Monthly Archives: April 2012

Pirates still top after draw!!!

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Orlando Pirates missed the chance to open up a four-point lead at the top of the Premiership after being held to a goalless draw by Bidvest Wits at the Orlando Stadium on Saturday night. 

In a match dominated by the Buccaneers, the standout players were the Clever Boys’ hard-working defenders and midfielders who ensured that the home team was unable to claim all three points and take a potentially decisive advantage at the head of the log.

The first-half saw little in the way of goalmouth action as both sides struggled to find any kind of attacking rhythm. Other than a couple of half chances, there were no real attacking highlights to speak of.

Wits looked lively down the left through youngster Asive Langwe, who often timed his runs just right to get on the blindside of the Pirates central defenders but was usually let down by poor service from out wide.

As for Pirates, their wingers Tlou Segolela and Daine Klate looked their best route to goal, but the Clever Boys doubled up on them whenever they had the ball and generally did a great job in keeping them quiet.

The best opening of the half went the way of Tokelo Rantie in the 10th minute, but his effort on the turn was neither shot nor cross and didn’t trouble Energy Murambadoro in the Bidvest Wits goal.

The second half followed much the same pattern as the first: Pirates bossed possession but struggled to create chances. Even the introduction of substitutes Dikgang Mabalane, Rudolf Bester and Thulasizwe Mbuyane did little to trouble the Wits backline.

The Clever Boys almost stole the game at the death when Bhongo Jayiya squared a ball for Katlego Pule to shoot, but the youngster put his effort just wide of Moeneeb Josephs’ right-hand post.

Bucs countered with a chance of their own for Bester, but Phillips was able to clear his goal-bound with relative ease after Energy Murambadoro had come off his line somewhat rashly to try and beat the attacker to a long ball.

 

Most workers unhappy in jobs, still plan to stay!!!

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Theo Garrun

There is a “new normal” in the world of work and this shows in the attitude people have to their careers, particularly in these difficult economic times.

Accenture human resources director Nicky Moses says this is borne out by research the organisation conducted ahead of International Womens Day, which showed that the majority of workers were sticking to their jobs despite declaring that they were not particularly happy in them.

“The research, which forms part of our ‘The path forward’ survey of workplace trends, reveals that more than half of both the women and men surveyed (57 percent and 59 percent, respectively) are dissatisfied with their jobs.

“However, despite their current job dissatisfaction, more than two-thirds (69 percent) of all respondents said they do not plan to leave their current employers.”

The most common reason given for staying put (64 percent) was the existence of some sort of flexible work arrangements.

“This is significant because it shows that monetary issues are not always the most important ones in the decision to change jobs,” Moses says.

“That flexibility is part of a trend of managing their own careers which is evident from the research.”

Most respondents said they were taking a variety of steps to actively manage their careers – including accepting a different role or responsibility (cited by 58 percent of respondents), receiving more education or training (46 percent) and working longer hours (36 percent).

What that shows, according to Moses, is that although many respondents feel there are barriers to career advancement in their organisations they are countering this by proactively managing their own careers and taking on different responsibilities within the organisation.

Respondents cited a lack of opportunity or a clear career path twice as often as they cited family responsibilities (42 percent against 20 percent) as the main barrier to their advancement.

The three thing most commonly cited as the important ones in managing your own career and getting ahead, according to Moses, are self confidence, soft skills and hard work.

It is also important to identify a mentor and to seek advice from him or her. The gender of such a mentor was not seen as important by the majority of respondents.

“Despite current challenges, employees are still striving for success, and energised, engaged employees remain a competitive advantage,” says Monica Rubombora, Accenture SA’s executive director and chairwoman of the company’s women’s forum.

“Since the majority of today’s professionals are not job hunting, leading companies must capitalise on this moment in time to equip their people with clearly defined career paths that include innovative training, leadership development and opportunities for advancement.”

Another finding of the research is that women are slightly more satisfied, on the whole, with their prospects at work.

“This shows that the greater flexibility that is now in the workplace appeals to women,” Moses believes.

“Men are still more vocal and more driven and frustrated by the lack of opportunities that the economic downturn has brought. But there is not a big gap between men and women on any of those scores.”

Moses believes that there is still a war for talent and executive search companies will still lure people away from their current jobs.

“This will no doubt increase when the economy recovers,” she says, “but it will not be based solely on monetary offers. The whole employer proposition will come into play.”

