Innehållsförteckning för 2023-12-11 från Cape Argus

From an outsider perspective, being in a relationship with a professional athlete might seem glamorous. But, like with any relationship, the WAGs (wives and girlfriends) of sports stars are not immune to challenges. Sports Wives, a new local reality series produced by Ndlovukazi Concepts, gives viewers a front-row seat to the lives of the wives, girlfriends and exes of South Africa’s sporting greats. And while high fashion, fast cars and mansions are the order of the day, the show also reflects on the hardships faced by these women. From navigating the dynamics of a same-sex marriage, having two football baby daddies, marital troubles and putting the love of the game above all else, Sports Wives reveals it all. And, if the first episode is anything to go by, tensions are…

CAPE firefighters were battling two blazes over the weekend, soon after the Table Mountain National Parks (TMNP) reported a surge in fires during the November and early December period. Yesterday, over 100 firefighters from TMNP, NCC Wildfires, Volunteer Wildfire Services, Working on Fire teams and pilots including City Fire and Rescue Services responded to a fire above Molteno Road, Deer Park. Tafelberg Road was closed at around 2pm and the fire was contained at around 3:38pm. Fire and Rescue Service spokesperson Jermaine Carelse said just after 1pm, services were alerted to a vegetation fire in the vicinity of Deer Park Drive. “Resources were dispatched to the scene and found a large area of vegetation alight along the lower slopes of Tafelberg Road and Deer Park Drive,” Carelse said. The on-scene…

The Passenger Rail Agency of SA’s woes continued as commuters were forced to disembark from the Johannesburg-Cape Town train and board a bus into the Mother City. The trouble started on Friday when the Shosholoza Meyl train, scheduled to arrive in Cape Town, was forced to stop in Wellington due to cable theft. Prasa released a statement apologising for the interruption on the long-distance commute. “Prasa deeply regrets the interruption of the MLPS long-distance service from Johannesburg to Cape Town on Friday, December 8. “The journey was unexpectedly halted at Wellington Station due to the theft of overhead cables between Kraaifontein and Muldersvlei. “We are acutely aware of the inconvenience suffered by our passengers. In response, we activated our contingency plan, and promptly arranged buses to cover the remaining 70km…

Canongate In HER short but on-point foreword about this larger-than-life and hugely colourful stage and film actor, Emma Thompson astutely describes her dear friend as having been both profoundly nurturing and imperturbably distant; generous and challenging; dangerous and comical; sexy and androgynous; temperamental and languid. Virile and peculiar. These are just a few of the opposing forces of the man who entertained; enthralled and endeared himself to audiences in a diverse range of plays and films from Die Hard to Sense & Sensibility, the Harry Potter series, Private Lives and more. Reading his tell-it-all, amusing, often heart-rending, bawdy, but mostly down to earth and completely blatant diaries you’ll find a man who lived his life to the full; endeared himself to millions and of course sometimes shocked others with his…

In our nation, a perplexing narrative has emerged around the alleged manipulation of our currency by certain banks. This is undoubtedly a violent assault on the poor, the working class, and the downtrodden, including small businesses that bore the brunt of inordinate bank interest rates, retrenchment, and the harshest economic hardships with no consequences for the perpetrators. What’s more baffling is the seeming invulnerability of these institutions. Despite the gravity of the accusations, there remains a conspicuous absence of accountability. This situation points subtly yet unmistakably to a deeper entanglement, one that lies in the shadows of power and influence. The public, rightfully, questions this puzzling state of affairs. How can entities accused of such significant economic transgressions seemingly operate with impunity? The answer, while not overtly spoken, whispers through…

Hours after Stellenbosch FC defeated rivals Cape Town City in Friday’s iKapa derby, coach Steve Barker started executing his preparations for the Carling Knockout Cup final against TS Galaxy at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban on Saturday. Barker felt that players who had played limited time in the derby, as well as those who did not play at all, needed match practice to boost their mental and physical preparation for the big day. To do so he enlisted the help of the Milnerton-based City Kings FC, a semi-professional team that competes in the Regional ABC Motsepe League, for a hit-out under match conditions. “The players that played a lot of minutes in the derby did regeneration, like ice baths, gym work and in the swimming pool,” said Barker. “We…

