Indholdsfortegnelse for 2024-01-25 i Mercury

ECONOMISTS have warned that the government’s failure to listen to the eThekwini business community’s concerns over deteriorating infrastructure poses a risk for the City and the provincial economy. They were responding to the Durban Business Confidence Index (BCI) report for the fourth quarter of 2023, compiled by the Macroeconomics Research Unit in the University of KwaZulu-Natal’s (UKZN) School of Accounting, Economics and Finance, which found that business confidence recorded a decline of 6.56 index points, quarter-on-quarter, settling at 38.12 in the fourth quarter of 2023. The report, which was done in conjunction with the Durban Chamber of Commerce and the eThekwini Municipality, found that Durban suffered due to deteriorating infrastructure and the poor state of the beaches, with the hospitality sub-sector hit the most. The Macroeconomics Research Unit at the…

Transport Minister Sindi Chikunga criticised South Africa’s drinking culture while releasing the preliminary report on the 2023/24 festive season road safety campaign yesterday. Chikunga said the 2023/24 festive season period was marked by heavy rainfall and storms which created challenges on the road for motorists, and some drivers did not modify their speed in slippery and wet conditions, which resulted in avoidable crashes. There were 1 184 fatal road crashes in the festive season of 2023/24 compared to 1 212 fatal crashes in 2022/23. Chikunga slammed South Africa's drinking culture, saying traffic officials were arresting people for drinking and driving at 7am during the week in some instances. She said the fact that motorists were driving drunk was made worse by the fact that there were also drunk pedestrians, leading…

The erosion of moral values within our society has reached an alarming crescendo, exemplified by a distressing trend where lives are brutally cut short for the sole purpose of cashing in on life insurance policies. Over the years, a series of gruesome crimes have unfolded, where family members, spouses, or acquaintances orchestrate the deaths of unsuspecting victims, all in pursuit of substantial financial gain. It seems that there is a lack of ethical oversight within the insurance industry and that is a cause for profound concern. It is disheartening that insurance companies do not proactively verify the consent of the insured party or engage in crucial conversations with them. In most of the cases, you will find that the insured was not even aware that his/her life was worth millions…

THE only good thing about our Constitution is that in 30 years it has already given four presidents a chance to bring about the radical transformation that was promised to the people of South Africa but in real life, our dreams often prove harder to achieve than we envisaged. Today there are many complaints that in 30 years, the economy is still in the hands of whites, but who must change that? What is stopping the government under all the different presidents, who have had a chance to pursue all their ideologies to achieve all these transformational goals that they fought so hard for? Whining about these things will not change anything, but it is easy for us all to fantasise about a lot of things, even thinking that when…

One of the five men accused of killing soccer player Senzo Meyiwa has implicated the mother of his child, Kelly Khumalo, as the one who allegedly ordered a hit against the former Bafana-Bafana goalkeeper. This was revealed in the North Gauteng High Court yesterday by lead investigator Brigadier Bongani Gininda. Gininda was reading from an affidavit that he had written after the arrest of the five accused and speaking of the confession made by Muzikawukhulelwa Sibiya. “He is further linked by means of a formal confession he made to a commissioned independent officer on May 30, 2020. In his confession he clearly implicates Miss Kelly Khumalo as the person who gave them the instruction to kill Senzo Meyiwa,” the statement read. The court is currently in a trial-within-a-trial to determine…

A 31-year-OLD man linked to the murder in November last year of a Durban policeman’s son has been arrested. KwaZulu-Natal police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda said that the arrest came after a sting operation by a multidisciplinary team. “The suspect was arrested in Durban’s Point area following a high-speed chase. The man was eventually outsmarted, ran out of space and was arrested,” Netshiunda said. Police searched the man’s vehicle and recovered two pistols and 32 rounds of ammunition. Teams further searched the man’s apartment in North Beach, believed to have been used as a safe house from where he reportedly conducted hits. Netshiunda said investigations then led officers to the suspect’s home in Chippendale Road, Newlands West, where they recovered a further four rifles and 120 rounds of ammunition hidden…

