The North West standing committee on public accounts (Scopa) will investigate how a law firm was paid over R13 million, the provincial legislature said on Thursday.

 

Spokeswoman Namhla Luhabe said former finance MEC Loiusa Mabe, current MEC Paul Sebegoe, and the acting head of the department Geo Paul failed to give the committee a clear account of procurement processes followed in appointing a law firm.

 

Morake Attorneys has been paid over R13 million to organise a disciplinary hearing of the suspended head of department, Johannes Mohlala. He was suspended in July 2011 for, among other things, lack of compliance with instructions from his superiors.

 

Luhabe said Sebegoe presented to the committee, saying Morake Attorneys had been paid R15.4 million for handling the hearing of Mohlala, the chief financial officer, Harrieta Kasirivu and the chief director, Peter Mogoane.

 

“The cases of the latter two have been finalised but both are appealing. Morake Attorneys have been paid R13 332,449.95 for the disciplinary hearings of the three and was also paid R2 126 930.33, for other legal matters by the same department.”

 

The acting head, Geo Paul, could not give the committee satisfactory answers when asked how Morake Attorneys were appointed, Luhabe said.

 

Morake Attorneys’s fee was about five times higher than that of its counterparts.

 

Committee chairman Hlomane Chauke was expected to meet premier Thandi Modise next week.

 

Representatives of the Public Protector, the Hawks and the public service commissioner were expected to take part in the meeting to discuss how an investigation should unfold. – Sapa

By Obakeng Maje

Bafana Bafana convincingly won their second match of the Orange Africa Cup of Nations South Africa 2013 by defeating Angola 2-0 at Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban on Wednesday, 23 January. England-based midfielder, Dean Furman, playing in his first AFCON, was chosen Man of the Match for his solid display for Bafana Bafana.

 

The Oldham Athletic midfielder has made only seven appearances for South Africa, his first being against Brazil in Sao Paolo in September last year but has since become an integral part of the national team set-up.

 

We spoke to him on the morning after the victory over Angola.

 

Q:  A day after the big game, how does it feel?

 

DF: I am feeling good, it was a vital game for us that we get the three points, we are now in a commanding position in the group. Today is mostly about recovery and it is back to start preparing for the next important game against Morocco on Sunday.

 

Q: And how are you feeling after your Man of the Match performance?

 

DF: A bit tired,  a few bumps and bruises here and there but nothing more than I am used to after every match. It was a good game and as a team we were very good, kept our shape but also had that freedom to express ourselves. I think we were just great and it was a pleasure to be involved and play a pivotal role.

 

Q: The mood in the camp?

 

DF: Fantastic, but even after the draw in the first match it was still very high and positive. The boys did not drop their heads. We were happy with the way the tournament started, it might not have been with a win but we had to build on that.

 

Q: The match against Angola, was it your best in a Bafana Bafana shirt so far?

 

DF: I think so, more so because all the other matches I have played before were friendlies. This one rates as very important for me and it meant a lot because it is Africa’s premier tournament, so it was great to be involved.

 

Q: Any family watching in the stands last night?

 

DF: Sadly, no family member was around to watch, they were all in Johannesburg, but they were all watching on television from wherever they were so they must have been very delighted.

 

Q: So who did you celebrate with?

 

DF: I spent the whole evening on the phone talking to them, and they gave some nice positive comments and I hope we can get many more from the next coming games.

 

Q: Did you ever think you would be playing in this tournament at some stage in your career?

 

DF: It’s like a dream come true to me, it’s incredible. Just to be involved in the first game (against Cape Verde Islands) was unbelievable, and to play my first game (against Angola) was really awesome. I could hear the crowd getting louder and louder as the game went on, and the more exciting football we played the more they cheered us on. It’s every player’s dream to play in front of a crowd like that, it was just awesome.

 

Q: How would you differentiate between the two crowds from where you play in England and in SA?

 

DF: I wouldn’t like to compare the two because they are very different but playing in front of big crowds is what you want to do as a player, there’s nothing more satisfying than playing in front of a passionate group of supporters and yesterday was out of this world. The noise they made was almost like a party atmosphere and we are just pleased we gave them something to cheer about.

 

Q: What would you attribute yesterday’s performance to?

 

DF: The players had self-belief in the camp, high confidence and yesterday things just fell into place. We are delighted with the way it went. Four points from two games which is a good return; we have to go and get three points in our next match and keep the momentum going.

 

Q: Your thoughts on Morocco?

 

DF: It’s going to be a tough game, no matches in this tournament are easy and the next few days we will have to work harder to prepare for them. We must continue from where we left off against Angola with our attacking flare so that we come out victorious.