The Accenture research covers a wide range of employment-related topics. Some other findings include:

l Flexible work schedules – The majority (59 percent) of respondents reported having some type of flexible work schedule, and 44 percent of this group said they had used flexible work options for more than three years.

l Slowed careers – When asked about factors that had slowed their careers, 44 percent of respondents cited the economic downturn, which started in 2008, and 40 percent cited parenthood.

l Work-life balance – While more than two-thirds (71 percent) of respondents reported having work-life balance most or all of the time, 42 percent said they often sacrificed time with family in order to succeed, and 41 percent said career demands had a negative impact on their family life.

“We’re looking at a new normal in the workplace,” says Moses. “Employees are defining success in a variety of ways, customising their own approaches and balancing personal demands with their desire to succeed. The challenge for employers is to help employees fully integrate the whole spectrum of work and life needs over the course of their careers.”

A full report on the research, “The Path Forward,” is available at http://www.accenture.com.

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Taxing times for Malema…!!!

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AMUKELANI CHAUKE, Sapa

As a web of tax investigations reportedly closed in on suspended ANC Youth League president Julius Malema, his biggest ally gained some ground when he was re-elected as the league’s Limpopo secretary yesterday.

Jacob Lebogo, an ally and childhood friend of Malema, was elected unopposed at the league’s provincial conference, although rivals were not present.

Lebogo was reportedly among those who last year bussed in supporters from Limpopo when Malema first appeared before the ANC national disciplinary committee; support that later erupted into violence outside party headquarters Luthuli House.

While Limpopo youth league delegates re-elected Lebogo and other executives yesterday, opposition factions held a parallel conference in Seshego, Malema’s home town, after they were not allowed into the main conference venue at the weekend.

The ANC in Limpopo has discredited the parallel conference.

But Lebogo’s re-election, which might be seen as a step towards reaffirming the political grip of Malema and his ally premier Cassel Mathale on Limpopo, will do little to ease Malema’s troubles.

Having lost an appeal against his suspension last week, Malema is waiting to hear if the ANC’s national disciplinary committee of appeals will uphold its expulsion of him from the party.

To add to his woes, Malema is reportedly the subject of a SA Revenue Service tax evasion investigation of his Ratanang Trust Fund.

City Press newspaper has reported that Malema has been served with a tax bill of more than R10-million related to millions deposited into the controversial Ratanang Trust Fund.

Yesterday, the Sunday Independent reported that businessmen and government officials who refused to cooperate with SARS investigations have been subpoenaed to appear before a secret judicial inquiry into suspected tax evasion.

The Sunday Independent also reported that Malema had financial hardships.

Last week, Malema – who once showed off a R250000 watch and demolished a multimillion-rand Sandton house apparently to build a mansion – reportedly failed to pay a gardener.

  • The ANC Youth League says Malema is not available to serve as vice-president of the International Union of Socialist Youth, despite nominations from several countries. The league said yesterday it wanted to focus its energy on “domestic challenges”.

Efforts to stop tolling underway!!!!

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Gia Nicolaides

A week before e-tolling comes into effect, several organisations are going to court in a last effort to declare the process illegal.
 
Mass demonstrations are also in the pipeline. 

In a last desperate attempt to prevent e-tolls, the Opposition to Urban Tolling Alliance (OUTA) and others will go to the North Gauteng High Court on Tuesday to hear the outcome of an application launched in March.
 
The group’s Wayne Duvenhage said there are a number of legal issues that they are fighting.

“The lack of consultation, but the main crux of the matter is the irrationality of e-tolling.”

Duvenhage said this was the last legal option they had available.

“This is the only real way to stop it.” 

Meanwhile, the Congress Of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) is planning what it is calling the “mother of all protests” against e-tolling. 

Demonstrations will be held outside the South African National Road Agency Limited’s (Sanral) building and the Transport Department’s offices on Wednesday.

Cosatu’s Provincial Secretary Dumisani Sakile said this was a fight they will not give up on.

“We are determined to make sure these e-tolls are not operational and no one is supposed to register and pay for tollgates.”

(Edited by Clare Matthes)

 

 

 

Tatane murder trial begins!!!!

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Rahima Essop

The much anticipated trial of eight policemen implicated in the murder of Ficksburg resident Andries Tatane is scheduled to start on Monday, one year after he was killed. 

