Indholdsfortegnelse for 2022-10-31 i Mercury

Power utility needs R72bn in the next 5 years to upgrade high voltage lines ESKOM’S quest for a R72 billion injection over the next five years to upgrade more than 2 890km of extra high voltage lines and 60 transformers may hit a snag as the power utility does not inspire the confidence of international funders. Eskom’s Managing Director for Transmission, Segomoco Scheppers said on Friday the entity is placing a strong focus on the implementation of these projects over the next five years. “The analysis carried out reflects a requirement of approximately R72.2bn will be required to expand and strengthen the transmission grid over the next five years,” he said. Scheppers said: “This requires that some challenges beyond Eskom’s full control, such as the lead time to…

Inaudible sonic rumblings from deep in a volcano’s bowels could provide a warning when it is about to blow, scientists have said, offering threatened communities the prospect of a life-saving heads-up. A team studying “infrasounds” – sounds too deep for humans to hear – from volcanoes like Italy’s Mount Etna has discovered that magmatic gurgles change markedly as an eruption nears. As magma explodes, sound waves reverberate through the crater “just like in some brass musical instrument, like a trombone, for example, you get certain notes”, said Leighton Watson, a University of Canterbury researcher who was part of a multi-national team. As the magma moves upward, the note changes – like the moving of a trombone arm, he said. Before Etna belched smoke and ash high into the air in…

Despite several pressing issues for discussion – including the department’s finances and matric exam preparedness – KZN Education MEC Mbali Frazer did not deign to attend the most recent provincial education portfolio committee in-person. While the MEC will attest that she attended virtually, which is permitted, she was in fact part of a PR stunt at the very same time – planting seeds in a rural area with her Agriculture counterpart. This is a gross neglect of the mechanisms of accountability required by the Legislature. Portfolio committee meetings are planned well in advance and as MEC her focus should have been entirely on this. Instead, it was left to committee members to see her picture on social media, clearly doing something completely different. Being in a rural area with poor…

Your article in The Mercury: “Caterpillar infestation bugging residents”, October 27, has shown a lack of appreciation of the severity of this infestation. You mentioned one tenant who has been affected since April. This is not how long they have been around affecting people in the area. It has been almost a year that nothing has been done. It has become unbearable to live under these conditions. Where do we as law-abiding citizens stand when caterpillars with toxic hairs cause damage and health issues? Why should their well-being be regarded as more important than us? The municipal spokesperson unfortunately says it is a seasonal occurrence. What utter rubbish as I have lived here for 13 years and this is the first year this has happened. Truth be told, it is…

Parliament has suspended deputy secretary Baby Tyawa and commissioned an independent investigation into irregularities in relation to Parliament’s administration. Furthermore, legislature figureheads, almost 11 months after the fact, have requested a probe into the January fire. Without going into the details on the case around Tyawa, Parliament spokesperson Moloto Mothapo said the institution’s accounting officer, Xolile George, had commissioned an independent investigation into allegations of irregularities in relation to the administration of Parliament, which were reported to George by Parliament’s audit committee. Moreover, Mothapo said National Assembly Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula and National Council of Provinces chair Amos Masondo requested an investigation into the security breach and the fire that followed in the precinct on January 2 and 3 this year. Zandile Mafe, who was arrested and charged over the fire…

A judgment by the Gauteng High Court that the benchmark and methodology used for tariff increases were unlawful could see ratepayers across South Africa breathe a sigh of relief. The ruling means ratepayers no longer have to bear the brunt of massive tariff hikes due to crumbling infrastructure and electricity theft after the court ruled in favour of the Nelson Mandela Bay Business Chamber and the Pietermaritzburg and Midlands Chamber of Commerce. The chambers argued that ratepayers were made to carry the cost of electricity theft and infrastructure, which significantly hiked the electricity tariff every year. All municipalities in South Africa, including the City of Cape Town, were cited in the matter. Every year municipalities across South Africa purchase electricity from Eskom at a wholesale price but sell the electricity…

ANC regions in KwaZulu-Natal will call for a provincial general council meeting (PGC) to be held despite the deadline for branch general meetings (BGMs) being postponed to November 7, just weeks before the national elective conference. The national executive committee (NEC) of the party has twice extended the deadline after meetings had been delayed by load shedding, issues with scanners, a go-slow by ANC staff over unpaid salaries, while some branches had to reconvene their meetings after failing the initial audit process. Concerns had been raised that the extended deadline would see provinces having to forfeit the PGC which is traditionally held before the elective conference and is an opportunity for branches to co-ordinate on policy and leadership discussions before the elective conference which runs from December 16 to 20.…