 

Q: How important is a win against Morocco?

 

DF: It is very important and we must approach every game wanting to win regardless of the permutations. We want to win every game because it is important for our confidence as a team to carry on winning, and it will give us great momentum going forward. A win will also ensure that we don’t have to rely on permutations for qualifying to the next round.

 

 

 

National Team Games Statistics

 

No.

 

  Date

 

  Match

 

  Competition

 

  Notes

 

  1

 

  07.09.12

 

Sao Paolo

 

  v Brazil 0-1

 

  friendly international

 

  replaced by Mahlangu in the 59

 

th minute

 

  2

 

  11.09.12

 

Mbombela

 

  v Mozambique 2-0

 

  friendly international

 

  replaced by Mokotjo in the 90

 

th minute

 

  3

 

  12.10.12

 

Warsaw

 

  v Poland 0-1

 

  friendly international

 

  Caution

 

  4.

 

 

 

  16.10.12

 

Nairobi

 

  v Kenya 2-1

 

  friendly international

 

   

 

  5

 

 

 

  14.11.12

 

Jo’burg

 

  v Zambia 0-1

 

  friendly international

 

  replaced by Buckley in the 80

 

th minute

 

  6

 

  12.01.13

 

Johannesburg

 

  v Algeria 0-0

 

  friendly international

 

  replaced by Letsholonyane in the 54

 

th minute

 

  7

 

  23.01.13

 

Durban

 

  v Angola 2-0

 

  African Nations Cup finals Group A

 

  Man of the Match

 

    

 

By Obakeng Maje

Kimberley-Galeshewe police are investigating a case of armed robbery after three African males enter a shop in Galeshewe, Popham Street on Monday and pretend to be customers. 

“Three robbers just waited for customers to leave the shop then they closed the door. The one suspect then held the shop owner at gunpoint and the other one threaten the shop owner’s daughter with a knife while the third suspect took an undisclosed amount of money and goods to the value of R8000-00 in the shop” police said. 

“They then fled the scene in different directions with the money and the goods” Andrea cloete said. The owner contacted the police and a wide spread searched followed to trace the armed suspects. 

Workers of the shop followed up information and one suspect was apprehended the same night and all the goods were found back and handed to the shop owner. 

The other two suspects disappeared,but their luck ran out this morning.

They were arrested at 03:30am when the Dog Unit, Flying Squad and the Detective Unit of Galeshewe apprehended the other two in Warrenton Zone A , Ikhutseng. 

“The two suspects were still fast asleep when the police raided their house” cloete said. 

The police then arrested the two suspects and found the firearm that was used in conducting the robbery at the shop in the possession of the two suspects. 

The suspects will remain in custody and will appear in the Kimberley Magistrate Court soon. 

 The Cluster Commander Major General Mattheys commended the members for a work well done. He stressed it out that there will be a zero tolerance towards these kinds of crimes in his cluster and that the police will leave no stone untouched in tracing wanted suspects.

 

The police investigation continues.   

By Obakeng Maje

Kimberley-Police are investigating a case of dealing in dagga after a 23 year old male was arrested on Thursday at approximately 01:00am. 

The Kimberley Flying Squad pounced on the suspect while he was traveling in white Inyathi Taxi approximately 5km outside Kimberley on the Boshoff Road. 

“The taxi was travelling from Kwa-Zulu Natal and during it’s search the police found a green suitcase containing dagga” Lieutenant Sergio Kock said. 

“The suspect admitted ownership for the bag and witnessed while the police confiscated several bags of dagga from his luggage” Kock said. The dagga has an approximate street value of R60 500,00 and weighs 12,10kg. 

The suspect is originally from Ladysmith in Kwa-Zulu Natal and is currently being detained at Kimberley SAPS cells. 

 

“The Kimberley Cluster Commander Major General Jean Abrahams lauds the members for their vigilance which led to the excellent arrest. The focus is to send out a message to persons who traffic drugs from other provinces into the Northern Cape that they will definitely be stopped in their tracks and put behind bars where they belong.” 

The police requests that all information in this regard please be forwarded to Detective Constable Albert Mathebe at 053 838 4100. 

The suspect should be appearing before the Kimberley Magistrate Court soon. The investigations continue. 

 

 

The National Energy Regulatory of SA (Nersa) said the communities’ low turnout at their public hearing in Kimberley on Tuesday was not cause for concern.

 

Less than a 100 people attended the hearing, organised by Nersa to get public inputs in the proposed 16% annual electricity increase by Eskom for five years. The Northern Cape leg of the nationwide hearings was held in Kimberley’s Christian Revival Church.

