National

Unembargoed: December 14 to 20

M&G Reporter 17 Dec 2018 00:00

All articles in the M&G are free to read

Roof caves in on housing agency

Executives suspended, reinstated, suspended; the board’s chair removed; corruption; sex-for-jobs claims – and there’s that R11-million deficit

Achmat demands TAC apology

He has objected to statement calling for him to be prosecuted and says he’s been criminally defamed

Slice of life: God turned my Uno into a Kombi

I started baking cookies at home and sold them at work when we were in a process of retrenchments.

Feeder zone rules ‘must go ahead’

Schools must accept the nearest pupils first, regardless of their language or ability to pay

ConCourt backs royal widow’s bid to protect her son’s birthright

The dispute has sparked a series of violent protests that have affected the mine’s operations

Ramaphosa camp cleans up on initial lists

ANC branches across the country are in the process of deciding who will represent the party in the provincial legislatures, the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) and in Parliament next year.

ANC fudges over fired VBS mayors

Its reaction ranges from hardline dismissal to pussy-footing rehabilitation and redeployment

Text messages show brazen VBS bribes

Reserve Bank court papers on looting at the mutual bank implicate more Limpopo officials

ANC acts fast to limit sex scandal

The party is usually slow to tackle sex harassment cases, so the rapid action against Pule Mabe is surprising

Water-shedding will make load-shedding seem like a jol

Supplied water is too cheap. A litre bottle of water in a supermarket is R10, whereas 1 000 litres to your house costs just R50.

Battered Samwu again at odds

After allegations about maladministration, union leaders are now accused of not coming clean about corruption

Mine leaves farmers in the dust

A pastoral community near Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park is being turned into a veritable dump

Sex workers who do it for their kids

Their chief concern is the wellbeing of their children so that they can do better than their mothers

Pro-Cyril voting advice panics DA

Instead of trying to reap voters from an imagined ANC split, it should look to young voters instead

Festive spending continues to boom amid tough economic climate

The underlying numbers show that, although people are spending more on goods such as food and drinks, they are spending progressively less on more expensive items

HEALTH:

Out of commission: State ambulances are few and far between

The national health department says it is against outsourcing emergency services but with a grave shortage of ambulances, it may have no choice

How did teen pregnancy in Mpumalanga shoot up by 80%?

The province reported skyrocketing rates of teen pregnancy but behind the figures lies a story about sex, knowledge and data

AFRICA:

Hunting for ghosts in Kinshasa

Even as the Democratic Republic of Congo prepares to vote on its future, it is impossible to escape the echoes of its past. And once you start looking for ghosts, you see them everywhere

Botswana’s big men battle it out

Current President Masisi is unpicking former president Khama’s legacy

BUSINESS:

SA joins digital music mainstream

The growth in the industry has yet to offset the losses in physical sales, but musicians are beginning to pick the new fruit

SA ducks colonial vibe: Turkey’s goose is cooked

The turkeys that make it to our shores are frozen, mostly from Brazil, but also from Canada, the United States and Chile.
Woolworths sources its turkeys from Ireland.

New dawn clouds nuclear’s future

The demise of Jacob Zuma has radically changed the outlook of the struggling energy corporation

Money issues bedevil climate talks

But SA’s delegation leader Derek Hanekom believes everyone wants to see a deal reached

Acsa spreads its wings over Africa

The airports company is drawing on its experience to meet the challenges of the continent

Chief executives’ pay is no small issue

Disclosures providing information about directors’ remuneration would be much more useful if they were provided in the context of overall employee remuneration.

COMMENT & ANALYSIS:

Take a hard look into the mirror

Social media has made us obsess about the behaviour of others and ignore our own

Editorial: Root out sexual abuse at work

Too many South African women have, at some point, been forced to feel fear in their workplace because of sexual predation and patriarchy.

Editorial: New school rules rule

These regulations will give preferential rights to pupils to attend the school closest to them, no matter whether they apply first or last

Ma Africa leads the way

Graça Machel is the example of someone reaching out to other women and giving them a lift-up

Battling Jozi’s mean streets

But the elections will bring relief, in the form of Hlaudi and other nutty contenders

Battle of ideas in the newsroom

Journalist Sibonelo Radebe’s death has robbed the industry of the kind of thinker it sorely needs

Sadly, vegans can’t save Earth

Reducing the carbon footprint of farming will take more than some individual action

FIFTH COLUMN: The ABC of a tough year

Yes, 2018 was tough, but when last did we not have a tough year?

Stalwarts shop for education ideas

Both Naledi Pandor and Graça Machel understand the challenges of the future and want to find ways of getting there

SPORT:

Plucky kids claim the cup

Baroka FC kept up the pressure and stuck to their game plan, clinching victory in penalty shootout

The stories of the season … so far

Halfway through the season is a good time to review the ups, downs, surprises and the predictable