East London – A matric pupil has been beaten to death by a group of people who believed he was involved with the disappearance of children in Nomphumelelo township in East London, Eastern Cape police said on Monday.

The 23-year-old Mbulelo Mtati was killed on Sunday, said Brigadier Marinda Mills.

“The police confirmed that there are no children reported missing in the East London area.”

Mills said there was also no information or evidence linking the man with the crimes.

Eastern Cape provincial police provincial commissioner Lieutenant Celiwe Binta said revenge attacks were not an answer to crime.

“We are condemning this in the strongest possible way, as these disturbing incidents are unjustifiable. We are in hot pursuit of the perpetrators,” said Binta.

Sapa

Cape Town – An elderly Cape Town woman has lost a court bid to get maintenance that would allow her to keep up her lavish lifestyle.

Berenice Seidel, 74, lost a bid in the Western Cape High Court to get R80 000 in maintenance every month from her late husband’s estate, the Times reported on Monday.

The R80 000 would cover her living costs which included R20 000 for groceries, R10 000 for travelling and holidays and R5 600 for entertainment.

Seidel already receives R62 000 a month from her savings, lives rent-free in her Bantry Bay home, and has her electricity and rates and medical aid covered by the estate.

– News24

Johannesburg – President Jacob Zuma has told supporters to give other political parties a chance to speak even if they do not like what is being said, the ANC said on Monday.

“President Jacob Zuma said that we are a democracy and that there should be tolerance,” said ANC spokesperson Keith Khoza.

“He said even if you do not agree, you should allow them to talk.”

Earlier in the day, the Sowetan reported that Zuma had told ANC members to give other political parties a chance to “talk their nonsense”.

He was delivering his annual National Council of Provinces address in Soshanguve, Pretoria.

“Allow a person to speak ‘azibhedele nje [to talk nonsense]’. If you don’t do that, you create a situation for someone to feel important. Leave them,” Zuma said on Friday, according to the report.

“The essence of democracy is that people are free to speak. We must be tolerant even if we don’t agree with what they say.”

Khoza said Zuma was speaking about the incident where DA leader Helen Zille was booed.

“Zuma said even if what they are saying does not make sense, you should allow them to speak.”

Zille prevented from speaking

On Thursday, a group of ANC supporters prevented Zille from speaking at the launch of the Saldanha Bay Industrial Development Zone, her spokesperson Zak Mbhele said.

Zille was supposed to have delivered the welcome address at the launch followed by Zuma, who did not intervene.

“The crowd, which had been disruptive since the beginning, were dressed in ANC T-shirts. Some were bussed in [for the event],” said Mbhele.

He said the crowd became noisy when Zille took to the podium.

“It was the intention from the start to turn this event into an ANC party political rally,” Mbhele said at the time.

“She [Zille] said this was a serious abuse of state resources. It is corrupt to use state resources for a party political rally.”

He said Zille had called Zuma on Wednesday night to warn him that this was going to happen.

– SAPA

Johannesburg – The SA Jewish Board of Deputies has bemoaned a remark by International Relations Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane that South African ministers do not visit Israel.

“These statements contradict previous assurances the minister had given to the Jewish leadership that her government wished to play a role in helping Israelis and Palestinians to resolve their differences and would engage with both parties to further that end,” national board director Wendy Kahn said in a statement.

“They are further inconsistent with South African foreign policy in general, which is not to boycott other governments but rather to continually engage with them.”

Kahn said when the board last spoke to her Nkoana-Mashabane expressed an interest in South Africa playing a role in advancing the Israeli-Palestinian peace process by bringing about a negotiated two-state solution.

Global conflict resolution

She said if South Africa applied “discriminatory punitive measures” against Israel then it would contribute nothing to the peace process.

“Aside from doing nothing to bring about a negotiated settlement of the Israel-Palestine question, [Nkoana-Mashabane’s comment] serves also to undermine this country’s credibility as a factor in global conflict resolution,” Kahn said.

On Friday, Nkoana-Mashabane said the country’s ministers did not visit Israel and that the board knew why.

“Ministers of South Africa do not visit Israel currently. Even the Jewish Board of Deputies that we engage with here, they know why our ministers are not going to Israel,” she said at a Congress of SA Trade Unions’ international relations committee meeting.

‘Palestine’s struggle is our struggle’

She said South Africa had not been asked to “close down” diplomatic relations with Israel, but that an agreement had been made to slow down and curtail leadership contact until things began to look better.

“The struggle of the people of Palestine is our struggle,” Nkoana-Mashabane said.

“The last time I saw a map of Palestine, I couldn’t go to sleep… It is just dots, smaller than those of the homelands, and that broke my heart.”

The meeting was also addressed by a group campaigning for the release of all Palestinian political prisoners, including Marwan Barghouti, who had become a symbol of the Palestinian struggle.

– SAPA

Johannesburg – A 4-year-old girl was killed in a fire in Jansenville in the Eastern Cape, police said on Monday.

The girl and her grandparents were sleeping when their house caught fire on Saturday, police spokesperson Rochelle Carelse said.