Canadian king of international comedy, Russell Peters, is returning to South Africa in 2024. The stand-up comic, who is no stranger to SA fans, will bring his unique brand of humour back in his three-city Russell Peters: Live tour. Peters, pictured, will be at the Durban ICC on February 9, at the SunBet Arena Time Square on February 10, and GrandWest, Cape Town, on February 11. His ability to connect with a wide range of audiences has cemented his spot in the comedy hall of fame. Recently the international superstar wrapped up his 10th stand-up special in Abu Dhabi. A few days ago he was also awarded the 2023 Global Citizen Forum award, presented to individuals or organisations with an outstanding and consistent contribution to the global citizenship movement. Aside…

The Gugulethu Community Policing Forum (CPF) deputy chairperson has been gunned down inside her home.Lulama “Guffy” Dinginto’s, 56, alleged killer went to look for her at her home, in NY110, on Wednesday but she wasn’t there. And in the early hours of yesterday, the mother-of-two was shot five times in the face and head. Her heartbroken sister, Nontsomi Nqothole, said: “Last week a man came and asked for Guffy and I said she wasn’t around. “He said I must tell her, he was here for her and left. Guffy went to his home and asked his mom the purpose of the visit, but she never met with him.” She said that yesterday morning she heard gunshots going off in the back of their yard. “She was in her flat at…

THE situation remains tense at the Gold One Modder East Mine in Springs, Ekurhuleni, where more than 400 workers have reportedly staged a sit-in underground since Thursday night. According to National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) regional organiser, Victor Ngwane, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe, who was at the mine on Saturday and yesterday, has called on the police to intervene in the matter. “The situation has escalated and (Mantashe) has handed over the matter to the police for them to intervene. One of the employees was badly assaulted and stripped naked. We fear that things will get worse,” Ngwane told sister newspaper The Star. It is reported that the latest sit-in is in protest against the mine’s decision to retrench 70 employees who were allegedly involved in the…

Penny Haw Sourcebooks/Penguin Random House Review: Beryl Eichenberger What little I know about cars was improved upon by reading Penny Haw’s new historical fiction novel Woman at the Wheel. That’s not to say it’s all about spark plugs and whatever, far from it, but it brought the story to life as we follow taking the very first automobile or “motorwagen”: on the road in 1886. Haw’s lively and descriptive narrative is a joy to read and knowing how the Mercedes-Benz brand came about and the woman behind Carl Benz sheds a very different light on invention and history. Leading the way in inventing a “horseless” carriage, the ideas of genius Benz were revolutionary. The journey, however, was not without huge challenges: unscrupulous partners and plain ignorance holding up the…

Growing up in the villages of the Eastern Cape, Tsolo to be specific, the only time females ran away from their homes was to avoid child marriages or forced marriages, which in Nguni culture is referred to as Ukuthwalwa. What I didn’t know then is the high risk of homelessness for these girls. In the outskirts of the country, people don’t really know what homelessness is because even if you sprint away from your biological home, any other home in the village is regarded as your home. Children belong to the entire village, not just their biological family. But based on the definition of homelessness by the UN, experiencing homelessness means not having stable, safe and adequate housing, nor the means and ability of obtaining it. It’s now coming…

THE South African Football Association is working around the clock to ensure that it is not involved in another bonus row with one of the senior national teams before a major tournament. There’s only a month left before the Africa Cup of Nations gets under way in Ivory Coast, and yet Bafana Bafana and Safa are yet to agree terms on performance bonuses in the finals. That uncertainty has left many fearing the worst, given that the mother body and Banyana Banyana were involved in a row over bonuses a few days before the start of the World Cup in Australasia. Safa chief executive Lydia Monyepao, speaking at Safa House on Saturday after their last national executive committee meeting, admitted they are still deadlocked in the negotiations with the players…

“WE have to keep stitching the Kaizer Chiefs cloth.” Cavin Johnson did not have a needle and thread in hand as he addressed the media corps in the bowels of the Peter Mokaba Stadium after Amakosi’s 1-0 victory over Polokwane City on Saturday. But he could well have been a tailor working on a suit as he sat on a chair speaking about how hard everyone at Naturena is working to get Amakhosi back to being the mighty club they used to be. Having admitted that City “was a difficult game” and that Chiefs had put on a much better display “against (Moroka) Swallows” the week before, Johnson also expressed disappointment that his team did not render the match a no-contest despite having the opportunities. “I thought there were times…