With a violin on his back and maps in his bag, Dan Hodd left Spain a month ago and was cycling through busy Baghdad as he heads to the COP27 climate talks in Egypt that he firmly intends to reach without flying. “I am trying to illustrate the importance within the transport sector to do more about the climate crisis,” the 29-year-old Briton said. “We need to consider the way we are travelling around the world, bouncing back and forth on budget holidays or for work trips.” Hodd has cycled, taken trains, buses and shared taxis to reach Iraq en route to Jordan and eventually Sharm el-Sheikh where the climate talks take place from November 6. “In 2019, airlines were responsible for 2.4% of global CO2 emissions,” said Dan Rutherford,…

A HAIR-raising account comes this way of a concerted yet unexplained planned military-style attack in Gauteng. It’s not clear whether it was criminally motivated or if it was a mysterious instance of terrorism. Three vehicles set out from different parts of the province to converge on Sandton. One hit a pothole in Daveyton and blew its tyres. It dropped out. The second stopped in Hillbrow to ask directions. It got hijacked and was stripped for parts, which were available on the market 30 minutes later. The third got through to Sandton but, because of load shedding, its occupants were unable to get through the front door of the target building. So they retired to a pub where they got into a fight with some tough outjies from Brakpan and got…

I hope you can find room for an amateur, with all the erudite people who fill your letters page for our entertainment each day. A simple answer to load shedding and electricity bill woes and erratic accounts is “go solar”. It is cheap if looked at soberly. No more load shedding and your money spent on paying your monthly bill will pay off the cost in a year or two. Thereafter leaving you with more spending money. If you lack the cash as many people do, as long as you are a bond holder in good standing your bank should be pleased to advance the money on a second bond, as your cash flow is eased and your property value is increased substantially.…

It seems that armchair Indian critics are more interested in criticising a few Indian political leaders in the print media, like Mr Visvin Reddy, who does more than any other Indian leader in SA in exposing racial discrimination and corruption. Reddy is the lone voice in the minority communities, especially in the Indian community, yet there are some critics who continually criticise him in the media. It will be very interesting to note, besides letter-writing skills, if these letter-writers actually go out in their respective communities to assist where they can, like ADeC leader Reddy. He is and was involved in many community projects to uplift various communities, especially during the riots and floods. He was one of a few political leaders visible during the riots and looting. Reddy is…

THE SA Social Security Agency (Sassa) has warned the public about a fake post that has been circulating on social media claiming that a R700 grant application form for 2022 is out. The post encourages citizens to apply for the grant through online registration. The post, although detailed, contains a number of grammatical errors. It claims the R700 is for anyone who needs help and people between 18 and 65 are encouraged to apply. Sassa posted an image of the fake notice on its Twitter page to alert the public that the post had not been issued by them. “Sassa warns clients against the below fake information. This message does not come from Sassa. Kindly ignore or delete it,” it warned. In June, Sassa also had to issue a…

The best interests of the dog Nelly were the subject of a legal battle in the South Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg. Two neighbours who had joint custody of the dog were in a tug-of-war over visitation rights to the animal. The two families had joint ownership of Nelly, whose breed was not mentioned in the judgment, while they lived in Roodepoort. One meanwhile relocated to Cape Town and wanted Nelly to visit via plane. The other neighbour maintained this was too taxing for Nelly. Shaun Smith and Sheena and Pawel Smolak were previously neighbours and together they took care of Nelly. This arrangement endured until Smith relocated to Cape Town. A change then arose regarding what the parties intended in relation to their responsibility and time with Nelly. Smith…

Justice was served for the victims of eight men who terrorised the residents of Glebelands hostel in uMlazi in Durban after they were convicted in the Pietermaritzburg High Court. The eight men committed several crimes including murder and attempted murder at the Glebelands hostel in uMlazi in Durban over a period of one and a half years. The Pietermaritzburg High Court convicted Bhekukwazi Mdweshu, Khayelihle Mbuthuma, Vukani Mcobothi, Eugene Hlophe, Mcomekile Ntshangase, Mbuyiselwa Mkhize, Mondli Mthethwa and Bongani Mbhele for several offences. National Prosecuting Authority regional spokesperson Natasha Ramkisson-Kara said: “Before the incidents, the men conspired with each other to eliminate or kill residents of the hostel, who threatened their control of the hostel.” She said between August 2014 and March 2016 the following people were killed – Siniko Ncayiyane,…

