Indholdsfortegnelse for 2021-10-21 i Mercury

Loyiso Sidimba loyiso.sidimba@inl.co.za THE Special Investigating Unit (SIU) will oppose former Health Minister Dr Zweli Mkhize’s South Gauteng High Court bid to overturn part of its Digital Vibes report. The unit announced yesterday that it would oppose Mkhize’s application to review and set aside its findings against him relating to the R150 million communications contract awarded to a company run by his associates. “The review application does not suspend the implementation of the SIU report,” the unit added. In its application, the SIU wants repayment of money paid to several respondents flowing from the bank accounts of Digital Vibes, which is run by one of Mkhize’s associates, Tahera Mather, and his former assistant private secretary, Naadhira Mitha. The SIU said the amount it sought to recover totalled R22m, which…

Love leads to listening, freedom, warmth, care and mutual support. It’s sharing dreams and facing challenges together. Love pools resources for mutual benefit. Love provides a safe place for each other and for any children and friends with whom you share your life. Love is not love when: ◆ Coercion is threatened or used. ◆ There are attempts to seclude or cut another off from family and friends. ◆ Betrayal or unfaithfulness is threatened or used. ◆ “Love” is used to trap, manipulate, or possess. ◆ Confinement is threatened or used – car keys hidden, doors locked, plans cancelled without consultation or knowledge. ◆ Privacy is denied (rooms, cupboards, purses, phone, computer, email, conversations). ◆ Traps are set to test fidelity: or stalking, tracking is threatened or used. ◆…

TONY BALL Gillitts WITH great fanfare, eThekwini announced an investment of close to a million rand for cemetery and crematorium management (October 19) but they are unable to carry out a simple thing such as grave management for which they receive payment. My mother was buried at Stellawood Cemetery in 1967 and for years her grave was neatly maintained – and tended by diligent Parks Department employees. In 1993 my father was buried on top of her and the situation continued until the early 2000s. Despite handing over R900 for a 10-year grave lease a few years ago, I felt compelled to remove the family gravestone to my home garden – sans the human remains obviously. Stelllawood cemetery is completely overgrown – gravestones are buried under high grass, electricity poles…

SIMON TIMOTHY DEHAL Verulam I can’t help but wonder if the ANC has scored an own goal or shot itself in the foot. This is in respect of the ruling party initially indicating that it would announce its mayoral candidates for the hotly-contested metros, before the elections, and subsequently, backtracking indicating that the names would be made known only after the voting, despite candidates being interviewed for positions, the latter being a move in the right direction. Ordinarily, in a game, contest or show, one would choose the best players/artists (big guns and heavyweights), announcing their names with much pomp, fanfare and publicity and expecting them to be successful and delivering the goods. The unusual move by the ANC is reminiscent of Cricket SA’s recent tweets on the IPL cricket…

Bongani Nkosi bongani.nkosi@inl.co.za THE Police Ministry is relentless in its drawn-out bid to have Fidelity Security Services’ 700 guns with expired licences surrendered for destruction. It has brought an application at the Constitutional Court to have the matter settled. This application is an appeal against a ruling of the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) delivered in April this year. The SCA ruled that according to the Firearms Control Act, Fidelity was entitled to apply afresh for new licences for the guns in question. The wrangle between Fidelity and the police dates back to 2016, when the company submitted applications for the renewal of firearm licences at the police station in Florida, west of Joburg. Major-General Eleanor Groen- ewald, component head of litigation and administration in the police, said in papers…

Yogashen Pillay yogashen.pillay@inl.co.za The legal team for United Phosphorus LTD (UPL) has written a letter to the Department of Economic Development, Tourism and the Environment (Edtea) as the company said it was concerned about the continued closure of beaches north of Durban. The beaches were closed after a chemical spill from UPL’s leased warehouse in Cornubia. The spill occurred on July 12 after the warehouse was set on fire amid the looting and unrest. UPL spokesperson Japhet Ncube said: “UPL’s legal team has written to Edtea expressing its concern over the continued delay in reopening the beaches that were closed following the arson attack on its leased warehouse in Cornubia. “The fire led to a chemical spill due to emergency services not being able to immediately respond to the…

PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa’s labelling of voters as drunk when they criticised the ANC perhaps sums up the term of the administration – drunk on power. His comments, while campaigning in Ga-Rankuwa in Pretoria on Friday, are unpresidential and undermine the intelligence of the voters the ANC has failed since it took over the governance of the country. With a smile on his face, Ramaphosa said: “Keep quiet. You are drunk,” before jokingly adding: “When it is this hot and you drink alcohol, it is fermenting inside you and drives you crazy.” This appears to be a worrying strategy his team is adopting whenever they are asked to answer uncomfortable questions and, more importantly, account for the mess communities everywhere find themselves in under his leadership. A week before his campaign…

Japan’s Mount Aso erupted yesterday, spewing ash thousands of metres into the sky as hikers rushed away from the popular tourist spot. No injuries were immediately reported after the eruption, which sent rocks flying. People were warned not to approach the volcano as it ejected hot gas and ash as high as 3 500m and sent stones tumbling down its slopes. Authorities said they were checking if any hikers had been trapped or injured, as TV footage showed vehicles and tour buses parked at a nearby museum. Torrents of ash were seen rushing towards the museum, but did not reach the site. “Human lives are our priority and we are working with the defence forces, police and firefighters to deal with the situation,” said Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno. Mount…

NEARLY 100 candidates took the constitutional oath this week to become the first women judges at Egypt’s State Council, one of the country’s main judicial bodies. In line with the county’s plan to empower women in the judiciary sector, Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi instructed in March that the State Council and the Public Prosecution, the two judicial bodies once exclusive for male judges, appoint females. The first batch of women members at the council included 48 judges as assistant counsellors and 50 as vice-counsellors. “The move is a dear gift for women in Egypt,” said Taha Karsoua, vice-president of the State Council. Karsoua said the decision is an implementation of Sisi’s directives, adding that the new judges will have the same tasks as male judges in achieving justice and settling…

BERLIN: Bulgaria detained 11 people yesterday and raided 46 residential and commercial buildings in an investigation into tax fraud by the Italian mafia involving the trade in luxury vehicles, German police said. The main suspects who were detained belong to the Ndrangheta, the most powerful mafia group in Italy, and are accused of tax fraud worth ¤13 million euros (R219m). The perpetrators illegally claimed VAT by selling exclusive cars several times in different European countries, police said in a statement. The suspects will be brought before a magistrate shortly, the statement said.…

ONE of the advertised attractions of lawn bowls is that the activity can be enjoyed by the whole family on a social level and as a competitive sport. The point was certainly hammered home this weekend when the Port Natal Bowls fours championship finals, played in unpleasantly wet conditions at Westville Country Club on Sunday, saw five of the eight new champions hail from two families. With competitors battered by consistent cold showers, the Hillary blue train stormed to the top spot on the podium – not once, but twice. Terrance Arnold, Matthew Riggien and Anton Claasen, skipped by bowling virtuoso Mark Ramsden, put paid to the hopes of their semi-final opponents from Umhlali Country Club, giving them an opportunity to take the title. Facing…

AN AMATEUR diver exploring shallow waters off northern Israel has found a sword thought to have belonged to a crusader knight 900 years ago, according to the BBC. The one-metre blade was discovered in shallow waters off Haifa. It is thought the sword, heavily encrusted with marine organisms, resurfaced after a shifting of sands. Kobi Sharvit, of the Israel Antiques Authority, says the fellow who wielded it must have been immensely strong. “I’m trying to imagine him on the field with all the armour on him and the sword and fighting with it.” The Crusades are safely distant. But this account of an encrusted sword from long-ago conflict somehow recalls the story of the limpet-encrusted submarine off Durban. These fellows were fishing off South Pier when this submarine surfaced near…

THYAGARAJ MARKANDAN Kloof WHERE the hell is Gqeberha? Do you know? I know all the towns and cities in our country. But Gqeberha? Where or what is this tongue-twisting place which has cropped up suddenly on the weather report and news channels before the local elections? I was baffled. Then I figured out it could be a place in the Eastern Cape. Could it then be Cradock, King William’s Town or Grahamstown? At my wit’s end I decided to ask Mr Know–All, Google who gave me a telling off. Hey, you fool, don’t you know your ANC government has changed Port Elizabeth to Gqeberha? Really, Port Elizabeth is Gqeberha? I was flabbergasted. Apparently, Gqeberha is the Xhosa name of the river that runs through Port Elizabeth. I wouldn’t be surprised…

