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/ 29 January 2008
Springbok coach Pieter de Villiers, who is currently on a tour to address the players and coaching staff of all five of South Africa’s Super 14 franchises, will visit England coach Brian Ashton on his upcoming overseas tour — but he won’t have contact with any of the Springboks currently playing overseas.
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/ 29 January 2008
South Africa believes that no political ambition could justify the current cycle of violence in Kenya, Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Aziz Pahad said on Tuesday. Speaking at the Union Buildings, Pahad called on Kenyan political parties to rise above ”narrow political interests” and settle the conflict through dialogue.
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/ 29 January 2008
Mining company Rio Tinto will review plans for a major aluminium investment in South Africa as the country continues to suffer from serious power shortages — the first sign that the current crisis could hit foreign investment, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday.
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/ 29 January 2008
Home Affairs Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula has done her best to try to bring order and stability into the chaotic Home Affairs Department, MPs heard on Tuesday. ”The political responsibilities have been exercised boldly, and we are working towards an unqualified audit,” Deputy Home Affairs Minister Malusi Gigaba said.
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/ 29 January 2008
The Presidency on Tuesday denied that anti-apartheid activist John Minto had been nominated for a prestigious national order, which Minto said he would decline on the grounds that the situation in South Africa was worse than under white rule. Minto published a letter to President Thabo Mbeki on his website.
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/ 29 January 2008
Cheetahs coach Naka Drotske, in announcing his side to play the Sharks in a warm-up match in Bloemfontein on Friday night, has admitted that he was still undecided on a number of positions. Springbok Meyer Bosman gets the nod at inside centre ahead of Herkie Kruger, and former Bull Jacques-Louis Potgieter is preferred to Conrad Barnard at flyhalf.
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/ 29 January 2008
The mandate of about 1 000 South African soldiers deployed in Burundi under an African Union mandate is to be extended as efforts to get the last remaining rebel group to re-join the peace process gain momentum, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Aziz Pahad said on Tuesday.
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/ 29 January 2008
Anglo Platinum, the world’s largest platinum producer, on Wednesday said it was able to operate its mines at full capacity with 80% of its power needs. Spokesperson Trevor Raymond said the company’s smelting and refining operations remained in standby mode.
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/ 29 January 2008
South Africans can expect current load-shedding by Eskom to continue, if not worsen, for at least the next four weeks. Eskom, which met major industrial customers and the six metro mayors on Tuesday, proposed a three-phase recovery period that would include load-shedding, at least in the initial phase.
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/ 29 January 2008
Stephen Rosen, described in court as a ”trained con artist,” was on Tuesday effectively jailed for six years on 101 charges of fraud and theft and three of unlawfully acting as an attorney and advocate. He was warned he would be declared a habitual criminal if again found guilty of any offence involving dishonesty.
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/ 29 January 2008
More than 5 000 public servants have been convicted for defrauding the South African Social Security Agency, Social Development Minister Zola Skweyiya said on Tuesday. In April 2005, Skweyiya tasked the Special Investigating Unit with investigating fraud and corruption which then plagued the social-grant system.
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/ 29 January 2008
An African National Congress MP on Tuesday proposed that prostitution be legalised during the 2010 Soccer World Cup. The suggestion of George Lekgetho was met with groans of protest and chuckles from other MPs at the portfolio committee on arts and culture in Parliament.
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/ 29 January 2008
It is critical that South Africans respond to the energy-saving proposals made by the government for industrial, commercial and residential consumers, the African National Congress (ANC) said on Tuesday. ”The success of the programme taken by the government … depends on the contribution of all South Africans and sectors,” the ANC said.
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/ 29 January 2008
Widespread media attention over the health risks associated with paddling the Hansa Powerade Dusi Canoe Marathon has resulted in the appointment of a consultant to oversee actions to be taken in order to make the race safer for canoeists. This was announced on Tuesday by chairperson of the race organisers, Cameron Mackenzie.
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/ 29 January 2008
Positive sentiment flowing through from world markets and a boost from the platinum mining sector helped support the JSE on Tuesday. Speculation that mines could return to production after operations had been halted the last few days because of power supply concerns, underpinned the rally in the mining and resources sector.
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/ 29 January 2008
The Zimbabwean Ministry of Industry and International Trade will within the next 40 days open ”people’s shops” countrywide after the Cabinet last week approved the concept, the government mouthpiece Herald newspaper reported on Tuesday. The people’s shops ”will provide basic commodities aimed at the very low-income earners”.
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/ 29 January 2008
Charges have been laid against the owners of an historical church in KwaZulu-Natal’s (KZN) Ixopo area after it was demolished over the festive season, the province’s heritage body said on Tuesday. mafa/Heritage KwaZulu-Natal CEO Barry Marshall said the church dated back to the closing years of the 19th century.
