Bloemfontein-Three cyclists suffered mild to moderate injuries after they got knocked down by a passing bakkie on Tibbie Visser Street in Bloemfontein on Monday.

“A man, his teenage son, and a friend were out cycling near the airport when they heard a vehicle approaching from behind them. The father then noticed that his son had fallen and shortly thereafter were knocked down himself” Er24 spokesperson Vanessa Jackson said.
Jackson said still confused as to what had happened, they saw a bakkie fleeing the scene.

ER24 Paramedics and other services arrived on the scene to find that only one of the cyclists had sustained moderate injuries and he was transported to Mediclinic Bloemfontein for further care.

“The father and son fortunately only suffered minor injuries and decided to consult a doctor privately” she said.

It is unknown whether the driver of the bakkie has been apprehended since.

Anyone with information regarding the collision should contact the local authorities as soon as possible.-TDN
Follow us on Twitter@Taung_DailyNews or @IceT_

A cyclist suffered serious injuries when he was knocked down on Baden Powell Drive just outside Stellenbosch.
The cyclist got knocked down just after 01:00 pm this afternoon when ER24 paramedics were called to the scene.
They found the young cyclist in pain as he had suffered some broken bones and a possible back injury.

“He was stabilised onto a backboard and transported to the Stellenbosch Provincial hospital for further medical care” er24 said.

The driver of the car did not suffer any injuries apart from being slightly shocked.-TDN
Follow us on Twitter@Taung_DailyNews or @IceT_

A man was badly injured and four other patients suffered minor to moderate injuries after a side impact collision took place at the corners of Garsfontein and Solomon Mahlangu drive yesterday afternoon.

At around 2pm, paramedics arrived at the scene to find that a light motor vehicle had collided into the side of a bakkie which was towing a trailer. The driver of the light motor vehicle and the woman driving the bakkie fortunately suffered moderate injuries and they were taken to hospitals in the area for further assessment and care.

There had been three men sitting at the back on the trailer, and they were flung off after the impact between the two vehicles. One of the men actually landed underneath the trailer and he had suffered severe injuries. Paramedics quickly initiated stabilising care on him as he had suffered what seemed to be severe back and chest injuries. AER24 was called out and the man was airlifted to the Steve Biko Academic hospital for further care.

The remaining two patients were also treated for moderate injuries and taken to hospitals by ambulance where they were handed over in a stable condition.-TDN
Source: http://www.er24.co.za

Kimberley – An outing by a group of friends to celebrate a friend’s birthday at the Riverton Resort ended in tragedy on Sunday when the body of one of them was pulled out of the swimming pool more than 12 hours after he had drowned.

Due to the murkiness of the water in the swimming pool, lifeguards at the facility could not see Johannes Petersen’s body lying on the bottom of the 1.8m-deep pool.
For more http://www.iol.co.za

It is believed that there is a chronic shortage of kits to test blood alcohol levels in Kimberley and as a result suspected drunken driving offenders are being let off the hook.

Following the ongoing saga with breathalysers, which are currently not acceptable in court, all drivers stopped on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol have to have their blood drawn by a forensic doctor at the Kimberley Hospital.
For more http://www.iol.co.za

Public hearings about working conditions in the funeral undertaking sector will move to Kimberley, in the Northern Cape, on Wednesday, the labour department said.

Hearings had already been in held in other towns in province, including Springbok and Upington, spokesman Page Boikanyo said.

The purpose of the hearings was to determine minimum wages and conditions of employment for the funeral undertaking sector.

Hearings would be held next week in Bloemfontein, Welkom, and Phuthaditjhaba, in the Free State; and in Port Elizabeth, East London, Queenstown, and Mthatha, in the Eastern Cape.

“The drive will culminate with… [Labour Minister Mildred] Oliphant announcing a new wage for the industry at the end of March 2014, in line with the Basic Conditions of Employment Act (BCEA),” Boikanyo said.

The process was being conducted by the Employment Conditions Commission (ECC).

The ECC comprises government officials, labour unions, and employers, and advises the labour minister on wages and other conditions of employment in vulnerable sectors.

Sapa

Johannesburg – A bail application brought by kwaito musician Brickz was postponed by the Roodepoort Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday.

Magistrate Piet Kotze said proceedings would resume on Wednesday.

