FOR Tiaan Strauss, at least, a tie was the perfect result. The former Springbok captain scored a hat-trick of tries on his Australian debut last weekend but found himself battling confusion while watching the thrilling World Cup cricket semi-final between his old country and his new one. Strauss and teammate Jason Little woke up most […]
OWN CORRESPONDENT, Johannesburg | Wednesday 12.45pm AUDITOR GENERAL Henri Kluever, South Africa’s widely respected watchdog of public accounts, announced on Wednesday that he is to step down from his post at the end of the year when his seven-year contract expires. He said that the Constitution does not allow him to serve a second term […]
MICHAEL METELITS, Johannesburg | Wednesday 5.00pm. SOUTH African markets fell on Wednesday in line with international trends. Overnight losses on Wall Street pulled the rug out from under Asian and European markets, and the signals spread southward from there. The all share lost 57 points, or 0,81%, while industrials lost 59 points or 0,77%. Financials […]
THERE are three newcomers to Northern Province’s reshuffled provincial cabinet, which was unveiled by Premier Ngoako Ramatlhodi on Tuesday four days after his inauguration last week. They include Catherine Mabuza and Joe Maswangani as MECs in two new departments created by a partial restructuring of the provincial government. Mabuza previously served in the National Council […]
MPUMALANGA’S former environmental affairs MEC Luckson Mathebula is due to appear in court for a second bail application on Thursday after being charged with the assassination of his estranged wife. The two gunmen who murdered Rose Aletta Mnisi in front of a group of primary school children are still at large but police arrested Mathebula […]
MONDAY, 6.30PM: AMID the gloom and doom of the last three days’ trading, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange denied all odds to execute a sharp turnaround on Tuesday afternoon, gaining 1,2% by close of trade, reports SARAH BULLEN. The edgy market opened flat for most of the morning session, with a slight uptick in afternoon trade. […]
TUESDAY, 12.30PM: BAFANA BAFANA midfielder John “Shoes” Moshoeu has criticised the South African Football Association after two players who were found guilty of indiscipline were sent home from the World Cup in disgrace. Midfielders Brendan Augustine and Naughty Mokoena were sent home after they defied coach Philippe Troussier’s orders, and went nightclubbing until the early […]
STANDARD Bank was the first commericial bank to drop its rates on Monday amid rising speculation that rates would drop before the day end. Some 15 minutes later, at 3.15pm the three Nedcor banks followed suit to drop prime by one percent to 18%. ABSA, First National Bank, NBS, Saambou and BOE in separate statements […]
THE KwaZulu-Natal Nature Conservation Service’s annual game auction, held in Mtubatuba at the weekend, raised more than R11-million for conservation and community development in the province. The takings were R1-million less than last year’s auction, but a record price was set for the sale of a white rhino mother and calf, which sold for R272000. […]
SOUTH Africa’s Oppenheimer gold and diamond dynasty is the world’s 227th richest family, with an estimated $2,2-billion fortune, according to Forbes magazine. Tobacco baron Johann Rupert is number 390 on the list, with a personal fortune of $1,3-billion. Microsoft chairman Bill Gates is still the world’s richest man, with a personal fortune estimated at some […]
SARAH BULLEN, Cape Town | Tuesday 4.45pm THE Johannesburg Stock Exchange lost some ground on Tuesday on a combination of profit taking after Monday’s strong run and generally lacklustre international markets. Banking and financial stock continued to ride out goodwill spurred by Monday’s prime rate cut, with the index rising 0,53%. The overall market ended […]
JUSTIN ARENSTEIN, Nelspruit | Wednesday 4.15pm. MPUMALANGA Premier Ndaweni Mahlangu owes the public a detailed explanation outlining why he appointed leaders to his cabinet who are admitted liars, the presiding bishop of the Methodist Church, Mvume Dandala, said on Wednesday. Dandala said Mahlangu’s planned apology for attempts to defend new finance MEC Jacques Modipane’s breach […]
DEBSWANA, the 50/50 diamond mining partnership between De Beers Centenary AG and the Botswana government, has reported a 21,8% drop in revenue to 5,4 billion pula for the last financial year. The drop for the year ending December 1998 is partially attributed to a 1,7% drop in the carat weight of stones recovered, from 20,12-million […]
AIR Namibia’s recent purchase of a brand new Boeing 747-400 Combi is being challenged by a rival plane manufacturer because a proper tendering process was not followed. Airbus Industrie has asked the German Embassy to help them secure a meeting with the Namibian Government to obtain an explanation on why Air Namibia dumped tender procedures […]
FIVE Nations champions Scotland on Friday named a strong line-up for their opening match against Border in East London on Monday. Coach Jim Telfor see a win in their first tour game as vital. Eleven of the team which plays Monday have represented Scotland before, with the halfback pairing of skipper Gary Armstrong and Craig […]
FOR the first time in three years, Wayne Ferreira goes into a Wimbledon championships fully fit with a good chance, says his coach, Kieren Vorster. “Wayne was injured at the French Open in 1997 and 1998 and went into Wimbledon with virtually no preparation at all. If he could make the third round in 1997 […]
