Indholdsfortegnelse for 2024-10-30 i Mercury

Cardiovascular disease, which includes heart disease and stroke, is a leading cause of death in South Africa. Every day, 225 South Africans lose their lives to heart disease and stroke, with ten people suffering a stroke every hour, according to The Heart & Stroke Foundation. During Stroke Awareness Week (28 October – 3 November), it’s important to understand the risks and how to take control of your heart health. Lizeth Kruger, Clinic Executive at Dis-Chem Pharmacies, shared valuable insights about the importance of cardiovascular health. She explained that heart disease occurs when fat, cholesterol and other substances build up in the walls of arteries. These deposits, known as plaques, can narrow or completely block arteries, potentially leading to heart attacks or strokes. But the good news is that many strokes…

A GALE of warm wind has the trees and shrubs in turmoil at the place in the Midlands where I pen these words. It follows freezing winds, a bit of snow here and there, alternating with suffocatingly hot days. Farmers in the district say they’ve never known it so cold – though they don’t say it on the alternate hot days. The fish in the dams have stopped biting. Is this something to do with the strange weather pattern? Has the weather gone crazy? Meanwhile, the UN warns that global climate action plans are "falling miles short" of what is needed to stop climate change from "crippling" economies, according to Sky News. The plans are "only a fraction" of what is urgently needed, the UN fundis say, given that emissions…

The DA in eThekwini visited the Buffelsdraai landfill site to assess the pro gress and challenges since the highly publicised incidents that occurred last year in July. The Buffelsdraai landfill site in Verulam had been closed to the public after a group of waste pickers were shot at by security, leaving one dead and 17 injured. As the DA, we noted the progress made on the site and the future plans to accommodate the aggrieved waste-pickers in a collaboration with the City; however, multiple concerns with other facets of Durban Solid Waste (DSW) need immediate attention. Whilst the new coalition of parties made up of the ANC/IFP/NFP and EFF thinks that they are progressively moving the City forward, the reality on the ground is that residents are still very bitter…

The UK’s denial of a visa to Nkosi Zwelivelile “Mandla” Mandela over his unequivocal support for Palestine’s struggle for justice is deeply regrettable. While the UK seeks to rationalise its ban on moral grounds, due to Mandela’s statements of support for Hamas and meetings with Hamas leaders, it is silent on the immorality of its continuing support of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s genocidal actions. When members of the apartheid government held meetings with members of the South African liberation movement, designated terrorists, and engaged in armed struggle, they weren’t denied visas by the UK. The late Archbishop Desmond Tutu’s navigation of morality in the Holy Land is instructive. In 2014, after a flurry of Hamas rockets directed at Israel was met with a massive Israeli military response, Tutu pronounced…

A RESIDENT living in a village near KwaCeza in northern KwaZulu-Natal says herdsmen are chased daily by elephants who have been roaming freely in communities ever since they escaped from the Mawana Private Game Reserve several years ago. While it was reported last week that a herd of about 30 elephants escaped from a private reserve, leaving surrounding villagers fearing for their lives, cattle owner Xolani Msimango, from the Emtshali homestead in Ethaka, said residents have been complaining about elephants leaving the reserve since 2018. Msimango said he is upset that only now, with the elephants being spotted in KwaCeza, that it had become a big issue, when the wild animals have been tormenting Ethaka residents for years. He said since 2018, authorities were aware that the voltage of the…

Two police officers and a former sergeant have appeared in court in connection with charges of corruption, defeating the ends of justice and business burglary. Police officers Constable Steve Segoale, 40, Reservist Constable Calvin Mphahlele, 42, and 52-year-old former police sergeant Andries Mafalo appeared before the Lebowakgomo Magistrate’s Court on Monday. Provincial police spokesperson, Colonel Malesela Ledwaba, said Segoale was granted bail of R3 000 on the defeating the ends of justice charge. Mafalo was granted bail in that same matter, however he was remanded in custody in connection with a separate burglary case, along with Mphahlele. “The arrests occurred on Friday, October 25 and Sunday, October 27, respectively, as part of an ongoing investigation by the anti-corruption unit in Limpopo,” said Ledwaba. The investigation linked the trio to a…

