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/ 25 October 2006

Mthatha in dire straits

The Eastern Cape’s third-largest local municipality is bogged down by political paralysis and a financial crisis that has it on the verge of collapse, a local government report has revealed. Presented to the province’s Local Government and Traditional Affairs Minister Sam Kwelita in August, the report, titled Progress on the Implementation of the Municipal Recovery Plan, paints a grim picture of the King Sabata Dalindyebo municipality.

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/ 25 October 2006

Hospital costs ‘should be 70% lower’

Hospital costs are now almost 70% higher than they should be, because of the increased market dominance of a few private hospitals. This is the argument of the Council for Medical Schemes, which, along with Netcare, is opposing Medi-Clinic’s proposed takeover of four hospitals in the Vaal Triangle. Competition Tribunal hearings into the matter were held recently.

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/ 25 October 2006

Hong Kong restaurant boasts robot staff

With a whir and a flash of lights, a robot whizzes to the restaurant table and takes a customer’s order, while a second races to another table to deliver plates of steaming food. This isn’t a scene from a science-fiction novel. Rather, it’s the daily routine at a new diner in a suburban Hong Kong shopping centre.

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/ 25 October 2006

Bush warns Iraqis that patience has limits

United States President George Bush, under fire from voters over his policies in Iraq, declared on Wednesday that patience had its limits but said he would not put unbearable pressure on Iraq’s leaders to end the bloodshed. Speaking at the White, Bush said the US was determined to stay the course in Iraq but with adjusted tactics to confront a changing enemy.