MUHAMMAD OMAR Durban North The tirade regarding former prisons boss Arthur Fraser that Deputy Chief Justice Zondo “is unfit” to hold the post of Chief Justice, is based on him not given a chance to make representations at the Zondo Commission. The joke is, since when does Arthur Fraser think he is so important to sway a pending judicial appointment based on his sentiment or ill-treatment. In fact, even if DCJ Zondo was not in the running, based on this, it becomes imperative he is given the post as it would now seem as a bias against him. I wonder what the RET lobby will have to say about Fraser blocking the advancement of Africans, more so from KZN. Fraser is a civil servant pensioner, and how does his sentiment…

Mercury Correspondent The South African Medical Association (Sama) is calling on the government to roll out vaccine booster shots to health-care workers immediately, arguing that the efficacy of the single dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine is unknown, and that the single J&J vaccination only provides good immunity up to, at most, eight months. Health-care workers were the first cohort of people that were vaccinated in South Africa under the Sisonke programme, which was a collaboration between the National Department of Health, South African Medical Research Council, Desmond Tutu Health Foundation, Caprisa, and Johnson & Johnson, that allowed the government to make the J&J vaccine immediately available to health-care workers, using a research programme. According to Sama, research indicates that the immunity and efficacy of single-dose vaccination – such as the…

Yogashen Pillay yogashen.pillay@inl.co.za The Durban-based Choose Life Specialist Recovery Centre said it had noticed a major increase in the number of addiction cases since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. Malcolm Young, general manager of the centre, said they had noted an increase in addiction cases. “There has been a massive increase in the number of people seeking help since the pandemic hit. “We are not only dealing with people battling with existing addictions but also with those who are new to addiction and are using various substances to avoid and deal with the pressures of life in the shadow of Covid-19.” Young also said he was concerned about the number of new alcohol cases. “Alcohol problems, in particular, seem to be on the rise despite the bans that were…

THE local government elections are for candidates to win or lose. But the divisive forces of delinquent politicians, violating the electoral code of conduct in the increasing number of political hot spots, are on an intimidation march that resonates across South Africa. That is why the presence of election observers remains relevant. Over 1 800 election observers from the Election Monitoring Network, the KwaZulu-Natal Christian Council and other accredited organisations working with the Electoral Commission, the security forces and other role-players are working hard to ensure the delivery of free and fair elections. Election observers play a significant role in encouraging politicians to affirm their commitment to desist from using speech or actions which will have the effect of provoking either party supporters or members of the public to commit…

Damascus: A rare bombing against an army bus in Damascus and shelling moments later of a town in rebel-held northwestern Syria killed at least 27 people yesterday in the deadliest flareup in months. Two bombs which targeted an army bus in central Damascus were detonated early in the morning, killing 14 people in the worst such attack in the capital in four years, the state news agency SANA reported. There was no immediate claim for the bombing but moments later shelling by government forces killed 13 people in Idlib province, an area controlled by groups that have claimed such attacks in the past. “A terrorist bombing using two explosive devices targeted a passing bus” at a key bridge in the capital, the news agency said, reporting that three people had…

LONDON: Queen Elizabeth has politely turned down the Oldie of the Year Award. The 95-year-old monarch – who still keeps to a busy schedule including meetings with world leaders, days at the races and much more – urged Oldie magazine to “find a more worthy recipient” . In a letter published in the magazine’s November issue, the Queen’s assistant private secretary Tom Laing-Baker wrote: “Her Majesty believes you are as old as you feel; as such, the Queen does not believe she meets the relevant criteria to be able to accept and hopes you will find a more worthy recipient.” The chairperson of the awards had written to the Queen’s private secretary to ask if she’d accept the prize, which has celebrated the achievements of older people making special contributions…

LONDON: The head of the UK National Health Service Confederation, Matthew Taylor, said yesterday that the government should reintroduce some anti-Covid-19 measures such as mandatory mask wearing, work from home and a ban on unnecessary indoor gatherings as hospitals are on the edge of being overwhelmed ahead of winter. “The question is, is it better to act early or do we wait for things to get worse,” Taylor told Sky News. The medical chief said that all health leaders he has spoken to told him that their hospitals are “right on the edge” following a steady increase in coronavirus cases and deaths over the last few weeks.…

