By Obakeng Maje
Hopetown-Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit are investigating a case of rape which allegedly occurred between March 2012 to December 2012.
The principal of a local High School in Hopetown was arrested on Monday,at approximately 07:30am.
“The suspect is known as Johan Horn (45) and he is accused of raping a 15 year-old scholar at his school” lieutenant Sergio Kock said.
The accused appeared in the Hopetown Magistrates’ Court and was granted a R15000 bail and the case is remanded to 12 August 2013.
The investigation continues.
Follow us on Twitter@Taung_DailyNews

North West Traffic Authorities have raised serious concern about the number of drunken drivers on provincial roads, more especially over the weekends.
A concern was raised during the Jaws special operation over the weekend in Rustenburg where more than 17 people were arrested for the same offense.
“Drunken driving is regarded as one of the major contributory factor of road accidents and fatalities in the country, followed by speed, fatigue, driver fitness and vehicle roadworthiness” department spokesperson Simon Mmope said.
MEC for Human Settlements, Public Safety and Liaison, Nono Maloyi calls traffic officials, not to show messy on drunken drivers as they are endangering the lives of other motorist.
He further called on motorists to refrain from driving under the influence of alcohol.
“The high number of drunken drivers is a course for concern. This is too much and we can’t just let lawlessness on our roads. We can’t just let people turning innocent children to be orphans, wives to be widows and husbands to be widowers”.
“Those who choose to drive under the influence do not respect other people’s lives. I have instructed traffic authorities not to be easy on them,” warns Maloyi.
MEC Maloyi further said that traffic Authorities will work 24 hours to make sure that those found on the road while under the influence are stopped before they cause another accident.
According to Traffic Authorities more drunken driving cases are recorded from Thursdays towards the weekend. Authorities have however vowed to focus on drunken driving, which they said will remain their priority project. They said that weekends will never be the same in targeted areas, as they realized that most cases are recorded as from Thursday until Sunday.
Follow us on Twitter@Taung_DailyNews

Mahikeng-The North West MEC for Human Settlements, Public Safety and Liaison Nono Maloyi will officially launch an integrated socio-economic research, at Extension 39 in Mahikeng in a bit to assess the socio-economic impact made on the lives of housing beneficiaries in the province.
The Department aims to measure the impact it made to the people of the province who benefitted from different housing projects, through this pilot project which will be the first of its kind in the province.
”The project will run for the next four weeks starting from the 1 July 2013.
About 60 trained data collectors will visit the 2500 households in Extension 39” departmental spokesperson Simon Mmope said.
The launch will take place as follows:
Date: 25 June 2013
Venue: Extension 39 Sport Ground, Phase 1
Time: 14H00
Follow us on Twitter@Taung_DailyNews
(Edited by Obakeng Maje)

South African senior women’s national team, Banyana Banyana moved up two places on the latest Coca-Cola FIFA Women’s World Rankings released on Friday, 21 June.

The high-riding Banyana Banyana moved from 53 to 51th position. The upward trend might have been influenced by the 5-0 demolition of neighbours Mozambique and a credible 1-1 draw with Zimbabwe this month.

The top five rankings on the continent remain the same with Nigeria (32) leading the pack followed by Cameroon (48) and Ghana (49). Banyana Banyana remain in the 4th position followed by 2012 AWC Champions Equatorial Guinea (52).

Banyana Banyana head coach Joseph Mkhonza was elated upon receiving the news and said this was a great stepping stone for his squad to continue building on their success.

“This is good for the girls. It is encouraging to see the girls’ achievements being rewarded. The intention is to continue our rise and break into the top 20 in the world,” said Mkhonza.

“Our immediate goal is to break into the top three on the continent because I believe we are far much better than the fourth place we currently occupy. We were at the Olympics and reached the finals of the African Women Championships. I think we are not far off from being among the best on the continent,” he said.

The soft-spoken coach expressed appreciation to Banyana Banyana’s number one sponsors, Sasol for their continued support in helping the squad realise its goals.

“I would like to thank Sasol and SAFA for the support they have given to women’s football in the country as well as our fans for standing behind us. The continued growth on the rankings should serve up as motivation to the players to keep working harder and represent the nation with pride,” said Mkhonza.

The next rankings will be released on Friday, 2 August 2013.

