the Childhood Cancer Foundation of South Africa (CHOC) — that truly set him apart. UP said Van Zyl’s strong academic performance, particularly in the sciences, provided a solid foundation for his chosen field of study, which aligns closely with both his academic interests and his desire to serve others. “Medicine allows me to pursue my passion for biology, particularly human anatomy and physiology,” he said. “I…

Dunoon Primary School started the new academic year without electricity or Wi‑Fi due to crime. Acting Principal Thelisa Siyo reported that the school discovered the issue on January 12, the first day teachers arrived. "When we arrived, there was no electricity anywhere in the school. The next day, we realised that the wires and electricity cables had been stolen," Siyo explained. She added that the theft has also disrupted access to water, as the school’s toilets rely on an electric water pump. "Without electricity, we don’t have water. Our computers and projectors are also affected. We can’t make photocopies of learning materials, and teaching with projectors has become impossible." Siyo noted that the school depends on an inverter as a backup power supply, which the community helps charge. "We pay…

French investigators remain determined to find the imperial jewels stolen from the Louvre in October, a prosecutor told AFP. Police believe they have arrested all four thieves who carried out the brazen October 19 robbery, making off with jewellery worth an estimated $102 million from the world-famous museum. "The interrogations have not produced any new investigative elements," top Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said this week, almost three months after the broad-daylight heist. But the case remains a top priority, she underlined. "Our main objective is still to recover the jewellery," she said. That Sunday morning in October, thieves parked a mover's truck with an extendable ladder below the Louvre's Apollo Gallery housing the French crown jewels. Two of the thieves hoisted themselves up the ladder in a furniture lift, broke…

A quarter of a century is a long time, but for Defender and the Kingsley Holgate Foundation, longevity has been earned the hard way across some of the most inaccessible parts of Africa. The two mark 25 years of continuous partnership this year, a relationship that began in 2 000 and has since supported more than 40 humanitarian and conservation expeditions. Every journey has been undertaken in a Defender, often far beyond the reach of conventional infrastructure and well outside the comfort zone of many vehicles. Outcome driven From arid deserts in the north to flood-prone equatorial forests and deep sand tracks across Southern Africa, the Foundation’s work over time has translated into tangible outcomes rather than marketing milestones. To date, the Kingsley Holgate Foundation has distributed more than 473…

Imran Tahir may be approaching his 47th birthday in a couple of months’ time, but the veteran leg-spinner has lost none of his passion for success. Having only had limited game time during the group stages of Betway SA20 Season 4, Tahir burst into action in Joburg Super Kings’ final match against Paarl Royals. Tahir claimed 2/17 to out spin the Royals on their own patch and drive the Super Kings to the qualifiers where they will face the self-same opposition at Centurion on Thursday (5:30pm start). “Yeah, look it's been a tough season for me,” Tahir said. “I haven't had an opportunity. It's a sad thing, because it's our own league, SA20, and when you come here and have done what you've done for the country in the last…

GAVIN HUNT has used the refrains ‘we should have won the match’ or ‘we should have scored more goals’ so much in his post match media addresses that to hear him say anything else gets one doing a second take. It has become somewhat of a cliché really, an expected statement from a coach even when the reality of proceedings had been different. It was thus somewhat of a shock when 'Huntie’s' maiden post-match address as coach of Stellenbosch FC did not include those lines. Perhaps most surprising was to hear the multiple championship-winner admitting his team were lucky to win their Betway Premiership tie at Sekhukhune United 1-0. Tsheogatso Mabasa scored on debut for the Cape Winelands outfit he joined this week on loan from Orlando Pirates to help…

Dear Minister, Gayton McKenzie, I hope this letter finds you well. Let me start by saying that I am writing not only as a football scribe but also as a concerned and discerning supporter of the game, who is watching a leech — poor refereeing —slowly suck the life out of one of the brands that has become the pride of African football. So, here we go! As the main custodian of sport in this country — not just football — I am sure you have been following the Premier Soccer League (PSL) closely this season, especially since you took office. As such, you have not been immune to the league’s thrills, spills, and shortcomings. When reports emerged last year that the PSL had a significant 9% increase in revenue,…

The stalemate between the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) and Postbank over the former’s stipulation of a three-month extension of a master service agreement (MSA), affecting about three million beneficiaries, has landed before the Constitutional Court after behind-the-scenes disputes overtook a Presidency-appointed inter-ministerial committee (IMC) process. This follows the expiry of the three-month MSA extension at the end of December, while the IMC has yet to conclude its deliberations, leaving the fragile relationship to be resolved through submissions to the Constitutional Court. Sassa spokesperson Paseka Letsatsi confirmed in an update that the matter is currently before the Constitutional Court. “The Court ordered that the status quo be maintained pending further directions. “The passing of 31 December 2025 does not alter Sassa’s legal position, but since the matter is before…

UK wealth management company Quilter shares surged on the JSE Wednesday after it reported record net inflows of £9.1 billion for 2025 due to elevated client activity following speculation in markets about the UK Budget in November 2023. Directors of the JSE and London listed company said in a trading statement that quarterly inflows consistently above £2bn through the year also reflected the strength of their platform. The share price increased 4.07% to R42.74 in the afternoon - the price has increased by more than 11% over 12 months. "We finished the year with strong momentum. The fourth quarter was our strongest quarter of the year, despite market uncertainty caused by speculation on potential tax changes ahead of the UK Budget at the end of November," said CEO Steven Levin.…