Stuart Hess stuart.hess@inl.co.za WHAT are the men’s Proteas chances of winning this year’s T20 World Cup? The sports betting folks don’t have them in the top five. In fact, it’s West Indies and England that are most people’s favourites and both of those teams are in Group A along with South Africa and Australia, and whoever emerges from the round one fixtures. In fact there is a strong possibility, following Scotland’s shock win last Sunday, that both Sri Lanka and Bangladesh could end up in Group A, making South Africa’s path to a top two finish in the Group - and thus a semi-final berth - that much trickier. “As tough as the group is, we back ourselves, back our chances. A lot of people out there don’t, but we…

ESHLIN VEDAN eshlin.vedan@inl.co.za ORLANDO Pirates were frustrated and held to a 0-0 draw by 10-man Maritzburg United at the Harry Gwala Stadium yesterday. The opening exchanges of the game were confined to midfield before Pirates had their first good opportunity of the game after 15 minutes. Tshegofatso Mabasa found himself in a one-on-one with Engelhardt but he made a save with his legs to prevent his side from conceding. Terrence Dzvukamanja was guilty of wasting a good opportunity for Pirates in the 33rd minute as Linda Mntambo found him with a cross but he could not get a finishing touch on the ball. Pirates goalkeeper Siyabonga Mpontshane was virtually anonymous in the first half and Maritzburg mentor Ernst Middendorp was clearly perturbed as he walked to the dressing room at…

Lutho Pasiya lutho.pasiya@inl.co.za Halloween is all about creative costumes, fun parties, haunted houses, and lots of sweets. Don’t toss leftover Halloween sweets in the trash, when there are so many smart uses for all of those treats. Try these sweet ideas. Add leftover Halloween sweets to your baking Chocolate and sweets work well in many dessert recipes. You can chop up any kind – especially if it’s chocolate or caramel-based – and add it to basic biscuit dough, fudge, or brownie batter. Or you can crush hard sweets or peppermints and use them as toppings to decorate cupcakes, cheesecake or biscuits. Save it for Christmas pies Maybe you don’t need to get rid of your leftover Halloween sweets altogether but just take a one-month break. Saving your sweets to make…

A Spanish drone operator has received permission to try to rescue three emaciated dogs trapped near a volcano in the Canary Islands, by catching them with a remote-controlled net and flying them out over a stream of lava. The three dogs have been stranded for weeks in an abandoned yard covered with volcanic ash on the island of La Palma. They have been fed by drones dropping packages of food, but until now no one has been able to figure out how to rescue them. Helicopters are banned from flying to the area because of hot gas that can damage their rotors. After evaluating the proposed rescue mission, emergency authorities said in a statement they had decided to allow it. Jaime Pereira, chief executive of drone operator Aerocamaras, said he…

JUSTIN MOODLEY Phoenix IT IS surprising that President Cyril Ramaphosa remains silent on the important issue relating to three of his ministers being held hostage by military veterans. Ramaphosa's silence is deafening. Also, his silence on the corruption investigation against one of his premiers in the Eastern Cape, Oscar Mabuyane, is surprising. He was quick to act against the ANC secretary-general, Ace Magashule, who is facing corruption and money laundering charges. Why no action against Mabuyane who is accused of similar transactions, involving Winnie Mandela's memorial service? Is it because action against Mabuyane could be costly for the ANC, in terms of votes during the forthcoming local government elections? Mabuyane holds the whip with regard to voters in the Eastern Cape. Any action against him could be detrimental to the…

BRADLEY SINGH DA KZN Spokesperson on Arts and Culture THE DA has established that valuable public documents have not been archived by KwaZulu-Natal’s (KZN) Department of Arts and Culture (DoAC) for four decades. The dire situation is the result of the department blatantly turning a blind eye to archive repositories for years – evidenced by ongoing requests to divert funding for the upgrade of these facilities. KZN’s archive repositories house public documents such as marriage and divorce decrees, legal records, bills, acts, policies, major transactions undertaken by the government, societal records of lineage, agreements, notices, birth and death records, photographs, newspapers, diaries – the list is endless. Despite this, the existing provincial archives are in crisis, with priceless and irreplaceable heritage documents distributed between three different repositories, all of which…

