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Only the best for the high-flying pilots at struggling SAA
PILOTS reportedly get five-star accommodation and generous travel benefits‚ at a cost of R697m a year for ailing South African Airways. The Citizen newspaper reported on Friday that pilots are accommodated in hotels of the highest global standards and entitled to free family travel on a preferential basis to normal fee-paying passengers in business class. The report quoted an SAA insider as saying: "It gets worse. If a pilot gets divorced‚ the previous wife gets the benefits and the new girlfriend gets the benefit at the same time." Pilots are also entitled to 90 days’ sick leave‚ which may be extended to 180 days in a one-year rolling cycle‚ the Citizen said. Management‚ meanwhile‚ is entitled
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'I don't believe every woman my age should get married,' says actress Sibulele Gcilitshana
During an interview with Move!, the single mother of two girls was unafraid to share her thoughts about marriage - which does not appeal to her. She revealed that in bringing up her daughters, she realised that it isn't all that important for children to have both actively involved parents. US singer Fantasia steps out in Gert-Johan Coetzee dress "This may sound controversial, but I don't believe every woman my age should get married or rush themselves to raise their kids with a significant other," she told the local publication. She further explained that while her stance on marriage is unpopular among her peers, her little family has been able to adapt to her choices and that they've been
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Zuma's statue must be put in Mbeki's yard
National spokesperson of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) Mbuyiseni Ndlozi has expressed his disagreement with former president Thabo Mbeki’s speech at the University of Mpumalanga during “The Thabo Mbeki I know Book Roadshow” on Thursday. In his speech, Mbeki addresses the #StatuesMustFall movement, calling it “pretence” and a “show”, further saying that it is movements such as these that lead to failure to attend to the “real” challenges. Last year the country was rocked by the #StatuesMustFall protests, with students from different universities calling for the removal of apartheid leaders. The movement saw the statues of apartheid leaders and colonial leaders defaced, with one of Cecil Rhodes being removed at the University of Cape Town.
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Dlamini-Zuma poised to take over reins from Zuma as president
African Union chairperson Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma will be reportedly endorsed by the ANCYL during its national executive committee meeting at the weekend, with the node from the wing expected to boost her chances of succeeding President Jacob Zuma as the ruling party’s next leader. On Friday the Mail & Guardian reported that behind-the-scenes senior party leaders have been discussing ways to avoid a contest between different factions, as well as the emergence of winners and losers ahead of its leadership elective conference next year and in the run-up to the 2019 general elections. It elects from its own ranks members of the NWC to coordinate the daily running of the organisation. The weekly also reports that ANC spokesperson Zizi Kodwa this week confirmed the move, saying their decision was spurred on by previous conferences where leaders were elected not on merit but because they had belonged to a particular faction.
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Murder accused Rohde allowed to go home - Crime & Courts
Cape Town - Murder accused Jason Rohde has been allowed to return to his home in Johannesburg. The suspended South African head of the property group Sotheby’s International Realty appeared in the Stellenbosch District Court on Friday. Rohde is charged with the murder of his wife, Susan Rohde, who died on July 24 in a hotel room at the Spier Wine Estate near Stellenbosch. The couple were in Stellenbosch together for a Sotheby’s International Realty conference. Rohde has denied any involvement in her death. He claims she committed suicide and has armed himself with the opinion of an independent pathologist who found his wife’s death was consistent with suicide. Meanwhile, the State has gathered
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Zimbabwe: Govt Castigates Botswana Leader Over Mugabe Comment
Zimbabwe's government has hit back at Botswana's President Ian Khama following his comments asking President Robert Mugabe to step down. Khama, in an interview with Reuters news agency on Wednesday, said Mugabe should step aside without delay for the sake of Zimbabwe and the region, comments that "shocked" officials in Zimbabwe. "The government of Zimbabwe is shocked by this uncharacteristic behaviour on the part of President Khama. It is taboo in African etiquette and diplomacy," Zimbabwe's Information Minister Chris Mushohwe said in a statement on Friday. "We sincerely hope that this will be the last time Botswana's leader opens his mouth to bad-mouth President Mugabe and fellow African leaders.
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Sensational Payet is more Beckham than Ronaldo...
