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/ 8 September 2005
Thinking about obtaining a bank loan in Ghana? That will soon depend on whether you have been given an HIV-free status report, according to a banker in the West African country. Banks appear to be motivated by wanting to ensure that all loans granted are repaid.
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/ 8 September 2005
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was expected on Thursday to win a fifth term in power after an election tipped as a major democratic step but marred by reports of widespread fraud. As vote counting began, Wednesday’s historic election drew a barrage of fraud allegations from Mubarak’s rivals and independent monitors.
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/ 8 September 2005
The Zimbabwe government more than doubled the price of diesel and petrol on Wednesday as critical fuel shortages persist, state radio reported. ”The pump price of both petrol and diesel has been increased by more than 130% with immediate effect,” the radio report said.
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/ 8 September 2005
The government is not planning any dramatic policy changes in respect of intervention in the fuel price and exchange rate, ministers said on Wednesday. During a briefing at Parliament by ministers forming part of Cabinet’s economic cluster, Minister of Trade and Industry Mandisi Mpahlwa said the exchange rate is an ongoing debate.
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/ 8 September 2005
Power was back on in various parts of Johannesburg after a blackout on Wednesday night. Westdene, Auckland Park, Melville, Brixton, Riverlea and Langlaagte were all said to be in the dark after the earlier blackout. City Power said two sub-stations experiencing electrical faults were the cause of the power failure.
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/ 8 September 2005
The African National Congress won two wards and the Democratic Alliance one in Wednesday’s ward elections in the Western Cape, the ANC’s provincial spokesperson said on Thursday. Lionel Adendorf said the ANC won the Witzenberg municipality, which was previously held by the DA.
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/ 8 September 2005
United States investigators claim to have found evidence of an assassination plot against 50 Cent, the country’s biggest-selling music artist, allegedly hatched by a convicted drugs trader in revenge for some of the rapper’s lyrics. The star, whose real name is Curtis Jackson, survived nine gunshots in 2000, but refused to cooperate with police.
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/ 8 September 2005
Dozens of bleary-eyed immigrants were marched out of their bedrooms by the police early on Thursday morning in a raid on what was once an upmarket hotel in Hillbrow. The raid came a day after officers from Booysens police station were shown on a television programme taking bribes to free illegal immigrants.
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/ 8 September 2005
Russia and Germany are on the verge of signing a multibillion-dollar pipeline deal that has the potential to alter Europe’s political landscape and seriously aggravate the Kremlin’s relations with its former Soviet neighbours. The Russian pipeline under the Baltic Sea will bring vast supplies of gas to Western Europe.
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/ 8 September 2005
South African insurance company Sanlam on Thursday reported an 85% increase in headline earnings per share for the six months ended June 30, to 102,5 cents from 55,5 cents for the same period a year ago. In line with past practice, no interim dividend was declared, as Sanlam declares an annual dividend at year-end.