Tatane was beaten and then shot dead during a service delivery protest in the Free State town.

The trial was set down for four days this week.

It was due to start in November 2011 but was postponed because the advocate handling the case was busy with another matter in the Supreme Court of Appeals.

At the time the prosecution said it was ready to proceed and that the Tatane family needed closure.

Previous court appearances were marked by protests, as angry residents called for the accused to be refused bail. 

But the officers, who were initially denied bail, appealed the decision and were released from custody.

(Edited by Clare Matthes)

Heavy guard for gang rape accused!!!

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BY Obakeng Maje and SAPA

Johannesburg – Seven people, including two minors, accused of gang raping a mentally ill Soweto teenager arrived at the Roodepoort Magistrate’s Court under heavy guard on Thursday.

Court proceedings were slightly delayed as the police docket arrived after 09:00 and officials were trying to allocate a courtroom to the case.

The seven were arrested in Dobsonville, Soweto on Tuesday, after they were matched to the descriptions of the rapists seen in a video recording of the attack.

The video of the 17-year-old girl being raped went “viral” on the internet on Wednesday, and was one of the main topics trending on social networking site Twitter.

‘Let them rot in jail’

A group of about 30 women from the ANC’s Women’s League arrived at the court in a bus dressed in ANC colours. 

They were armed with posters reading: “cut their penis – no bail”, “let them rot in jail” and “done with rapists”, and sang freedom songs.

Members of the girl’s family were outside the court. Gauteng safety and security MEC Faith Mazibuko was there to support the girl and her family.

“We need to fight this scourge that is in our communities. All those that are doing wrong things to women must be brought to book,” Mazibuko said outside court.

“If you are a man you must use your brain to think, not your trousers.”

Child porn

National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Mthunzi Mhaga told reporters outside court that it was illegal to have a copy of the video, or distribute it.

“The situation of child pornography is a criminal offence… We will charge these people as well,” Mhaga said.

The girl went missing on March 21 and was found in a man’s house in Braamfischerville, Soweto on Wednesday. 

This man was the eighth person arrested for the crime. It was not known when he would appear in court.

Journalists would not be allowed in court to cover proceedings as the case involved minors, but Mhaga would brief them afterwards. 

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2Pac Hologram at Coachella 2012 Video Tweeted by 50 Cent, Ice T Comments on Twitter!!!!

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The 2Pac hologram Coachella 2012 video was recently tweeted out to rap fans by none other than 50 Cent. Meanwhile, various rappers continue to give comments about the image, including the legendary Ice T.

The Tupac Coachella hologram continues to live on, days after it disappeared from the concert stage. Countless celebs and fans are continuing to bring it up, whether it be how amazed they were by the feat, or to make jokes about the hologram related to other news. Rapper 50 Cent was on stage for the Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg portion of Coachella this past Sunday, but not present during the Tupac hologram’s appearance. However, he tweeted out to his millions of followers late on Wednesday night with the following message:

“Check this out its the VIDEO of COACHELLA (w/ Tony Yayo, Tupac, Snoop, Dr Dre)”

Of course, 50 is sending that out a little late since the video’s already hit over 5 million views or so on YouTube, but his YouTube video (below) includes some behind the scenes footage, and views of the hologram that seem different from other videos. While 50 was part of the concert, veteran rapper Ice T wasn’t there. However, he posted some interesting comments on Twitter saying:

“The cold thing is the ONLY time most people have EVER seen Tupac perform was it the Hologram.. I’m lucky that I knew him as a friend..

That being said… I LOVED the Tupac Hologram. #SUPERDOPE”

He also added this photo on Twitter which shows just how the holographic 2Pac image was created. Ice T now joins the list of other rap stars who have praised Dr. Dre’s work. Previous rappers who have weighed in on the matter include Kendrick Lamar, Warren G, Nas, Raekwon, and Kanye West. It’s only a matter of time before the Tupac hologram starts up its own Twitter accounts and appears on the late shows and daily talk TV!

SA hockey men Maxed for London qualifier!!!

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A determined South African men’s hockey team jet off at 12.30 pm on Thursday for the Land of the Rising Sun, and will be hoping that golden rays shine brightly upon them in Japan as they look to clinch the last remaining berth available at the London 2012 Olympic Games.

