• What will the UK do with its £286m jumbo white elephant on St Helena?

    FOR now, the only way to reach St Helena, a tiny volcanic island with 4,200 inhabitants in the middle of the south Atlantic, is a five-day journey on a Royal Mail ship from Cape Town. Unless engineers can figure out how to blast the top off a mountain, it may just stay that way, because planes cannot land safely at its new airport. Built on the edge of a near-vertical 300m cliff, two rocky outcrops — known as the King and Queen — funnel wind on to the runway with such ferocity that when the first commercial flight arrived in April, it managed to land only on its third attempt. The UK government now has to figure out what to do with the £285.5m airport it built on the British overseas territory.

    Business Day Live q

  • Is Hlaudi's mom Zuma's sangoma?

    There is no denying that former SABC COO Hlaudi Motsoeneng has been a force to be reckoned with, once describing himself as an “intellectual lecher” (he meant lecturer, we think). Motsoeneng, like President Jacob Zuma, has to date survived everything thrown at him throughout his career, with Public Protector Thuli Madonsela and the courts ruling against his chief operating officer (COO) appointment at the public broadcaster. On Tuesday, the public broadcaster held a media briefing to address, among other issues, the court ruling. It announced that the former COO would be reverting to his old position as group executive of corporate affairs, further saying Motsoeneng was free to apply for the COO position once it was advertised (as early as next week).

    The Citizen q

  • SABC board could face legal costs, warns Thuli

    HLAUDI Motsoeneng’s “triumphant” return to the top echelons of the public broadcaster might be short-lived. Shortly after SABC board chairperson Professor Mbulaheni Maguvhe announced Motsoeneng had been appointed to his old job as group executive of corporate affairs, Public Protector Thuli Madonsela indicated she would scrutinise the decision. She pointed out that the SABC could face personal legal costs for Motsoeneng’s reappointment. Maguvhe also said Motsoeneng was free to apply for the position of chief operating officer, which he held until Monday, when the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) upheld the Western Cape High Court ruling that Motsoeneng’s appointment to that position was irrational

    Independent Online q

  • ANC leaders defy Zuma on EFF

    While an Emirati woman seeks permission from the courts in the United Arab Emirates to have that country’s first sex change operation‚ hundreds of people are faced with the prospect of having to wait for up to 25 years to get the surgery done in South Africa.

    Times LIVE q

  • How hard is it to cancel your TV licence?

    Months after I gave it away, I received my annual SMS from the public broadcaster reminding me to pay my licence. I’ve always paid; I wouldn’t dare not pay. I’ve heard about the strong-arm tactics used by some of their debt-collecting agents and the horror stories about the SABC taking judgment against delinquent licence holders. Incidentally, you can’t be “blacklisted” for an unpaid TV licence. Credit bureaus don’t list TV licence debt in the same way that they don’t list unpaid traffic fines. Bureaus haven’t done so since about 2004. But if judgment is taken against you – by anyone to whom you owe money – that information will be listed on your credit report, and a judgment listing stays on

    Independent Online q

  • 31 state properties to be sold at auction in October

    Thirty one properties owned by the Gauteng government‚ including the premier’s official residence‚ will be sold at auction next month‚ Gauteng Premier David Makhura announced on Tuesday. Makhura has not stayed at the official residence‚ despite millions of rands being spent on it during the time of his predecessor‚ now Water Affairs and Sanitation Minister Nomvula Mokanyane. He announced two years ago that the mansion would be used to host official events‚ while he remained in his own home. The property was purchased in 2004 for R11.4 million‚ but further renovations costing an additional R4 million were subsequently made due to what government called “structural defects” to areas such as the

    Sowetan LIVE q

  • WATCH: Mourners dance to Nkalakatha on Mandoza's grave

    Arnold Palmer was not only one of the great champions of golf; through the panache and daring of his play. He did more than anyone else to turn the game - and in particular the British Open - into a spectacle which commanded the attention of millions.

