Police have arrested five people on suspicion of murder for botched circumcisions, which led to the deaths of about 30 boys in the Eastern Cape, a police spokesperson said on Monday.

Police were also investigating suspected assault, gross bodily harm and unlawful circumcisions that left 300 others injured across the province over the last week, police spokeswoman Sibongile Soci said.

Deaths are mainly caused by blood loss or infection from circumcisions poorly performed by traditional practitioners.

The ANC called the deaths and injuries “tragic” and said the government must act immediately.

“Authorities can no longer pay lip service to dealing with this disaster that afflicts our nation during the traditional initiation season,” it said in a statement.

In May, more than 20 youths died in Mpumalanga, prompting rare cross-party calls for reform of the initiation practise.

– Reuters

A former Flantrade Fishing manager appeared in the Bellville Specialised Commercial Crime Court in Cape Town on Monday on hundreds of fraud charges.

Dalton Glenville Randall was not asked to plead on 486 counts of fraud, and a charge framed in terms of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act.

He allegedly created “ghost crew members” and channelled their wages and commissions into his private bank accounts.

The matter was postponed to 18 July for further investigation.

According to the charge sheet, Randall was the manager at Flantrade Fishing, a company that provides management and operational services to fishing vessels.

His duties included the authorisation and payment of expenses and supplies, the purchase of bait and the payment of salaries and commissions to crew members.

Randall had to prepare written schedules reflecting the names of crew members and the amounts to be paid to them.

Prosecutor Derek Vogel alleges the schedules Randall submitted to financial manager Craig Myburgh, for the payment of crew salaries and commissions, contained fictitious names.

Randall then allegedly channelled salaries and commissions totalling R2.5m for “ghost crew members” into two private bank accounts, for his personal use.

He allegedly also submitted fake invoices totalling R1.2m for bait purchased.

– SAPA

Potchefstroom-Some of the expelled Tlokwe ANC councillors will meet their constituents this week in a bid to gain their support in a move that could see them challenging their former party in the upcoming by-elections.

This comes while the stand-off between the ANC and DA over the mayoral seat of the troubled Tlokwe local municipality in North West rages on, with rising political tension fuelled by a fierce contest over nine ward councillor seats left vacant when the ANC expelled its councillors last week.
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Kimberley – A case of statutory rape has been opened against a former Pescodia High School teacher, who is alleged to have fathered the baby of a 14-year-old girl. The girl was also allegedly raped by a councillor’s son when she was 33 weeks’ pregnant.

The girl was allegedly raped on June 4 at her home in Roodepan by Ernest Johnson, 22, who was released on bail of R1 000.
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Kimberley – The 2013 winter initiation season in the Northern Cape has claimed the life of a teenage initiate who died at an illegal initiation school near Windsorton.

Godfrey Barend, 19, died in his sleep earlier this week after apparently feeling dizzy the night before.

The incident comes barely a week after the Deputy Minister of Police, Makhotso Maggie Sotyu, shut down 15 illegal initiation schools in the Phokwane municipal area.
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Tlokwe – Several residents in Potchefstroom in the North West have welcomed the unseating of African National Congress mayor Maphetle Maphetle.

“What happened in the council is right,” PR Kali said at the taxi rank in the town on Monday.

“We think there will be change if the Democratic Alliance takes over.”

He said the ANC-dominated council had done nothing to eradicate poverty in the city or create jobs.

“Our taxi ranks are flooding,” Kali said, pointing around him.

“We need change, let it be.”

DA councillor Annette Combrink was voted in as the new mayor on Tuesday, the second time since November, unseating Maphetle.

DA North West leader Chris Hattingh said at the time that 29 councillors of all parties, including the ANC, unanimously voted on Tuesday to return Combrink to the position of mayor.

On Wednesday, the North West ANC’s provincial disciplinary committee said its 14 councillors who voted to unseat Maphetle were expelled from the party.

They would also be removed as Tlokwe councillors.

TB Masibi said he was expecting “huge change” now that the DA had taken over the municipality.

“We expect a lot of change from the DA,” he said.

“They will combat crime and corruption.”

While the DA was in charge last year, it requested a forensic investigation into irregularities at the municipality.

The probe found that the council had irregularly bought Maphetle a R736 000 customised Mercedes-Benz. Maphetle had also allegedly abused the Disaster Management Fund and Poverty Relief Fund.

The report recommended that formal disciplinary action be taken against him and other officials.

In May, the DA laid criminal charges against Maphetle, and in June, Public Protector Thuli Madonsela said she would investigate the claims of corruption involving Maphetle.

Both Masibi and Kali complained about corruption and the lack of jobs.

Many of the fruit and vegetable vendors at the Potchefstoom taxi rank were from Lesotho.

Masibi said he used to have a shop but could not compete with the foreigners and the ANC had done nothing to create jobs for locals.

A woman who did not want to be named said she “felt good” about the DA taking over.

