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/ 16 November 2006
The Public Finance Management Act has proved toothless in holding the executive to account for government departments and entities who fail to submit annual reports on time, the Democratic Alliance said. The DA said on Thursday that while the legislation had made tremendous contributions in modernising the way government managed public finances, it was now due for an overhaul.
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/ 16 November 2006
Iran’s president said on Thursday his country was about to take the ”final step” in its nuclear programme, in a fresh statement defying United Nations calls to halt work the West believes is aimed at building atomic bombs. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad did not say what the final step was, but he repeated comments he made this week that Iran would celebrate its ”right to nuclear technology” by March.
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/ 16 November 2006
Politicians on all sides called for calm on Thursday after Joseph Kabila was declared the winner of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s (DRC) bitterly fought presidential election. Kabila took 58,05% of the vote in the October 29 second-round ballot, compared with 41,9% for his rival, Vice-President Jean-Pierre Bemba, the country’s Independent Electoral Commission said.
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/ 16 November 2006
Private security companies have to do more to ensure the safety of their employees, particularly during cash-in-transit heists, government ministers said on Thursday. Replying to questions during a media briefing at Parliament, Deputy Home Affairs Minister Malusi Gigaba said the police should not be the only ones to respond to increased crime over the festive season.
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/ 16 November 2006
The Department of Correctional Services plans to keep prisoners from escaping over the festive season by involving them in so-called "offender escapism". "Operation Vala" will see the tightening of security measures in prisons while channelling inmates’ attention towards recreational and sporting activities.
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/ 16 November 2006
Australian paranormal investigators on Thursday claimed an out-of-this-world response to a global ghost hunt to expand an eerie but under-explored body of knowledge. Tapping into an explosion of interest in phenomena that defy scientific explanation, researchers from Australia’s Monash University set up an online survey to assess their impact on individuals and society.
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/ 16 November 2006
The arrest of businessman Glen Agliotti clearly shows police National Commissioner Jackie Selebi ”in a good light”, Deputy Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development Johnny de Lange said on Thursday. Selebi, who has tried to downplay his friendship with Agliotti after initially saying that Agliotti was ”my friend, finish and klaar”.
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/ 16 November 2006
United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan pledged on Thursday to work to improve welfare in Africa, the world’s poorest continent, after he retires from his position later this year. On his last tours in Africa as the world body’s chief, Annan told participants at the fifth African Development Forum in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, that his farewell was ”not an adieu, but very much an au revoir”.
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/ 16 November 2006
Online enyclopedia Wikipedia was accessible again in China on Thursday after being blocked for more than a year, a move hailed by free media advocacy group Reporters Sans Frontières. China routinely blocks access to websites it deems subversive and filters internet pages for sensitive words.
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/ 16 November 2006
Presidents and prime ministers, kings, communists and one or two former generals — Apec brings together one of the world’s most diverse groups of leaders, who show unity with one of the world’s most unique fashion shows. After Sunday’s summit, the 21 Apec leaders will don Vietnam’s ao dai silk tunic for the closing ceremony.