The first witness in the drunken-driving case of Ekurhuleni metro police chief Robert McBride told the Pretoria Regional Court on Monday that he was told he and his family would be murdered if he did not help in a cover-up for McBride. ”He wasn’t sober enough to drive,” the witness said.
The former secretary general of the South African National Civics Organisation, Thozamile Gwanya, has been appointed Director General of Agriculture and Land Affairs, the department said on Monday. Gwanya, who matriculated in Mthatha, Eastern Cape, holds a BCom degree from the University of Transkei.
Fidentia boss J Arthur Brown will go on trial in September on fraud and theft charges, the Cape Town Regional Court heard on Monday. Prosecutor Thersia du Toit said the trial had been set down for nine days between September 15 and October 3. Magistrate Wilma van der Merwe postponed the case to May 2.
Environmental Affairs and Tourism Minister Marthinus van Schalkwyk on Monday dismissed appeals against the decision to grant environmental authorisation for a new Eskom power station in Mpumalanga. The project involves the construction of a 5 400MW coal-fired power station near Witbank.
A former drummer for 1970s Swedish pop group ABBA, Ola Brunkert, has been found dead after an apparent accident in his house in Mallorca, Spanish police said on Monday. Brunkert bled to death from a throat wound which police suspect was caused after he accidentally smashed a pane of glass.
Gold added $24,95, or 2,49%, to trade at $1 025,05 by 1.30pm on Monday — this after rising more than 3% to a record $1 032,60 a troy ounce in overnight trade. Oil prices have also rallied in response to the dollar’s weakness overnight with Nymex crude setting a fresh all-time high of $111,80.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) submitted parliamentary questions to President Thabo Mbeki on Monday, asking him to clear the air on his alleged involvement in the arms deal. The <i>Sunday Times</i> reported that business magnate Tokyo Sexwale had made an "impassioned plea" for Mbeki "to take the ANC into his confidence".
Media24, publisher of City Press, was on Monday ordered to pay prominent African National Congress politician and medical doctor Zweli Mkhize R150 000 in damages for a defaming him in a report in March 2007. Mkhize is chairperson of finance and economic development in the KwaZulu-Natal Cabinet.
Eskom will carry out countrywide rolling load-shedding on Monday because of a rise in demand due to cold weather and after four generators tripped. The power failures, the first since February 4, are likely to continue until Thursday, but would not affect large industrial customers, who are operating with about 90% of their normal power requirements.
South Africa’s large current-account deficit is a major chink in its armour given a low savings rate and current global financial market turmoil, Finance Minister Trevor Manuel said on Monday. The country was dependent on foreign capital inflows to fund a rising deficit, he said.