The University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) has announced that it has a new research partnership with the University of Glasgow for the development of space propulsion technologies. In a statement, UKZN said the collaboration was made possible by the UK government, which is providing R2 million in funding to support the technology programme through the UK’s Department of Science, Innovation and Technology. The university said the collaboration will see researchers from the University of Glasgow's Space and Exploration Technology Group working with propulsion engineers from UKZN's Aerospace Systems Research Institute (ASRI) to improve metal additive manufacturing techniques, also called 3D printing, for rocket engine components. ASRI’s director, Professor Michael Brooks, described the collaboration as an important step in broadening aerospace engineering research and development collaboration between South Africa and the United…

Police in KwaZulu-Natal have arrested six suspects linked to the murders of four members of a family during a traditional ceremony in Estcourt’s Nyezane area. The shooting took place on Sunday. According to the police, six suspects, armed with rifles and handguns, entered a homestead where a traditional ceremony was taking place. Four members of the Mazibuko family between the ages of 45 and 61 were killed. While three people were found dead at the scene, one succumbed to injuries in hospital. KZN police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda said: “Swift intelligence-driven investigations by Amangwe police detectives led them to a hospital, where a 28-year-old suspect was arrested.” The suspect was found with a gunshot wound to the chest and a broken arm, which police believe he sustained during the attack.…

Local consumer confidence, which rebounded to a five-year high in Q3 2024 – the third consecutive quarter of improvement and the highest reading since mid-2019 – received another significant boost with the recent announcement of a 25bps cut in the repo rate, heralding the start of a downward interest rate cycle. Since the latter part of 2023 there has been a marked improvement in consumer confidence according to the FNB/BER Consumer Confidence Survey. During the past six months alone, consumer confidence surged by 10 points, signalling a significant recovery in consumers’ willingness and ability to spend due to a more positive outlook. This is a major positive for the housing market, particularly in spring when residential market activity conventionally begins picking up again. Hopefully this is the start of the…

According to a flurry of recent public polls, the majority of Americans favoured abolishing the Electoral College for the presidential election, a mechanism for the US president to be indirectly elected via a group of presidential electors instead of decided directly by voters. The Pew Research Center survey released last month indicated that 63% of Americans favoured a direct popular vote for the nation’s president over the Electoral College, with around 80% of Democrats and 47% of Republicans in favour of doing away with the process. The Public Policy Institute of California’s October poll also showed that seven out of 10 voters in California, the most populous state in the country, wanted the Electoral College abolished. The University of Massachusetts Amherst League of Women Votes (UMass Amherst) poll published on…

Romania could shoot down drones illegally breaching its airspace, based on threat levels and risks to human life and property, a draft law published by the Defence Ministry showed. Romania, which shares a 650km border with Ukraine, has had Russian drone fragments fall onto its territory repeatedly over the past year as Moscow attacks Ukrainian port infrastructure. The draft law, which was put up for public debate this week, sets out conditions for Romania to control the use of its airspace for piloted and unmanned aircraft. Parliament will have final approval after the government clears the law. “At a European Union level efforts continue for a unitary approach to unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) as well as to establish measures to counter risks,” the draft law says. “Black Sea military operations,…

MOSCOW: North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui arrived in Russia yesterday for an official visit after South Korea and the US claimed Pyongyang has sent thousands of troops to train in Russia. Choe flew into the far eastern Russian city of Vladivostok, a diplomatic source said, and would be in Moscow tomorrow. Washington has said North Korea has sent 10 000 troops to train in Russia who will probably fight in Ukraine, a deployment Seoul has described as a security threat. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Putin signed a mutual defence treaty in Pyongyang in June. | AFP…

KINSHASA: About 25.6 million people, or 22% of the population, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) are experiencing high acute food insecurity, said the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) yesterday. The most affected populations, it said, are mainly displaced people and returnees, concentrated in the provinces of North Kivu, Ituri, South Kivu, Tanganyika, and Mai-Ndombe. The UN agency projected that food insecurity will remain similar in the first half of 2025 owing to armed violence and competition for resources. About 7 million people remain internally displaced in the country, according to a recent UN report. | Xinhua…

