Pretoria – Evidence leaders have concerns about evidence supplied by police to the Farlam Commission of Inquiry, senior evidence leader Geoff Budlender, SC, said on Wednesday.

“It is a matter for the [SA Police Service] to respond. It is not as though the evidence leaders have reached a conclusion, we have very serious concerns. We have identified certain of them and we continue to identify them as we go along,” he said.

“Certain of the matters which have given us cause for concern will be raised in the further cross-examination of [Lieutenant] Colonel Duncan Scott,” said Budlender.

In response, Ishmael Semenya, SC, for the police, said the evidence leaders’ concerns would be addressed in writing.

“About [suggestions] the police’s version being untrue, I do not hear any answer about it. It was very definitive, it was said and it was not made lightly, it was considered and it was said the version of the SAPS is untrue,” said Semenya.

‘Damning’ statements

Commission chairperson, retired judge Ian Farlam, said Budlender had indicated that the contested issues would become clearer during further cross-examination of Scott, currently on the witness stand.

Budlender said he would also communicate with the police attorneys and point out to them the parts which had caused concern.

“Some of it will become clear from the cross-examination and we are happy to communicate further with our colleagues to tell them where our concerns are if it’s not sufficiently clear, he said.

When the public hearings resumed on Wednesday morning, police representatives protested about “damning” statements attributed to Budlender.

Semenya said Budlender’s statements that the police evidence to the commission was untrue caused “grave concern”.

“The concern is grave because the evidence leaders are an extension of the commission. They have been appointed by the commission and they do their work for the commission.

Semenya invited Budlender and the evidence leading team to identify the documents which inspired that opinion.

“They must also identify which of the SAPS witnesses at this commission are demonstrated to have been untruthful to this commission. We think we deserve that and that will inform our clients with regards to their conduct at these proceedings,” he said.

New evidence

Earlier this month, Budlender sought a postponement of the public hearings to enable the evidence leaders to work through new material running into thousands of pages.

In his statement, Budlender said the new material had been made available by the police and its legal team to explain certain matters.

The statement read: “In the past 10 days we have discovered through the evidence leaders that there must be info that was not disclosed by the police that seeks to suggest that the information was withheld to try and portray a certain approach to the commission in relation to what has been discovered.”

During Budlender’s submissions he stated that in the opinion of the evidence leaders, some of the documents demonstrated that the police version of events at Marikana, and the evidence of police witnesses at the commission, were in material respects not the truth.

Farlam said that might not be so. Budlender said this was for the commission, and not the evidence leaders, to decide.

In granting the postponement sought, which neither the police nor any of the other parties present opposed, Farlam said: “I think it appropriate to place on record these are at the moment only concerns.

“There are no findings made, these are matters that have to be looked at, and we don’t know what the results of the examination of these points will be. But clearly from what you tell us, these are matters that require careful consideration, which I am sure they will receive.”

The commission, sitting in Centurion, is investigating the deaths of 44 people during strike-related unrest at Lonmin’s platinum mining operations at Marikana, near Rustenburg, North West, last year.

Police shot dead 34 people, almost all striking miners, while trying to disperse and disarm them on 16 August 2012. Ten people, including two police officers and two security guards, were killed in the preceding week.

President Jacob Zuma established the commission shortly after the unrest.

SAPA

WHEN little Anelisa Mkhondo didn’t return home, her grandparents thought they would see her the next day.

But there was no sign of the five-year-old girl the next day, Sunday 8 September.

A search began and the child was found murdered a day later. She had been dumped in a dustbin and used condoms were found around her.

She had gashes on her head and neck as if she had been chopped with an axe. She wasn’t wearing her shoes.

Neighbours found the little body about 50m from her home in Diepsloot, north of Joburg.

Last Thursday residents, friends and family flocked to a hall in Afrika Tikkun Akani Centre for Anelisa’s memorial service.

