South Africa’s deputy president Kgalema Motlanthe chaired the SA National Aids Council (Sanac) on Tuesday in Rustenburg, the presidency said.

The meeting discussed issues including a report on the implementation of the National Strategic Plan 2012/2013.

“South Africa has met the ten global targets set by the United Nations aimed at reducing HIV infections by 50 percent by 2015, Motlanthe said.

Motlanthe said South Africa’s anti-retroviral treatment programme now reaches more than two million people making it the largest HIV treatment in the world.

“South Africa is also on track to achieve the target of further reduction and eventual elimination of HIV transmission from mother to child by 2015.”

Motlanthe informed the meeting that South Africa had received R3 billion from the Global Fund, earmarked for supporting HIV and TB programmes.

“The fund will provide support to antiretroviral treatment for 350,000 patients and screening for more than 400,000 miners and communities in the surrounding areas,” Motlanthe said.

Sanac would also intensify efforts in HIV-counselling and testing to encourage more people to know their status.

– Sapa

By Obakeng Maje
Kimberley- Police are investigating a case of culpable homicide after a cyclist collided with the trailer attached to a white Toyota bakkie on Monday. The accident allegedly occurred at approximately 19:15pm at the intersection of North Circular and Bultfontein Road in Kimberley.

“Although the exact cause of the accident is still under police investigation it is at this stage alleged that the cyclist collided into the side of the bakkie’s trailor. The unknown cyclist succumbed to his injuries and died on the scene” lieutenant Sergio Kock said.
The deceased is dark in complexion, slender build, approximately 1, 6 meter tall and could be between 20 and 25 years old. The deceased was dressed in a blue vest, blue jeans and blue Nike sandals (push-ins), says Northern Cape police.
The navy blue mountain bike that the deceased was travelling with is booked in at the Kimberley Police Station.
The police request that anyone with information about the incident or the identification of the deceased should contact Detective Warrant Officer Patrick Dibebe at 082 331 4712.
The investigation continues. – TDN
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By Obakeng Maje
Kimberley-The Galeshewe Family Violence Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit is looking for a man who allegedly raped an 18 year-old girl in a taxi that was travelling from Kimberley to Galeshewe.
“It is alleged that on Saturday at about 14:00, the teenager boarded the taxi at the North Cape mall” lieutenant Sergio Kock said.
There were other passengers in the taxi and while she was inside, one of the men asked for her Blackberry cellphone. The teenager was instructed to go and sit at the back. The suspect then raped her while other passengers watched and cheered on, says Kock.
The girl was allegedly dropped off and she had to board another taxi home.
She reported the matter to her aunt who alerted the police.
“The suspect is about 25 years old, light in complexion and has a slender build. He is fluent in Afrikaans and Tswana. At the time of the offence, he was wearing a red and white striped T-shirt, black Nike track pants. He is about 1,7m tall” Kock said.
Anyone who can assist police in their investigation in tracing the suspect is asked to contact D/Cst Bongani Gumede on 082 302 0468.-TDN
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Cape Town – The last will of acting judge Patrick Maqubela is legitimate, his widow Thandi Maqubela’s lawyer told the Western Cape High Court on Tuesday.

“What this document is, as inelegant as it is, is a will,” Marius Broeksma said in closing argument.

Thandi Maqubela and her co-accused Vela Mabena have pleaded not guilty to suffocating the acting judge with cling-wrap in his Sea Point, Cape Town, apartment on June 5, 2009.

Maqubela has also pleaded not guilty to forging her husband’s signature on his will, and then fraudulently presenting it at the Johannesburg office of the Master of the High Court.

The forgery charge on the indictment was recently amended from “making of the signature” to “making of the will”.

On Monday, the State said no will was lodged at the time of Maqubela’s death and his financial adviser was adamant there was no will.

It was only on 23 April 2010 that the Master’s Office received a letter from his widow stating she had found a will among some documents and that it was dated March 2009.

Prosecutor Bonnie Currie-Gamwo said the document did not look like a will that a person with legal knowledge would have drafted.

Broeksma said there was no evidence to suggest Maqubela had much experience with estates and the writing of wills.

Judge John Murphy raised the point that Maqubela had been SA Airways’ chief legal adviser and would likely have drafted “some pretty big contracts”.

However, Broeksma said the State had not proved any proficiency in that regard.

He suggested that the sloppiness of the document could be explained by the possibility of the acting judge writing it while drinking whisky with friends.

Murphy said the strongest point regarding the will seemed to be the acting judge’s phone call to his insurance company asking that the beneficiary be changed.

“The inference which can be drawn from that… is that he didn’t have a will,” Murphy said.

The State alleged on Monday that Maqubela had a monetary incentive to kill her husband because of a R20 million Liberty Life policy he took out a month before his death.

Currie-Gamwo said his widow would have gained R11m with the will and R7.2m without it.

Broeksma said the two had been living apart to a great extent.

“Obviously, as far as accused number one [Thandi Maqubela], it is apparent that she was a successful businesswoman, while the deceased was in financial trouble,” he said.