Transnet, the State-owned transport utility struggling for financial and operational viability, said yesterday it was amending its supply chain management (SCM) and procurement policies (TPP) to help it become more efficient and enable it to reach long-term partnerships with private sector companies. The utility said in a statement carried on the JSE’s news service that the amendments would improve efficiency in its procurement processes. The amendments would enable it to implement the departures from Treasury Instruction notes, granted by the National Treasury. Transnet’s plans to reach a greater number of partnerships with private sector companies to bring the State-owned utility back on its feet have been met with some political opposition. For instance, the Democratic Alliance expressed concern that Transnet’s past track record of corruption might deter potential business partnerships,…

Alcohol abuse stings deeply. And it does so for generations. It poisons. It sets children on edge often for a lifetime of on-edge living. I know too well. The memories may be distant but my emotions still react and I often still feel the pain even though it’s been well over 5 decades since I was exposed to the incessant drinking of close relatives. Remembering the energy I spent as a boy trying to maintain order in the family and reliving my futile efforts to steer adults away from drinking and the twisting and turning in bed when people raged with drunkenness refreshes the emotional exhaustion that is ever ready to awaken in my body, despite the years. It doesn’t have to be this way. Seek help if you are…

Lately, there has been a debate about the dominance of foreign nationals in the tuck shop sector. Some migrant outlets dabble with cash, card and airtime transactions as authorised retailers. Yet most are operated by illegal immigrants. This exposes the complicity of banks and cellphone companies in the violation of the Financial Intelligence Centre Act (FICA). The debate comes at a time when there has been a slew of deaths involving children. Unsurprisingly, food poisoning is at the centre of these deaths, with self-packaged foodstuff suspected to have been contaminated by a chemical agent commonly used to kill rats. What is to be done? Needless to say, the interest groups have been calling for the government to audit all tuck shops with a view to ring-fence such a model business…

Three senior IFP leaders are expected to emerge as contenders for the leadership position ahead of the party’s elective conference which will take place next year. This will be the party’s first conference since the passing of its founding president Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi. KwaZulu-Natal Premier Thami Ntuli, Minister of Public Service and Administration Mzamo Buthelezi and MEC for Sport, Arts and Culture Mntomuhle Khawula are expected to challenge party president Velenkosini Hlabisa, but insiders said they would lobby for a single candidate who can keep the party united. The IFP saw its support increase in KwaZulu-Natal in the May 29 general elections compared to its 2019 results. It has also secured its role in the government of national unity and is the majority party in KwaZulu-Natal’s government of provincial unity.…

The ANC wants the government to expand the list of zero-rated foodstuffs in a bid to alleviate the burden of soaring food prices which is impacting on consumers. This announcement was made by ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula during a media briefing at Luthuli House, following the party’s four-day National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting which ended on Monday. Currently, the zero-rated foodstuffs list comprises 19 essential items, including brown bread, maize meal, and various pulses. Grain SA economist Heleen Viljoen has suggested that the list could be expanded to include other staple foods such as poultry, white bread, and sorghum, which are vital for many households across the nation. “All these products can be considered as staple foods for the majority of South Africans,” remarked Viljoen. Recent findings from the Pietermaritzburg…

THE National Department of Social Development (DSD) in collaboration with the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) has launched the Social Security Review. The launch of Volume 2 of the publication, themed ‘Social Security in the time of Covid-19’ took place at the HSRC Head Office in Cape Town. DSD acting Director-General, Peter Netshipale, said: “Insights from the independently authored chapters help us to develop interventions that can suitably respond to disasters, crises and shocks and guide future plansthus ensuring the sustainability of programmes.” The publication includes chapters from different authors on topics that explored the social security system including failures in the system, the introduction of the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant and the need for grants. Speaking on his chapter in the publication, HSRC Research Associate and Advocate,…