London - When West Ham are awarded a free-kick, you can feel the anticipation around the ground as Dimitri Payet walks over to the ball. The guy is sensational from these situations, as he reminded us all on Wednesday night with a 96th-minute beauty to knock Accrington Stanley out of the EFL Cup. You could say the keeper might have done a bit better with it, but for Payet to pull that out of the bag so late, with the game on the line, was superb. I see kids on a Sunday morning trying to copy the ‘knuckleball’ method used by Cristiano Ronaldo — where hitting the ball on the valve causes it to move unpredictably. But Payet’s technique is a throwback to the way David Beckham would take them, generating
Independent Online q -
Cyril Ramaphosa says ‘corridors of power’ are hearing students’ cries
WHILE the President took a hard line on Friday against protesting students, focusing on the damage wrought on campuses, his deputy emphasised the students’ message. With the public losing sympathy for students damaging university property during protests‚ President Jacob Zuma on Friday warned violent offenders that they would have to account for their actions in court. Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa, on the other hand — speaking after being conferred with an honorary doctorate in law at the University of Venda in Limpopo — said students’ insistent cries for free education continued to reverberate through the corridors of power. He cautioned against the "senseless destruction of property" but
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‘Wenger shouldn't be judged on results alone’
London - Chelsea manager Antonio Conte has warned Arsenal it would be a huge mistake to part ways with Arsene Wenger if he doesn't deliver a major trophy this season. Wenger has marked the 20th anniversary of his arrival at Arsenal this week ahead of Saturday's clash with Chelsea, but the Gunners boss has found himself under increasingly heavy fire from fans unhappy with his failure to win the Premier League since 2004. The Frenchman, who went nine years without a trophy until a 2014 FA Cup triumph, has been subjected to stinging verbal abuse and mounting calls for his sacking over the last 18 months, raising the possibility he might quit if the criticism continues. Yet Conte is adamant Arsenal
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WATCH: Hlaudi hijacks Mandoza's funeral
Controversial former chief operating officer of the SABC Hlaudi Motsoeneng had tongues wagging when he asked programme director Mzwakhe Mbuli for more time to talk about his personal issues after the Supreme Court of Appeal turned down his application for leave to appeal a judgment that he should be in his post. Instead of paying tribute to late kwaito star Mandoza, Motsoeneng turned his moment on the podium into a press conference about himself. “I listen to people and I have been observing when people were saying Hlaudi must go out. You can’t decide for my future, I will decide for my future,” he said to cheers from the gathered crowd of mourners. He added: “And let me tell you, if I leave
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Speak Up Africa Recognizes Progress Made In Child Health Across Africa
With the support of key partners such as the Confederation of African Football, the Aspire Academy and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Speak Up Africa has worked to raise awareness about the major causes of child mortality in Africa, including preventable diseases such as malaria, pneumonia and diarrhea. Speak Up Africa relies on the most popular cultural platforms such as football tournaments or concerts to share key messages with millions. The nonprofit organization is leveraging the popularity of the most famous celebrities in Africa to create large-scale communication campaigns. Based on a population increasingly connected with the rise of mobile and digital technologies, platforms of Speak Up Africa maximize the momentum to reach millions of people through messages that inspire individual action, the action of business and government action.
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Retail sales growth slumps
Investec says in a note the figure shows significantly weak real growth at the start of the third quarter, but could improve thanks to substantial petrol price cuts in August and September. The banks adds the historic average for real retail sales growth is 5 percent year-on-year in SA, while real growth topped 14 percent in boom times. “”So South Africa’s 0.8 percent year-on-year of today is particularly weak in comparison, as is June’s revised 1.4 percent year-on-year,”Investec says. Paul Sirani, chief market analyst at Xtrade, says, “with reports stating that consumers in South Africa are under immense financial strain and burdened by debt, it’s little surprise to see that June’s slowdown in retail sales has been followed by another set of disappointing figures for July.