    Times LIVE q

  • Five facts you need to know about Hlaudi's new post

    Everything you need to know about Hlaudi Motsoeneng’s controversial appointment that was announced recently. There wasn’t a clear interview process to reappoint Motsoeneng, as the SABC merely removed the person who was the group corporate affairs executive and replaced them with him. Speaking to 702, Motsoeneng declined to answer if he had been interviewed for the position, referring radio presenter Xolani Gwala to the SABC. Public protector Thuli Madonsela is challenging Motsoeneng’s appointment and says she will probe it. Motsoeneng, however, says he is unaware of any new investigation, further accusing Madonsela of tarnishing his image. The SABC is finalising the application process for the

    The Citizen q

  • Outcome of Clinton-Trump debate good for the rand

    THE outcome of the first debate between US presidential hopefuls Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump has been good for the rand, which has traded more than 1% firmer against the dollar for most of Tuesday. Democratic candidate Clinton seems to be the favoured candidate over Republican Trump, a perception which has lifted emerging market currencies, such as the rand. A possible Clinton administration is seen to favour free trade and globalisation, while a Trump presidency is regarded as nationalist. At 3.24pm, the rand was at R13.5737 to the dollar from Monday’s R13.7106, at R15.2076 to the euro from R15.4252 and R17.6000 to the pound from R17.7894. The euro was at $1.1204 from $1.1253 on Monday.

    Business Day Live q

  • ANC is going to make Hlaudi president – Ndlozi

    The African National Congress (ANC) will one day make Hlaudi Motsoeneng a minister or even president, tweeted Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) national spokesperson Mbuyiseni Ndlozi on Tuesday. Ndlozi’s statement follows the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC)’s media briefing in which it announced that the former COO would be reverting back to his old position as group executive of corporate affairs. During the briefing, SABC chairperson Mbulaheni Maguvhe said Motsoeneng was free to apply for the COO position once it was advertised. However, the decision seems to have disappointed the EFF spokesperson, who was hoping for a different outcome. Democratic Alliance communications Phumzile

    The Citizen q

  • DRC: Kabila cracks down – and will probably get away with it

    Last week, Reuters asked a senior advisor to Congolese President Joseph Kabila a simple question. Why, if Kabila really does plan to step down after his second term in office, will the president not say so? Barnabe Kikaya’s answer was revealing. “He cannot say it. We are in Africa... where if Kabila had to say that... from that time on he loses all authority.” It may be 2016, but the Congolese government is still relying on colonial-era tropes to justify its poor governance. Kikaya was speaking to an audience in Washington DC, where he was trying to persuade lawmakers not to impose sanctions on Congolese officials, and his response played neatly into all those tired stereotypes: that Africa is

    Daily Maverick q

  • Uber expands food delivery business into SA

    Uber Technologies starts its UberEats food-delivery service in South Africa on Thursday before expanding in the rest of the country and into the continent, it said on Wednesday. It will begin delivering meals in the northern suburbs of Johannesburg, South Africa’s largest city, before moving across the Gauteng province and to Cape Town in 2017, Uber Operations and Logistics Manager Dave Kitley told reporters. Uber is making an aggressive global drive into takeaway meal deliveries, gearing up with a big staff recruitment campaign to enter at least 22 more countries. Uber launched its ride-hailing service in South Africa in 2013 and since then the service has grown to over 4,000 drivers in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Cape Town, Durban and Port Elizabeth.

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  • Zimbabwe: Missing Activist Found, Envoys Slam 'Worrying Trend'

    THE EU and the British ambassadors on Wednesday led the outrage following the emergence of pictures of one of the leaders of street traders who was abducted, assaulted and injected with an unknown substance and left for dead. Kudakwashe Kambakunje, one of the leaders of the National Vendors Union of Zimbabwe, was abducted on Tuesday night and found on a farm on Wednesday morning about 22km outside Harare. Pictures showed an injured Kambakunje being treated in hospital. His colleague, Sten Zvorwadza, said Kambakunje was "badly injured". Kambakunje's legs appeared scarred and swollen in injuries synonymous with those inflicted on opposition members Zanu PF youths in the last decade. EU ambassador