“VICTIMS need justice as well” was the message conveyed to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) by families of the Life Esidimeni victims yesterday. The families and other stakeholders handed over a memorandum in which they demanded that the prosecuting authority prioritise the prosecution of officials implicated in the tragedy. It has been over three months since Judge Mmonoa Teffo ruled that the deaths of Virginia Machpelah, Deborah Phehla, Frans Dekker, Charity Ratsotso, Koketso Mogoerane, Terrence Chaba, Daniel Josiah, Matlakala Motsoahae, and Lucky Maseko were unnatural. Judge Teffo found that the actions of Qedani Mahlangu (the former Gauteng Health MEC) and Dr Makgabo Manamela (the former Director of Mental Health in Gauteng) led to these deaths, which were among the 144 deaths resulting from the Life Esidimeni disaster. In marking the…

The ANC’s Integrity Commission (IC) will today discuss amendments to its terms of reference and the step-aside guidelines, which are aimed at giving the commission more powers. The party’s national executive committee (NEC) resolved at a meeting at the weekend that members who have failed to appear before the IC in matters affecting them that stem from the Zondo commission final report should be referred to the party’s national disciplinary committee. The IC deals with political and ethical complaints against members. It also serves as an advisory body to the NEC on matters affecting the image and reputation of the party. Last year, ANC leaders had been referred to appear before the party’s integrity commission over their role in state capture but only 34 of the 97 did so. Reverend…

Japan’s political landscape has entered a period of heightened uncertainty after Sunday’s general election, which saw the ruling coalition lose its long-held majority and left no party with a clear mandate to navigate the economic challenges the country is facing. Japan’s ruling coalition of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its partner, Komeito, secured 215 of the 465 seats in the lower house election, falling short of the majority threshold for the first time in 15 years. Even if the LDP readmits former lawmakers who ran as independents due to a scandal that led to their loss of party endorsement, the coalition would lose a majority in the influential lower house. Analysts saw the result as the Japanese public’s final “judgement” on the LDP, triggered by a series of political…

Police in Mozambique killed at least 11 people and injured more than 50 others in violence after a disputed presidential election this month, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said yesterday. Protests have rocked the southern African nation since Daniel Chapo, candidate of the ruling Frelimo party that has held power since 1975, was announced winner of the October 9 election. “Many, including children, inhaled tear gas that the police fired indiscriminately into residential areas,” the rights group said. More than 450 people were arrested. HRW said that 20 people had been injured in the protests. Mozambique’s electoral commission said Chapo won the presidential election with 71% of votes, while the main opposition candidate Venancio Mondlane, backed by the small Podemos party, received 20%. On Monday, Podemos filed a lawsuit demanding a…

London: Britain’s BP yesterday announced a sharp fall in net profit for the third quarter, with the oil and gas giant hit by weak oil trading and refining margins. Profit after taxation slumped to $206 million (about R3.8 billion) in the three months to September, after a net profit of $4.9bn in the same period in 2023, BP said in a results statement. The group earlier this month flagged that its latest earnings would take a sizeable hit after oil prices have fallen on concerns over Chinese demand and the prospect of higher crude production in 2025. The company’s underlying replacement cost profit excluding exceptional items, a measure of operating earnings, came in at $2.bn, down more than $1bn from a year earlier. | AFP…

DAR ES SALAAM: Tanzanian wildlife authorities this week deployed 18 game rangers to the central region of Singida to prevent elephants from wreaking havoc on villages. Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism Pindi Chana sent the rangers after villagers in the Ikungi District closed down a stretch of a highway, urging the government’s action to control the marauding elephants. Thirty to 40 elephants destroyed houses and farm crops in the villages. The Tanzania Wildlife Management Authority reported 162 elephant attacks in Singida between January and July this year, with the central region recording 359 incidents in 2023. | Xinhua…

In a decision that sent ripples through the football world, Erik ten Hag has been sacked as Manchester United manager, following a disheartening 2-1 defeat to West Ham United that left the storied club languishing in 14th place in the Premier League table. The Dutchman’s dismissal comes on the heels of a troubling run of form, with only one victory in their last eight matches across all competitions. Ten Hag, who was appointed in April 2022, secured two trophies during his tenure — a League Cup victory in February 2023 and an FA Cup triumph in May. Reflecting on his third season ahead of the West Ham game, he firmly articulated his belief that winning a trophy was essential to deem the campaign a success. “Definitely, it’s about trophies ...…