From April 26 to May 6, the SA side will compete in the FIH Olympic Qualifier in Kakamigahara, where they will have to win the gold medal to qualify for the 12-team tournament at the Olympics.

It has been a long and involved qualification process thus far for the men’s team, which began back in September when they won the African Olympic Qualifier in Zimbabwe, only to have their spot retracted after additional criteria were put in place.

They then narrowly missed out on securing their qualification at the Champions Challenge held in Johannesburg in November, having walked away with a bronze medal when a top-two finish was required to confirm their place at the Olympics.

It’s been a case of so near and yet so far, but there are still plenty of reasons to be positive about the team¹s prospects of securing a positive result in Japan.

Since the Champions Challenge, they have drawn a series with Great Britain (ranked fourth in the world), as well as recorded a series win over Austria, who will participate in the upcoming Qualifier.

Furthermore, the 12th-ranked SA team recently beat India in India for the first time ever, maintaining the positive win-loss ratio that they’ve enjoyed over the past year in spite of the fact that the majority of matches have been played against higher-ranked opposition.

Coach Gregg Clark said he had been extremely encouraged by the form shown by the current squad.

“We have, in my opinion, the most complete group of international hockey players this country has seen for a few generations and it is our goal to make it to London and to achieve a significant result,” he enthused.

Midfielder Wade Paton, who could earn his 50th cap for South Africa if picked to participate in the team’s first game against Brazil on April 26, said preparation had been going well.

“We really have a good group of players and we’re all friends, which helps quite a lot. It comes down to a trust factor because a lot of us are based around the country and world. So we might not interact on the same sort of basis as the Springboks or Proteas do when they have camps all the time.

“You have to trust that your teammates are putting in the hard work to know that they will deliver when it really counts. We are fortunate to have that and we have had some really good training.”

In recognition of the team’s success as well as their potential, Mr Price Sport is now the official kit sponsor of the SA men’s team, which Clark said was a major boost.

“We’re really looking forward to donning our new green and gold Maxed kit for the Olympic Qualifier in Japan and clinching the qualification spot. We’re confident that we’ll make our new sponsors proud to be associated with not only great athletes, but great South Africans.”

It was a sentiment echoed by the President of the South African Hockey Association, Dave Carr: “We are pleased to have a premier South African brand of the stature of Mr Price Sport on board in our quest to qualify for the London 2012 Olympics.

“It is certainly an exciting time in our Road to London that the SA Men’s hockey team will be presented with their Mr Price Sport kit ahead of the final Olympic Qualifier to take place in Kakamigahara, Japan. The Mr Price Sport brand will be a constant reminder to the team of the support from all South Africans.”

wwww.supersport.com

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Barca, Real up against it in UCL

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t was being billed as the dream final in the Champions League: Barcelona v Real Madrid.

At this rate, however, neither of the Spanish giants will make it through to the May 19 showpiece in Munich.

A day after Madrid was beaten 2-1 at Bayern Munich in the first leg of their semifinal, Barcelona – and its star forward Lionel Messi – slumped to a 1-0 loss at Chelsea on Wednesday.

With 72 percent possession and 24 shots attempted, Barca’s players came away from Stamford Bridge shaking their heads wondering how they’d lost. Their hopes of becoming the first team to defend the Champions League hinge on overturning the deficit next Tuesday at the Camp Nou.

“Only winners are remembered,” Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola said, when asked if his team had been “mugged.”

“This game is about putting the ball into the net. And it’s the most difficult thing.”

With Messi in the team, scoring hasn’t been much a problem this season.

The Argentina international’s current tally in all competitions stands at 63, four off the record set by German great Gerd Muller in the 1972-73 season. Yet, for once, he was subdued, often dropping too deep and being caught up in a clogged Chelsea midfield.

A prodigious defensive effort, particularly by centre backs Gary Cahill and John Terry, kept one of the world’s most fearsome attacking units at bay in the driving rain. When gaps were found, Alexis Sanchez and Pedro hit the goal frame and Cesc Fabregas had a shot cleared off the line.

At the other end, Chelsea had a deserving matchwinner in Didier Drogba.

With Chelsea’s only shot on target in the whole match, the 34-year-old Ivory Coast striker – in perhaps his last season at the London club – met a cross from Brazil midfielder Ramires in first-half stoppage time to score the only goal.