Her grieving gogo, Bongiwe Ncubuse, pleaded with people to help the police to catch the brutal killers of her innocent granddaughter.

Church leaders, community safety officials, police, pupils and representatives of the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund were among the mourners.

Fund representative Fikile Ngcobo asked people to report crime.

Nehwoh Belinda, the manager of a gender-based anti-violence and child abuse programme at Afrika Tikkun, asked Diepsloot residents to fight crime and violence, especially against women and children.

James Khumalo of a community safety group asked churches to help fight immorality in the township.For more http://www.dailysun.mobi

Cape Town – The projected decrease in the price of petrol of between 19 and 25 cents a litre predicted by economist Dawie Roodt should not serve as an incentive for consumers to go out and spend money they don’t have.

Roodt said depending on the price of crude oil and the Rand US Dollar exchange rate, the price of petrol could drop by as much as 25c a litre on Friday with a further decrease of about 13c a litre predicted for October. The diesel price is expected to remain unchanged.

Last week Reserve Bank Governor Gill Marcus said petrol prices increased at a year-on-year rate of 23% in August, but that favourable base effects and the small decline in the price in September are likely to result in a far lower rate of petrol price inflation in that month.

The combination of a lower oil price and a stronger exchange rate is likely to result in a further moderate price decline in October, reversing the expectation earlier in the month of a further significant increase, she said.

The rand was slightly firmer against the dollar on Wednesday but economic data from the United States in the coming days could push it weaker if the numbers come through stronger than expected.

The rand was at R9.8520/$ at 08:37, up 0.2% from its New York close on Tuesday.

While Roodt’s predicted petrol price reduction was to be welcomed, consumers should not see this as an opportunity to stack up even more debt, warned Neil Roets, CEO of Debt Rescue.

“What we hope for is that the retail sector takes cognisance of this reduction and that it will be reflected in lower prices for all goods and services once the price decrease has worked its way through the system.”

The serious nature of South Africa’s consumer debt was clearly demonstrated by the latest TransUnion consumer credit index which found that consumer loan defaults continued to rise. It also found that “distressed borrowing” had held steady, but credit card usage nonetheless remained high, and household cash flow was deteriorating.

It further found that the demand cycle for unsecured lending was “extremely robust.”

The number of civil summonses for debt – which is the first legal step in the recovery of debt – jumped by 5.6% year on year in July to 78,908, after declining year on year to 65 729 in June.

Roets said the high costs of food and services as well as slow economic growth is making it difficult for many South Africans to pay back their loans on time. One in every four South Africans is unemployed and the number of borrowers with impaired credit records – three or more payments in arrears – has risen to nearly 50%.

Roets said total consumer debt is now topping R1.44 trillion according to Statistics South Africa.

“We are already seeing a dramatic growth in the number of people who are seeking protection from their creditors by going under debt review. There has also been a significant growth in the number of consumers who are having their salaries docked by garnishee orders and who are being blacklisted because of judgements against them.

“We are experiencing double digit growth in our own client list and we know from colleagues in the debt counselling industry that they too are seeing rapid growth in the number of distressed consumers seeking help,” Roets said.

He said the number of consumers seeking help from his company had more than doubled over the past six months.

– Fin24

Potential supporters of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) have laid into party leader Julius Malema after he failed to pitch at heritage day celebrations in Brits in North West.

The rally was organised to prepare for the EFF’s national launch in Marikana next month.

Some of those attending were angered at Malema’s failure to arrive. They say they wanted to find out from him what EFF was going to do better.

This month EFF was registered as a political party with the Independent Electoral Commission. Malema said the approval meant the party would contest the general elections in 2014 and win.

For more http://www.sabc.co.za

Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema was wrong to say that the ANC-led government is worse than the apartheid government, DA spokesperson Mmusi Maimane has said.

“You may have heard Julius Malema saying over the weekend that the ANC is worse than apartheid. It is wrong to create this impression among South Africans,” he said in a speech prepared for delivery today.