Thami Magubane thami.magubane@inl.co.za THE South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) has threatened to take the Msunduzi Municipality back to court over its failure to submit a proper action plan for the New England Road landfill site that will ensure it is no longer a threat to communities. The commission accused the municipality of failing to submit an action plan with time frames to address the problems at the landfill site. The SAHRC brought an application against the municipality last December. It said it was deeply concerned about the state of the site and its prejudicial impact on the environment and public health after several massive fires at the landfill. In June, the Pietermaritzburg High Court found that the municipality was in breach of its obligations relating to the operation…

kailene.pillay@inl.co.za The Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) and Media Monitoring Africa (MMA) have joined hands with major social media platforms to fight the spread of disinformation in the run-up to, during and beyond the municipal election. The IEC and MMA, which in 2019 launched a joint action to deal with disinformation, reached an agreement with Google, Facebook, Twitter and TikTok to work in support of efforts to end the problem of disinformation. Commission vice-chairperson Janet Love said the framework was important because disinformation posed a threat to the exercise of various rights. “The dissemination of disinformation has huge potential to undermine the fairness and credibility of elections. It also threatens democratic political and policymaking processes. “Credible information is the lifeblood of all democracies. Trustworthy information is crucial in…

Sisonke Mlamla sisonke.mlamla@inl.co.za THE case against eight alleged leaders of the so-called “romance” syndicate, who appeared in the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court yesterday, has been postponed for the men to apply for bail. The eight, who allegedly preyed on victims, many of them vulnerable widows or divorcees, made their first appearance in court pending an extradition application by the US, where warrants for their arrests were issued. Perry Osagiede, Enorense Izevbigie, Franklyn Edosa Osagiede, Osariemen Eric Clement, Collins Owhofasa Otughwor, Musa Mudashiru, Prince Ibeabuchi Mark and Toritseju Gabriel Otubu were all calm as they appeared in court. The men, aged between 33 and 52, were arrested by the Hawks and US law enforcement in a massive operation in the city at dawn on Tuesday. The group was believed to be…

IF ONLY contempt for competence could catch up with all of us in politics! It could be a wish, Nkosikhulule Nyembezi, we could fervently be hoping for. Competence is, indeed, the one huge issue. Bewilderment, however, is the other very significant stumbling block. Many first-time councillors, eagerly taking up their seats in council, will quickly come to realise that they are going to have to do a lot of learning and will have to learn to push a resistant elephant. After getting elected, new councillors will have to get to grips with the Municipal Structures Act 117 of 1998, the Municipal Systems Act 32 of 2000, the Municipal Finance Management Act 56 of 2003, the Cape Town Municipal Spatial Development Framework, the Integrated Development Plan (IDP) and the Neighbourhood Development…

THE death toll from days of flooding and landslides in India and Nepal crossed 100 yesterday, including several families swept away or crushed in their homes by avalanches of mud and rocks. Experts say that they were victims of ever-more unpredictable and extreme weather across South Asia in recent years caused by climate change and exacerbated by deforestation, damming and excessive development. In Uttarakhand in northern India, officials said 46 people had died in recent days with 11 missing. At least 30 were killed in seven separate incidents in Uttarakhand’s Nainital region on Tuesday, after cloudbursts – an ultra-intense deluge of rain – triggered landslides and destroyed several structures. In Nepal, 31 were reported dead after days of heavy rains across the country. A disaster management official said that 43…

The images of the scorched airplane in a pile of rubble are grim – but all 21 people on a private plane walked away unharmed from the crash in Houston, Texas. The plane failed to gain altitude during an attempted takeoff, crashed into a field and burst into flames, authorities said. “This is a good day,” Sergeant Stephen Woodard of the Texas Department of Public Safety told reporters this week near the site of the crash. “No one is deceased – and man that is an awesome feeling for us right now as first responders.” The McDonnell Douglas MD-87 plane was on its way from the Houston Executive Airport in Brookshire to Boston shortly after 10am local time, the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement. It was carrying 18…

Addis Ababa: Ethiopia’s military launched a new air strike on the Tigrayan capital Mekele yesterday, the second bombardment this week hitting Tigray People’s Liberation Front targets in the city. The raids mark a sharp escalation in the near year-long conflict in northern Ethiopia that is pitting government forces and their allies against the TPLF, Tigray’s once-dominant ruling party. A government spokesperson confirmed the latest raid, which had been reported by humanitarian and diplomatic sources and a local resident. It was not immediately known if there were any casualties from the strike.…