By Obakeng Maje
Kakamas-A 65 year old woman was allegedly arrested this morning on Wednesday at about 11:30 by Kakamas police for allegedly dealing in dagga. According to police information, the elderly woman was spotted hitchhiking at a robot on the Pofadder/Pela Road.
“The woman was carrying three bags with her. Constable Akanyang Majuta and Pogiso Sejamoholo were doing routine patrols when they stopped their vehicle and interviewed the woman” lieutenant Donald Mdlhili said.
Mdlhuli said the woman indicated to the officers that she was on her way to Pela.
“The officers searched her luggage and found that three of her bags were stashed with dagga. The total weight of the cannabis is 8,567kg” he said. The estimated street value of the dagga is R43 000.
The woman was detained on a charge of dealing in dagga and she is expected to appear in court soon.-TDN
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By Obakeng Maje
Hopetown-Police in Hopetown are investigating a case of possession of suspected stolen goods after a 30 year old male was arrested at De Bron Farm, near Hopetown.
The police was summoned to a complaint of house breaking in progress at the mentioned farm on Monday at approximately 21:40pm.

“The Visible Policing Head of Hopetown, Capt Gilbert Dikgetsi rushed to the scene while en-route to the farm found, a suspicious looking male on a bicycle” police said.

The male was searched and loaded into the police vehicle. Footprints and bicycle tyre tracks allegedly matching these of the male suspect and his bicycle were found on the scene.
“The police transported the male to his house and during the search police found 9 rolls of aluminium wire, two lengths of copper wire and a grease gun which was allegedly stolen.

The approximate street value of the suspected stolen goods is R3000, 00” Lieutenant Olebogeng Tawana said.
The suspect should be appearing before the Hopetown Magistrates’ Court soon.-TDN
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Saturday’s clash against Kaizer Chiefs in the semi-finals of the MTN8 Cup will have all the ingredients for a spectacular affair between the two perennial Soweto rivals.

And Captain Lucky Lekgwathi says that after losing to Chiefs in the Carling Cup, Saturdays match becomes a must win match for him and his team-mates.

“The Derby is a match that is part of the History of South Africa – we lost in the Carling Cup but now the demand from everywhere is bigger; Chiefs can’t win two matches against us – we will fight,” Lekgwathi told Orlandopiratesfc.com.

“We have to win on Saturday and the message to all of us is quiet clear. Last season we won nothing and this season we will have to give a real go at all trophies on offer and try to win them.

“It is not going to be easy once again to defeat Chiefs which are our biggest rivals, but we have a commitment with all our stakeholders and we will certainly have to be at our best and fight for a win.”

The 37 year old defender who has renewed his stay with the club for a further year, also called on the team supporters to show the same vibe they showed in the match against Zamalek on Saturday.

“The fans must just come in numbers and support us – tickets will be sold out soon so it becomes important that they get their tickets well in advance just to avoid problems. It will be a nice match but we will do everything to win.”

Bucs will play visitors to Chiefs in the first leg at FNB Stadium. kick-off is at 15.00.
Source: http://www.orlandopiratesfc.com

Oupa Manyisa is confident of victory over rivals Kaizer Chiefs over the weekend. The Bafana Bafana international said he is looking to build on the performance against Zamalek.

“I think the attitude we have displayed in the Champions League will put us in good stead,” said Manyisa. “Coming into Saturday’s match we have to play well and give our fans some joy on Saturday.

The Randfontein born midfielder also said that although Orlando Pirates goes into this tie highly motivated, it will be important to be realistic and cautious of the team they will be coming up against.

“Chiefs won the league last season so they also believe they can get a result from us – we lost in the Carling Cup to them and that shows they have the ability of playing good football and win high tempo matches.

“For us it will be important to approach the game with the right attitude and give our opponents the respect they deserve,” he added.

“Like I said, we are in a good space at the moment and we will try to stay focused and win the match on Saturday.”

