South African Football Association (SAFA) notes with interest the media reports about the Association being R100 million in the “red” after a joint media briefing between the Association and SASCOC on Tuesday, 5 March 2013.SASCOC reported to us that they examined our Audited Financial Statement that was finalised in June 2012 and had some questions regarding some figures that were not clear to them. The only item SASCOC enquired about in the meeting was whether the Association was still a going concern. We requested SASCOC to provide us with further detail on their concerns, which they undertook to do.However, SAFA pointed out to SASCOC that these answers were indeed given to our auditors in June 2012, along with a financial and asset management plan to retain the going concern status of the organisation. The plan was accepted by the auditors and has been implemented over the past 8 months.The auditors then produced an unqualified audited financial statement having satisfied themselves that SAFA is a going concern. The audited financial statements were subsequently tabled and accepted by the SAFA Annual General Meeting in September 2012.SAFA’s operations have proceeded normally since the publication of the 2011-2012 financial statement, having raised new and utilising existing revenue from various sources such as the SAFA-FIFA Legacy Trust, sponsorships, membership fees, disposal of assets and streamlining of its operations to produce an efficient administration and governance structure.The Association also has valuable properties such as Bafana Bafana, Banyana Banyana, its Second Division League and many Provincial and Regional competitions that will guarantee future income – which forms the basis of a going concern.

By Stafff Reporter

Johannesburg-Banyana Banyana head coach Joseph Mkhonza remains confident of finishing in a good position in the Cyprus Cup despite watching his side lose 2-0 to Korea Republic in the opening match of the tournament on Wednesday, 06 March 2013.

Korea Republic scored two goals in each half to go second on Group C behind Republic of Ireland who hammered Northern Ireland 5-1 in the other group match played on Wednesday night on goal difference.

Mkhonza, the current South Africa Coach of the Year who led Banyana Banyana to the 2012 London Olympics and to a runner-up finish at the 2012 African Woman’s Championship (AWC), may have been disappointed at the end of the match but quickly picked himself up. He also lifted the spirits of the Sasol-sponsored girls in encouragement that they can still turn things around in the tournament.

“We started brightly in the opening 10 minutes but soon after we gave away a soft goal from a defensive mistake and miscommunication between our goalkeeper and right fullback. What is pleasing is that the girls fought back bravely and we regrouped, but it was too late,” said Mkhonza.

Banyana Banyana accepted the invitation to participate in the tournament (South Africa is in its fourth year of the tournament – they finished 10th out of 12 teams in 2012), to prepare for the upcoming AWC qualifiers and also create a large pool of players by trying out emerging talent such as Robyn Moodaly, Gloria Thato and Shiwe Nogwanya to name but a few.

“Our objectives to be in Cyprus can’t change overnight because of our opening day defeat. We will continue to look into giving other players a chance especially in midfield and upfront to also gain experience, and for us to see how they can handle themselves at this international level looking ahead of the qualifiers starting later this year,” he said.

Banyana Banyana face the Republic of Ireland on Friday, 8 March (14h30 SA time).

“We learned the hard way from our defeat. For our next match we will look at pushing up from midfield and supplying our forwards quickly to also force the opposition into making mistakes for us to profit from. I watched the Republic of Ireland last night and I believe they are beatable if we knock the ball around and into space on the wings,” concluded Mkhonza.

The South African Football Association (SAFA) would like to extend its condolences to the Tlale family following the passing on of  the 80’s Moroka Swallows midfielder and founder member of the South African Soccer Legends, Brian “Stopper” Tlale on Tuesday night. He was 58.

“Stopper’ as he was affectionately known during his playing days, was not only a star at Moroka Swallows but was revered across the land. 

His former teammates say he was a selfless and hard working individual on and off the field. 

“He was like a lamb, a gentleman through and through, he would not even harm a fly,” said his former captain at Swallows Ephraim ‘Shakes’ Mashaba. 

After his playing days, Stopper continued to get involved with the South African soccer and was an active member of the South Africa Soccer Legends.

“This is a sad and great loss for South African football. I am confident he had a huge role to play in the future of our soccer,” added Mashaba.

Mashaba said it was upsetting that when former legends pass away, at times they were not accorded the respect they deserve in South Africa. 

“When former Manchester United legend George Best died, roads were closed and during his burial, life literally came to a standstill in the whole of Great Britain. The joy Best had given to the people of Britain was portrayed at his memorial service and funeral,” added Mashaba.

Johannesburg – The ANC has used the DA’s economic policies for its National Development Plan (NDP) for the country, the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) said on Thursday.