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/ 29 January 2008
The world’s third-biggest gold producer said on Tuesday it had restarted production at one of its mines, although a power shortage that has curbed output from South Africa’s mining sector remained largely unresolved. AngloGold Ashanti said it had diverted its power-supply allocation to resume full production at one of its seven South African mines.
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/ 29 January 2008
The Independent Democrats (ID) said on Monday it would bring a motion of no confidence against President Thabo Mbeki and his Cabinet for failing to avert power cuts that have forced some industries to shut down. ID leader Patricia de Lille accused Mbeki of having ignored warnings about the crunch in electricity supplies.
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/ 29 January 2008
South Africa’s critical electricity crunch has raised doubts over whether infrastructure can keep pace with an economic boom while the country prepares to host the 2010 Soccer World Cup tournament. South Africa is gripped by traumatic power cuts that have brought the mining industry, mainstay of the economy, to a halt.
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/ 28 January 2008
President Thabo Mbeki has taken opposition leader Helen Zille into his confidence on the case of police National Commissioner Jackie Selebi and on other contentious issues, she said on Monday. She met Mbeki at the Union Buildings in Pretoria for talks that lasted for longer than two hours.
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/ 28 January 2008
The Public Protector, Lawrence Mushwana, has written to the Democratic Alliance to explain that he will not release a report on the merits of the case for reopening the Oilgate investigation because it is still the subject of a court case. Last week, DA spokesperson Motlatjo Thetjeng said it had been nine months since the DA first wrote to Mushwana about the issue.
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/ 28 January 2008
A protest held by the Biafra National Congress outside the Nigerian high commission in Pretoria on Monday called for the for ”immediate and unconditional” release of Ralph Uwazuruike, leader of the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra. This was in addition to a call for recognition of the independent state of Biafra.
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/ 28 January 2008
Private hospitals have disputed claims that they make exorbitant profits. ”The private hospital sector … offers the lowest returns on invested capital in the healthcare chain system,” the Hospital Association of South Africa said on Monday. Chief executive Kurt Worrall-Clare said the profitability of a business could not be evaluated by looking at its income alone.
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/ 28 January 2008
Private hospitals are committed to making their facilities accessible and affordable to the public at large, the Hospital Association of South Africa (Hasa) said on Monday. ”The assumption that only medical-aid beneficiaries consult in the private sector is inaccurate,” said Kurt Worrall-Clare, Hasa CEO.
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/ 28 January 2008
South Africa’s mining industry could lose up to R9,2-billion in revenue and the country’s GDP could take a knock of up to R5,6-billion as a result of the power restrictions imposed on mines by Eskom last week. T-Sec economist Mike Schussler estimates that the mining industry is losing about R330-million in revenues a day.
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/ 28 January 2008
Eskom’s monopoly was the main cause of South Africa’s electricity problems and the solution lay in independent power producers (IPP), the DA said on Monday. While provision was made for IPPs to generate up to 30% of South Africa’s total electricity output, it had to be sold to Eskom and not to other users, party MP Hendrik Schmidt told journalists.
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/ 28 January 2008
Democratic Alliance leader Helen Zille arrived for a meeting with President Thabo Mbeki at the Union Buildings just before 2pm on Monday. The electricity supply crisis, the indictment of African National Congress president Jacob Zuma and the prosecution of police National Commissioner Jackie Selebi were some of the agenda points for the talks.
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/ 28 January 2008
There is a mismatch in South Africa’s economy between the structural direction in which it is headed and its current skills profile, says Dr Azar Jammine, director and chief economist of Econometrix. While the economy is creating 194 000 jobs, according to formal-sector statistics, 368 000 students passed matric last year.
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/ 28 January 2008
The trial of three people accused of the murder of Avhatakali Netshisaulu, son of City Press editor Mathatha Tsedu, was postponed to July 28 at the Johannesburg High Court on Monday. Initially six people faced charges of murder, robbery with aggravating circumstances, kidnapping and malicious damage to property.
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/ 28 January 2008
James Kamte raised his hands in praise after scoring a breakthrough victory with an explosive five-birdie back nine to overhaul his rivals and win the R1,8-million Dimension Data Pro-Am at the Gary Player Country Club on Sunday. In doing so, Kamte also became the first black South African to win on the tough summer swing of the Sunshine Tour.
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/ 28 January 2008
Director and chief economist of Econometrix Dr Azar Jammine said on Monday that he was becoming a little nervous about the implications of the political environment — particularly views that economic policy will not be changed — on the ability of South Africa to keep attracting capital flows.