Western Province captain Beuran Hendricks believes his team will carry the confidence gained from a successful T20 Challenge competition into the CSA 4-Day Series starting tomorrow. Province finished third in the T20 Challenge, losing to the Titans in Qualifier 2 at Centurion, but showed plenty of fight and gumption to qualify for the play-offs before beating NW Dragons in the Eliminator after a sluggish start. However, after a month of white-ball short format cricket, the focus now switches to the 4-Day Series campaign with an away fixture against the Dolphins at Kingsmead. Province has some unfinished business in the red-ball format after progressing to the final at the Wanderers last year, where they dominated large parts of the match, before a miraculous comeback by the Lions saw the Cape side…

FOR people living with diabetes, daily routines often revolve around pricking your finger to check blood glucose levels and making crucial decisions based on uncertainty. But advancements in sensing technology for glucose monitoring are changing the game. People no longer have to rely on guesswork as sensor devices make living with diabetes more manageable. Registered Dietitian Mbali Mapholi shares her insights and highlights how this innovation empowers individuals to take control of their health and live fuller lives. Part 1: The science behind glucose-sensing technology Before we dive into the personal stories that illustrate the power of glucose-sensing technology, it’s important to understand how these devices work. Devices like the FreeStyle Libre 2 are small, wearable sensors that provide continuous glucose readings directly to your smartphone. Unlike traditional fingerstick blood…

Already rubber-stamped as a rogue state, Israel now steps into a further, very difficult to cure big toe-fungus contaminated creolyte by illegally banning the UN agency for humanitarian aid, UNRWA, from operating in occupied Palestine. Illegally, because it has no official jurisdiction over Gaza, the Western Bank, and, in fact, over any part of the territory that it grabbed seven decades ago, assisted and abetted by the so called Allies, after World War II. In a word, Israel has just graduated now into a renegade, a rebel that dares defy a charter installed by a federation consisting of most of the important countries of the world that have jointly sworn to uphold human morals, human values and human rights. It’s called the United Nations. UNRWA was specifically invented to…

Saturday, October 26th, marked the 10th anniversary of the murder of Senzo Meyiwa. South Arica’s famous soccer star was gunned down in cold blood while visiting his girl friend Kelly Khumalo at her home in Vosloorus. Apparently five gunmen entered the house and shot dead Mewiya. Though there were several people in the house who witnessed the fatal killing, the police are nowhere near finding which one of the five suspects pulled the trigger that killed Meyiwa. The murder of the Bafana captain grabbed news headlines around the country, and the subsequent court appearances of the five suspects drew a lot of interest from the public and the media. It has all the ingredients of a sensational, American-style soap opera. Two famous people, one a soccer star and the other…

DURBAN residents could soon be facing additional charges for electricity after the eThekwini Municipality proposed to subject them to extra fees for the infrastructure connected to their homes. The proposed charge is for network and infrastructure and will be applied regardless of whether or not the customer has used electricity. This proposal is part of the electricity reform strategy tabled by the city, aimed at addressing the performance of the electricity unit. The City revealed yesterday that if the proposal is adopted, the municipality will charge separately for energy consumption and for infrastructure with both charges included in the electricity bill. However, it is not immediately clear how this will be handled for customers using prepaid electricity meters. It was also not immediately clear how the network and infrastructure charge…

Heavy storms that hit parts of Mpumalanga earlier this week left a trail of destruction, with four people reported dead and more than 30 schools damaged. Spokesperson for the Department of Basic Education, Elijah Mhlanga, said more than 40 people were injured following the storms. He added that the inclement weather had also threatened the administration of the National Senior Certificate Examinations and disrupted schooling, as more than 10 high schools were severely damaged. Meanwhile, Deputy Minister of Basic Education, Dr Reginah Mhaule, has expressed sadness at the loss of life. “I would like to commend the swift action of the district officials, who averted a crisis on Monday by protecting the matric examinations, which went on as planned, despite the damage. The classrooms of the lower grades, which had…