DETAILS of how a doctor fell prey to fraudsters, who withdrew and squandered within days more than R1.6 million from the fraudulent Nedbank bank account in which the money was paid – part of a purchase price towards a house – emerged in court as the bank steadfastly refuses to refund him. Dr Mohammed Nalla turned to the Gauteng High Court, Johannesburg, to demand the money back from Nedbank. He initially paid R2.8m into the account, but part of the money was later paid back to him by the bank. Nalla claimed he had lost more than R1.6m – all because Nedbank apparently failed to put checks and balances in place when it opened the fraudulent bank account for the account holder, who is said to be part of the…

IF THE ANC leadership, particularly in KwaZulu-Natal, responded to the crisis confronting the province with the same energy as it put into Jacob Zuma’s move to the uMkhonto weSizwe party, the province would be among the top performing in the country insofar as service delivery is concerned. The public statements by various leaders since Zuma declared his support for the MK party suggest that his refusal to campaign for the ANC before this year’s crucial election not only hurt the ANC’s plans but exposed the leadership, who had hoped to rely on the “Msholozi charm” to woo voters. In its attempts to discredit Zuma, who effectively showed the entire ANC the middle finger, the ANC has lost sight of the many challenges KZN is grappling with. Among these are the…

Thousands of people protested in Tanzania yesterday against proposed changes to electoral laws in the largest public demonstration since the government lifted a ban on opposition political rallies a year ago. Tanzania’s main opposition party, Chadema, organised the rally in the main city of Dar es Salaam as lawmakers prepare to debate next month a raft of contentious electoral reforms proposed by the government. “This is just the beginning,” Chadema leader Freeman Mbowe promised the crowd, adding that protests would spread from Tanzania’s economic capital to other parts of the country until the government responded to its concerns. Tanzania is to hold its first presidential election in 2025 since the death of John Magufuli in late 2021 led to his deputy, Samia Suluhu Hassan, becoming leader of the East African…

Lagos: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken voiced hope yesterday for greater US investment in Nigeria, but called on Africa’s largest economy to reassure investors that they can repatriate their funds. Blinken toured the commercial metropolis, Lagos, where he visited a complex of IT start-ups and inaugurated a new US space showcasing American technology. He said that the US had a growing interest in partnering with Nigeria. Foreign businesses in Nigeria require permission from the central bank to return funds to their home countries. Businesses have complained about long delays as Nigeria’s foreign reserves dwindle as a result of a drop in oil prices. | AFP…

GIVEN the infrastructure problems South Africa was contending with, the country was likely to achieve less than 1.5% economic growth this year and this would not result in the net-job growth for the country. This was according to Ravi Naidoo, the CEO of the Youth Employment Service (YES). In an interview with Business Report, the CEO said that while many citizens would all like to see 5% gross domestic product (GDP) growth like the National Development Plan (NDP) required, South Africa would be able to make some progress if it achieved 2%-3% growth in the next couple of years. The organisation, which transforms companies, communities and youth lives by connecting youth to economic opportunities, said load shedding and now the rail and ports were undermining the local economy. Naidoo said…

AFTER working for Sanlam as a financial adviser for more than 10 years, Elizabeth Segametse Brits did not let the opportunity of entrepreneurship pass her by when it struck. Brits said while selling insurance policies, a hospital manager approached her to supply food to the patients’ kitchen in the Northern Cape, and that was when her business, Elizabeth Segametse Brits Trading, in Postmasburg, was founded. Brits told Business Report: “Initially, in 2002, I moved to Postmasburg, working as a financial adviser at Sanlam for a decade. However, I did not limit myself to just that; I embarked on a side hustle, selling food, biscuits, and curtains for extra income. “The turning point came when, while selling insurance policies, the hospital manager approached me to supply food for their pa- tients’…

The ANC in KwaZulu-Natal said it will suspend all members and public representatives who participate in the activities of other political parties, such as the Umkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party. The MK Party has been endorsed by former president Jacob Zuma. ANC provincial secretary Bheki Mtolo, who delivered a statement on behalf of the provincial executive committee (PEC) yesterday, said the decision would include everyone, regardless of their status. However, it is not clear if Zuma will be affected as he is an ex officio member of the party’s highest decision-making body, the National Executive Committee (NEC) and it is expected that his future role will be decided on by the NEC. The party said it had identified three councillors who will be summarily suspended and will be brought before the…

