South African stocks were a mixed bag with a weaker bias at noon on Thursday, but brewer SABMiller climbed on above-forecasts year end earnings. At noon, the all-share index was down 0,16%. Resources fell 0,67%, the gold mining index was off 1,62% but the platinum mining index added 0,15%.
Fred van der Vyver is suing the government for R46-million after its failed bid to pin on him the murder of his girlfriend, Inge Lotz, the Times reported on Thursday. Van der Vyver, a Cape Town actuary, was acquitted in November last year. The judge dismissed the evidence against him as flimsy and criticised the police.
Johannesburg townships Alexandra and Diepsloot were tense on Thursday morning in the wake of xenophobic violence that has killed a number of people since the weekend, police said. Captain Louise Reed said one man was injured in a suspected mob attack in Diepsloot on Wednesday evening.
Vusi Ngcobo’s hat-trick helped Thanda Royal Zulu ease their relegation problems when they registered a hard-fought 3-2 win over Bidvest Wits in a thrilling Absa Premiership match at Absa Stadium, Durban, on Wednesday. The match started at a blistering pace with Royal Zulu pushing forward in numbers in search of the opener.
Bloemfontein Celtic were beaten 2-0 by Kaizer Chiefs at Loftus on Wednesday night in an Absa Premiership clash, with the Free State side outperformed by a team who playing their best soccer of the season. Amakhosi’s late surge has effectively earned them a place in next season’s Top Eight competition.
SuperSport United took a step closer to winning their first Absa Premiership title when they beat Golden Arrows 2-0 in their penultimate fixture of the season at Atteridgeville’s Super Stadium on Wednesday night. United led 1-0 at half-time. The win heaps pressure on second-placed Ajax Cape Town, who play Santos on Thursday night.
Former Fidentia boss J Arthur Brown was examined by a doctor and a psychiatrist on Wednesday after being beaten up by fellow prisoners, the Times reported on Thursday. Brown’s attorney, William Booth, said his client had been moved to a private clinic in Cape Town on Tuesday.
Calm returned to Alexandra township on Wednesday night after earlier clashes between police and residents. Hardly any activity was visible late in the night, besides the flashing blue lights of police patrol vehicles. The stand-off between the police and residents arose in the aftermath of xenophobic attacks in the township this week.
Jomo Cosmos will play in the National First Division next season after losing 2-0 to fellow relegation candidates Black Leopards in their penultimate Absa Premiership game at the Oppenheimer Stadium in Orkney on Wednesday. A goal by Myron Shongwe in the 18th minute and a strike on the stroke of half-time by Thabiso Hlalele sealed the fate of the luckless Cosmos.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) believes that the Bill abolishing the Scorpions and amalgamating them into a police directorate will dramatically undermine the fight against crime, and against organised crime in particular. ”As such, the DA will do all in its power to ensure that the Bill does not become law,” the party said on Wednesday.
The Johannesburg High Court will hear an urgent application brought by suspended South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) group chief executive Dali Mpofu on Thursday, a representative speaking on his behalf said. Mpofu has been tight-lipped over his planned court action against the SABC.
A report by six former South African National Defence Force generals might lead to action being taken to address the violence in Zimbabwe, Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Aziz Pahad said on Wednesday. He said President Thabo Mbeki was waiting for a report from the generals on the violence before considering appropriate action.
Employees of Nationwide have been left financially stranded because of technical issues surrounding the liquidation of the airline, the United Association of South Africa (Usasa) union said on Wednesday. A Uasa divisional manager said the difficulties arose because the Nationwide group consists of four subsidiaries.
The blackened fragments spread out on the table look at first glance like no more than a scattering of charcoal, left over from a long-dead fire. But on closer examination one sees that the fragments are grouped, and that each group has its own printed label. In one corner, in a plastic lunchbox-type container, are the smallest fragments of all.
A union representing South African soldiers is to take the country’s armed forces to court on Thursday over alleged discrimination against HIV-infected personnel, the union said on Wednesday. The South African Security Forces’ Union accuses the South African National Defence Force of discriminating against HIV-infected people.
There is no campaign to drive foreigners out of Alexandra, said African National Congress provincial chairperson Paul Mashatile on Wednesday outside the home of a victim of this week’s alleged xenophobic attacks in the Johannesburg township that have claimed three lives. Winnie Madikizela-Mandela also visited the township on Wednesday.