Kidnappings seem to be on the rise in South Africa. Being vigilant about your safety at all times is essential to avoid falling prey to kidnappers, and children and young adults need to be taught this. Wahl Bartmann, CEO of Fidelity Services Group, has confirmed that they have increased patrols at schools in their coverage area between drop-off and home time. Bartmann urged parents to provide their children with knowledge and make them street smart, as well as to instil in them the confidence to report any potentially unusual circumstance, whether in person or online. The “clients“ in kidnapping cases are as diverse as the crime itself, he said. They can be anyone from criminal organisations and political extremists to ransom kidnappers, “express” kidnappers and family members embroiled in…

6 000 face axe at Post Office THE Business Rescue Plan to restructure the Post Office has been approved and will see the reduction of the branch network to about 600 branches that will be staffed by about 5 000 employees across the country. According to unions, this could see 6 000 employees being axed. This is according to a statement released on Thursday by Joint Business Rescue Practitioners of the Post Office, Anoosh Rooplal and Juanito Damons. The practitioners said they were pleased that their plan was voted for by the majority of creditors at a meeting last week. Rooplal said they believed their strategy could restructure the Post Office into a future-proofed business that could provide inclusive communications for all. He said the Post Office fulfilled an important…

I’m tempted to make this the shortest review you’ll ever read! Buy this book, The Ghost of Sam Webster by Craig Higginson, and relish it. It is a rare gem. On the other hand, you’ll probably want to know a little more. So ... The place of battle at iSandlwana in 1879 remains a site of ghostly memories, of massacre, of triumph for the Zulus, and humiliating defeat for the British, who lost their first invasion of Zululand against a foe equipped with vastly inferior weapons. More than a century after iSandlwana, the body of a young woman is found rolling in the nearby Buffalo River. The daughter of the Webster’s luxury lodge on this historic site is missing – is the body hers? Difficult to tell, as no sooner…

In my November 13 column, under the title “When we hesitate to say the word ‘genocide’, we are complicit”, I dealt with an issue that tripped up three United States university presidents this week. Professor Claudine Gay, president of Harvard, Professor Sally Kornbluth, president of MIT, and Professor Elizabeth Magill, president of the University of Pennsylvania, all appeared to stick to scripted answers in their comments at the Congressional hearings into anti-Semitism on US campuses last Tuesday. On Saturday, the University of Pennsylvania announced that Magill had resigned. The three were slammed for their convoluted replies to Republican congresswoman Elise Stefanik's question about how they and their institutions viewed calls for the genocide of Jews. All three responded in ways that generally stated: “It's context-dependent.” With their lawyerly “context-dependent” replies…

The importance of the India Tour to South Africa, which started yesterday with a T20 International at Kingsmead in Durban cannot be trivialised. From a purely financial standpoint, the three T20 Internationals, three One-Day Internationals and two Test matches that will be played over the next month between the Proteas and world cricket’s biggest team, is expected to be in the region of R1 billion at R150 million a game. To put it into perspective, Cricket South Africa has recorded a loss close to R540m in their last three financial statements, so India’s arrival will help fill the association’s coffers and ensure the continued participation of South Africa in the game, both domestically and at an international level. On the field, the tour represents the Proteas first stepping stone…

Perpignan (12) 12 Penalties: Perez (4) Emirates Lions (16) 28 Try: Maxwane; Conversion: Hendrikse; Penalties: Hendrikse (7) A motley crew of Lions went to the Pyrenees-saddled city of Perpignan in southern France unheralded but will return to South Africa tomorrow as unlikely heroes, after they ensured the team started their EPCR Challenge Cup campaign with a workman-like victory over the embattled Top 14 club. An untested Perpignan, also full of fringe players, suffered from an unshakable malaise yesterday afternoon and were unable to construct any pressure despite enjoying home-ground advantage. Try as they might while attempting to move the Lions around with sweeping backline moves, particularly in the first half, they suffered from an infuriating inability to make anything stick. Their inaccuracy kept the visitors…

Melusi Buthelezi is fast endearing himself to The Ghost, and his coach Jose Riveiro has credited his quick adaptation at the club to his hard work. The goalkeeping unit is a sensitive department, with coaches loathe to tamper with it – unless it’s a case of unforeseen eventualities, form and injuries. Thanks to those eventualities, Riveiro has played all four of his goalkeepers – Buthelezi, Sipho Chaine, Richard Ofori and Siyabonga Mpontshane – during his one-and-a-half-year spell at the club so far. Riveiro’s latest No 1 is Buthelezi, and the newly signed 25-year-old has grabbed the jersey with both hands, keeping eight clean sheets in his first 10 games for the club. Buthelezi’s form augurs well for Pirates’ late push for the DStv Premiership title, having won four of…