You may recall when you were a child, being seated in a car at the beachfront and you happily turned the steering wheel in the belief you were driving. The car was on rails. Your efforts, while fun, were wasted. No connection existed between your efforts and the car’s direction. The rails determined the direction. Your parents trusted and understood the rails and how it all worked and that’s why they were happy to strap you in and let you go. Families are much the same. It is almost a perfect picture of the power families have over the individual, just ask Harry and Meghan! While most of us are not battling 1 000 years of history and the deeply held traditions of royalty, we are all steering wildly, only…

THIS poor land; this piece of dung; this bankrupt, corrupted state led by an insolvent political party is the only excuse for a country to have sunk so low as to employ base sentiments to garner support for it’s nefarious intentions to win the elections this year. It’s for certain that its insect-crawling strategy to bolster a better image abroad could also, as another reader of another newspaper suggested, help it to gain financial loans in dirhams and rials first converted into petroleum dollars or even brand-new BRICS currency from oil overflowing all over Muslim countries that just don’t have the gall or the balls to confront motherly Zionist forces themselves. What a low-down thing to do – side with a population of about 3 million, poverty-stricken, handicapped, totally…

The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) said it was working to address some of the operational challenges that led to the suspension of some Shosholoza Meyl services. Earlier this month, Prasa suspended the train trips between Johannesburg and Cape Town. Prasa’s Andiswa Makanda said that the Johannesburg to Cape Town service had been temporarily suspended or stopped due to operational challenges and lack of reliable locomotives. “This (suspension of the service) will allow the team to deal with some of the operational challenges,” Makanda said. Passengers were informed, she said. Shosholoza Meyl resumed its trips between Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban last month. The services restarted following a suspension in 2021 due to operational and network infrastructure issues. At the time, Prasa said the resumption of the long-distance…

Strengthening policies and legislation will go a long way in curbing the spike in crimes associated with child pornography, experts have said. An international operation by the police Serial and Electronic Crime Investigations unit and the US Department of Homeland Security to trace manufacturers, users and distributors of child pornography have led to arrests across the country. The matters have once again led to parents being cautioned against sharing pictures of their children, especially in their school uniforms, on social media. The age group 10 and up was the highest risk cohort as they were at their most vulnerable while dealing with physical changes, hormones and identity issues, according to Teddy Bear Clinic director Dr Shaheda Omar. “While the use of technology is important for educational purposes, we cannot ignore…

Inclement weather that resulted in heavy rainfall in eThekwini from January 13 to 16 has caused damage that will cost R1.4 billion to repair. This is according to a comprehensive report on the extensive infrastructure damage that provided the cost implications of the storms, which was tabled at an executive committee (exco) meeting on Tuesday. Yesterday, the municipality said the report, presented by city manager Musa Mbhele, provided an overview of the damage, the estimated rehabilitation costs, response measures, and inter-departmental interventions. “Extensive structural damage occurred across multiple sectors, comprising residential structures, community halls, roads, stormwater infrastructure, and public health facilities. “The primary cause of the damage was identified as mudslide hazards, exacerbated by continuous rainfall over a three-day period.” The City said there had been extensive damage to infrastructure…

China and South Africa are committed to the resolution of international conflicts On New Year’s Day 2024, South Africa lost one of its most internationally celebrated photojournalists, Peter Magubane, who captured through his lens, the atrocities and everyday horrors of life under apartheid in South Africa. Magubane was 91 years of age and he was given an official provincial funeral in Johannesburg, the home of his most iconic pictures. Many people paid tribute to this great journalist and freedom fighter, from the president of South Africa and family members to his colleagues in the world of media. Magubane recorded the history of the South African Struggle, the Treason Trial in the 1950s, the Sharpeville Massacre in 1961 and the Soweto Massacre in 1976, among other events. The liberation movement sent…

Donald Trump is set to face off with US President Joe Biden for the White House once again after winning the New Hampshire primary, promising 10 months of extraordinary tension and bitterness. The only remaining challenger for the Republican presidential nomination, Nikki Haley, vowed to fight on – but her defeat this week left her with no realistic chance of chasing down the 77-year-old former president. Trump previewed the divisive rhetoric to come in the campaign for November’s cliffhanger election with an angry victory speech that attacked Haley for having a “very bad night” and even lashed out at her dress. Even Biden, 81, accepted it was “now clear” that he faced a rematch with Trump – one that polling suggests many Americans don’t want – and…