“I am happy… (The ANC) is not for me,” she said.

Rethabile Sechele said he did not have a problem with the DA taking over.

“As long as they are delivering the services I deserve… It’s okay,” he said.

Sina Fingwane said she did not know about what happened at the municipality, but was unhappy with what the ANC had done in the town.

“There has been no change (under the ANC),” she said speaking in Afrikaans.

“They just come here and say ‘vote’ but they don’t do anything.” She said she would not vote again for the ANC, but she did not know of another alternative.

The ANC was holding a provincial working committee meeting in Potchefstroom on Monday.

The provincial leadership and national executive committee deployees to the province were expected to do a walkabout at the taxi rank and the Riverside Mall later in the day.

They were also expected to go on a door-to-door campaign in all the wards.

By-elections were expected to be held in the Tlokwe municipality soon. – Sapa

Kimberley – An apparently drunk teenage boy was beaten, stoned and stabbed to death allegedly by a group of men he had been fighting with over a girl he met at a local tavern.

Letlhogonolo Segaetsho, 17, was punched, kicked, hit with stones and stabbed in the neck, back and stomach by a group of men in Rhabe Street, Galeshewe, in the early hours of Sunday.

Segaetsho’s friend who saw the incident, said the drama started after the tavern they had been drinking at in Number 2 closed in the early hours of Sunday and when patrons were making their way to their respective homes.
For more http://www.iol.co.za

The South African Football Association (SAFA) has acknowledged that Youth football development is a key performance area for football development in South Africa. SAFA further acknowledges that there are Youth football development programmes throughout the country that are focusing on the football development of both girls and boys. The newly developed Technical Master Plan has identified Youth football development as an important pillar to enhance the prowess of South African Football.

The South African Football Association therefore requests that all Youth football development programmes, Youth football Academies, Football programmes of excellence and any other football related development programmes, register with SAFA.

This registration process will enhance the SAFA database as well as assist in the identification of our hidden football talent in the country.

“SAFA and the SAFA Development Agency (SDA) want to capture all academies, schools of development or any project that’s in the community to place them on our database so that when people contact us wanting these institutions we are able to point to the right direction. Also, so that we can provide them with support, and, to a large extent, they can apply to the 2010 FIFA Legacy Trust Fund for funding. We will also grade them according to the different levels of bronze, silver or gold, depending on what they offer and how they offer it. Perhaps a crucial point is that we will also be in a position to know which academies are operating and we can get rid of the fly-by-nights,” said Acting Technical Director at SAFA Ms Fran Hilton-Smith.

“We also want to make sure that all the projects are following the plans of the SAFA Development Agency with regards to the Technical Master Plan. And that is why we are urging all the academies register with SAFA and in that way we can assist them to develop and provide service to SAFA which is badly needed. We need these academies and we want to encompass them in their growth.”

As we seek to raise funding for the implementation of our Technical Master Plan, this information will help us in establishing the need that is out there, and also help us to provide some form of quality assurance for all stakeholders. SAFA therefore urges and encourages all Youth football development programmes to complete the attached form and return it to SAFA as urgently as possible.

Click here to download Youth Development Programmes Application Form

Closing Date: 31 July 2013

Fax or email to the following attention:

Ms Fran Hilton-Smith (Acting Technical Director – SAFA)

Mr. Luxolo Ngcuthushe (National Development Coordinator – SAFA Development Agency)

Mr. Kagiso Matlaopane (Development Coordinator – SDA)

Fax no 086 206 0482

Email: sda@safa.net
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One in five South African secondary school pupils is a victim of violence, including assault, robbery and even cyber bullying. A new study has found that schools are not the safe havens they are supposed to be.

Teachers are also not safe, with 12.4 percent of those canvassed saying they had experienced physical violence – often from pupils.
For more http://www.iol.co.za

By Obakeng Maje
Former Tlokwe Mayor Maphetle Maphetle has failed to adhere to a legal notice to vacate his office by Friday, 5 July.
During talks with DA councillors today, Mr Maphetle attempted to push for a political and not a legal resolution for the impasse said DA.
“He also indicated that he has instructed his Mayoral Committee not to vacate their offices” DA Chris Hattingh said.
According to Democratic Alliance mr Maphetle did not refer to any legal basis for his position to continue occupying the Tlokwe municipal offices.
The DA said they will carefully, in consultation with their lawyers, evaluate the verbatim transcript of the meeting in order to proceed with appropriate legal action.
“The DA remains the only political party that can bring stability to the municipality given the deep and seemingly intractable divisions within the ANC caucus” Hattingh said.
The opposition party said they are intent on acting immediately to deal with key delivery issues such as housing, safety and the filling of vacancies with skilled and committed officials.
“We will also move to deal with the findings of corruption in the forensic audit commissioned by the DA during our last tenure in charge” he said.
The DA remains focused on delivery in Tlokwe and ensuring stability in the municipality’s administration said Democratic Alliance Chris Hattingh.
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