Follow us on Twitter@Taung_DailyNews

By Obakeng Maje
Nietverdien-Police are investigating a case of murder and inquest docket after a Botswana couple were found dead. Boitumelo Magetse (35) and Moakofi Mokgalo (41) were allegedly found dead inside her boyfriends` car on the gravel road between Nietverdien and Driefontein in the early hours.
“According to the information received, the police where on patrol when they saw a Botswana registration car parked along the gravel road between Nietverdien and Driefontein. Police allegedly stopped and walked towards the stationary car” sergeant Kelebogile Moiloa said.
Police was allegedly about to ask the driver if he need any assistance,and the driver allegedly took out a firearm and shot himself on the head.
“The police officer called his other colleagues to the scene and on arrival, the police forcefully opened the car and they found two occupants, the driver who shot himself in full view of the police and a female passenger” said Moiloa.
The woman was found dead on the passenger seat with a bullet wound on her head. It is further alleged that the Nietverdien police received information from Botswana Police about a reported missing Botswana National.
The incident was reported to their counterparts in Botswana who confirmed that the description of a female victim befit that of the person reported missing from their country.
Police had since registered a murder case and Inquest docket.
Follow us on Twitter@Taung_DailyNews

Johannesburg – South Africans appeared resigned on Monday to the inevitability of one day saying goodbye to Nelson Mandela after the 94-year-old former president’s condition in hospital deteriorated to critical.

With his latest hospitalisation – his fourth in six months – a realisation has set in that he will not be around forever.

His deterioration this weekend, two weeks after being admitted in a serious but stable condition with a lung infection, has caused a perceptible switch in mood from prayers for recovery to preparations for a fond farewell.

“If it’s his time to go, he can go. I wish God can look after him,” said nurse Petunia Mafuyeka, as she headed to work in Johannesburg.

“We will miss him very much. He fought for us to give us freedom. We will remember him every day. When he goes I will cry.”

Prayers

In a statement, President Jacob Zuma’s office urged South Africa and the world to pray for Mandela “during this difficult time”. But there was some concern among the public about doctors trying to prolong the life of one of the 20th century’s most influential figures.

“I’m worried that they’re keeping him alive. I feel they should let him go,” said Doris Lekalakala, a claims manager. “The man is old. Let nature take its course. He must just rest.”

Since stepping down in 1999 after one term as president, Mandela has stayed out of active politics in the continent’s biggest and most important economy and his passing is expected to have little political impact.

His last public appearance was waving to fans from the back of a golf cart before the final of the Soccer World Cup in Johannesburg in July 2010.

During his retirement, he has divided his time between his home in Johannesburg and Qunu, the village in the Eastern Cape where he was born.

The public’s last glimpse of him was a brief clip aired by state television in April during a visit to his home by Zuma and other senior officials of the ruling ANC.

At the time, the 101-year-old liberation movement, which led the fight against white-minority rule, assured the public Mandela was “in good shape”, although the footage showed a thin and frail old man sitting expressionless in an armchair.

Reuters

Johannesburg – Former president Nelson Mandela’s eldest daughter says the family is taking it one day at a time as her father remains in a critical condition in a Pretoria hospital, but she believes he is at peace

“All we do every day is take one day at a time and pray to the good Lord,” Makaziwe Mandela told CNN.

“All I pray for as a daughter is that the transition is smooth…. He is at peace with himself. He has given so much to the world. I believe he is at peace.”

The family was unsettled by some media reports.

“Nelson Mandela’s blood runs through these veins. Our veins. Give us the space to be with our father. Whether these are the last moments with us to be with our dad, or there is still a longer, but they must back off.”

CNN reported that she also addressed how much medical treatment her father should receive.

“In our culture, the Tembu culture… you never release the person unless the person has told you: ‘Please my children, my family, release me.’ My dad hasn’t said that to us.

“So these people who want to talk about, you know, release him: he hasn’t said we should release him and we haven’t come to the end yet. It is only God who knows the end.”

Critical condition

Meanwhile, people waited with bated breath for news about Nelson Mandela on Monday morning after the presidency said his condition was critical.

“The condition of former president Nelson Mandela, who is still in hospital in Pretoria, has become critical,” the presidency said on Sunday night.

The 94-year-old anti-apartheid icon has been in hospital since 8 June, fighting a lung infection.

The announcement followed a visit by President Jacob Zuma and African National Congress deputy president Cyril Ramaphosa who were told by the medical team that Mandela’s condition had become critical in the past 24-hours.

They also met Mandela’s wife Graca Machel to discuss his condition.