The Buccaneers and Amakhosi lock horns at FNB Stadium on Saturday – Kickoff at 15h00.
For more http://www.orlandopiratesfc.com

Allan Freese, the Platinum Stars coach, insists they cannot ignore the danger posed by Bidvest Wits attack when they meet in the MTN8 first-leg semi-final tie on Sunday.

The two clubs clash at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium in Rustenburg on Sunday, before meeting again in the second leg at the Bidvest Stadium on September 24. Reward for the winner will be an October final against either Kaizer Chiefs or Orlando Pirates.

The Students have been transformed from being just any regular South African club over the past 18 months to one of the top guns due to heavy investment by their owners.

After some major signings like Tinashe Nengomasha last year, they have recruited several household names already in 2013/14 – the biggest arguably being Gavin Hunt, one of the country’s best coaches.

“Bringing in Gavin alone was massive for them,” new Dikwena boss Freese told PSL.co.za. “He is someone who has achieved a lot in South African football, he’s won many leagues and cups and I respect what he’s done.

“So they are a changed team. They have quite a few dangerous players too, the ones I can pick out are the new Ethiopia striker (Getaneh Kebede) and Benjani (Mwaruwari), who has a lot of experience.

“They are two I am mentioning, but we cannot be ignorant to the fact that they have so many quality players within their squad.”

Other big names recruited by the Johannesburg club are experienced quartet Moeneeb Josephs, Onismor Bhasera, Musa Bilankulu and Matthew Booth,

Freese, club assistant last season, is himself aiming to build a dynasty of his own in the North West. And the foundations have been firmly laid by his predecessor Cavin Johnson, who guided Stars to a remarkable second-place league finish last year.

The new man does not plan to change too much, saying all the signs are there for another strong campaign ahead.

“The players are aware that only two guys have been lost,” he says. “So why should things change because everyone else is still here?

“The team knows that and even though I’m the new coach here, not much has or will be changed. One or maybe two things may change, but that’s it.

“Why change a something that was working so well? It brought us a certain amount of success, so there’s no point changing a winning formula.

“So my main job is to look after the squad, play them and motivate them to do the best they can do, which is at least matching what they did last year.”

Stars won their opening match of the competition 3-0 against Free State Stars, while Bidvest Wits crushed Bloemfontein Celtic by the same margin.

Freese believes it will be a tight contest, but believes his side has the slight advantage because of playing at home first.

“I think it’s a good thing that we’re at home first and if we can produce the right result, it will ease the pressure on us for the away leg,” he adds. “So you prepare how you want to play at home in the first instance. Depending on the outcome, then you plan for the away leg.

“Remember that things like away goals also count, so a lot will depend on how the first game goes.”
Source: http://www.psl.co.za

Platinum Stars captain, Vuyo Mere is hoping that they will have the momentum behind them when they face Bidvest Wits in the MTN8 first leg semi-final on Sunday.

“The reward for the way we played in the season is that the first match is in our building. So I’m just very confident we are going to take advantage of the opportunity and continue to do what we have done all year,” Dikwena captain Vuyo Mere said.

According to Mere, the key is to continue working hard and carry the momentum from their last MTN8 encounter against Free State Stars and bring it to the first leg of the semi-final.

“I think that’s a big, big concern to continue the desperation with which we’ve played,” Mere said during a flash interview with PSL.co.za.

“Our style has kind of been the last couple of games is to win and go on and get it back into it, and we certainly can’t think that we’ve done the hard part already. What is left is going to be more difficult than the last two games we have played this season and I think that’s going to be a challenge. Bidvest are a solid side and we need to bring our “A” game against them.

The former Hellenic man is not overly concerned about the final as yet, as their primary focus is Bidvest Wits, and not Kaizer Chiefs or Orlando Pirates.

“If you start thinking about the next stage, you’re not going to be in the next stage, so I think that’s what has served us well so far is taking it a day at a time,” Mere said.

