Former South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) director general and sports commentator Steve de Villiers died in Johannesburg on Monday after a lengthy illness, his family said. He was 84. De Villiers’s career in broadcasting spanned more than 40 years.
An internal investigation has been completed into the conduct of South African Police Service officers at an accident scene near King William’s Town earlier this month where a truck carrying 211 pigs had overturned. Onlookers apparently stormed the truck and killed the pigs — of which some were still alive — for meat.
The South African Human Rights Commission’s (SAHRC) Johannesburg offices were burgled for the seventh time on Sunday, the commission said. ”The commission is concerned that the same gang of armed robbers could be responsible for these criminal activities,” a spokesperson said.
Narend Singh, the former KwaZulu-Natal arts, culture and tourism minister who resigned amid a sex scandal, is back, representing his party in the National Assembly, media reports said on Monday. Singh was sworn in on Friday to serve on the finance, agriculture and land affairs portfolio committees.
The Premier Soccer League (PSL) has received expressions of interest for its soccer radio broadcasting rights after cancelling its temporary radio agreement with the South African Broadcasting Corporation. The latest development follows the sale of television broadcasting rights to SuperSport for more than R1-billion.
Large veld fires forced the closure of the N3 highway near Harrismith and left hundreds of cattle dead on Monday. The fires and poor visibility were worst in the Swinburne and Montrose areas near Van Reenen’s Pass. At least one vehicle in the Van Reenen’s Pass area had caught alight and its occupants had to be rescued.
The national office of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) has once again called its Western Cape region to order, this time over a call to boycott all Chinese imports. Last week, the region called on its members and working-class communities ”to not purchase Chinese-made products”.
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) on Monday accused police of brutality by using excessive force during workers’ protests, saying they had fired tear gas and rubber bullets without warning. It said in a statement that rubber bullets were fired at striking mineworkers in the North West last week.
The preferred bidder to build and operate South Africa’s first private sector-owned power generation plants was announced by Minister of Minerals and Energy Buyelwa Sonjica on Monday. The AES Consortium — led by AES Pacific Ocean Holdings and several local companies — has been selected to build and operate the gas-turbine plants in Durban and Port Elizabeth.
Five months after the suspension of the Lotto, Trade and Industry minister Mpahlwa is yet to announce the date when it is to resume. Mpahlwa’s spokesperson, Vukani Mde, on Monday said the minister still had not made any announcement.
Five charges of tax fraud against retired mining mogul Roger Kebble were withdrawn in the Johannesburg Regional Court, the South African Broadcasting Corporation reported on Monday. Kebble was charged with tax evasion amounting to R7,2-million in March last year. The case was postponed at least eight times at the state’s request.
New land acquisitions have enlarged two of the Northern Cape’s national parks to more than 100Â 000ha. The parks’ bigger footprints will allow them to cope better with climate change, Environmental Affairs and Tourism Minister Marthinus van Schalkwyk said on Monday.
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The state conceded on Monday that a search-and-seizure warrant served on Julie Mahomed, a former attorney for Jacob Zuma, was invalid. It submitted in the Supreme Court of Appeal that even if ”an unlawful search and seizure” took place, other relevant aspects must be taken into account to preserve the seized material.
Jobs are being lost in South Africa because of bad attitudes to customers, training company BizTech said on Monday. ”Whether it’s slow delivery of infrastructure to people in poor areas, overcharging tourists or rude call-centre agents, South Africa’s poor customer service is developing a reputation that is stymying business.”
Table Mountain will be patrolled by police and guards from South African National Parks after a spate of muggings at the popular tourist spot, the Western Cape’s community safety department said on Monday. On Thursday a meeting will be held to discuss further security measures after at least 18 muggings were reported between January and August 2007.
South Africa’s rand firmed to a two-week high on Monday and bonds also strengthened as investors slowly returned to high-risk assets. At 06h45 GMT, the rand stood at 7,16 versus the dollar after firming to 7,1498 earlier — its strongest level since August 13, according to Reuters data.
Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang’s court record and hospital file relating to her years in exile in Botswana have disappeared — either lost or missing, the Star reported on Monday. However, the fact that Tshabalala-Msimang’s court file relating to her 1976 theft conviction cannot be found has caused a stir.