OWN CORRESPONDENT, Colombo | Wednesday 9.15am. SRI Lanka’s Tamil Tiger guerrillas are planning to send a top leader to South Africa to seek Pretoria’s help in ending the island’s separatist war, a press report in the capital Colombo said on Wednesday. The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) plann to send the group’s ideologue, Anton […]
A CONSTANT stench of cat urine has prompted outraged residents in Newcastle, KwaZulu-Natal to create four privately funded air pollution testing stations in the coal mining town. The testing stations will be funded by donations from residents and local businesses and are designed to test for dust, sulphur dioxide and nitrous oxide. The stench in […]
JUSTIN ARENSTEIN, Nelspruit | Wednesday 4.15pm. MPUMALANGA Premier Ndaweni Mahlangu owes the public a detailed explanation outlining why he appointed leaders to his cabinet who are admitted liars, the presiding bishop of the Methodist Church, Mvume Dandala, said on Wednesday. Dandala said Mahlangu’s planned apology for attempts to defend new finance MEC Jacques Modipane’s breach […]
IN a diplomatic drive to promote transparency in regional elections, the Southern African Development Community’s Electoral Commission’s Forum is exploring the possibility of sharing technology to ensure a more efficient, open delivery of results in the 14 member states. Inspired by the high-tech display in the 2 June South African elections, where the Independent Electoral […]
THE wife of a Nelspruit magistrate who persistently failed to appear in court on 13 traffic violations, has been rewarded by having the fines against her reduced by half last week. Estelle Smit (39), wife of District Court Magistrate, Piet Smit, paid only R900 for the outstanding fines, instead of the total R1850. Senior public […]
UNITED States oil giant Texaco has suspended production activities in Nigeria’s Niger delta region after an attack by armed youths demanding compensation for an oil spill, a company official said on Tuesday. “We have suspended scheduled loadings for the week,” the official, who did not want to be named, blaming the decision on the attack […]
TUESDAY, 1.30PM: IN the face of rising panic over escalating interest rates, Reserve Bank governor Chris Stals and Finance Minister Trevor Manuel on Monday hastened to calm investors’ nerves by underlining their belief in South Africa’s economic fundamentals. Speaking at a business forum in Hamburg, Germany, on Monday, Stals said he does not expect the […]
KENYA’S Andrew Musuva outdueled Ethiopia’s Tesfaye Bekele and won the Grandma’s Marathon by four seconds in 2 hours, 13 minutes, 21 seconds on Saturday. Russian Fedro Ryjov was third at 2:13:32. Elena Makolova of Belarus set a course record in winning the women’s division in 2:29:12. Russian Albina Galliamova was runner-up at 2:30:02.
MOST government schools in Zimbabwe’s capital Harare were deserted on Friday as a strike by civil servants entered its third day. Teachers are among thousands of civil servants around the country striking for a 20% cost of living adjustment. Inflation in Zimbabwe is running at more than 50%. President Robert Mugabe on Thursday night described […]
OWN CORRESPONDENT, Johannesburg | Tuesday 4.00pm. MARIAAN DE SWARDT has no fear of Steffi Graf in their second-round bout at Wimbledon, and actually fancies her chances of an upset. The two are tied one-all after two previous matches. In 1992, Graf beat de Swardt 7-5 in a tight third set at Wimbledon, and in 1995 […]
FOURTEEN Zambian children face death by brain seizure after a dog suspected to have rabies bit them during a two day rampage in the country’s central province of Kabwe. The only way to avoid the fatal disease after exposure is immediate and relatively expensive treatment. “Victims of the mad dog’s rampage are in despair, as […]
OWN CORRESPONDENT, Johannesburg | Tuesday 1.30pm NEW regulations boosting the powers of ministers in managing their departments were launched in Pretoria on Tuesday. The public service management framework, which comes into effect on July 1, will enable ministers to create and abolish posts, as well as to recruit, appoint, promote, transfer and discharge employees. Deputy […]
PRESIDENT Mbeki’s office has begun advertising key positions, including that of presidential spokesperson. The post of chief director of communication will pay a basic R208326 for a person with “high-level managerial, communication and negotiation skills”, whose duties will include researching and writing speeches for the president. Mbeki’s current spokesperson, Ronnie Mamoepa, who is expected to […]
THE Judicial Service Commission has invited nominations for the positions of two judges president and twelve vacancies for judges in provincial divisions of the High Court. The vacancies for judges president are in the Eastern and Northern Cape divisions of the High Court. The provincial vacancies are: Cape – three; Natal – two; Transvaal – […]
THE State on Tuesday provisionally withdrew charges against two people accused of murdering 31-year-old teacher Nandi Mhlengo. Nkosisana Ximba and Ntambizini Mandazi were charged with the murder after Mhlengo was gunned down in full view of her Grade One pupils at a Olifantsvlei pre-primary school two weeks ago. Prosecutor Edward Engelbrecht said in the Johannesburg […]
JUSTIN ARENSTEIN, Nelspruit | Tuesday 5.56pm. A special tribunal serving the Heath Special Investigative Unit will permanently invalidate three illegal promissory notes worth over R340-million on Wednesday. The promissory notes were secretly issued along with at least three others last year to a series of dodgy financial brokers by the cash strapped Mpumalanga Parks Board. […]