Innehållsförteckning för 2024-01-18 från Cape Argus

The new year has big cinematic shoes to fill, considering the many anticipated and hugely successful movie releases from last year. From the Barbie movie, which sent the globe into a pink frenzy, to Christopher Nolan’s multi-award winning thriller Oppenheimer, 2023 was a big year for movie enthusiasts and cinema- goers. Streamers were also treated to a range of high-quality movies that starred some of Hollywood’s A-list stars. Amazon Prime Video’s comedy thriller Saltburn, which is still causing a stir on social media, as well as Netflix’s Leave the World Behind, starring Julia Roberts, were some of the other 2023 cinematic masterpieces. This year kicked off with the “woke” Mean Girls reboot, which brought the 2004 high school classic to a brand-new audience. And with the first month of 2024…

The City’s Law Enforcement Officers are reportedly hot on the heels of a suspect who stole a tourist’s cellphone on Sunday in the Bo-Kaap area. Officers on patrol witnessed a suspect grab a phone from a tourist and jump in a waiting vehicle. This resulted in a high-speed chase through the streets of the Cape Town CBD. The suspect then jumped from the vehicle and ran into the Company Gardens, where he tried to discard the evidence, tossing the phone into the gardens while still trying to evade capture. Eckardt Winks, executive support officer in the City’s Safety and Security Directorate, said the driver of the vehicle managed to flee before the corresponding units arrived. They had the vehicle’s details and were on the lookout for the vehicle. However, the…

QUESTIONS have been raised about the Office of the President paying for legal fees in matters where President Cyril Ramaphosa should have dealt with the cases privately or on behalf of the ANC. The matter was raised by EFF MP Mzwanele Manyi, who in a parliamentary question asked about the total sum the Presidency has spent in legal fees where the president was either a respon- dent or an applicant since he was elected head of state on February 15, 2018. In reply, the Presidency said the office of the president had spent a total of R9 million where Ramaphosa was the applicant, and R23 million where he was the first respondent. Manyi said he has no problem with money being used for cases involving the state; however, he took…

Tongaat flood deaths ‘avoidable’ Survivors of the deadly Durban flash floods said had eThekwini Municipality kept its promises of relocating them to safe houses, the loss of lives could have been prevented. Residents living on the bank of a river in Hillview in Tongaat (oThongathi), north of Durban, told a DA delegation that visited them yesterday that before the 2021 local government elections, the City said they were living in an area prone to flooding; they would be moved to new flats the City was building, but nothing happened. One of the survivors, Zamo Ngema, said if the City had kept its promise no one would have died. The flash flood that hit the Tongaat area left three people dead; two from one family. Ngema, a close neighbour to the…

With 1.2 million learners returning to schools in the Western Cape today, the 2024 school year has officially started and with this, also comes new cases of bullying at schools. The iconic SABC children’s educational TV programme Takalani Sesame tackles the issues faced around the increasing number of bullying cases in South Africa. During the first few weeks of a new school year, children may experience a wide range of emotions. While some may be eager to get back into their routines, engage in extracurricular activities, and see their friends, others may be a little nervous about starting at a new school altogether. Takalani Sesame’s Season 14, offers children and their caregivers functional ways of helping them recognise and regulate their feelings. Throughout the season, you can explore how big…

Last season’s group stage mishap in Clermont in the Champions Cup has prepared the Stormers for what they can expect this weekend in Paris when they take on Stade Francais in a must-win clash. The Cape side already have one foot in the play-offs, and can secure a possible home knockout match should they leave the French capital with a bonus-point win at the Stade Jean-Bouin on Saturday night (7.30pm kick-off, SA time). There is the smallest of chances that if they do not secure any points from the final Pool 4 match, they can still exit the competition despite currently being in second position. According to assistant coach Labeeb Levy, they are wary of those factors, but they will be better off this time around in the unfamiliar wintry…

MI Cape Town coach Robin Peterson does not want the extra pressure of the Western Cape derby to distract his team from returning to winning ways at Newlands tomorrow night. MI Cape Town have been playing splendid cricket in SA20 season 2, with the batters particularly showing good form, yet have only managed one win from three attempts. Peterson’s men went close again on Tuesday evening at Newlands, when they fell short of the record 203-run victory target set by the Sunrisers Eastern Cape, as they went down by just four runs. It was certainly a heavy blow for a team who are working hard behind the scenes in a bid to improve on their last-place finish last season. Their challenge won’t be any easier tomorrow evening when Western Cape…

South African-born comedian and television presenter Trevor Noah has clinched a long-deserved Emmy. The 75th Primetime Emmy Awards saw The Daily Show With Trevor Noah win the Emmy Award for Outstanding Talk Series. The Emmys finally took place on Monday night, four months after the ceremony was initially meant to take place, due to the writers’ and actors’ strike. This is the show’s first win in this category since Jon Stewart stepped down in 2015, and in his speech Noah showed love to his predecessor who called him up despite many having doubts about him. “Wherever you are my friend, thank you for calling me up,” quipped Noah. This is not Noah’s first Emmy; he previously won Outstanding Short Form Variety Series in 2017 but this one deserves special…

The Minister of Higher Education, Science, and Innovation, Blade Nzimande, has dismissed what he called false and ill-informed allegations regarding his awarding of a National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) tender to a colleague. This comes after Netwerk24 reported that Nzimande had awarded his adviser, Tilson Manyoni, a R44 million NSFAS tender. In a statement, Nzimande denied the allegations and said they were just more “false and ill-informed suggestions” levelled against him. “These allegations are therefore both false and malicious,” he said. He also clarified that Manyoni was never his adviser. “Firstly, Mr Tilson Manyoni is not and has never been an adviser to the minister, as erroneously suggested by some media houses. The names of the advisers of the minister are matters of public record and discoverable with little…