Ahead of Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana’s Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) today, the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) has urged the government to adopt a progressive fiscal strategy that decisively tackles South Africa’s socio-economic challenges. This call comes amid stagnant economic growth at a mere 1%, rampant youth unemployment at over 42.6%, and entrenched poverty and inequality. While Cosatu agreed that managing public debt was essential, it believed a focus on austerity and budget cuts, which have been the “neo-liberal approach doggedly pursued by Treasury for years”, would only worsen the situation. Instead, Cosatu said that sustainable debt reduction can best be achieved through stimulating economic growth, job creation and effective public services. Cosatu said a “growing economy and workers in jobs will generate the tax revenue the…

Matters regarding funeral policies accounted for the bulk of complaints dealt with by the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services (FAIS) Ombud in the 2023/2024 financial year. According to its annual report, the second highest category of complaints related to short term insurance for houses and vehicles. This was followed by complaints related to investments, retirement and foreign exchange matters. The report noted that there were also complaints about cryptocurrency, which related mainly to allegations of fraud. “Consumers made payments based on cryptocurrency investment advertisements on social media and received nothing in return. The office was unable to assist unless a registered financial services provider is involved in the transaction,” the report said. Of the 10 574 complaints received, 4 501 were dealt with by the Ombud with some of the…

More than 614 000 videos have been removed from TikTok in South Africa for violating the platform’s Community Guidelines. This is according to TikTok’s Q2 2024 Community Guidelines Enforcement Report, which offers information on the content and accounts removed that violated the platform’s Community Guidelines during the reporting period. This number is only 0.6% of the total videos that were uploaded in SA in the latest reporting period. According to the report, 98.7% of these videos were removed before they were reported by users, with 88.4% of videos being taken down within 24 hours of being uploaded. A total of 143 998 accounts were banned for violating TikTok’s Community Guidelines, while 137 663 accounts were removed because they were suspected to be under the age of 13. In June 2024,…

South Africa’s Government of National Unity (GNU) is often believed to be a second away from disaster, and the DA is not helping the situation. The second largest partner in the GNU is either clueless about governing at this level, over-enthusiastic or up to something. The Minister of Home Affairs, Dr Leon Schreiber, announced a deal on his social media account which outlines an agreement for visa-free access between South Africa and Ukraine for holders of diplomatic, official, and service passports. However, protocol dictates that such announcements be made by officials after the president has signed any deal on behalf of the nation. President Cyril Ramaphosa’s spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, called out Schreiber for the announcement on X. Days earlier, Ramaphosa was in Russia for the 16th BRICS Summit hosted by…

Georgia’s central election commission said it would partially recount ballots yesterday after opposition parties denounced the weekend parliamentary election as “stolen”. Defying the EU’s concerns over the vote, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban – current holder of the bloc’s rotating presidency and the Kremlin’s closest EU associate – arrived in Tbilisi on Monday and hailed the vote as democratic. Pro-Western opposition parties have refused to recognise the results of Saturday’s vote, which they claim were falsified in favour of the ruling Georgian Dream party. Tens of thousands joined a protest rally in Tbilisi on Monday and a fresh anti-government demonstration was announced for last night. Georgia’s electoral commission said in a statement that “district election commissions will conduct recounts of ballots from five polling stations randomly selected in each election…

WILMINGTON: US Democrat Sarah McBride is expected to make history next week as the first openly transgender person elected to the US Congress. In 2016, she became the first openly transgender person to address a major US political convention and in 2020 became the first to serve in a US state Senate. McBride, 34, is favoured to win Delaware’s sole seat in the US House of Representatives, after securing the Democratic nomination in the September primary and is expected to easily win a seat that the three major US non-partisan political rating services rate solidly Democratic. “People have seen that I have a track record of rolling up my sleeves … bringing Democrats and Republicans together,” she said. “That’s what I’ve been campaigning on.” | Reuters…

NEW DELHIl: Over 150 people were injured, some of them critically, in a fireworks accident during a temple festival in the southern Indian state of Kerala, officials said yesterday. The accident took place late on Monday in Kasaragod district. “The injured were immediately taken to various hospitals in Kasargod, Kannur, and Mangaluru. The condition of 10 people is stated to be critical,” said a police official. Police suspect that one of the lit fireworks may have fallen into the nearby shed where more were stored and triggered the fire. Police have taken temple officials into custody. | Xinhua…