The NECC and the provincial education department clashed as pupils returned to school in the Cape this week, writes Justin Pearce CHAOS greeted the beginning of the school year in Cape Town this week as Western Cape schools opened amid conflicting instructions from the National Education Co-ordinating Committee and the newly formed provincial education department. […]

Simon Segal DESPITE the re-emergence of El Nino, the harbinger of drought in this region, there is still a reasonable chance that South Africa could have a favourable agricultural season. The rains over the past few days have done no harm, noticeably boosting the morale of farmers. With the vital February-March rains still to come, […]

Marketing Clive Simpkins THE “grey” market has always posed a problem for marketers of Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) brands in South Africa, with notable wars between the likes of Panasonic and the sassy Western Bazaars with their “Hong Kong prices”. The impression has been created that the big guys simply want to milk every […]

The veterans who have n ever been given a chance and the young hopefuls all have the opportunity to represent their country now CRICKET: Jon Swift PERHAPS the most intriguing aspect of the upsurge of spirit and enthusiasm the South African cricket side took into the one-off Test against Pakistan at the Wanderers this week […]

The premiere of South Africa’s first full-length opera tops the bill at the Cape Town Opera Festival. Peter Frost reports COCKING a snook at the dark budgetry stormclouds brewing, Capab launched the Cape Town Opera Festival in the mother city this week. The festival, which runs until Febuary 5, combines local and international talent, and […]

The CP is hoping to use the local government elections to win back supremacy of the rightwing, writes Jan Taljaard NOT shouting it out too loud, the Conservative Party is hoping to once again enter the race for rightwing supremacy after being virtually sidelined from mainstream politics. And it hopes to achieve this by gathering […]

The government’s attempts to push through a politically attractive health plan are being shot down. Pat Sidley reports THE government’s controversial plans for a national health insurance scheme face a determined challenge from several influential quarters. A crucial meeting on Monday will determine the nature of an inquiry into the plan, who will join the […]

Justin Pearce WESTERN CAPE environment and tourism MEC Lerumo Kalako has spent the past week defending himself against smears made by a man who allegedly masqueraded as an official in his department. Kalako has promised to sue Nick Malherbe, who has publicly accused him of misappropriating public money. Malherbe made these accusations claiming to be […]

CRICKET: Paul Martin PAKISTAN’S speed twins say “Hello” and “How are things?” to each other these days. The fact that Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis, arguably the world’s pre-eminent fast-bowling combination, have been exchanging pleasantries at all reflects a new maturity: they had been in opposite trenches during the Great Rebellion a year ago. Wasim […]