The Democratic Alliance (DA) said on Sunday it would again write to National Assembly Speaker Baleka Mbete to request that she reconsider her decision to turn down a request for a special sitting of Parliament to debate the crisis in Zimbabwe. DA chief whip Ian Davidson said his party believed that President Thabo Mbeki’s policy on Zimbabwe had been a failure.
Democratic Alliance leader Helen Zille on Friday urged President Thabo Mbeki and national conventional arms-control committee chairperson Sydney Mufamadi to stop the transfer of arms aboard a ship, the An Yue Jiang, in Durban harbour to Zimbabwe. The ship has been at anchor off the port of Durban since Monday.
After a contamination scare on Friday morning, residents of northern Johannesburg can now safely drink their tap water again, Johannesburg Water said. During routine water testing, a "possible compromise" of the quality of drinking water in several suburbs had been detected.
Residents in northern Johannesburg areas were on Friday warned not to drink tap water as the quality was not up to standard, Johannesburg Water said. Spokesperson Baldwin Matsimela said during routine sampling on Thursday, it was found that the water supply was not up to standard.
Opposition to a shipment of arms being offloaded in Durban and transported to Zimbabwe increased on Thursday when South Africa’s largest transport workers’ union announced that its members would not unload the ship. A government spokesperson said the country could not stop the shipment from getting to its destination.
The Erasmus commission’s sittings have been suspended pending the City of Cape Town’s application to the Cape High Court challenging the commission’s legality. This emerged after a day of behind-the-scenes negotiations on Wednesday between the legal representatives of the various parties involved.
The Erasmus commission is facing three new urgent interdicts to put its activities in Cape Town on hold, prompting commission chairperson Judge Nathan Erasmus to adjourn proceedings on Tuesday afternoon. The interdicts are expected to be heard in the Cape High Court on Wednesday morning.
The African National Congress (ANC) on Tuesday accused the Democratic Alliance (DA) of a persistent hatred towards it following a meeting between the parties on the future of the Scorpions. ”The only thing the DA and the Scorpions have in common is their persistent hatred of the ANC,” ANC secretary general Gwede Mantashe said.
Erasmus commission chairperson Judge Nathan Erasmus on Monday dismissed an application by the City of Cape Town for the commission’s suspension. The commission was set up by Western Cape Premier Ebrahim Rasool last year to probe the city’s own investigation of renegade councillor Badih Chaaban.
The fate of the Scorpions will be discussed at a meeting between African National Congress (ANC) general secretary Gwede Mantashe and Democratic Alliance (DA) leader Helen Zille, the DA said on Monday. The opposition leader called for a meeting with the ANC after a decision was taken to ”dissolve” the Scorpions and incorporate them into the police.
It is possible that the crime-fighting Scorpions may not be incorporated into the South African Police Service by June, African National Congress national executive committee Siphiwe Nyanda said on Thursday. He was speaking at a seminar hosted by the Institute for Security Studies in Pretoria.
Deputy Safety and Security Minister Susan Shabangu must be fired for her comments that police should shoot and kill criminals, the Democratic Alliance (DA) said on Thursday. ”Minister of Safety and Security Charles Nqakula has no choice but to fire her with immediate effect,” DA spokesperson Dianne Kohler-Barnard said.
Efforts to push legislation through Parliament to disband the Scorpions are falling behind schedule, the deputy president’s office said on Thursday. ”It’s mainly because of consultation … which has taken much longer than was thought,” said Thabang Chiloane, spokesperson for Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka.
Claims by chairperson of the Forum for Black Journalists (FBJ) Abbey Makoe following a South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) finding against the FBJ — which Makoe labelled a ”judicial ambush” — are mischievous and untruthful, the SAHRC said on Wednesday.
South Africa should use its powerful position on the United Nations Security Council to put the Zimbabwean election saga on the international body’s agenda, Democratic Alliance leader Helen Zille said on Wednesday. Zille, who is currently in New York, said in a statement she would meet South Africa’s ambassador to the United Nations.
There is an urgent need to double electricity prices over the next two years, Eskom tells the National Electricity Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) in its recent application for a tariff hike. Nersa made an edited version of Eskom’s application available on its website on Tuesday.
