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/ 23 January 2007

On-the-spot check for C-Max

Parliament’s correctional services committee is to find out for itself on Thursday how Annanias Mathe escaped from Pretoria’s C-Max prison late last year. Head of the portfolio committee Dennis Bloem said on Tuesday the visit will not replace an existing probe into the serial offender’s escape from the prison’s maximum-security section in November last year.

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/ 23 January 2007

Mbeki gears up for year ahead

President Thabo Mbeki and top decision makers in the government gathered for a meeting to discuss the state’s programme action for the year at the Presidential Guesthouse on Tuesday. The reason for the meeting is partly to decide on the contents of Mbeki’s State of the Nation address next month, the South African Broadcasting Corporation reported.

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/ 23 January 2007

Israeli president to be charged with rape

Prosecutors intend to charge Israeli President Moshe Katsav with rape and other crimes against female employees, the Justice Ministry said on Tuesday, in what would be an unprecedented indictment against an Israeli head of state. Katsav’s post is largely ceremonial and the scandal is unlikely to have a direct impact on Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.

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/ 23 January 2007

Funds crunch for SA’s World Cup cities

South African cities due to host the 2010 Soccer World Cup complained on Tuesday of funding shortfalls of millions of rand to build stadiums for the continent’s biggest sporting event. Estimates have swelled due to inflation and exchange-rate fluctuations, officials told a parliamentary sport committee.

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/ 23 January 2007

Polokwane housing to get R55m boost

The Development Bank of South Africa (DBSA) is to contribute R55-million to fund the municipal services for a middle-income housing development in Polokwane, Limpopo, it announced on Tuesday. ”DBSA will fund the installation of the necessary municipal services and infrastructure on the land,” said Helge Switala, DBSA’s investment officer on the project.

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/ 23 January 2007

ANCYL: World system sidelines the poor

Poverty still exists because the system of world trade has determined that poor countries will not have access to knowledge and technology, the African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) said on Tuesday. ”We have poverty all over the … simply because the resources have been used to sideline the majority of the people,” said ANCYL president Fikile Mbalula.

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/ 23 January 2007

Yengeni criticism is ‘selective racism’

The Arts and Culture Ministry has sprung to the defence of senior African National Congress member Tony Yengeni, who is under fire from animal lovers over his ritual stabbing of a bull at the weekend. This is not a matter for the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals because it goes much deeper than cruelty to animals, said the ministry on Tuesday.