 

Chairperson of the electricity subcommittee Thembani Bukula told The New Age the relatively small turnout was not an indication of mistrust of the Nersa process.

 

“In the past we did come to their defence when it comes to electricity increases. The poor come first and we need to protect them,” said Bukula.

 

“In some areas we even went to the extent of calling for the public hearings on weekends, but people will always have an excuse not to attend. We are glad that the people who pitched up this morning are actually leaders in their respective organisations, they therefore represent the majority out there,” he said.

 

Before the start of the hearing, Numsa members picketed outside the hall, calling for Nersa to reject Eskom’s proposal.

 

“It’s Numsa’s view that Eskom’s application, if approved, will lead not only to job losses but also general price increases.

For more details go to http://www.thenewage.co.za

Johannesburg – Fedusa and Saptu have asked Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande to include them in the committee on transformation of the higher education sector.

 

“We believe that the minister would make a strategic error if he continues with the current structure of the committee,” Federation of Unions of SA general secretary Dennis George said in a statement on Thursday.

 

“Although we are glad that trade unions are involved, we believe that the current composition is not representative of university staff holding positions at our universities.”

 

SA Parastatal and Tertiary Union (Saptu) general secretary Ben van der Walt said his union should also be represented in the committee, as it was a majority union and an important stakeholder at various institutions.

 

“We are an inclusive union and we have proven ourselves to have truly transformed.

 

“We represent academics and support staff at universities, and our members represent the demographics of our country. We pride ourselves in our diversity,” he said.

 

On Wednesday, Nzimande said he had set up a transformation committee for universities, nearly five years after a probe sparked by a racist incident in the Free State.

 

Part of the committee’s job would be to review initiation practices at universities.

 

The probe into discrimination in universities was conducted after a racist incident at the University of the Free State (UFS) in February 2008.

 

A video emerged of UFS employees undergoing an initiation, which included having to get on their knees and eat food which had apparently been urinated into by male students at the Reitz men’s residence.

 

George said the only way to deal with this issue was by being inclusive.

 

“By not including all parties, the committee might become simply irrelevant. The results of the investigation, as well as the eventual impact of recommendations will then certainly be compromised,” he said.

 

Fedusa and Saptu sent a letter to Nzimande with their request. They offered to, if necessary, meet Nzimande. – Sapa

By Obakeng Maje

Swartkopfontein-North West police nabbed close to 14 illegal immigrants at the Swartkopfontein Border post on tuesday for entering the country illegally.

Police said the 14 illegal immigrants are originally from Zimbabwe and they range from a 4 year-old to 44 year-old respectively.

“Police were patrolling the area when they realised a minibus was overloaded. They stopped it and conducted a search,and they discovered that most of occupants have no legal documents to be in the country” Brigadier Thulani Ngubane said.

“Only nine people out of possible 25 have legal documents. Those who did not have were arrested” he said.

It is alleged that these people gained entry by jumping a fence.

The driver of a taxi was also arrested.

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Workers at Harmony Gold’s Kusasalethu mine plan to protest on Thursday against retrenchments and a lock-out from hostels.

 

On January 3, the mine gates were closed and workers were told that the mine was shut down until further notice. About 500 miners were denied access to the hostel. Many slept outside the gates.

 

The company closed its operations at the end of December, but said it would continue to pay the basic salaries of workers.

 

According to the company’s website about 5200 employees would be affected if the mine closed permanently.

 

The Business Day recently reported that workers were given until March 7 to resolve their complaints or face retrenchment.

 

Harmony CEO Graham Briggs warned in an open letter that roleplayers had 60 days to save the mine.

 

The letter said murder, violence, intimidation and damage to mine property prompted the decision to suspend operations at the mine near Carletonville.

 

He told Business Day that no company could operate in such an environment.

 

Unprotected labour action at the mine in October and December caused huge production losses.

 

The publication said the mine was expected to report a cash operating loss of R150 million for the December quarter, and a negative cash flow of R252m.

       

– Sapa

 

 

 

Johannesburg – Sports Minister Fikile Mbabula congratulated Bafana Bafana on Wednesday after the national soccer team secured their first win of the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) tournament.

 

Hosts South Africa beat Angola 2-0 in Durban, climbing to the top of Group A, in their second match of the continental competition at a near-capacity Moses Mabhida Stadium.

 

“The team show commitment to winning and they are flying the flag high,” said Mbalula, who had handed out the jerseys to the players before the match.

 

“We are proud of them and will continue supporting them for their upcoming games.”

 

Bafana Bafana, who had drawn 0-0 against Cape Verde Islands in the tournament opener on Saturday, will face Morocco in their final match of the group stages in Durban on Sunday. – Sapa