South African gold mining group DRDGold confirmed on Friday that a class action lawsuit had been filed in the United States against the company, its chief executive and chief financial officer. The lawsuit alleges that the company made certain false and misleading statements between October 23 2003 and February 24 2005.
John Smit says he, Os du Randt and Eddie Andrews had the beating of France in Durban last weekend. And who are we to doubt the Springbok skipper? He was right there in the middle, after all. What is a little hard to swallow is that most of us watching the game could see quite clearly that this was patently not the case.
Economists have warned that the recent extension of targeted sanctions against Zimbabwe by the European Union (EU) is likely to further isolate an already weak economy. Deputy information minister Bright Matonga said that the government was unperturbed by the EU decision.
Zuma’s jackboot bulldozing President Thabo Mbeki had no choice but to dismiss Jacob Zuma. Right? Wrong! There were several alternatives to deal with a man with struggle credentials second to none and a more affable personality than any other in government. As deputy president, he deserved to be treated with dignity befitting his status, not […]
South Africa and Malaysia focussed attention on the need to collectively promote fair global trade regimes and the reform of the Bretton Woods institutions at the first Malaysia-South Africa joint commission meeting held this week. The first commission meeting was held "in an atmosphere of friendship and co-operation", said Foreign Affairs department spokesperson Ronnie Mamoepa.
Some three billion years ago, planetary explosions saw stars fall from the sky into the oceans that flanked Godwanaland, the great land mass of our infant planet. Deep below the waves, the carbon of shattered stars merged with the Earth’s mantle to form hard crystalline diamonds.
President Thabo Mbeki has opted for a minimalist Cabinet reshuffle after the promotion of minister of minerals and energy Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka to Deputy President, but he has sent some signals on the management of the economy.
Regulation cost South African firms R79-billion in 2004. This is the bottom-line result of Small Business Project’s pioneering study of regulatory compliance costs to the South African private sector, from large corporations through small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to the informal sector.
South African media and entertainment group Johnnic Communications lifted headline earnings by 129% from R177-million to R406-million for the year ended in March. This translates into headline earnings per share of 390 cents compared with 170 cents the previous year, which exceeded the I-Net Bridge consensus forecast of 279,5 cents.
Malawi has launched a comprehensive welfare plan to mitigate the impact of poverty and HIV/Aids on its estimated one million orphans.
I thought we’d explore the incredibly fascinating and cutting edge concept of charred bread this week. You might find it hard to believe, in fact, just how seriously some people take the concept of toast. From creating a montage of 3053 pieces of toast, to the novel concept of Frozen Toast, Fraser has found it all.
Absa bank stands to be the biggest loser should the Competition Commission start an investigation into banking fees in South Africa, and this could have implications for Barclays if the deal goes ahead. The Falkena report, which analysed competition in local banking, has called for increased competition but it is unlikely the Barclays deal will start a price-cutting war.
World number two gold miner AngloGold Ashanti on Tuesday said that following a review of its exploration activities in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), it believed that its presence improved the country’s economic prospects and reinforced the country’s peace process.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair has welcomed the G8 business summit on Africa which will be held on the eve of the G8 Summit in Gleneagles, Scotland. Part of the G8 programme of events, the G8 Business Action for Africa Summit will bring together business leaders from Africa and across the G8.
In making its presentation on the Convergence Bill on Tuesday, Saudi-held mobile firm Cell C noted that there is a conflict in the lack of separation of the roles of policy formulation versus policy implementation and proposed that such issues be dealt with by the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa).
Encompassing subsidiary companies Nedbank and Mutual & Federal, Old Mutual’s black economic empowerment (BEE) deal, announced in April, was among the biggest and broadest-based ever. It also displayed some unusual and innovative features, such as a BEE holding in the London-listed company rather than the local company and the involvement of customers.
The director general in the presidency, Frank Chikane, has been asked by an opposition MP to investigate whether the Minister of Social Development, Zola Skweyiya, may have contravened the Executive Members’ Ethics Act. The question has been raised of whether a payment to Skweyiya constitutes an attempt to buy influence.
The Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism will — by the end of July — appoint a service provider to identify the top 50 air polluting industries or sectors in South Africa, said Minister Environmental Affairs and Tourism Marthinus van Schalkwyk on Monday. "The web of life is more than just a poetic idea, it is a reality that defines our biggest social, economic and developmental challenges," he said.
The wheels have definitely come off this thing. This week I have had to report to a bunch of youth-like characters who have temporarily taken over the editorship of this newspaper – all in the name of Youth Day. I suppose things could have been worse. And I guess you have to remember that we were all youths once, sometime way back in the mists of time.
Xa wonile … wonile Whether Deputy President Jacob Zuma should resign should not depend on his being tried and found guilty. If the accusations of his inability to live within his means are true (exposing him to the risk of a conflict between his official responsibilities and private interests); if he has been found by […]
The board of directors of Stilfontein Gold Mining Company Limited — including Brett and Roger Kebble — have resigned en masse following the failure by AngloGold Ashanti to nominate new directors to the Stilfontein board. Stilfontein is unable to pay the R1,8-million a month the Johannesburg High Court ordered it to contribute to pumping costs in the Kosh basin.
It’s that time of year when there’s nothing better than to curl up somewhere warm with a book … Here is the <i>Mail & Guardian</i>’s handy guide to new books on the shelves this winter.
The international animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals on Friday launched its annual "Who is the Sexiest Vegetarian?" online poll to promote the vegetarian lifestyle. Front-runners include celebrities Avril Lavigne, Gwyneth Palthrow and Christian Bale.
It’s a mystery why there are still seats available for the first Test against France. The match in Durban will, after all, show whether this season’s Springbok can bring home the Tri-Nations title. Should it come together for the boks, they will go into next week’s test sore and bruised but with the assurance they’ve passed the acid test.
Aids has accelerated the death rate in Swaziland, causing home-based hospice care to expand into an entire support system for affected families. According to the health ministry, the country has the world’s highest HIV prevalence rate, with 42,6% of its adult population infected. Fifteen years ago, hospice patients were primarily cancer victims; now a substantial number are HIV-positive.
To use a line of Shakespeare’s, it was the best of times and the worst of times. It was early June in 2005 and my personal Boeing was in for its annual five million kilometre airworthiness check. This meant I was marooned in South Africa for a whole consecutive 10 days.
For shame. Have you no compassion, you sniping cynics? Where is your decency, you huddled neoconservatives? Honestly. What chance did poor Bob Geldof and his co-pensioners stand against your spleen? Did you not feel a single tinge of remorse as you condemned his Live 8 concert as nothing more than a desperate attempt to revive his own moribund career?
It may just be the scariest job in politics, but someone is going to have to say yes when President Thabo Mbeki asks him or her to take over Jacob Zuma’s office at the Union Buildings. Defence Minister Mosiuoa Lekota and Finance Minister Trevor Manuel, both former leaders of the United Democratic Front, are among the leading candidates for the most dangerous job in politics.
Ailing defence parastatal Denel faces major restructuring under its new CEO, Shaun Liebenberg, including the possible sale of strategic equity stakes in some of its key businesses. Swedish firm Saab, which manufactures the South African Airforce’s new Gripen jets, is interested in acquiring a strategic equity stake in Denel’s aerospace division.
As a president with a penchant for foreign policy, Thabo Mbeki probably envisaged that his toughest speeches, his defining moments, would come as he spoke at the podium of the United Nations or on the panels of the G8. Instead, his defining moment, his toughest speech, came in Cape Town this week in Parliament.
Oprah is a Zulu. Her words, not Lemmer’s. "I feel so at home here," she told the press during her visit last week. Why? "I went in search of my roots and had my DNA tested, and I am Zulu." Dok Rabie says he’s thrilled for Oprah and her long-lost neefies en niggies, but isn’t sure how she got such a detailed diagnosis since DNA testing can only identify four large racial groups.
The South African property market has entered an extended phase of stability, according to the latest First National Bank Residential Property Barometer. Although overall market activity has decreased, activity in the middle-lower end of the market is not decreasing at the same rate as the upper-end, research shows.