“The doctors are doing everything possible to get his condition to improve and are ensuring that Madiba is well looked after and is comfortable,” Zuma said. “He is in good hands.

Zuma asked that everybody pray for Mandela, his family and the medical team caring for him.

The ANC noted the news “with concern”.

“The ANC joins the presidency in calling upon all of us to keep president Mandela, his family and his medical team in our thoughts and prayers during this trying time,” it said.

The Nobel Peace Prize laureate’s condition was soon trending on Twitter.

News crews returned to the hospital and to his home in Houghton to be in place for any updates.

SAPA

JOHANNESBURG – Former ANC Youth League leader Julius Malema claims there are senior leaders within the ANC who are working with his new party and who will come out into the open when the time is right.
Malema recently announced he was creating a new political party called the Economic Freedom Fighters, which will campaign for nationalisation of mines and land expropriation.

Speaking on Talk at Nine of Radio 702/567 CapeTalk’s on Sunday Malema, said he was being helped by senior people within the ANC.

“Some of them have opted for the strategy of insulting us so that they protect themselves so they don’t appear as if they are part of us.”

He claimed they would reveal their hand later.

“In the end, once everything’s been concluded and there’s positivity, they can come out and openly say this is who we associate with.”

Malema still cuts a confident figure but seems to have lost some of the style he had while ANC Youth League leader.

Meanwhile, the political firebrand and four co-accused face several charges, including corruption and racketeering.

He was in the Polokwane Magistrate’s Court last week hoping to get a date as soon as possible to ‘clear his name’.

However, the legal teams were unhappy with the manner in which the state managed to secure a trial date overnight.

On Thursday, Malema told the court his prosecution was flawed and fraught with political interference.

He accused President Jacob Zuma of being behind his prosecution.

(Edited by Refilwe Pitjeng)
For morte http://www.ewn.co.za

Pretoria – There was minimal movement of vehicles on Monday morning at the Pretoria hospital where former president Nelson Mandela is in a critical condition.

The hospital’s entrance in Celliers Street was closed and police were manning the other entrance in Park Street.

News crews converged on the hospital on Sunday night after the presidency announced that Mandela’s condition had deteriorated. Most of them had left by 03:00 on Monday.

Even so, more than 20 vehicles, including the outside broadcast vans of local and international media, occupied the parking along Celliers Street.

A few reporters braved the biting early morning cold to chat near the hospital’s Park Street entrance. Some of them held cameras.

Several police officers were stationed inside the hospital premises. A police Toyota Quantum was parked in the grounds, near the entrance on Park Street.

Two security guards manned the entrance and numerous police vehicles patrolled the area.

‘Critical’ condition

“The condition of former president Nelson Mandela, who is still in hospital in Pretoria, has become critical,” presidential spokesperson Mac Maharaj said in a statement issued on Sunday night.

It was issued after a visit by President Jacob Zuma and African National Congress deputy president Cyril Ramaphosa.

“They were briefed by the medical team who informed them that the former President’s condition had become critical over the past 24-hours,” said Maharaj.
Zuma and Ramaphosa also met Mandela’s wife Graca Machel to discuss his condition.

“The doctors are doing everything possible to get his condition to improve and are ensuring that Madiba is well-looked after and is comfortable,” Zuma said in the statement. “He is in good hands.”

Zuma appealed to South Africans to continue praying for Mandela and his medical team.

Mandela, 94, was admitted to hospital on June 8 for treatment of a recurring lung infection.

Well-wishers have adorned the hospital’s security wall with get-well cards, balloons, flowers and paintings.

All quiet at Mandela home

Meanwhile, all was quiet outside Mandela’s home in Johannesburg in the early hours of Monday morning.

Shortly after 02:00, a silver Jeep arrived at the house. The driver pulled up outside the black gates, flashed the vehicle’s headlights and, when there was no response, hooted twice. The gates opened.

Two broadcasting teams arrived at the house on Sunday night, but left a short while later.

The street was otherwise quiet, with only the occasional armed response patrol.

Stones bearing the messages “God Bless Madiba”, “Thanx father” and “I love you Madiba”, roses and cards shone under a streetlight in front of the house.
They have been left by well-wishers in the days since Mandela was hospitalised.

On Sunday night, the anti-apartheid icon and Nobel peace prize laureate’s house was dark with only an entrance light visible through the large windows facing the road.

– SAPA