“If we don’t manufacture the same kind of desperation, the same kind of energy to match or exceed Bidvest Wits’ energy, then we’re not going to have to worry about who is next.”
Source: http://www.psl.co.za

Johannesburg – Gold Fields chief executive Nick Holland has offered to waive his bonus after an investigation into the company’s BEE transaction at its South Deep mine, the company said on Thursday.

“In recognition of the concerns which have been generated around the BEE transaction relating to South Deep, chief executive Nick Holland has offered to waive his bonus in respect of the 2013 financial year end,” Gold Fields said in a statement.

The investigation revealed the transaction was not consistent with company standards.

The company’s board initiated the investigation into the Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) transaction in December 2012 after it was questioned in media reports.

In March, Business Day newspaper reported that Gold Fields’s former chairwoman Mamphela Ramphele said the government had shoved a list of BEE shareholders down the company’s throat, with an ultimatum that if the preferred names were not taken on board it would be denied a mining licence.

These shareholders were to be part of the Invictus Gold empowerment deal.

The deal resulted in politically-connected Invictus Gold taking a nine percent stake of South Deep mine at a cost of R1.1 billion in 2010, Business Day reported.

The newspaper reported that Gold Fields had not provided the names of all 73 shareholders in Invictus Gold, which had led to the “secretive” nature of the deal. Only 18 Invictus Gold shareholders were revealed to the public.

Ramphele became chairwoman of Gold Fields around the time the deal was finalised.

“We also, under my leadership, instituted the social and ethics committee. It is not me in charge of that investigation, because we believe in good governance,” Ramphele was quoted as saying at the time.

“Now, to jump to the conclusion that I must have been colluding with this simply because I talk too much, I always criticise government, is sad.”

Gold Fields at the time rejected the report as untrue and said Ramphele’s statements represented her personal views.

Ramphele resigned as chairwoman of Gold Fields in February. She now leads political party AgangSA.

The final report of the board’s investigation found the transaction benefited the mining company.

“The board continues to believe that the BEE transaction is one of lasting benefit to the company and its BEE stakeholders,” Gold Fields said on Thursday.

Further findings from the investigation revealed that the transaction was not consistent with the company’s standards.

The company’s internal policies would be designed to increase transparency and improve communication between management and the board, Gold Fields said. – Sapa

Johannesburg – The DA Youth has opened two cases at the Mankweng police station in Limpopo alleging assault by members of the SA Students Congress.

“A meeting organised by the Democratic Alliance Students’ Organisation (Daso) at the University of Limpopo was violently disrupted by ANC and Sasco members last night (Wednesday),” the party’s youth leader Mbali Ntuli said in a statement on Thursday.

“A number of our Daso members were assaulted and had to be taken to hospital,” she alleged.

Ntuli said she was among the injured.

Limpopo police spokesman Brigadier Hangwani Mulaudzi said a case of common assault and malicious damage to property had been opened.

“We can confirm that two people were taken to hospital – one for minor injuries, I don’t know what injuries. Another woman was feeling pain on her arms and her back.

“Currently we are trying to get all the statements from the victims, and then take the docket to (the) director of public prosecutions for a decision.”

He said the complaint to the police was against Sasco only and not the African National Congress.

Sasco provincial chairman Mokotjo Legodi dismissed the claims.

“The allegations levelled against our members are not true. Sasco members were never involved in that incident. Sasco had its own meeting and members were at that meeting. They could not have been assaulted by our members.”

He said Sasco’s meeting was in a different venue and far from the university.

“There was no way. These allegations are far-fetched. We are very much surprised by this allegation.”

ANC Limpopo spokesman Sipho Dikgale said he could not comment on youth matters and referred Sapa to Sasco and the ANC Youth League.

ANCYL spokeswoman Onicca Moloi said she could not respond yet as she was not aware of the matter. Once she received feedback she would comment.

Ntuli said she would contact university management to ensure disciplinary action was instituted against Sasco members.

“This is a clear sign of an organisation which is panicking. They (Sasco) fear that the Daso is gaining dominance on campus and they are losing the confidence of the student body.” -Sapa