The Constitutional Court on Thursday dismissed an application by fraud convict Schabir Shaik to have over R33-million of his assets returned. Justice Kate O’Regan concluded that the state had established that benefits ”flowed” to Shaik and his companies as a result of African National Congress president Jacob Zuma’s support and intervention.
The recent xenophobic violence cannot be attributed to a single factor and is not necessarily the work of a so-called ”third force”, government spokesperson Themba Maseko said on Thursday. ”In some cases, there is some evidence of copy-cat activities in which criminals took advantage of the news story to conduct criminal acts,” he said.
South African stocks remained modestly weaker at noon on Thursday, with banks weighing heavily on a deteriorating inflation outlook after worse-than-expected producer price inflation data and the South African Reserve Bank governor’s comments that the bank was considering a 200-basis-point interest-rate hike.
It’s freezing cold under a grey sky. Discarded pictures from a child’s colouring book swirl in the wind. A whistle blows and hundreds of people camping at the Jeppe police station scramble to form an unruly queue in front of huge, silver cooking pots. Supper is served; today it’s soup.
About 60 people were evacuated from the African National Congress (ANC) headquarters, Luthuli House in Sauer Street in Johannesburg, following a bomb scare that was received on Thursday morning. ”The switchboard received the bomb scare at 8am this morning … everyone in the building was then immediately evacuated,” said ANC spokesperson Steyn Speed.
South Africa’s electricity crisis will remain for years and power cuts will continue well into the future, Eskom said on Thursday. ”We are going to be in this [crisis] for years,” Eskom CEO Jacob Maroga said in Johannesburg. ”The threat of load-shedding is with us for some time.” Eskom has struggled to meet demand for electricity in Africa’s biggest economy.
Percy Montgomery on Wednesday signed a one-year contract with Western Province. Montgomery, who was the leading points scorer at last year’s Rugby World Cup in France, is hardly likely to play for the Province Currie Cup side due the heavy Springbok schedule over the next four months.
He was what could justifiably be termed a soccer ”natural”, instinctively going about his business on the field, doing the right thing at the right time. But the tragic death of likeable Wits University and former Bafana Bafana striker Abram Raselemane in Bloemfontein on Tuesday at a time when he was barely into his 30s was anything but natural.
Now is the time for budding Bafana Bafana stars to stand up and be counted as South Africa take on Nigeria in a tough 2010 African Nations Cup qualifier in Abuja on Sunday. Kick-off is at 5pm South African time. There is no Benni McCarthy, and three midfield aces in Teko Modise, Delron Buckley and Lerato Chabangu are all nursing an assortment of injuries.
Two weeks of anti-foreigner violence in South Africa have highlighted the growing disconnect between a public impatient for change and a governing party that claims a divine right to rule. Although there is little prospect of the African National Congress (ANC) losing next year’s elections, genuine signs of anger have emerged during the crisis.
The Congress of South African Trade Unions on Wednesday elected S’dumo Dlamini to take over as president after the sacking of its embattled president, Willie Madisha. This was announced by Cosatu general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi at a press briefing after the union’s three-day central executive committee meeting in Johannesburg.
The border between South Africa and Zimbabwe should be ”comprehensively” abolished, Methodist Bishop Paul Verryn told academics at the University of the Witwatersrand on Wednesday. ”In exactly the same way we pulled down the fences in 1994 and found that instead of restricting, it enabled,” Verryn told a colloquium on xenophobia.
South African Reserve Bank Governor Tito Mboweni said on Wednesday that the task of the central bank is to maintain inflation in the 3% to 6% target band, and with CPIX (consumer inflation less mortgage costs) now at 10,4%, "drastic" measures are required. "This is way above the upper limit — you don’t have to be a genius to tell interest rates have to tighten," he said.
Business across the continent is set to become harder for South Africans, following the wave of xenophobic attacks against foreigners in the past few weeks.
This is according to businessman and president of Business Leadership South Africa Saki Macozoma.
The Competition Commission on Wednesday laid perjury charges against the managing executive of Adcock Ingram Critical Care at the Sunnyside police station in Pretoria. The commission said it had laid charges against Arthur Barnett for allegedly ”committing the common law crime of perjury”. He allegedly ”knowingly” provided false information to the commission.
The death toll for the Eastern Cape bus crash stood at 22, including five children, police announced on Wednesday. The bus — which belongs to a private bus company — careened down a 200m embankment into a river near the town of Cedarville on Tuesday. During the course of the day, there were conflicting reports of how many people had been killed, ranging from 20 to 30.