“When the fire started, the grandparents woke up and saw the house was on fire. They managed to escape but couldn’t save their granddaughter,” she said.

Carelse said the cause of the fire was not immediately clear.

– SAPA

Johannesburg – Zwelinzima Vavi believed his public apology for his affair with a Cosatu staff member would save him from being suspended as general secretary of the trade union federation.

This is contained in a replying affidavit that Vavi filed in the South Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg on Friday.

“It is clear from the record [transcript of the CEC meeting] that up to the stage of my leaving the CEC meeting, there was not even a suggestion of a possible suspension,” Vavi says in his affidavit.

“… I never realised that a suspension may be considered.”

The CEC is Cosatu’s central executive committee.

In August, the Cosatu said Vavi had been put on special leave pending the outcome of a disciplinary hearing relating to his affair with the junior employee.

In July, the employee accused him of rape. He said they had an affair. The woman subsequently withdrew a sexual harassment complaint against him.

Following Vavi’s suspension the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa), an ally of his, lodged an application in the South Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg challenging Vavi’s suspension.

Vavi then lodged papers to be added as an applicant in Numsa’s challenge.

In these, he asks the court to grant him an interim order interdicting and restraining Cosatu from enforcing any decision taken at its CEC meeting in August. He wants final relief to review and set aside the decision to suspend him and institute disciplinary proceedings.

Side meeting

In his replying affidavit Vavi claims the decision to suspend him was taken at a side meeting on the day of the CEC meeting, in his absence.

“This second side meeting then made a complete about-turn and decided that I should immediately be suspended and that only, thereafter, should a disciplinary process take place,” he says.

“Importantly, the president [Sidumo Dlamini] stated that no vote was needed as ‘we have a decision’.”

Vavi says the CEC had not voted on his suspension as was required in clauses 5.6 and 11.4 of Cosatu’s constitution.

“Therefore, no decision, alternatively, no valid, proper and lawful decision, was taken by the CEC and I was also not afforded a hearing on the question of my suspension prior thereto.”

After the August CEC meeting Cosatu said a full investigation into the allegations against Vavi would be conducted as well as a disciplinary hearing.

In his court papers, Vavi says it had been two months since the CEC and yet nothing had happened. However, he says he would not feel comfortable returning to the CEC to discuss his suspension.

“It is with respect farfetched to submit that I should return to the CEC on the question of my suspension, when that very same body had ridden roughshod not only over my contractual rights, but also over the requirements and provisions of the constitution as pointed out in these papers,” says Vavi.

“No reasonable person can expect me to return to this body to get any justice in this regard.”

– SAPA

Cape Town – Less than a third of the students owed money by the National Student Financial Aid Scheme have so far been refunded, Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande revealed on Monday.

In a written reply to a parliamentary question by Congress of the People (Cope) MP Nqaba Bhanga, Nzimande said text messages were sent to students following the discovery that thousands of them had been overcharged interest on their loans since the early 1990s.

“These campaigns were carried out during November 2011 and from August 2012 until January 2013,” Nzimande said.

Since then 13 341 students were refunded.

A total of 30 951 student debtors still needed to be refunded.

As at 24 October 2013, a total amount of R37.7m had been paid out.

Nzimande announced the refunds in 2011, citing the incorrect calculation of interest on the loans.

– SAPA

BY Obakeng Maje

Christiana- North West police are investigating a case of Culpable Homicide that happened on Monday, at about 04:00am in the morning on N12 road between Christiana and Warrenton.

“It is alleged that a truck driver lost control and the truck overturned. The Zimbabwean national who was a passenger died on the scene” captain Pelonomi Makau said.

The driver was admitted at Christiana hospital with serious injuries.

Police investigations continue.-TDN

Follow us on Twitter@Taung_DailyNews or @IceT_

By Obakeng Maje

Christiana- North West police are investigating a case of Culpable Homicide after a 41 year- old woman was hit by a goods train at the level crossings in Christiana on Monday.

“It is alleged that the deceased who was with her 15 year- old daughter was driving and failed to stop at railway line after dropping off her 13 year-old son at school” captain Pelonomi Makau said.

Makau said police investigation is underway and the daughter escaped unharmed.-TDN
Follow us on Twitter@Taung_DailyNews or @IceT_

Johannesburg-World governing football body (FIFA) President, Joseph ‘Sepp’ Blatter, says he learnt with ‘great sadness the passing on of legendary football administrator and Premier Soccer League Life President, Dr Leepile Taunyane.’

Dr Taunyane, who was also SAFA honorary member died in Johannesburg last week.

He was 85.

“Personally, and on behalf of the international football family, I wish to extend our deepest condolences to the South African football community and, most importantly, to the family, friends and loved ones of Leepile Taunyane,” said Blatter in a letter to SAFA President Dr Danny Jordaan.

“We would hope that in some way, our words of support may bring a little bit of peace and solace in this time of sadness.”

Dr Taunyane was laid to rest in Johannesburg on Sunday, 3 November 2013.-TDN
Follow us on Twitter@Taung_DailyNews or @IceT_