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/ 22 October 2004
The list of Great South Africans should have, and could have, shed some light on the most pertinent questions of our time. But such a ranking needs to include all of South Africa. To ensure the participation of the majority of South Africans, involve all forms of the media in the process. Highlight the connotations of greatness so that the electorate can make informed votes.
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/ 22 October 2004
Looking up the television rugby details the other day, I was reminded how effectively sponsorship has inveigled its way into our activities and enterprises. The electronic programme guide announced: Absa Currie Cup: Investec Western Province Stormers versus Mobil Blue Bulls at Securicor Loftus. 17:00 on DStv SuperSport 2. Six-in-one – not bad.
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/ 22 October 2004
The HIV pandemic has proved a divisive force in several African countries, not least Zambia. While the question of whether to make HIV tests mandatory has sparked fierce debate in the country, another controversy is also afoot about the wisdom of releasing prisoners in the advanced stages of Aids. Since late 2001, more than 300 sick inmates have been freed by President Levy Mwanawasa on compassionate grounds.
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/ 22 October 2004
Supersport United are living up to their name under the tutelage of Pitso Mosimane. The youngest coach in the Premier Soccer League has taken a team that faced relegation four seasons ago to one that has been twice runners-up for the league title and has been in the top four for the past three seasons.
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/ 22 October 2004
When the appointment of a new coach elicits a response unapologetically laborious and manufactured, the end is near. Outrage, finger pointing and name-calling in media and public debate indicate the presence of a pulse. But the plastic, listless response to the appointment of Ray Jennings suggests that to most who care about the game, South African cricket has flatlined.
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/ 22 October 2004
It is a simple enough statement of fact to say that the Blue Bulls are the best provincial rugby team in South Africa. Whatever happens in this weekend’s final at Loftus, nothing will alter that fact. And to prove that it is a long way from being a flash in the pan, Heyneke Meyer’s team stands on the threshold of a third successive final victory.
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/ 22 October 2004
The British Cabinet risked the wrath of Labour Party backbenchers on Thursday by endorsing the dispatch of 650 Black Watch troops into a high-risk United States-controlled area south of Baghdad. The troops will move north shortly, and will be replaced by Scots Guards now based in Cyprus. The decision means the United Kingdom will increase the number of troops it has in Iraq by 600.
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/ 22 October 2004
A famous South African brand of flour claims that it is too fresh to flop. But to the chagrin of the brass at the SABC, whiteness and fluffiness don’t necessarily stave off deflating, fizzling, ignominious failures. Working off a British recipe, the national broadcaster was presumably hoping that its Great South Africans campaign would culminate in a warm, saccharine brownie of nation-building.
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/ 22 October 2004
They spearheaded the liberation struggle in the 1970s and were at the forefront of land reform in 2000. Now Zimbabwe’s war veterans are coveting parliamentary seats. Several senior members of the Zimbabwe War Veterans Association are keen to contest next March’s poll on the ruling Zanu-PF ticket, ostensibly to complete the gains of the liberation struggle.
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/ 22 October 2004
The Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) is almost desperate for a chance to dialogue with Zimbabwe’s ruling Zanu-PF and believes the acquittal of its leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, on treason charges ”provides that opportunity”. MDC Secretary General Welshman Ncube said that had Tsvangirai been jailed, it would have created ”numerous obstacles for nation-building”.