Brickz, whose real name is Sipho Charles Ndlovu, has been in custody since November 1 for allegedly raping a 16-year-old girl in March.

In an affidavit, he denied raping the girl and indicated that he intended pleading not guilty.

Warrant Officer Joel Ngobeni testified that Ndlovu was a violent man and a flight risk.

Ngobeni took over the case on Tuesday after the investigating officer fell ill.

He alleged that Ndlovu went into the girl’s bedroom and raped her, then threatened to kill her if she told anyone.

He further alleged that Ndlovu had contacted his wife from prison and told her to withdraw the case.

Ndlovu also allegedly went to the place where his wife and the girl were now staying and threatened to kill them.

“The suspect is a person who carries out the threats he makes,” Ngobeni told the court.

Isaac Mokgopi, for Ndlovu, asked Ngobeni how he knew about the case when he only took over on Tuesday.

Ngobeni said he had interviewed the girl and Ndlovu’s wife before appearing in court.

The court heard that Ndlovu was arrested and fined R1000 for drug possession in 2007.

Sapa

Kimberley – The mystery of the unknown fingerprint on a cooldrink glass outside the Griquatown farm murder house has likely been solved, the Northern Cape High Court heard on Tuesday.

“There is a reasonable possibility that the print on the glass was of Marthella Steenkamp,” fingerprint expert Phillip Bekker told the court.
For more http://www.iol.co.za

Cape Town – An arrest warrant was authorised on Tuesday for a former SABC account executive who failed to appear in court on multiple extortion charges.

Thembani Mazaleni, 36, was to have made his ninth appearance in the Bellville Specialised Commercial Crime Court in Cape Town on Tuesday, but failed to do so.

Magistrate Sabrina Sonnenberg ordered that the warrant be held over until his next appearance on November 25, and be executed only if he failed to appear then.

Legal aid attorney Hailey Lawrence told the court Mazaleni was ill and she handed a medical certificate to the court.

According to the charge sheet, Mazaleni’s duties included the verification of invoices submitted for payment by the SABC’s service providers.

One of the service providers, translator Albertina Jaxa, did translations for the SABC in any of the country’s 11 official languages.

According to the charge sheet, Mazaleni started borrowing money from her, but failed to repay her.

Prosecutor Simon Leope alleges that the loans progressed to amounts that Mazaleni demanded from Jaxa, as “kickbacks” for work allocated to her by the broadcaster.

Leope alleges that Mazaleni threatened to stop her workflow if she failed to pay the kickbacks, and warned that she would lose her contract with the SABC if she “blew the whistle” on him.

Mazaleni’s alleged scheme also involved false invoices for work she had not done, for submission to her auditors.

Leope alleges that he extorted a total of R304 000, between 2007 and 2011.

It is alleged that Mazaleni also demanded that Jaxa fraudulently bill the SABC for work not done, for additional kickbacks.

Mazaleni faces 78 counts of extortion involving R304 000, and two of fraud involving a total of R43 080.

Sapa

Taung- North West Finance MEC Paul Sebegoe announced that a budget allocation of R176 million has been set aside to create 20 000 labour intensive initiative job opportunities. The MEC announced that it is expected that these job opportunities should be created as of 01 December this year at an average stipend of R2 200 per month per beneficiary.

These labour intensive job opportunities will be distributed equitably throughout the province with the view of reducing unemployment and creating jobs for the people of this province. It is expected that 5 652 jobs will be created in Ngaka Modiri Molema, 5 098 for Bojanala; 4 459 for Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati and 4 791 for Dr Kenneth Kaunda.

Sebegoe indicated that the North West province is amongst the poorest provinces in the country with an unemployment rate of 24.7 per cent as at end September 2013, coupled with soaring levels of poverty, which is currently around 46 per cent; uneven spread of wealth as well as poor conditions of infrastructure that adversely affect the ability to attract potential investors.

“We can appreciate the fact that whilst government has put into place programmes that provide young graduates with practical workplace experience; huge employment demands still exist in the unskilled and semi-skilled sector of society. It is within that context that the provincial government has committed resources towards creation of labour intensive job opportunities in the province in order to address some of the immediate challenges government is facing”, said Sebegoe.-TDN
Follow us on Twitter@Taung_DailyNews or @IceT_