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  • SA’s water scarcity ranking disputed

    South Africa does not rank among the top 30 driest countries in the world when average rainfall per year is compared, writes Gopolang Makou. South Africa’s Department of Water and Sanitation ushered in spring with a warning to citizens of the North West province to use water more sparingly. To add impact to their message, the department said: “South Africa is ranked among the 30 driest countries in the world, hence we are urging everyone to take responsibility in water conservation to avoid future water crises.” North West is but one South African province where dams are running low and citizens are facing water restrictions. But the claim, repeated by the department in newsletters, media statements

    Independent Online q

  • The ‘ugly’ Great Wall of China?

    Beijing - Chinese social media users were in an uproar over restoration of a 700-year-old section of the Great Wall that has been covered in cement, turning it into a smooth, flat-topped path. Known as one of the most beautiful portions of the “wild”, unrestored wall, the eight-kilometre Xiaohekou stretch in northeast Liaoning province was built in 1381 during the Ming Dynasty. Photos posted online showed that its uneven, crumbling steps, jagged walls and plant growth had been replaced as far as the eye could see with a white, concrete-like cap. “This looks like the work of a group of people who didn't even graduate from elementary school,” said one user of China's Twitter-like Weibo platform.

    Independent Online q

  • Road Accident Fund blocks huge bill of fraudulent claims

    Almost half a billion rands worth of fraudulent claims were detected by the Road Accident Fund (RAF) in the current financial year before payments were finalised. Some of these claims ranged from car accidents that never took place to exaggerated medical reports where a doctor colludes with the claimant. The RAF's annual report for April 2015 to March 2016 shows that the state entity's forensic unit blocked claims totalling R424-million made from a total of 612 fraudulent applications. The report also revealed that 813 cases had been referred to the police and 136 arrests were made, leading to 118 successful convictions. A total of 612 claims totaling R198-million were rejected based on false

    Sowetan LIVE q

  • Stop the childish games, Thuli Madonsela pleads

    PUBLIC protector Thuli Madonsela has appealed to her detractors to "stop childish games" and let her do her work. Speaking in Pretoria on Tuesday‚ she said there were a lot of unfounded attacks on her when there was an investigation people did not like. The "schizophrenia" taking place was designed to distract her and her team from doing their work. "For goodness sake, people‚ calm down. Let us not be in childish games‚" she pleaded. Madonsela said she and her team could not be distracted as they were employed to do their jobs. She was responding to the recent barrage of attacks on her by ANC Youth League president Collen Maine and claims that she was a CIA spy and stooge of white monopoly capital.

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  • Nxasana says NPA boss Shaun Abrahams is ‘manipulated’

    Former National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) head Mxolisi Nxasana says he thinks his successor, Shaun Abrahams, is being “manipulated” and, should he start to act independently without any external influence, he will not last long in his job. In an interview with political analyst Justice Malala on weekly analysis show The Justice Factor on Monday, Nxasana said the decisions taken by Abrahams subsequent to his departure from the NPA in May last year can only leave South Africans questioning whose interests he serves, particularly those of the organisation’s embattled deputy head Nomgcobo Jiba and Specialised Commercial Crimes unit head Lawrence Mrwebi. “I don’t want to cast any aspersions on him.

    The Citizen q

  • Zimbabwe: Could Fresh Lithium Deposits Transform Economy?

    LITHIUM is set to transform the country's economy following a fresh scramble for the mineral by foreign companies after new deposits were discovered around Harare, Mines and Mining Development Deputy Minister, Engineer Fred Moyo has said. In an interview in Mberengwa South last week, Eng Moyo said there were new deposits of lithium in areas surrounding Harare and foreign companies have been jostling for mining licences.Eng Moyo said Government was shifting focus to lithium following an increased demand for the mineral worldwide adding that this could be a breakthrough for Zimbabwe. "There is a scramble for lithium. Right now we have a lot of lithium potential around Harare. "If you check and

    AllAfrica.com q

  • Nigeria: CAF Footballer of the Year

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