Lawyers for convicted murderers the Waterkloof Four have filed papers in the Pretoria High Court for an application for leave to appeal, it was reported on Wednesday. The four want to take their murder-conviction appeal to the Supreme Court of Appeal after they lost their first appeal case in the Pretoria High Court last week.
The South African economy could see a turnover in excess of R40-billion during the Soccer World Cup finals, which kick off at the new Soccer City in Johannesburg in June 2010. In an interview on Wednesday, chairperson of the 2010 local organising committee Irvin Khoza was upbeat that South Africa will host the best World Cup in history.
Demands from various quarters that South Africa stop its electricity exports to neighbouring countries amounted to ”economic xenophobia”, Public Enterprises Minister Alec Erwin said on Wednesday. Eskom’s customers outside South Africa would be treated exactly like any other customer with the same rights, and this would remain so.
Having fled the spiralling post-election violence in his native Zimbabwe, Given Sithole never imagined he would now be fearing for his life in what he saw as the safety of neighbouring South Africa. With tears dripping from his swollen right eye, Sithole recounts how he was caught in recent xenophobic attacks in Alexandra, north of Johannesburg.
The City of Johannesburg will appeal a high court ruling that found forcibly installing prepaid water meters is unconstitutional, mayor Amos Masondo said on Wednesday. In a speech prepared for delivery, Masondo said the city had consulted its lawyers, who had carefully considered the judgement regarding meters in Phiri, Soweto, and found that it was ”distorted”.
The drunken-driving case against 2010 Soccer World Cup chief security officer Linda Mti was postponed in the Hillbrow Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday until next month. State prosecutor Mabuse Monareng requested the postponement because the state witness was writing exams.
South African stocks remained firm at midday on Wednesday as merger talks surrounding BHP Billiton kept heavyweight miners buoyant, but easing metal prices weighed on other mining counters. At noon, the JSE’s broader all-share index was up 0,88% at 32 280,27.
In celebration of Nelson Mandela’s 90th birthday this year, youth parliaments will be held across the country, it was announced at the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund (NMCF) in Johannesburg on Wednesday. Speaking at the announcement was NMCF chief executive Sibongile Mkhabela and the former president’s daughter, Zinzi, who is a trustee of the fund.
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African National Congress (ANC) president Jacob Zuma’s rights to a fair and speedy trial have been violated with impunity, and the independence and credibility of organs of state have been severely compromised, the ANC Youth League said on Wednesday.
New Springbok coach Peter de Villiers is spoilt for choice ahead of the Springboks’ first Test of the year, against Six Nations champions Wales on June 7 in Bloemfontein. De Villiers, who took over from World Cup-winning coach Jake White at the beginning of the year, names his first South Africa squad on Saturday.
Eskom said on Wednesday that South Africa’s power supply remained limited and electricity prices were set to rise steadily. ”The system is still tight and vulnerable,” Eskom spokesperson Andrew Etzinger said in a presentation. ”Electricity prices are going to go up steadily.”
Two men were arrested while trying to sell an expensive diamond to a Durban businessman, police said on Wednesday. Captain Thembeka Luhtuli said police had seized the diamond — valued at an estimated R250 000 — in Winder Road on Tuesday afternoon.
Food retailer Spar has installed diesel generators at four of its six distribution centres, with generators to be installed at the remaining two distribution centres by the end of the financial year. The group released its unaudited interim results for the six months ended March 31 on Wednesday.
About 70 people spent a harrowing half hour in mid-air after fuses blew and cut power to the motor that hauls the Table Mountain cable cars, the Times reported on Wednesday. The chief executive of the company that runs the cableway, Sabine Lehmann, said two cars were stranded for 35 minutes when the fuses blew on Tuesday.
Two construction sites in Durban, including Tongaat Hulett Sugar, have been closed down as they were considered unsafe for workers, the Labour Department said on Tuesday. At Le Domaine Estates in Hillcrest, inspectors stopped the construction of houses located directly under high voltage power cables.
A Frenchman pretending to be the Reserve Bank Governor, Tito Mboweni, and his four accomplices have allegedly fleeced a foreign businessman of more than R2-million. Adam Toure and his cronies Mark Ezende, Alpheus Onabuenyi, Meleece Ayoba and her husband Franklin briefly appeared in the Randburg Magistrate’s Court this week on two charges of fraud.