The City of Cape Town has launched a high court challenge to the legality of the Erasmus commission, city speaker Dirk Smit announced on Tuesday. The commission was set up by Western Cape Premier Ebrahim Rasool last year to probe the city’s own investigation of renegade councillor Badih Chaaban.
The Democratic Alliance and trade union Solidarity want Eskom to release a full, unedited report of its application for a 53% tariff increase, they said on Tuesday. The application was due to have been published at noon on Tuesday on the website of the National Energy Regulator of South Africa.
Opposition parties on Monday criticised President Thabo Mbeki’s assessment of Zimbabwe’s elections. Mbeki’s remarks, made in Britain on Sunday, indicated he was either woefully out of touch with reality in Zimbabwe or he was attempting to ”deliberately mislead the world’s media”, the Democratic Alliance’s Dianne Kohler-Barnard said.
Eskom has signed a five-year agreement to import an additional 250MW of power from Mozambique’s Cahora Bassa hydroelectric dam, the company announced on Monday. ”We are trying to squeeze as much capacity out of every resource,” said Eskom spokesperson Andrew Etzinger. The agreement was signed on Thursday April 3.
Democratic Alliance (DA) leader Helen Zille on Friday accused the African National Congress (ANC) of shutting down the space for free and informed debate. Writing in her weekly newsletter, Zille said recent events suggested the image of openness that ANC president Jacob Zuma was cultivating was just a smokescreen for closing down the public space.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) on Thursday called for a speedy, comprehensive investigation into the death of the deputy president of Swaziland’s main opposition movement, Gabriel Mkhumane. The South African Broadcasting Corporation reported that Mkhumane was shot dead in Nelspruit, Mpumalanga, on Wednesday.
The death toll in a bus accident near the Lebombo border post has risen to 17, with 24 injuries reported, Komatipoort police said on Thursday. Constable Richard Khumalo said seventeen bodies had been pulled from the wreckage and emergency services were still searching for more. Of the 24 people taken to hospital, 14 have been discharged.
African National Congress (ANC) secretary general Gwede Mantashe has agreed to meet the Democratic Alliance (DA) to discuss the future of the Scorpions, DA leader Helen Zille said on Wednesday. ”Unfortunately, Mr Mantashe’s letter indicates that [ANC president] Jacob Zuma will not be attending the meeting, as I originally requested,” she said in a statement.
A Cape Town councillor who allegedly encouraged the invasion of new homes at Delft on the Cape Flats is to go before a disciplinary committee, city speaker Dirk Smit said on Tuesday. Smit said in a statement that he had completed his own probe into whether the councillor, Frank Martin, had breached the councillors’ code of conduct.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) expressed disappointment on Tuesday over Gauteng Premier Mbhazima Shilowa’s decision not to hold a commission of inquiry into the affairs of the department of agriculture, conservation and environment. DA spokesperson Jack Bloom said it was ”discourteous” to hear of the decision through the media.
Zimbabwe’s opposition was level with President Robert Mugabe’s party and two of his ministers lost their seats on Monday as election results trickled out, but counting delays fuelled suspicions of rigging. The opposition Movement for Democratic Change said unofficial tallies showed Morgan Tsvangirai had 60% of the presidential vote.
Democratic Alliance leader Helen Zille on Monday again asked African National Congress president Jacob Zuma for a meeting to discuss the Scorpions’ future. ”In a press interview published on the weekend, Jacob Zuma declared that he is willing to ‘debate anything’ — even the future of the Scorpions,” said Zille.
Zimbabwe’s justice minister lost his seat on Monday and first election results showed the opposition level with President Robert Mugabe’s party, but delays to most results fuelled opposition suspicions of vote rigging. Results of the parliamentary election began trickling out on Monday, 36 hours after polls closed.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) on Monday called for a constitutional amendment to grant school principals the power to appoint teachers. Presenting proposals on education, party spokesperson George Boinamo said school principals could only be held accountable for the performance of their schools if they were given the power to hire and fire teachers.
Zimbabweans woke up on Monday morning still not knowing if a new future had dawned on the country plagued by political and economic strife. On Sunday night, the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission headquarters — called the national command centre — was deserted while the commission insisted it was verifying votes.
Zimbabwe’s opposition Movement for Democratic Change and ruling Zanu-PF were running neck-and-neck, according to the first election results issued by the Electoral Commission on Monday. The commission started announcing the results from Saturday’s election shortly before 7am after a long delay.