It was Drogba’s 38th Champions League goal – only Messi has scored more since the 2003-04 season – and capped a tireless display by the striker who was forced to live off scraps all night.

“Didi is all about these big nights, the big occasions. He put fear into the Spurs defense (in Chelsea’s FA Cup win) at the weekend and he did that again tonight,” Terry said.

Interim Chelsea manager Roberto Di Matteo spoke on the eve of the match about needing “two perfect matches” to get past Barca.

After a win and a clean sheet, one of them is out of the way but there is much work still to be done. Keeping Messi quiet for another 90 minutes at the Camp Nou will require a Herculean effort.

“Sometimes it feels like they have 20 players,” Di Matteo said. “We watched Barcelona against A.C. Milan and Real Madrid, top European clubs, and they did exactly the same to them.

“They have a unique style of play, with quality players. They are the only team in the world who can do that.”

Since replacing the fired Andre Villas-Boas at the start of last month, Di Matteo has turned Chelsea’s fortunes around, with 10 wins from 13 games. Drogba, Terry and Frank Lampard – fondly referred to as Chelsea’s “old guard” – have been key to that revival and were standout players against Barcelona, back to their best under a new manager who has restored harmony to the dressing room.

“In the past, a lot of people have had the opinion that our boys were over the line and too old to play at this level,” Di Matteo said. “They gave their answer on the pitch.”

With a must-win “Clasico” against Real Madrid in the Spanish league to come on Saturday, three days before the return leg against Chelsea, Barca is facing up to the biggest week of its season.

Finishing the campaign without either of the La Liga or Champions League titles they won last season is now a real prospect.

“They’ll have 10 men behind the ball, they’ll defend, they’re stronger than us, they run, they jump more than us,” Guardiola said of Chelsea, which hasn’t lost to Barcelona in its last six meetings.

“We have to try and take the game under control and discover a way of scoring the goals.”

Barcelona’s last loss in the Champions League also came in London, a 2-1 defeat at Arsenal in February last year in the first leg of the last 16. On that occasion, Guardiola’s side also dominated the game yet squandered chance after chance before Messi’s brace of goals helped them over the line in the second leg.

With its increasingly resolute defense and hounding midfield, Chelsea should put up a much better fight than its city rival did that night.

“Nothing has been decided yet and we need to play another game like this one if we are going to get through,” Di Matteo said.

sapa-ap

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Stuart Baxter headed to Chiefs

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BY LOVERMORE MOYO

Kaizer Chiefs have already identified their next coach with the club’s football manager Bobby Motaung having already met with their prospective new coach Stuart Baxter during a recent visit to London.   

KickOff.com has learnt that Motaung travelled to London accompanied by Steve Kapeluschnik of Stellar Africa prior to the match against Golden Arrows at the end of last month to meet Baxter.
    
Motaung didn’t travel with the team to Durban but only arrived on the day of the match after arriving from London where the purpose of his trip was to tie down Baxter.
  
Though the details of what was agreed on during that meeting in the UK are still cloudy it is believed that Baxter has already agreed in principle to take over the Chiefs job in the new season.
 
It is no secret that Baxter will come at a heavy package but with Chiefs apparently keen to have him on board they are prepared to stretch their muscles to meet Baxter’s demands.  
    
Baxter – who had a spell as Bafana Bafana head coach from 2004-2005 – is currently without a job since being fired in Finland where he was the head coach over a year ago.
    
He was linked with the coaching job at Swedish club Malmo FF last year but he turned down the offer.
 
With Bobby Motaung having already made indications of their talk with Baxter, KickOff.com tracked down Kapeluschnik who neither denied nor confirmed his involvement in the recruitment of the 58 year-old.
  
“Those things I don’t discuss. Those things you need to talk to the clubs concerned because I cannot speak about that at all,” says Kapeluschnik.
  
The sudden ‘parting of ways’ with Vladimir Vermezovic last week after being informed by management that his contract will not be renewed was surprising in that though it was given he will not be at the club next season he was at least expected to stay on until the end of his contract in June.
   
However, reality is that in informing VV that they will not renew his contract the Chiefs management already knew of what plans they had in as far as bringing in a new coach is concerned.
 
Chiefs have in the meantime lost both games that they have played since Ace Khuse took over with the assistance of Doctor Khumalo and Arthur Zwane. 

HAVE YOUR SAY: Who should be coach of Kaizer Chiefs?