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DJ Zinhle is smiling again
DJ Zinhle sashays into the California Dreaming restaurant on the Durban beachfront, accompanied by an all-male entourage that includes rappers Cassper Nyovest and Riky Rick. The statuesque and svelte beauty looks hip and trendy in a denim-on-denim ensemble. But, above all, she's wearing a sunshine smile on her face that lights up the entire room as she's seen snapping a few selfies and goofing around with her male pals. She later reveals to me that she is in a good space right now, following a difficult year that saw her go through a very public break-up. "Last year was tough for me. But I gave [that] a year. I was just like, after a year it is over and I'm starting afresh. The highest goal for
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CEO SleepOut is ‘ubuntu in action’
Johannesburg - A sickle moon in the dark sky and the rumble of trains beneath the Nelson Mandela Bridge, rather than the usual warm bed and suburban birdsong, greeted waking bodies at this year’s CEO SleepOut. The biting cold of inner-city Joburg welcomed more than 800 business leaders and their colleagues, who last night experienced what it was like to sleep on the streets. They had faced the elements to raise funds for education to eradicate homelessness. The mood during the night was buoyant, even though many of the participants did not close their eyes. Between the tin shanties that lined the bridge for services and donation collections, campfires drew circles of strangers together; many
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Sanco slams torching of building at Fort Hare - Eastern Cape
The South African National Civic Organisation (SANCO) on Friday condemned the torching of a building at the University of Fort Hare’s Alice Campus in the Eastern Cape. This comes after protesting students at Fort Hare burned down the Equicent Infrastructure Development Building during riots in the early hours of Thursday morning over safety concerns at the campus. The Equicent Infrastructure Development Building was reported to have contained millions of rands’ worth of equipment, including about 30 plasma TVs‚ washing machines‚ computers‚ beds‚ stoves‚ chairs‚ beds and maintenance tools. SANCO spokesperson, Jabu Mahlangu said no stone must be left until those responsible were behind bars.
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Spain reopens Neymar fraud case
A fraud case against Brazilian superstar Neymar and his father in relation to the player's 2013 transfer to Barcelona was reopened on Friday following a successful appeal by Spanish prosecutors, a court filing showed. In July a judge ruled that irregularities in the high-profile transfer were detected, but said it was an issue for a civil court, not a criminal court to settle. However, prosecutors successfully argued the player and his father were aware of potentially fraudulent dealings between Barcelona and his former club Santos to the detriment of DIS, a Brazilian investment company who owned 40 percent of the player's sporting rights at the time of the transfer. Spain's National Court "fully
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Thuli Madonsela asks Faith Muthambi not to reappoint Hlaudi Motsoeneng
THE alleged letter written by the SABC board proposing that Hlaudi Motsoeneng be reappointed as chief operating officer, "raises questions about the board’s ability to discharge its fiduciary responsibilities". This is according to Public Protector Thuli Madonsela‚ who said on Friday that should Motsoeneng return to the position‚ a probe should be launched into the board’s conduct. Communications Minister Faith Muthambi said earlier on Friday that she had not "formally received" the letter from the board requesting that Motsoeneng be reappointed in an acting capacity. Madonsela told Radio 702 that she had written to Muthambi to say "she should reject the letter because it would be irrational‚
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Madonsela's office investigating allegations of corruption against Motsoeneng
Madonsela has written to Muthambi, indicating to her that it would illegal to reappoint Motsoeneng. SABC Public Protector Thuli Madonsela Thuli Madonsela Hlaudi Motsoeneng Censorship allegations at the SABC Madonsela Hlaudi Motsoeneng supporters JOHANNESBURG – Public Protector Thuli Madonsela says her office is investigating allegations of corruption against former South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) COO Hlaudi Motsoeneng, including allegations that he paid former employees exorbitant salaries including former acting CEO Jimi Matthews. On Tuesday, the Supreme Court of Appeal rejected a bid to appeal against a high court ruling that set aside former coo’s permanent appointment. Speaking
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Hlaudi earned R3.7m a year
Or‚ to be more specific‚ the millions of rands he has earned as a top executive at the South African Broadcasting Corporation. Earlier this week the Supreme Court of Appeal dismissed his bid to appeal a ruling by the Western Cape High Court‚ which found his appointment as chief operations officer (COO) to have been irrational and should be set it aside. The ruling brings the now “ordinary” SABC employee’s R3.7 million a year salary sharply into focus. Speaking to TMG Digital on Friday‚ advocate Paul Hoffman‚ director and head of projects at the Institute for Accountability in Southern Africa (IFAISA)‚ believed that Motsoeneng would be liable to pay back all the monies he had acquired from the SABC since his initial appointment in 2011 in the role of COO.
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Addiction & Recovery: When the carrot beats the stick
1. Shaun Shaun Shelly is an addiction specialist. He’s not what you’d expect, although talking to him, you’ll find yourself wondering why his approach is so unusual. “Our starting point is that we treat drug users like human beings,” he says. You’d think he was stating the obvious, but unfortunately for many, he isn’t. Human rights abuses remain rife against those most likely to use substances. If Shelly’s name sounds familiar, you may be recalling an earlier interview with John Maytham, in which Shelly argued against the redesign of Cape Town park benches in a way that would disadvantage the city’s homeless. He himself had spent a period on the streets, which he attributed to addictions and
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