Actor Erik Holm, best known for his role in the soapie 7de Laan, was still in the intensive-care unit at a Pretoria hospital days after he broke his neck when he dived into a man-made lake in Secunda, it was reported on Monday. Holm (25) dived into the murky water at Secunda’s waterfront last Friday to retrieve a ball that he and a group of small children were playing with.
Grimm’s fairytales were more light-hearted — and probably more entertaining too — than the grim, goalless draw between Premier Soccer League champions Mamelodi Sundowns and Moroka Swallows at a wind-swept Germiston Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
An urgent meeting to discuss alleged irregularities around Parliament’s security will soon be convened by its speaker and the National Council of Provinces chairperson, South African Broadcasting Corporation radio news reported on Sunday. On Friday, media reports broke on an alleged corruption scandal involving Parliament’s multimillion-rand security system.
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The legal battle between former deputy president Jacob Zuma and South Africa’s National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) will continue this week in the Bloemfontein Supreme Court of Appeal. Security will be tight at the court where the state will on consecutive days argue in three search-and-seizure appeal hearings related to investigations against Zuma.
The African National Congress government is ruthlessly extracting every cent it can from former deputy minister of health Nozizwe Madlala-Routledge while the health minister is spending exorbitant amounts of public money unnecessarily on helicopters to travel around the Eastern Cape, the Democratic Alliance said on Sunday.
In a dramatic finale at the Spar Women’s Hockey Interprovincial Tournament, Western Province (WP) retained their title when they defeated Southern Gauteng on sudden-death penalty strokes at the Hartleyvale Astro in Cape Town on Saturday. The finalists were locked at 2-2 in regulation time.
The simmering and sometimes acrimonious dispute between Premier Soccer League champions Mamelodi Sundowns and Jose Torrealba took a positive and dramatic turn on Saturday when Fifa declared the Venezuelan international striker a Sundowns player.
Defending as though their lives depended on it during the final 40 minutes, a 10-man Jomo Cosmos secured a valuable 1-1 Premier Soccer League draw against Kaizer Chiefs at King’s Park Rugby Stadium on Saturday through a combination of true grit and their opponents’ aimless attempts to use their numerical advantage.
Sameehg Doutie, the 18-year-old winger sensation, was the hero of Ajax Cape Town’s 1-0 victory over Black Leopards in the Castle Premiership game at Cape Town’s Athlone Stadium on Saturday evening. There was drama late in the second half when the referee red-carded an Ajax substitute striker and a Leopards defender.
A man believed to have been the last person to see a boy before he was badly mutilated two weeks ago was found dead in Phela village in North West province on Friday, police said. The man’s body was found about 500m from the cattle post where he worked and where he last saw the boy.
A man was rescued on Saturday after he fell down a gorge on Table Mountain, shortly after an American tourist was rescued in the same spot, ER24 said on Saturday. ”In an action replay of today’s ‘slip and fall’, a second person fell in almost exactly the same spot,” said ER24 spokesperson Mark Stokoe.
Griquas recovered from a lethargic first half where they were trailing 22-24 against the Griffons to win their compulsory Currie Cup friendly rugby match in Welkom on Saturday 64-34. Spearheaded by Tobie Botes who first shined at flyhalf and then at scrumhalf, the Kimberley side simply overran their opponents.
Four tries by wing Giscard Pieters helped the Free State Cheetahs to a 52-19 win over the hapless Pumas in a compulsory friendly rugby match played at Nelspruit on Saturday. After leading only 19-7 at half-time, the Cheetahs opened the flood gates in the second with Pieters the obvious hero of the day.
Free State Stars’ Dio Sibisi scored a brace to help his team beat Lamontville Golden Arrows 2-0 in front of a sizeable crowd in their first Premier Soccer League game played at home at the Gobel Park Stadium on Saturday afternoon. Stars led 1-0 at the break. Striker Sibisi received a back pass in the 35th minute and struck a lightning shot.
Orlando Pirates coach Bibey Mutombo was whisked away in a police vehicle when his team lost 1-0 to Bidvest Wits FC in a Castle Premiership game at the Bidvest Stadium on Saturday afternoon. Marawaan Bantam scored in the 61st minute to seal victory for Wits and condemn Pirates to their second loss of the season.