THE approval of salary increases for public office bearers, including ministers and their deputies, as well as parliamentarians, demonstrates that the government doesn’t care about the sufferings of the citizens. This is according to analysts and experts who argue that the money should have been spent on improving infrastructure, especially the railways, which provide cheaper transport for the working class. President Cyril Ramaphosa announced this week that he approved a 3.8% pay increase for ministers, deputy ministers, and parliamentarians. The increases are set to take effect on April 1, 2026. These increases are slightly lower than the 4.1% suggested by the Independent Commission for the Remuneration of Public Office Bearers. However, provincial legislators will still receive the full 4.1%. This also applies to judges, magistrates, traditional leaders, and independent constitutional…

The plight of a young boy who has to travel two hours a day to and from school came under the judicial spotlight when the mother successfully turned to court in a bid to place the child in a school closer to her home. The mother approached the Gauteng High Court, Johannesburg, after the child’s father refused her permission to change the child’s school. The wife, however, obtained an order that the father did not need to give his consent under the circumstances for her to change schools. The court further confirmed that the father will be accountable for the new school fees, as per an earlier maintenance court order. The parents have a 12-year-old son, and they lived together in Benoni up to 2016. At the end of their…

“I have children who are in school and are left with only their uniforms because the fire started while they were in school, but they are home now and can’t go to school.” These were the words of Masiphumelele resident Melvin Kilani who lost everything in a devastating fire on Tuesday and said that his children could not return to school yesterday without clean clothes or food. “I lost everything and I am left with the clothes I am wearing now. “This is the second time I have been affected by a fire. In 2022, there was a fire but I managed to save some things. But this time, nothing could be saved,” he said. After losing their homes and belongings in the fire that destroyed at least 363 structures…

Undoubtedly one of the most recognised shapes on the road and certainly one of the more aspirational cars on the market, the Mercedes-Benz AMG G63 never fails to draw attention. First designed for military use, Mercedes quickly realised its potential for the civilian market, and since its introduction in 1979, more than 600 000 G-Wagons, as they have become known, have been sold globally. It’s an ultimate stock adventure vehicle with owners having travelled to the most extreme parts of the globe, enduring searing heat, freezing snow and ice. And while the G63 has all the prowess needed for the rough stuff, it’s not why people own them. Okay, the 22-inch road-biased tyres probably wouldn’t make it past the first rocky obstacle, so it’s more about the ultimate flex than…

Hyundai South Africa has weighed in on the ongoing controversy surrounding a zero-star safety rating given to its Hyundai Grand i10 hatchback. The Korean brand’s entry-level hatchback hit the headlines in early December after independent crash testing authority Global NCAP handed it a zero-star rating for adult occupant protection and a three-star rating for child protection. Although the vehicle is built in India, the rating applies to the South African specification as it was evaluated in accordance with Global NCAP’s #SaferCarsForAfrica campaign. Hyundai South Africa did not immediately respond to the crash test report after it was released late last year, but after mounting pressure on social media – with even the Automobile Association weighing in to say it has no authority to “ban” such vehicles – the importer released…

Top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz fended off a series of “bombs” before surging into the Australian Open third round yesterday, where he was joined by Aryna Sabalenka and a near-flawless Coco Gauff. Three-time finalist Daniil Medvedev needed four sets to keep his Grand Slam dream on track at a cooler Melbourne Park after days of hot weather. Alexander Zverev, the third seed well beaten in last year’s final by Jannik Sinner, also went through in four sets. Spanish superstar Alcaraz came through 7-6 (7/4), 6-3, 6-2 on Rod Laver Arena against hard-hitting German Yannick Hanfmann to take another step towards a career Grand Slam. But the 22-year-old was put through his paces by a player 12 years older before setting up a showdown with France’s Corentin Moutet. “To be honest, it was…

Never mind Rassie Erasmus getting into people’s heads with the help of The Cranberries, Stormers centre Wandisile Simelane says he takes to the field with defence coach Norman Laker present between his ears. Simelane knows he will be asked questions on defence by the strong-running Sharks midfield of Andre Esterhuizen at the Cape Town Stadium, but he is confident he will do the job. “Defence has more to it than meets the eye, especially when you are tasked with running the show from 13,” said Simelane. “Ruhan Nel helped me a lot, and Norman prides himself on our defence — trust me, when you put on that Stormers jersey, Norm is in your head. “Norm and I worked very hard on my defence, and I am grateful to be in…

Cedric Kaze is finally standing up for the under-fire Kaizer Chiefs technical team, knowing they are not everyone’s cup of tea and that Rome wasn’t built in a day, while insisting they will bask in the glory of their success at the end of the season. Kaze and Khalil Ben Youssef have been steering Chiefs’ ship since the early part of the season. Their appointment was bizarre, given that the club decided to retain them after sacking their superior and head coach, Nasreddine Nabi. They have done their bit to show that they are the right men for the job, guiding Amakhosi to third place in the Betway Premiership with 16 games to go, as well as qualification for the CAF Confederation Cup group stage. Still, they have attracted more…