A Russian military plane crashed yesterday in the western Belgorod region near the border with Ukraine, killing 74 people on board, Russian state media reported. The Russian Defense Ministry said it was carrying 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) who were being transferred to the region for a subsequent swop. Ukrainian reports said that the plane was transporting missiles. Ukraine intelligence said that officials were working to determine whether POWs were on the plane. Russian officials said the plane was shot down by Ukrainian forces using either German or US-made missiles. Andrei Kartapolov, the chairperson of the defence committee in Russia’s parliament, said that a second plane had narrowly escaped a similar disaster. Russia’s parliament, said it would hold their US and German counterparts accountable. | The Washington…

The Hague: Dutch authorities can shoot “deviant” wolves that could pose a danger to the public with paintballs, a court ruled yesterday. After a lengthy legal battle, the court in Utrecht, central Netherlands, judged that the behaviour of some of the wolves in a national park was “a serious threat to public safety”. Other methods of scaring them off, such as shouting, are ineffective, and pepper spray was deemed dangerous for the animals. Europe is grappling with a wolf population which has bounced back from near extinction. The European Commission wants to allow them to be hunted after data showed they pose a threat to livestock. | AFP…

VERULAM residents in Trenance Park who have been without water for almost 100 days, say their relief was short-lived on Tuesday, when water was restored to their taps for a few hours only for them to run dry again. Residents who spoke to The Mercury yesterday said they were fed-up and disappointed as their lives were severely disrupted by the ongoing water outages. Protests have erupted in the area and other neighbouring communities affected by the outages. Resident Anusha Ramroop said the situation was dire as they had to constantly fill water containers to be able to do basic chores. “It’s really bad, we can’t cook, bathe or do washing. We can’t do anything. There’s no drinking water and the tankers do come, but only sometimes on this road,” she…

O my Luve is like a red, red rose That’s newly sprung in June; O my Luve is like the melody That’s sweetly played in tune. HEY, it’s Burns Nicht. Wi’ haggis, neeps an’ tatties, a dram or twae and Auld Lang Syne. Er, let’s get back to conventional Anglo-Saxon, we? It’s Burns Night, commemorating the birth on January 25, 1759, of Robert Burns, Scotland’s national bard, composer of songs and poems that have come to define his country. His work is celebrated on this day far beyond the shores of Scotland. Auld Lang Syne is sung on New Year’s Eve all over the world. Burns had written his first love poems when he was 15, to a farmer’s daughter from Dalrymple. It was the beginning of his lifelong love…

With the next Voter Registration Campaign by the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) scheduled for February 3 and 4, it’s important that the commission takes proactive measures to engage and encourage young people to participate in the forthcoming elections. Recent statistical data reveals a decline in youth participation and youth engagement in the democratic process. The declining numbers should be a concern for electoral democracy because the young people of today are the leaders of tomorrow. Although it is commendable that the IEC has embarked on a concerted drive to attract young voters, it is imperative for the commission to adopt a diversified approach. Instead of the commission implementing a one-size-fits all approach, the IEC should rather host a range of initiatives such as electoral democracy workshops, seminars, summits,…

Media organisations are up in arms over the SABC Bill, which they say has “a series of catastrophic and unconstitutional flaws”. Last week, the portfolio committee noted the closing date for written submissions and thanked those who commented on the bill. The bill was up for public comment until January 16 following the extension of the deadline from an earlier date of December 15. The bill has come under criticism, with the DA saying it retained the SABC’s 1999 funding model and that the proposed legislation would mandate the Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies Mondli Gungubele or his finance counterpart to provide a new funding model, but not the board of directors. However, Gungubele has defended the bill, arguing that it was geared at addressing the challenges faced by…

Three people have appeared in court on charges of fraud, related to an alleged multimillion-rand investment scam. Malcolm de Beer, Patricia de Beer and Samantha de Beer were arrested after an operation by the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigations (Hawks). The National Prosecuting Authority’s (NPA) spokesperson in KwaZulu-Natal, Natasha Ramkisson-Kara, said it was alleged that through their company, Coinit, they scammed people of around R73.6m. “Coinit had placed advertisements on its website and in different newspapers calling for people to invest. Several people deposited funds into Coinit’s bank accounts,” Ramkisson-Kara said. “The State alleges that the entity was not registered as a financial services provider,” she said. The trio were charged with fraud, with the alternative charge of theft. “They are also charged with contravention of the Financial Advisory and…