The start of a new school year signifies new beginnings. A time for pupils to explore the idea of independent thinking. Everything begins with the decision to improve how you think. The current conversations are rightly focused on developing knowledge, reading and understanding comprehension, maths literacy and other related topics. Despite this focus on achievement, a critical question arises, what measures are being taken to ensure that pupils are capable of thinking for themselves once they graduate from school? We all begin a new year with a certain amount of anxiety. In the backdrop of our chaotic and unpredictable world, these fears are only going to intensify. Our curiosity leads us to question everything we learn in school. Embracing curious thinking will help answer the many questions that arise when…

Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos has insisted that their next Africa Cup of Nations clash against Namibia is a ‘do-or-die’ affair after their defeat to Mali. Bafana began their Afcon campaign in Group E on a sour note on Tuesday night as they lost 2-0 in Korhogo, thanks to quick goals from Hamari Traore and Lassine Sinayoko. Two second-half strikes from the duo didn’t only take them to the top of the group, but also subjected Bafana to a third loss against the west African nation at the Afcon. Mali had beaten Bafana by the same scoreline at the 2002 showpiece, before winning 3-1 on penalties, after the match ended 1-1, in 2013. With those losses coming in the last eight, Broos thought the script would have changed in the…

West Ham were dumped out of the FA Cup by Championship side Bristol City 1-0 on Tuesday night as Newport County set up a dream fourth-round tie against Manchester United. Tommy Conway scored the only goal at Ashton Gate after less than three minutes to ensure the Hammers’ 44-year wait to lift the FA Cup will go on. Conway, who also scored to secure a replay when the sides met at the London Stadium, pounced on a short back pass from Konstantinos Mavropanos to round Lukasz Fabianski and slot into an unguarded net. “I’ve been coming here since I was 7, and to get the winner is unbelievable,” said Conway. “It’s the best (crowd) I’ve seen it in a while, and to send them home happy is unbelievable.” David Moyes’…

While thousands of parents took their children to their first day of school yesterday, Hanover Park held a march against the gang shootings that have shaken the area. The peaceful protest idea came after a learner was shot on Tuesday as he went to school. Community leader Mansoer Arendse said gangsters always shoot when the children go to school. “On Tuesday, a boy was shot on the way to school. We are here to demand police visibility every morning and afternoon. “It is unfair that our children have to duck and dive when they are going to school and that was the main reason we thought of the demonstration. The idea was to go to the schools, police and metro police and ask them to come up with something because…

YESTERDAY marked the start of deputy speaker of the Western Cape legislature Beverley Schäfer's appeal on findings that she misused government property. The legislature’s conduct committee found her guilty of violating the code of conduct by misusing a BMW X5 SUV, costing the state over R150 000. However, a twist to the appeal is that DA members have voted for it to be held in camera. The committee report contains findings of fruitless and wasteful expenditure by Schäfer after investigating complaints that she refused to downgrade her luxury state-funded BMW X5 when her six-month stint as MEC ended in May 2019. Schäfer was found guilty and fined R17 800. The committee suspended her privileges as deputy speaker and her right to a seat in parliamentary debates or committees for seven…

SEVEN years ago the then mayor of Cape Town committed to turning sites near the city centre into homes for low-income households, in such areas as Woodstock and Salt River. However, to date residents say they have yet to see those homes. Some sites that were identified by the City, including Pine Road, Douglas Square, James Street, and Foundry Road, are part of the 13 sites that have been waiting to be revamped. According to residents in the area, these sites are now hotspots of criminal activity. “All these areas are hives of criminality as the community waits, seemingly endlessly, to find out when they will be cleared and turned into long-promised social housing,” U Watch Woodstock secretary Rob Marshall said. The City said it had been ramping up its…

Bafana Bafana’s 2-0 loss to Mali in their opening group stage match in the Africa Cup of Nations on Tuesday night exposed players who were not ready for the event. And that’s why, below, soccer writer profiles three players Hugo Broos must drop for their clash against Namibia in Korhogo on Sunday (10pm kick-off, SA time) … SIYANDA XULU Xulu is one of the vice-captains of the team, and is therefore expected to lead both on and off the field. But against The Eagles, it wasn’t to be. Xulu was poor on the night, and Mali’s Lassine Sinayoko stole possession from under his nose with pace and physicality before side-footing the ball home. That’s not all. Xulu was involved in a defensive mix-up with fellow centre back Mothobi Mvala,…

The Paarl Royals maintained their unbeaten start to their SA20 season 2 campaign by thumping the beleaguered Joburg Super Kings by seven wickets at Boland Park last night. The Royals dominated all facets of the game to earn a valuable bonus point, with the Super Kings well behind the eight ball. The visitors are still searching for their first win after four matches, and on the evidence of last night’s display, it doesn’t look like it will be coming their way any time soon. The Royals, meanwhile, appear to be a well-oiled machine under new coach Shane Bond, the former New Zealand paceman. For all the talk about the Royals’ heavy reliance on spin bowling at their home ground, it has actually been the seamers that have been most impressive.…

Novak Djokovic said an angry altercation with a fan may have helped get him over the line during a testing second-round encounter at the Australian Open against home favourite Alexei Popyrin yesterday. The World No 1 showed his trademark mental strength to face down his inspired opponent, prevailing 6-3 4-6 7-6 (7/4) 6-3 in more than three hours. It followed a gruelling first-round match on Sunday, when he was kept on court for more than four hours by teenager Dino Prizmic, admitting afterwards he was “a bit under the weather”. The Serbian got drawn into a testy exchange with a spectator on Rod Laver Arena early in the fourth set yesterday. “There were a lot of things that were being told to me on the court … I was tolerating…