“After a thorough analysis, the (central committee) came to the extremely disturbing conclusion that significant and strategic parts of the NDP were directly lifted from DA policy documents,” Numsa general secretary Irvin Jim said in Johannesburg.

“The reading of the documents is shocking, and that is what we are going to reveal to the public.”

Jim was briefing the media on the outcomes of its central committee meeting.

He said in spite of some impressive announcements by Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan, the “fundamental flaw” in his Budget was that it was based on the NDP.

After going through the more than 400 pages of the NDP document it came as a shock to discover this, said Jim.

At the African National Congress’ conference in Mangaung in December, delegates in commissions would have been given shortened versions of the document for their discussions and those who prepared it would have worked hard to lobby support for it.

The working class was outnumbered when it came to adopting it, he said.

Jim said Numsa had not yet formally raised this with the ANC but planned to do so in the future and also planned strikes over it.

Its major problem with the NDP was that it protected power relations of colonialism, leaving them intact.

This was a “rightwing” deviation from the Freedom Charter that would bring the country closer to an implosion among the poor if not contested, Numsa said. – Sapa

Johannesburg – A South African detective – pulled off the investigation of athletics star Oscar Pistorius after it emerged he faces attempted murder charges – has resigned from the force, police said on Thursday.

Warrant Officer Hilton Botha, the first officer on the scene after the Valentine’s Day shooting of Pistorius’s girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, was also criticised for mixing up key facts about the investigation at the Blade Runner’s bail hearing.

“He handed in his resignation yesterday and it was accepted with immediate effect,” police spokesperson Brigadier Neville Malila told Reuters. “We are not going into the details.”

Botha, a detective with 24 years experience, is accused of firing on a minibus taxi full of passengers in 2011 while pursuing a man accused of murdering a woman and disposing of her dismembered body down a drain, local media said.

The charges were withdrawn but reinstated on February 4 – 10 days before Steenkamp was shot.

The incident has embarrassed the South African police who regularly come under fire for failing to reduce one of the highest crimes rates in the world and dispel perceptions of a force that is poorly trained.

Last week, eight policemen were arrested for tying a Mozambican taxi driver to the back of a vehicle and dragging him to the station. The video-recorded treatment of the man who later died shocked audiences around the world. – Reuters

South Africa is not a violent country, but there are “elements” that conduct themselves in a shocking manner, President Jacob Zuma said on Thursday.

Addressing the National House of Traditional Leaders at Parliament, he warned against those who would “rubbish our country without realising”.

Noting the recent outrage over incidents of violence, Zuma said in expressing their disgust, people should not paint all South Africans as violent and brutal.

“South Africa is not a violent country; it is certain people in our country who are violent. By and large, we are not; we are peace-loving people.”

Zuma’s remarks come after a spate of protests, crimes and police actions have drawn huge international attention to violence in South Africa.

These included the shooting of Andries Tatane by police in the Free State in 2011; the killing of 34 miners by police at Marikana in August last year; and the recent arrest of eight policeman implicated in the death of Mido Macia, a taxi driver dragged down a street behind a police vehicle.

The savage rape and murder of teenager Anene Booysen in Bredasdorp in the Western Cape last month, and the arrest of paralympian Oscar Pistorius, charged with the murder of his model girlfriend in Gauteng, have also contributed to the spotlight being turned on the country.

A report on the BBC’s website last week captured international sentiment in its first paragraph: “Few countries endure more violence than South Africa. It is not what South Africans like to hear, and some even deny it. But it is a fact.”

Zuma told traditional leaders that South Africans should “not lose faith in our own humanity and collective ability to correct the wrongs we see in our country”, and called on them to help seek solutions.

He said the police were dealing with the symptoms in relation to criminal activities. As far as general crime was concerned, the levels had decreased over the years.

However, crimes against women and children remained high, and of concern.

But, the police continued to make inroads. During the past financial year, over 363 life sentences had been secured, with a conviction rate of 73 percent for crimes against women above 18-years-old, and 70 percent for crimes against children under 18-years-old.

“With the support of the community, most suspects in the high profile rape and domestic violence cases have been arrested.

“I have also directed the justice, crime prevention, and security cluster to implement measures to nip violent protests in the bud. We are doing this to build a culture of responsibility, accountability, respect for authority and respect for one another,” Zuma said.

Turning to farming and agriculture, the president said increasing urbanisation could, in the long-term, pose a threat to South Africa’s food security.

The National Development Plan (NDP) indicated that 30 years from now South Africa would be mostly urban. Rural areas would be abandoned as the youth migrated to the cities in search of greener pastures.

Migration to the cities would leave the arable and fertile land lying fallow. Such a prospect would threaten South Africa’s food security.