THE handing over of a certificate recognising Zulu King Misuzulu KaZwelithini marks the beginning of the end of a painful chapter that could have led to a civil war. Allow us to begin this editorial by congratulating King Misuzulu and the Zulu Royal Family for the successful coronation which many have never witnessed since the late king, Misuzulu’s father Zwelithini, ascended the throne more than half a century ago, in 1968. To say the road to Saturday’s historic occasion was bumpy is an understatement. In his own words, King Misuzulu told the gathering at Moses Mabhida Stadium that: “We were on the brink of a civil war because of the throne.” It was a journey dominated by court battles, public spats and sometimes insults over who the rightful heir to…

WORKERS in eThekwini Municipality have awarded tenders to contractors and companies that do not qualify for the work, because they had been threatened. Details of the threats against city staff are contained in documents tabled before some of the city’s committees and made public in a report that came before a full council meeting last week. The report showed city officials had awarded and even paid contractors under duress or due to fear. They claimed they had been threatened. Some of the companies awarded tenders did not qualify because they were not properly registered, it said. The awarding of these contracts was done under section 36, meaning it was an emergency procurement. DA councillor Warren Burne highlighted two contracts approved by the city. A R24 million tender for the cleaning…

A reader writes…. “Last Thursday’s column made me smile. My husband and I were in the same position nine years ago. We had known each other for over 30 years: he was now widowed and I divorced. I was in my 60s and he was in his late 70s. After a few months of dating we decided to marry. Just like the couple in your column, one set of children thought we were going too fast. What offspring don’t take into account is time. At our age, it is a precious, fast-disappearing commodity. Nine years later, we remain blissfully happy and more certain than ever that we took the right decision. I feel this may validate your pertinent advice to the children in question.” I found this…

South Africans are heaving a sigh of relief, not because they see some light at the end of Eskom’s long, dark tunnel, but at last Eskom’s big fish are getting caught. First to get hooked was the big one, Gupta shark Brian Molefe. Excited about its big catch, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) cast its bait for another big one, (Matshela) Koko who had been swimming in the deep, feeding voraciously on Eskom. The NPA managed to hook all of them: the former Eskom chief, his wife, two stepdaughters and four others on charges of fraud, corruption and money laundering in relation to the R2 billion irregular contract for the building of Kusile power station. While Koko and three others were released on R300 000 bail, the other four were…

A picture speaks a thousand words. The heartbreaking pictures of children being killed in war zones are graphic examples of naked hatred gone berserk. Intolerance remains unchanged; from the time of Christ to the current year, our intolerance has not diminished. Intolerance means not enduring what you dislike and seeking to harm it whether you are persecuting someone, prohibiting a practice or punishing a set of beliefs. Our long embrace of violence and intolerance is present not only in our recent history, but stretches back to our prehistoric past. We forget at our peril the demagogues of yesteryear and their insane followers who claimed privileged insight into the masses but ended up crushing the individual. In this cauldron of discontent, humans fail the tolerance test, whether it’s racial, religious, ethnic…

IT WAS recently reported that a pupil was stabbed in the neck by another. I find it very disturbing that after years of stressing the importance of rushing trauma victims straight to the nearest hospital, patients with stab wounds, gunshots and in vehicle accidents are still being taken to a clinic first, running the risk of the victim succumbing to their injuries mainly because of excessive blood loss. The Health Department, determined to promote primary healthcare by preaching every patient must first go to a clinic, which will refer patients to hospital, erred in not stressing that this should exclude trauma victims. I urge the Health Department for the umpteenth time, to address this serious problem. Let us not lose more people who could have been saved had the correct…

THE court application by convicted murderer Oscar Pistorius to compel the chairperson of the Atteridgeville Correctional Centre to hold a parole hearing for him is no longer going ahead at this stage. The matter was on the roll before the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria and due to be heard last Friday. The judge assigned to the case, however, removed it from the roll by agreement between the parties. Lawyer Julian Knight, acting for Pistorius, remained mum about the reason for this. Correctional Services also didn’t respond to a question on whether it had agreed to go ahead with a parole hearing for Pistorius. In papers filed in his application to compel the parole board to convene and to consider his parole, Pistorius said according to him, he was eligible to…

THE Department of Basic Education (DBE) says it’s all systems go for the National Senior Certificate (NSC) 2022 examinations. The Class of 2022 will be sitting for the NSC exams from today until December 7, with two practical papers – Computer Applications Technology and Information Technology – already written last week. Speaking at a media briefing held yesterday, Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga said the department had also stepped up its security based on a continuous review of all examination processes. Motshekga said there had been an increase in the number of full-time enrolments in 2022. She added that in addition to them beefing up security, all pupils sitting for the NSC exam and their parents had signed a commitment agreement to maintain honesty and not participate in irregularities. “In…