Johannesburg – Five people were killed and 13 injured when a truck crashed through a wall in Constantiakloof, west of Johannesburg, city emergency services said on Friday.

The accident happened on William Nicol Drive around lunch time.

“An 18-wheeler truck collided with a delivery lorry along William Nicol Drive. The lorry then turned towards oncoming traffic, resulting in a multi-car pile-up,” said Johannesburg emergency services spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi.

Four people died on the scene, and a fifth in hospital.

After the initial collision, the 18-wheeler truck crashed through the wall of the Flora Clinic and into four vehicles in the hospital’s parking lot.

The delivery lorry crashed into 10 other vehicles moving along William Nicol Drive.

“Personnel from the fire department had to use heavy equipment to remove those trapped inside vehicles,” said Mulaudzi.

The injured were transferred to various hospitals.

Johannesburg metro police department spokesperson, Wayne Minnaar, said William Nicol Drive was closed up to 14th Avenue for the accident scene to be cleared.

– SAPA

Senior South African ministers, mining bosses and union leaders met on Friday in the most concerted effort yet to end 18 months of labour strife and violence that has hit growth in Africa’s biggest economy.

Critically, leaders of both the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), an ally of the ruling African National Congress, and rival Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) were both present for the talks.

The meeting, which was also attended by mines minister Susan Shabangu and finance minister Pravin Gordhan, is one of the rare occasions that the rival unions have sat around the same negotiating table.

AMCU, which has emerged as the dominant union in the platinum shafts after a bloody turf war with the once unrivalled NUM, has led two brief wildcat strikes at Lonmin this year, most recently last month.

Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe, who is leading the negotiations, said he would leave “no stone unturned” to try and ease tensions.

President Jacob Zuma vowed on Wednesday to take a hard line against labour unrest in the sector as management and unions prepare to embark on industry-wide wage negotiations.
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President Jacob Zuma warned ANC supporters against what he calls parties formed out of anger. Zuma was leading a high-level ANC group on a Youth Month campaign visit to historic Orlando West in Soweto ahead of next year’s elections.

Zuma’s warning comes days after expelled ANC Youth League President Julius Malema said he hoped to form a new party, in a move reminiscent of the COPE breakaway a few years ago. Zuma told the ANC faithfuls that the ANC is the only organisation formed by the people for the people.

“It was not formed by people who believed in something else, or who were angry about something else, but people who were coming together to meet challenges that faced the nation. This is your organisation. This is the organisation you must keep, strengthen. You must vote for.”

On Wednesday, ACDP Leader Kenneth Meshoe said opposition parties stood a good chance to form a coalition government after the 2014 elections, should expelled ANC Youth League President Julius Malema form a new political party.

“Because he is going to take some membership from the ruling party. Particularly his language of economic empowerment, economic freedom, he is appealing to many young people who are jobless.”

The ANC in parliament refused to comment on Meshoe’s assertions that a coalition government would be possible, should Malema form this new political party.
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Johannesburg – Everyone should take education seriously, President Jacob Zuma said on Friday.

“If it was up to me, education would not just be free but compulsory,” Zuma told students at the University of Johannesburg’s Soweto campus.

“Every child would be at school… We need to empower South Africans, all of them.”

It should be a crime not to send a child to school, he said.

In what seemed to be a reference to former ANC Youth League leader Julius Malema’s statements that he was a dictator, Zuma said: “If I was a dictator I would have many of these prisons turned into colleges. All these young guys who commit crime, take them there.

“[But] I’m not a dictator,” he said, laughing.

Youth

Zuma told the students he was interested in what they had to say and what suggestions they had.

He asked what needed to be done to shape the country’s future.

Looking at the problems the country faced, people also needed to look at its background.

“Today you can hear people criticising government… They have forgotten that government is trying to face problems that have been there for centuries… they act like only in 1994 we started messing up education,” the president said.

“Education has played a very critical role in this country.”

Zuma said people could be critical but he knew government was “doing well”. Education, finally, had the foundation it did not have in the past.

“Results are beginning to rise, they will never drop again, this is because we now have a foundation.”

Students were given the opportunity to interact with Zuma and ask questions after he addressed them.

Hector Pieterson Memorial

Earlier in the day, Zuma attended a wreath-laying ceremony at Hector Pieterson Memorial Square in Orlando West, Soweto.

He was joined by African National Congress leaders in Gauteng. These included premier Nomvula Mokonyane, ANCYL Gauteng leader Lebogang Maile, and Johannesburg mayor Parks Tau.

Pieterson was one of the first children shot by apartheid security forces during a protest in the area on 16 June 1976.

The day is now marked as “Youth Day”.

Afterwards, Zuma went on door-to-door visits in the area.

– Were you there? Send us your photos.

– SAPA

Taung-Most young people are optimistic about the country’s future, a survey revealed on Friday.

It found that 56% of the youth believed South Africa would be a better place for them to live in 10 years from now.

The number was 3% higher than the 53% recorded earlier this year.

The cellphone survey, conducted by Pondering Panda through the Youth Hope Index, involved 8 349 respondents aged between 15 and 34.

The responses were weighted nationally in terms of age, gender, and race.

The survey revealed that those who had a negative outlook fell from 47% in March to 44% in June.

Younger respondents were more optimistic.

