insert_link South Africa Eastern Cape premier has expressed optimism that the matric pass rate for 2023 will exceed 80-percent Eastern Cape premier Oscar Mabuyane has expressed optimism that the matric pass rate for 2023 will exceed 80-percent. Nearly 100-thousand learners participated in the National Senior Certificate exams in the province. Basic Education minister Angie Motshekga is scheduled to release the national results on Thursday. Mabuyane credits the collaborative efforts of learners, teachers, and management for the anticipated positive outcome. He highlighted to the SABC the collective commitment to achieving […] todayJanuary 17, 2024 4
insert_link South Africa GOOD party in the Eastern Cape has opened two cases of fraud and corruption against the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality EFF councillor The GOOD party in the Eastern Cape has opened two cases of fraud and corruption against the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality EFF councillor, Khanya Nqgisha. This is amid allegations of bribery and abuse of Expanded Public Works Programme funds. The GOOD Party’s Lawrence Troon says in the first case, Nqgisha apparently attempted to solicit a one-million-rand bribe from the multi-billion rand company, Hive Energy, in return for support to get […] todayJanuary 16, 2024 30
insert_link South Africa South African education activist says government should find a way to fill all vacant teaching posts South African Education activist Hendrick Makaneta says government should find a way to fill all vacant teaching posts in South Africa, particularly level one teaching posts, created by the teachers who went on pension. There are currently more teachers in the country than the education system can accommodate. Makaneta says it cannot be correct for qualified teachers to remain unemployed while there are vacant posts that are funded. todayJanuary 16, 2024 15
insert_link South Africa The African Transformation Movement condemns SARS’ selective justice in Ramaphosa’s Phala Phala farmgate scandal The African Transformation Movement says it condemns the South African Revenue Services’ flip-flopping, selective justice, and cover-up in president Cyril Ramaphosa’s Phala Phala farmgate scandal. This comes as the Revenue Service has opened a criminal case against Sudanese businessman Hazim Mustafa. He paid 10.82-million-rand in cash for 20 buffalo from Ramaphosa’s Phala Phala farm in Limpopo in December 2019. The money was stolen from the farm in 2020. ATM’s spokesperson, […] todayJanuary 16, 2024 6
insert_link Environment Healthy food is hard to come by in Cape Town’s poorer areas: how community gardens can fix that Community gardens can be a boon for residents. Nattrass/Getty Images Tinashe P. Kanosvamhira, University of the Western Cape In 1950, as part of the Group Areas Act, South Africa’s apartheid government banished people of colour to outlying areas, away from central business districts. The Cape Flats are one such area, sprawling to the east of central Cape Town. Today the legacy of apartheid spatial planning endures. The area is home […] todayJanuary 16, 2024 11
insert_link Environment Unusual ancient elephant tracks had our team of fossil experts stumped – how we solved the mystery Elephants communicate underground by generating seismic waves. Anadolu Agency Charles Helm, Nelson Mandela University Over the past 15 years, through our scientific study of tracks and traces, we have identified more than 350 fossil vertebrate tracksites from South Africa’s Cape south coast. Most are found in cemented sand dunes, called aeolianites, and all are from the Pleistocene Epoch, ranging in age from about 35,000 to 400,000 years. During that time […] todayJanuary 16, 2024 14
insert_link South Africa South African Council for Medical Schemes is set to investigate the extravagant costs incurred by 33 medical schemes The South African Council for Medical Schemes is set to investigate the extravagant costs incurred by 33 medical schemes for hosting annual general meetings. A research report revealed the costs, totaling 29.2- million-rand, as concerning, prompting an in-depth inquiry into contributing factors. Five schemes, including Sizwe Hosmed and Discovery Health, exhibited notably higher spending. The investigation, empowered by the Medical Schemes Act, aims to ascertain causes and to assess if […] todayJanuary 16, 2024 17
insert_link South Africa Analyst warns Zuma’s expulsion may expose ANC secrets SA Political analyst Fikile Vilakazi warns that former president Jacob Zuma, if expelled from the ANC, could expose sensitive information, posing a dilemma for the party. Vilakazi suggests Zuma, involved in apartheid-era intelligence gathering, might hold the ANC “to ransom,” and his revelations could lead to the organisation’s collapse. He says despite reasons to suspend Zuma, the ANC faces challenges. A leaked letter indicating Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma’s exit from Parliament adds […] todayJanuary 16, 2024 5
insert_link South Africa SA’s former Public Protector wants her pension and benefits South Africa’s former Public Protector Advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane says she is awaiting communication from parliament over her loss of benefits after being fired. Mkhwebane told Newzroom Africa that she would approach the courts if those engagements fail. She is taking Parliament and her former office – the Public Protector of SA – to court for having forfeited her gratuity payment, believed to be R10 million. todayJanuary 15, 2024 8
