(Gemma Ritchie/M&G)
What’s making the headlines in local news
The Star
- Teen relieves mom’s murder
The family of a teenager who witnessed his mother being shot dead by his father have opened up about the horror of reliving the nightmare daily without counselling, two months after the incident.
- ‘Never! Not when I am still alive!’
Buoyed by the presence of thousands of his subjects who attended his inaugural imbizo, King Goodwill Zwelithini yesterday declared anyone after his land “an enemy of the Zulus”, while also vowing that no land will be taken away from his control as long as he lives.
Business Day
- City Power in drive to plug R1.2-billion gap
Johannesburg’s economic mainstay and biggest service provider, City power, is heading into the 2018-2019 financial year with a deficit of R1.2-billion.
- Taxpayers to pay for Zuma’s fee appeal
Taxpayers will fund former president Jacob Zuma’s fight to avoid personally paying an estimated R10-million in legal fees spent on his state capture court cases. However, the state attorney’s office said Zuma will have to pay back the money should he lose the legal fee case.
- Mining communities reject new draft charter
The largest network of communities affected by mining in South Africa has rejected the draft Mining Charter ahead of a summit this weekend.
Daily Sun
When Damian Chiwaka realised the flats were on fire, his first thoughts were for his wife and his two-year-old child. Knowing that the single entrance to the building was locked, he broke a window and led his precious family to safety. Then he went back and save at least another 10 people from a fiery death.
The Citizen
- Zulu king wants own republic
King Goodwill Zwelithini’s demands for an independent Zulu homeland are the result of government’s ineptitude over the land issue and they should be taken very seriously, warn political analysts.
- Rica law has South Africans spooked
Intelligence agencies are using the data collected to spy on people.
Sowetan
Childbirth muthi kills 380 babies
Death toll at a hospital mounts with 75 already dead this year after pregnant women took a concoction to hasten labour. Traditional healers have vouched for their “wonder” herb despite the deadly three-year track record.
What’s making the headlines in global news
Jaguar Land Rover, Britain’s biggest carmaker, warned Theresa May’s government that a “bad Brexit” deal without “frictionless” access to the European Union would jeopardise as much as £80-billion ($106-billion) in investments over the next five years. (Bloomberg)
Despite the usual predictions of her demise, Angela Merkel is still standing — albeit weaker than ever before after a face-off with her nemesis, interior minister Horst Seehofer.
The German political crisis that looked likely to smash the coalition government after just 100 days dissipated late Tuesday when the chancellor did what she’s famous for and hashed out a compromise on refugee policy. (Quartz)
Flamboyant internet entrepreneur Kim Dotcom and three of his former colleagues have lost their latest bid to avoid extradition to the US to face criminal charges. New Zealand’s Court of Appeal on Thursday upheld earlier court rulings that found the men were eligible to be handed over to U.S. authorities.
Dotcom’s lawyer Ira Rothken said they were disappointed with the judgment and planned to file an appeal with New Zealand’s Supreme Court. (CBS News)
Alien life should be everywhere. The sheer abundance of stars in the universe (the number far outstrips the total number of grains of sand on every beach on Earth) suggests that, somewhere, an intelligent lifeform should be warming itself on a distant planet. Even if life evolves rarely, ET should be phoning.
Yet, by all appearances, humanity seems to be flying solo in our galaxy, and perhaps the universe. (Quartz)