“We are already witnesses to this phenomenon. Many fields lie untilled across the country. The NDP identifies agriculture as an economic activity that is still capable of pushing back the frontiers of poverty.

“This requires traditional leaders to work with government to promote farming to our youth and the rural population,” he said.

Years of land deprivation, reinforced by land dispossession laws, had deprived generations of people of the skills necessary to survive from agriculture.

“People who had been proud farmers were now forced to work [for others] after being dispossessed of their land, livestock and equipment. Working on the farms was thus turned into a form of slavery.”

The outcome of this state of affairs over generations was that the youth had developed a grim view of agriculture. Those living in rural areas aspired to move out of the villages as soon as they could.

“We need to change the situation. We need to make them appreciate the economic importance and centrality of agriculture. We must encourage them to study agricultural and food production sciences at school and universities.”

Zuma said both secondary and tertiary education institutions had to respond to this challenge and appropriately channel resources.

-Sapa

Human settlements, public safety and liaison MEC in the North West, Nono Maloyi, said compared to their counterparts across the country, his department has taken the lead in spending conditional grants intended to build low cost houses and urged developers in the province to build more quality houses.

Speaking during the recent departmental provincial developers forum in Mahikeng, Maloyi said to contractors: “You should keep up the good work. We are the number one province in the country, leading the province placed second by 10% and that says we are indeed spending well and are on target

“It is important for you (contractors) to stick to your delivery schedule and don’t just build shoddy houses targeting delivery schedule, we need quality houses,” he said.

Maloyi said the North West was commended for spending the grants during the meeting between human settlements MECs and Housing Minister Tokyo Sexwale.

For more details go to http://www.thenewage.co.za

The extent to which police are resorting to violence and suicide to settle their personal affairs is worrisome, North West Premier Thandi Modise said in expressing shock that a warrant officer shot his girlfriend before turning the gun on himself near Orkney on Thursday.

“When the number of women who are becoming victims of uncontrolled rage associated with those in possession of guns is increasing, then a question need to be asked as to how many other people be they private individuals and or police officials who are mentally and psychologically unfit to be in possession of firearms still possess them and what is being done to disarm them,” stressed Premier Modise.

It is alleged that policenu  received   reNot rated yet. received a complaint of two bodies lying in an open field on Wednesday.According to Spokesperson of SAPS North West, Brigadier Thulane Ngubane who confirmed that police are investigating a case of murder and suicide,  the bodies have since been identified as that of  Warrant Officer Moeketsi Joseph, 40 who was stationed at Vierfontein in the Free State and that of  his 30 year-old  girlfriend Kedibone Kotola.Moeketsi was reportedly found lying with his service pistol in his left hand on his chest and a bullet wound in the left ear while his girlfriend was found with a bullet wound in the left eye

Johannesburg – The ANC has declined to comment on a National Union of Metalworkers’ claim that DA economic policies formed the basis of the ANC’s National Development Plan (NDP).

“We will take the matter with them offline as part of Cosatu, if  there is a need or request from (the Congress of SA Trade Unions),”  spokesman Keith Khoza said on Thursday.

“The DA does not have policies. The DA’s policies are a nuance of broader ANC policies.”

Earlier, Numsa, an affiliate of Cosatu, said its 311,000 members  rejected the NDP as a “right wing” document.

“After a thorough analysis, the (central committee) came to the extremely disturbing conclusion that significant and strategic parts of the NDP were directly lifted from DA policy documents,” said Numsa general secretary Irvin Jim.

For more details go to www.iol.co.za

Pretoria – The chairman of the DA in Mkhondo, Mpumalanga, is claiming R250 000 in damages from a DA council member whom he claimed linked him to an incident where under-age prostitutes were allegedly solicited during a councillors’ workshop held in Durban.

Hein Sunkel is claiming for defamation in the Pretoria High Court following a letter written by Walter Masuku. The latter handed the letter to another local councillor, Rob Wilson.

Sunkel told the court that Masuku wrote the letter on October 13, 2011, and handed it to Wilson. 

In the letter, handed to court, Masuku stated that after finishing the workshop, he and Sunkel had a drink in a hotel bar. Sunkel, he said, “bought himself hot stuff”, while he had a tin of coke, as he is not a drinker. 

They then set off to look at the Moses Mabhida Stadium, together with some other councillors. It was late when they returned and en route they encountered “many young girls moving around the streets”.

Masuku said in the letter that while they were “chatting” to these girls, a police van stopped and asked what they were doing. 

Masuku said he at this point asked to be taken back to the hotel, as it was “unsafe for us to talk with these young girls”.

For more details go to www.iol.co.za