– SAPA

Johannesburg – A baby boy reported kidnapped in a robbery in Kempton Park, on the East Rand, was found safe with his mother on Tuesday, Gauteng police said.

He had not been kidnapped, and a case of perjury was being opened, said Lt-Col Katlego Mogale.

It was initially reported that three men and two women broke into a house in Kempton Park West on Monday evening, tied up the mother and her 16-year-old daughter, and drugged them.

The robbers were reported to have taken the baby, its clothes and the mother’s cellphone, said Mogale.

The father arrived home after 22:00 and untied his wife and daughter.

Police found no signs of forced entry.

“Through investigation, the police managed to trace the child and found him with his mother in Witbank [in Mpumalanga],” said Mogale, who said the boy was four-months-old and not 13-days-old, as was initially thought.

– SAPA

The North West Provincial Government is to host a one-day Leadership Conference to enhance provincial and local participation and consultation in the implementation process of the National Development Plan to be held as from10:00am at the Mmabatho Convention Centre in Mahikeng on Thursday.
The conference convened under the theme “Achieving NDP objectives through collective responsibility to enhance growth and development in the North West Province” is intended to be an intensive forum aimed at assessing the level of preparedness of government and other sectors to roll out the NDP during the first generation of 2014 to 2019 strategic plans planning cycle.
“Premier Thandi Modise who is to deliver the keynote address at the conference says that it will broaden the wide-ranging participation of key stakeholders including the private sector, civil society and communities and assist to strengthen the relationship between government and communities around local issues critical for development and growth to reduce poverty, inequality and unemployment” premier spokesperson Lesiba Kgwele said.-TDN
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BY Obakeng Maje
North West MEC for Human Settlements, Public Safety and Liaison Nono Maloyi accompanied by the Mahikeng Local Municipality Executive Mayor Lina Miga, will officially launch the Mahikeng Community Residential Units (CRU) at Extension 39.
The 100 units’ project is expected to improve the living conditions of the people of Mahikeng and further reduce the housing backlog in the province.
This project is yet another service delivery target set by MEC Maloyi during his budget policy for this financial year.
“The CRU’s are aimed to facilitate the provision of secure, stable rental tenure for lower income earners and provides a coherent framework for dealing with many different forms of existing public sector residential accommodation” MEC Nono Maloyi said.
Maloyi said the project targets persons and households earning between R800 and R3200 per month who are not able to be accommodated in the formal private rental and social housing market.
The event will unfold as follows:
Date : 12 October 2013
Venue : Project site – Mahikeng (next to Extension 39)
Time : 9H00
TDN
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By Obakeng Maje
Mahikeng-The North West Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA) today conducted a public hearing about the Auditor General’s (AG) Report on the Mafikeng Local Municipality’s 2012 Financial Statements. The AG’s formal “Disclaimer” opinion, for the 4th consecutive year, shows that Mafikeng’s finances are a mess, says DA.

The acting Executive Mayor, Potsho Tabane, concedes that things have gotten worse in Mafikeng, despite provincial interventions.
“The AG reported that the municipality was unable to provide most of the required audit evidence, including audit evidence about income amounting to R326 475 732 and debtors of R486 267 298. This means that the municipality does not have the necessary paperwork to explain more than R800 million worth of movement on its books. This is an unacceptable situation that is highly conducive to corruption and maladministration” da Chris Hattingh said.
According to DA Chris Hattingh, the AG reported on irregular expenditure amounting to R36 983 972. The AG also reported that he was not able to clarify whether this was even the full extent of the irregular expenditure.
The AG further reported:
• Fruitless expenditure amounting to R5 270 237 -including the payment for salaries for staff members that did not report for work for 12 months.
• Material under spending of conditional grants of R33 470 434.
• Unauthorized expenditure amounting to R24 352 296 in the current year with another R87 457 118 unauthorized amount from previous years.

“This all creates very fertile ground for fraud and corruption, and severely hampers the municipality’s ability to deliver services to the people. We need to stop the constant waste of money in this province. We must ensure that people get the services they need”.

It is tragic that even as Mafikeng and other North West municipalities continue to waste millions on fruitless and wasteful expenditure, there are still many places in our province where people struggle to get access to water and other basic services” said DA.

The DA has suggested that a turnaround plan for Mafikeng should include an independent skills audit and a comprehensive clean-up of the administration.
“If we start by managing the money right, and rooting out corruption, we can improve services step-by-step in a sustainable way” concludes Hattingh.-TDN
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Durban – A small group of people staged a protest on Tuesday outside the Pinetown Magistrate’s Court in support of the Swazi truck driver accused of murdering 22 people in a crash.

The group of mostly women held posters that read “Justice for Sanele May”.

Sanele Goodness May was expected to formally apply for bail later on Tuesday.

He was initially charged with 22 counts of culpable homicide, but this was subsequently upgraded to 22 counts of murder and a charge of reckless or negligent driving.

The accident occurred when the truck May was driving hit four fully laden minibus taxis and two cars on the corner of Field’s Hill (M13) and Richmond Road in Pinetown shortly before 19:00 on 6 September.

The State is opposing bail.

– SAPA