THE Multi-Party Charter (MPC) made up of 11 political parties has outlined its plans for the economic turnaround of South Africa if it succeeds in unseating the ANC in this year’s elections. The MPC was formed in July 2023 and is made up of the DA, IFP, Freedom Front Plus, ActionSA, the African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP), the Independent South African National Civic Organisation (Isanco), the United Independent Movement (UIM), the Spectrum National Party, United Christian Democratic Party (UCDP), Ekhethu People’s Party and the UNP. The MPC said the ANC’s mismanagement of the economy had created an unproductive and uncompetitive economic environment. The parties held a media briefing in Durban yesterday. DA leader John Steenhuisen said that the MPC was in full agreement on the necessity to attract more foreign…

Joseph Boakai was sworn in as Liberia’s 26th president on January 22. He secured a six-year term of office after defeating incumbent president George Weah in a keenly-contested poll in November last year, with 50.9% of the votes cast. The west African country of five million people reached a major milestone on November 17 last year, when Weah, of the Congress for Democratic Change, conceded defeat to the Unity Party candidate. Weah scored 49.1% of the vote. Liberia has enjoyed 20 years of peace and relative stability since the end of a civil war that killed more than 250 000 people and displaced Liberians across the world. During this time, the country has made progress in restoring the rule of law. In 2018, the country saw peaceful power transfer from…

Heavy fighting drew near to hospitals in Gaza’s Khan Yunis yesterday after Israel said it had intensified its assault on the city that has become the focus of its war with Hamas. The UN raised fears about the fate of thousands of internally displaced people sheltering, and now trapped, on the grounds of the hospitals in southern Gaza’s biggest city. The Israeli army says it has “encircled” Khan Yunis, the birthplace of Hamas’s Gaza chief Yahya Sinwar, accused of being the mastermind of the October 7 attacks that sparked the war. UN humanitarian agency Ocha said about 18 000 people uprooted from their homes were reported to be at Nasser Hospital alone. An AFP journalist saw Palestinians who fled Khan Yunis arriving in Rafah on the backs of pick-up trucks…

Berlin: German train drivers yesterday began their longest strike, piling on travel misery for thousands of passengers in an escalating industrial dispute over wages that economic experts warn could cost the economy up to $1.1 billion (R20bn). Transport Minister Volker Wissing has slammed the six-day industrial action that heaps further pressure on supply chains that are already facing disruption because of attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels on shipping via the Red Sea. The walkout called by the GDL union runs until Monday for passenger traffic, while the strike for freight trains began on Tuesday. | AFP…

It wasn’t a solid group stage campaign, but Bafana Bafana did just enough to progress to the knockout stage of the Africa Cup of Nations. Bafana held Tunisia to a goalless draw in their last game in Group E at Stade Amadou Gon Coulibaly Stadium last night to finish second in the group on four points. Bafana’s first and only victory in the group was the 4-0 win over neighbours Namibia, who finished third in the group after their 0-0 draw with log leaders Mali in their last game last night in San-Pedro. By virtue of their second-place finish, Bafana will now face the winners of Group F in the knockout stage at Laurent Pokou Stadium in San-Pedro next Tuesday. Bafana and Tunisia came into this match on the back…

In the fierce battleground of the Port Natal Bowls Pro10 Championship, where the “section of death” lived up to its ominous name, seasoned bowlers like Bashford, Boulle, Fann, Du Toit and Tolmay posed formidable challenges. However, amid this assembly of bowling titans, the Hillary duo of Wade Marshall and Marc Rogers emerged victorious in every game during the sectional play, solidifying their reputation as the ones to watch. Their most demanding trial was during the play-offs, in their nail-biting last-32 clash against John Peacock and George Parker from Hillcrest BC. The game unfolded as a true test of skill and nerve, reaching a climax where the Hillcrest men were holding enough shots for victory in the final end. In a stroke of brilliance, Marshall stepped up to the mat and…