JP Pietersen’s lack of form in the Super 14 season has cost him a place in the Springbok squad that was named in Somerset West on Wednesday. The Sharks’ World Cup-winning wing failed to score a try in the 2008 series after he finished the 2007 Super 14 season as the leading try scorer.
The Scorpions had spoken to the attorney acting for former Fidentia boss J Arthur Brown about a plea agreement, it emerged in the Cape High Court on Wednesday. The revelation came in an application by Brown and his wife, Susan, to have warrants for their arrest obtained by the Scorpions on April 3 declared invalid.
The government has denied deciding to set up refugee camps for foreigners displaced by xenophobic violence. Reports suggesting such a move were ”baseless and therefore not true”, it said on Wednesday. ”The government has noted with concern media reports that the Cabinet has taken a decision to establish refugee camps,” a statement said.
New Bafana Bafana coach Joel Santana passed his first test in charge of the national squad when he put his foot down and decided to withdraw troublesome striker Benni McCarthy from next month’s four 2010 African Nations Cup qualifying matches. Santana and his technical team met with the temperamental Blackburn Rovers striker on Wednesday afternoon.
The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) and the South African Police Service are hard at work repairing their relationship ahead of a planned merger with the Scorpions, NPA acting head Mokotedi Mpshe said on Wednesday. ”We’re focusing primarily on salvaging whatever relations there are,” Mpshe told reporters in Johannesburg.
Kumba’s chief executive officer Ras Myburgh will resign from his position to begin a secondment with Eskom for two years. ”He will be assuming the important responsibility of advising the utility on its long-term coal sourcing strategy, and its implementation for all of Eskom’s power stations, ” Kumba said in a statement.
Johannesburg businessman Hugh Glenister has instructed his legal team to apply to the Constitutional Court for an order to prevent the government from disbanding the Scorpions. This was after the Pretoria High Court on Wednesday struck his application from the roll, saying it did not have the jurisdiction to decide on the matter.
The Department of Home Affairs said on Wednesday it planned to establish shelters for foreigners who have fled xenophobic attacks over the last two weeks. The BBC reported on Wednesday that seven ”refugee camps” would be set up. By Monday night there were an estimated 17Â 000 displaced foreigners left in Johannesburg.
Murder accused Andrew Jordaan on Wednesday closed his case without calling any further witnesses to support his claims of innocence in the murder of seven-year-old Sheldean Human. This was after the defence counsel earlier indicated that Jordaan wanted to call a further witness, but closed his case without further explanation.
The Pretoria High Court on Wednesday turned down the so-called Waterkloof Four’s application for leave to appeal their convictions. The court earlier refused to overturn the conviction and sentence of the four, who were found guilty of murder and assault and sentenced to 12 years in prison.
South Africa’s targeted CPIX (consumer inflation less mortgage costs) rate quickened unexpectedly to a near five-and-a-half year high of 10,4% year-on-year in April from 10,1% in March, official data showed on Wednesday. Mike Schussler, economist at T-Sec, said: ”That seals the case for interest-rate hikes. Inflation continues to shock.”
South Africa’s swim stars are set to gather in Cape Town this weekend for the final national swimming camp in home waters before they take up the challenge in a series of international galas prior to competing at the Beijing Olympic Games in August.
Veteran Bafana Bafana midfield hard man Macbeth Sibaya has a simple plan for beating Nigeria when the two enemies meet in a crunch 2010 African Nations Cup group four qualifier in Abuja on Sunday. The Russia-based midfield destroyer says the formula for victory over the Super Eagles is to stick to new coach Joel Santana’s game plan.
Seven refugee camps are to be set up around the country for foreigners who have fled xenophobic attacks in South Africa, the BBC reported on Wednesday. The holding camps will take up to 70Â 000 people from increasingly unsanitary conditions at temporary shelters put up around state and municipal buildings and police stations.
South African stocks were sharply lower at noon on Wednesday, weighed by miners on falling metal prices and banks after worse-than-expected inflation data.
At noon, the all-share index tumbled 1,26%. Resources fell 2,14%, the gold and platinum mining indices gave up 2,42% and 2,78% respectively.
Johannesburg businessman Hugh Glenister’s bid to stop the government from disbanding the Scorpions has failed. The Pretoria High Court on Wednesday struck his application from the roll, saying it was not in its jurisdiction to rule on the matter.