Michael McMurray ONCE considered to be South Africa’s heart of conservatism, if not darkness, Pretoria is finding itself in a grip of jungle fever as copies of “Whoomp”, a video portraying all kinds of acts across the colour divide, topped the best selling lists last week. “I’m all sold out, the white guys go crazy […]
Annie Mapoma THE government’s decision to rename “Sharpeville Day” on March 21 as Human Rights Day, has infuriated the Pan Africanist Congress. March 21 has for 35 years been an unofficial stayaway day for black South Africans marking the 1960 Sharpeville massacre, when police shot dead 69 people and wounded 177 others during a pass […]
With his strong union and civic background Thozamile Botha is well-placed to tackle the problems in the Eastern Cape, writes Shadley Nash THE man whose job it is to turn governance in the Eastern Cape from “crisis management” to “strategic management of change” was one of the founders of the civic movement. But Thozamile Botha, […]
The SANDF has come clean on covert links with African countries during the 1980s, writes Stefaans Brummer THE National Defence Force has owned up to a secret mid-eighties project to help build a military base in the West African state of Gabon — part of Pretoria’s efforts to forge covert links with African states whose […]
Reg Rumney reports on what the Minister did not do to=20 the tax system. Finance ministers cannot do everything they are=20 expected to do, but the Budget this year has some=20 significant tax reform gaps. One big sin of omission was that no adjustments were=20 made to the tax table to take into account “fiscal=20 […]
Gaye Davis PARLIAMENT’S creche — vaunted as a symbol of the new government’s commitment to gender equality — has closed because of staffing problems, forcing MPs and other parents to make other arrangements for the care of their children. Parliamentary under-secretary Robbie Karreman said it was hoped the creche, which closed two weeks ago and […]
Yo, Babe! Bafana Khumalo welcomes Queen Elizabeth with some helpful advice for her visit to South Africa. He will be following the royal entourage throughout their I sure hope you had a cool trip and and you were chillin’ in your set of water wheels. I am certain that you are going to have a […]
The poor middle class taxpayer has lost out most in the Budget — again, writes Reg Rumney The Budget presented to Parliament by Finance Minister Chris Liebenberg this week tightens the tax clamp on South Africa’s middle class, particularly professionals. The top marginal rate was raised, tax tables were not adjusted to counter inflation, excise […]
Simon Segal THE capital market will easily absorb the borrowing=20 requirements set out in Chris Liebenberg’s first Budget=20 — no upward pressure will thus be exerted on interest=20 The market itself responded by pushing the long-dated=20 South African bond, called the R150, down initally by=20 10 points to 16,37percent (by the end of Budget day=20 […]
Enoch Mthembu MANGOSUTHU BUTHELEZI’S key royal ally in the feud over the Zulu monarchy, Prince Gideon Zulu, was named in court this week as one of the mastermind’s of kwaZulu Police (KZP) hit-squad activities. Also named was Celani Mtetwa, the province’s Safety and Security Minister. During the mitigation hearing for three self-confessed KZP hit-squad killers […]