SABC meltdown all too familiar
Are certain board members being pushed out to ensure government control?
Gupta looters leave SA in the dark
And a planned PetroSA plant shutdown meant Eskom could not replenish diesel supplies
Eskom sweats as Trillian buys time
A delay in Eskom’s battle to claw back the millions of rands it lost to Gupta-linked Trillian could further hurt the ailing power utility, the high court in Pretoria heard this week.
Slice of life: The journey to Beyoncé
‘I wasn’t going to miss an opportunity to see Beyoncé and Jay Z in South Africa’
An El Niño away from water crisis
Outdated data, debt and mismanagement — Gauteng’s water plans predict a crisis. But it could be mitigated if people cut their water use by half
Mission possible: Polluters can change
Six major elements of the world economy are responsible for a third of all carbon emissions.
Independent assessor throws new light on ‘deeply divided’ MUT
The Mangosuthu University of Technology has been unstable for about 10 years, according to an independent assessor’s report looking into the problems faced by the institution and the state of its governance.
Deadly twist to university dispute
A former colleague has been charged with the murder of the dean after threatening him
Family lose hope MK fighter is alive
To find peace, the mother and sister of Nokuthula Simelane are asking for her to be presumed dead
Cheated, we turn to a superhero
South Africa has descended into a hell and we are pinning our hopes on Shamila Batohi to rescue us.
Ex-Aurora mines to be sold off, again
The Aurora gold mines looted by former president Jacob Zuma’s nephew Khulubuse Zuma and his partners are heading for liquidation again after a falling-out between the South African and Chinese partners in the consortium that bought Aurora in 2012.
SA’s pioneer intersex and trans models
Lauren Foster and Monique Walker found themselves in a conservative but developing industry
Activists’ families fight for justice
Former apartheid cop Joao Rodrigues could be setting an unwelcome precedent for victims of apartheid if a judge agrees to halt his trial for the murder of anti-apartheid activist Ahmed Timol permanently, the National Prosecuting Authority said in court papers.
Prison company stalls court actions
G4S has belatedly sought to prevent the release of medical records of inmates who say they were tortured
HEALTH:
Durban on pins and needles about HIV project closure
More than six months after the City of eThekwini closed its only needle exchange programme, negotiations between the city and the project’s staff continue. But each day the project remains shuttered, workers say, is another day that puts people who use drugs — and the public — at risk.
Tracking Mpumalanga’s missing migrant fruit pickers
In this province, the agricultural and mining sectors draw thousands of workers each year – and then they disappear. Here’s why we need to find them
AFRICA:
Will Zim bury poll deaths report?
Kgalema Motlanthe investigated post-election violence but there are concerns President Mnangagwa will not release his findings
East Africa won’t tackle Burundi crisis
Maybe regional leaders should follow the West African playbook
Tanzania suffers peril of populism
People call John Magufuli ‘The Bulldozer’. But in his haste to get things done, he might be wrecking the very foundations of his country’s democracy
BUSINESS:
Eskom aims to shed its debt load
But critics say shifting liability to the state could have unintended consequences for the economy
Eskom casts a pall over growth
There was good news this week when gross domestic product (GDP) figures released by Statistics South Africa for the third quarter showed positive growth, lifting the economy out of a technical recession.
Struggling investments sting PIC
A R1-billion impairment caused by the media group investment has again raised questions
It’s time to #PayBackTheMoney
Various agencies are at last going after those accused of looting the state coffers and the amounts are huge
COMMENT & ANALYSIS:
A genuine democracy is needed
Stability demands that those who are brutally excluded must be given a meaningful voice
Editorial: We are rooting for Batohi
The task of securing South Africa for future generations is immense
Editorial: Your earth, take action
Change is happening at such a rate that animals, plants and ecosystems cannot evolve fast enough to survive.
Township sanitation remains the pits
The commodification of basic services is to blame for the current appalling situation
Pappi for Daddy takes on Guru
The man with a penchant for purple and paraffin has started a political party
Just what are the red berets up to now?
There are three possible scenarios that might explain the party’s recent attacks and alignments
Labour law redefines parenthood
The definition includes adoptive parents and commissioning parents in surrogacy cases
FIFTH COLUMN: Click here. Actually, no, don’t
“Sometimes I think South African retail websites don’t actually want to sell anything.â€
Education analysis misses the mark
Yes, schooling has a long way to go to contribute to economic growth, but good progress has been made
SPORT:
Women’s Proteas wilt under heat
It’s not been an easy year for the Women’s Proteas. The grind was there, but, bereft of quality, it was not enough to force the results to flow.
Long road ahead for Springbok women
The Springbok women don’t actually have much work to mark. But just because little Johnny doesn’t show up to class doesn’t mean that he gets a passing grade.
Proteas on a good wicket
Bar the Sri Lanka Test series, the team brought back a sense of indomitability to their game
Bafana, better is not good enough
Oh Bafana, what more is there really to say? For years now you have insisted on the same stubborn pattern: stumbling at imaginary hurdles, belying our passion for football before creaking the door ajar just enough for us to think hope could creep in.
Banyana wins our hearts
What a year for Banyana Banyana. During the past 12 months they have driven our expectations higher and higher, and then proceeded to smash even those.
FRIDAY:
The danger of abuser confessions
“Done well, abusers’ confessions can educate other abusers and potential abusersâ€
Kwaito: Golden or new age?
The originators insist that the cultural phenomenon has not died, it took new forms
The Weekend Guide
For good vibes and an arts fix, don’t miss this
On our lists this week: Ray BLK, Mad Satta, and metropolis
In between working on Friday copy, this is what the team reads, listens to and watches
The gqom whisperer comes home
“I was just trying to create something that sounded like hip-hop, but on a house tempo†is how DJ Lag tried to articulate his sound on our first meeting at his mother’s house in Clermont four years ago.
The people versus the captured police
Not even the promise of uninterrupted electricity could guarantee crime-free partying for the more than 60 000 Beyoncé fans who braved hours to see her and a legion of foreign and local artists perform at the Global Citizen Festival in Soweto last Sunday.
Cassper’s filled up by his loyal Tsibipians
Last week Mr Fill-up held a listening session for his latest album, Short and Sweet. To make his signing to the record label official, the gathering took place at the Universal Music recording studios in Rosebank, two days before it dropped internationally.
‘Tis the season: It’s festive, It’s fokol but depression is real
You might put it down to end-of-year fatigue. But, in this volatile time of the year, the South African Depression and Anxiety Group experiences an influx of calls for crisis intervention for depression and suicide during December.
The literary echoes of the Afro-modern
What is exceptional about the Afro-modern is its radical unsettling of being a theory or a movement. It is that bold generation, as Daoud puts it “We are open space: Africa’s newest genre.â€
Mahobe  gets his chance to shine
Growing up in Sophiatown and later in Western Native Township in the 1940s and 1950s, artist Monty Mahobe was kind of cajoled into drawing by his schoolmates as a boy.