While 64% of 15 to 17-year-olds felt South Africa would be a better place to live in a decade from now, only 57% of 18 to 24-year-olds believed the same, and 51% of people between 25 and 34 shared this optimism.

Men proved to be more optimistic than women.

Sixty percent of them responded positively about the country’s future compared to 53% of women.

Optimism also differed according to race, said Pondering Panda.

Black youth more positive

The survey revealed that young black South Africans showed the most optimism, with 58% being positive about the country’s future.

In contrast, less than half of respondents from all other race groups were positive about their future. Only 49% of whites, 48% of coloureds, and 36% of Indians felt South Africa would be a better place in which to live a decade from now, the survey found.

Respondents also indicated that unemployment, crime, and politics caused their biggest worries.

Unemployment was the top issue for black respondents while crime was the biggest concern for whites, coloureds, and Indians.

Pondering Panda spokesperson Shirley Wakefield said: “As we approach Youth Day, it is positive to see that young South Africans are feeling relatively more optimistic about their future in SA, with optimism levels having improved slightly in the last couple of months.

“We saw it fall last year after Marikana and dip again in March after the farmworker strikes, but it has recovered slightly since then,” she said.

– SAPA

Bafana Bafana media officer Matlhomola Morake caught up with captain Itumeleng Khune ahead of the do-or-die 2014 World Cup clash with Ethiopia this coming Sunday.

SAFA Media: Playing this match on June 16, a special day on the South African calendar; what does it mean for you?

Itumeleng Khune: Many people sacrificed their lives for us to be where we are today. Had it not been for all those lives that were lost, we might be living under different circumstances. It is therefore important for us the players, the youth of today, to give back by winning this World Cup match against Ethiopia on this special day for our country. Today we are living in better conditions following actions that were taken years ago in 1976. We know they will be with us in spirit as we tackle this important mission on Sunday.

SAFA Media: And how important is this match?

Khune: This game is almost like everything. It is important to finish what we started. We will not have achieved our goals if we were to go back home with just three points, the mission is six points and fortunately we are on track. Maximum points is our target. I believe we have a great team that can beat Ethiopia in their backyard.

SAFA Media: Is the World Cup stage every player’s dream?

Khune: We all want to play on the big stage, its every player’s dream. Most of the players in the current team played in the 2010 FIFA World Cup tournament, so we know what its like to be there and we would want a repeat of that. It is vital again that those that were not there get to experience that level. More importantly, for the country to be represented at the World Cup is a great feeling. For me personally, I would really love to play in my second World Cup tournament, so this game means a lot to all of us.

SAFA Media: Would you compare it to any other important match?

Khune: I have played in many important matches, perhaps at the highest level (World Cup), so this match can be compared to those in terms of importance. After the win against CAR, I said to guys it’s a good feeling and we should celebrate it. But we should not be satisfied with just having won that match but go on and achieve what we set to achieve. We should always strive to get better. It is a crucial match in that we know we are edging closer and closer to Brazil. This is a game our lives and I know everyone wants to make history; everyone wants to be part of history and be counted among those who have helped South Africa qualify for the World Cup. Many people had written us off saying we are only good at hosting, so it is critical that we win on Sunday and show those critics what we are capable of.

SAFA Media: Pressure of playing away?

There is always pressure whether we play home or away. It was good to know that our game against CAR was broadcast live because the fans back home were able to see the hunger and the determination of the team. We have to show the same spirit again against Ethiopia. We know our fans will be with us in spirit and giving us that extra motivation. It was also great to win in Cameroon (against CAR) because previously we really struggled playing away from home, where our best result would be a draw. But we seem to have changed that and coach Gordon Igesund is doing an excellent job in encouraging us to go for more. The mentality has shifted totally, and we are now talking victory in every match we play. With due respect to previous orders, we are now able to withstand the pressure away from home.

SAFA Media: So the Lesotho match was key then?

Khune: Yes, I must commend SAFA for taking our match to Lesotho because we are now reaping the results of the travel and conditions we endured. It is nice to play matches at home in familiar surroundings, but in hindsight it was a good move to play Lesotho away as it also brought the players together. Now we can see the logic of that match and we are grateful for that. Hopefully that experience will come in handy and sustain us in Ethiopia.

SAFA Media: Has the team grown stronger over the last few matches?

Khune: We have indeed. That is what the coach wanted and that is what we wanted. The results we are achieving are an indication of the importance of team spirit. We have really grown. It has not been an easy road though. We still want to improve as a team.

SAFA Media: Any pressure on you personally to perform?

Khune: With the quality of players we have, I have no reason to be under pressure. We have many players who can be leaders in the squad. As selected captain, I have that extra responsibility to lead from the front. I have to be on top of my game all the time and impart that spirit to the rest of the team. I am also well aware that should I not perform, I will be a bad leader. But this is not about me; the entire team has been doing a good job. I am as good as my defenders make me, and they have done a sterling job so far.

SAFA Media: Having watched the video of the match between Ethiopia and Botswana, your thoughts?

Khune: Ethiopia is a very strong side; very organised and they like to play carpet football. But I think we have equally good players that can deal with that threat. We have shown great discipline and good attitude in our matches and that can go a long way in giving us results we need. We have to hit them where it hurts the most, in the back of the net. They have a couple of dangerous players but we know what we need to do. We are confident even though we will have the crowd against us.

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