“Apartheid was worse because it was a system of entrenched racism. Apartheid was worse because we couldn’t vote out apartheid. In fact, we couldn’t vote at all.”

The EFF leader said at the rally in Lethabong near Rustenburg, North West, on Saturday that black people would never own land under the ANC.

“Our struggle is about land. (Former president Nelson) Mandela was arrested for demanding land,” Malema said.

Maimane said “the sacrifice that so many made for our freedom” had to be remembered.

“Like so many others where I grew up, I used to be an ANC supporter. I believed that the ANC could bring about a better life for me and my family,” he said.

“Since then I have seen how that once proud movement has lost its way under the current leadership.”

He said apartheid was forced on the people against their will, while the ANC was “not compulsory”.

“The ANC is a political party in a democracy. We can vote for another party if we feel let down by the one in power.”

– Sapa

Kaizer Chiefs coach Stuart Baxter says that his players simply stopped playing for a crucial period in the second-half as they were dumped out of the MTN8 by Orlando Pirates on Tuesday.

Amakhosi came into the game trailing 1-0 from the first-leg but got back into the match after netting the opener through Bernard Parker.

Pirates hit back with a penalty though, something that Baxter questioned, as the Sea Robbers progressed to the showpiece match with a 2-1 aggregate win.
For more http://www.soccerladuma.com

Orlando Pirates coach Roger de Sa heaped praise on his troops after their 1-1 draw against Kaizer Chiefs as they booked their place in the MTN8 final.

De Sa believes that his players showed real character to work as hard as they did after a draining 0-0 draw with Al Ahly in the CAF Champions League on Sunday.

The Sea Robbers won the first-leg 1-0 away to Chiefs, meaning that their 1-1 draw at the Orlando Stadium was enough for them to go through with a 2-1 aggregate win.
For more http://www.soccerladuma.com

Platinum Stars coach Allan Freese thanked his players for their commitment after they beat Wits 2-1 tonight at the Bidvest Stadium, to qualify for the MTN8 final.

He also thanked the technical staff and the club for their preparation, and was happy with win, despite lamenting the fact that his team weren’t able to play the way that they wanted.

Dikwena won the first leg of the semi-final 4-2 at home, and their 2-1 won tonight, means they won 6-3 over both legs.
For more http://www.soccerladuma.com

Rural Development and Land Reform Minister Gugile Nkwinti says it will be an injustice to exclude the descendants of Khoisan communities from benefiting from restitution programmes. Nkwinti was addressing over 2000 people at the handover of farmland to the community of Mamre in the Western Cape.

Minister Nkwinti told the community of Mamre that the handing over of communal land and the transformation of the Cape Town Castle into a healing centre for the Khoisan descendants is just the beginning of full recognition of the Khoi and San descendants.

“Unless the people who suffered, who constituted the first line of defence against colonialism the Khoi and the San, unless their spirits are restful where they are, if they are not restful our country will never be at peace.”

Nkwinti handed over the first communal farm land to the coloured community of Mamre under the Transformation of Certain Rural Areas Act.
For more http://www.sabc.co.za

AfriForum Youth handed a memorandum on racial profiling in South Africa to Parliament on Tuesday.

“It is difficult celebrating Heritage Day while government is enforcing policies that are specifically undermining mutual respect between communities,” chairperson Charl Oberholzer said in a statement.

“We wanted to portray that race should not determine opportunities in South Africa,” he said. Oberholzer said students’ futures were still being determined on the basis of skin colour.

The memorandum contained a request that students be allowed to choose whether to enter their race on admission and bursary forms. Oberholzer said AfriForum Youth had collected thousands of signatures from students opposed to racial profiling.

He said both black and white students were tired of being judged on race and not merit. The memorandum was received by secretariat of Parliament representative Douglas Scholtz.
For more http://www.sabc.co.za