Cape Town – Good omens are stacking up quite nicely for South Africa as they advance to a Dhaka semi-final of the ICC World Twenty20 on either Thursday or Friday next week.
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Daily Archives: March 29, 2014
Baxter not happy with ref as Chiefs crash out of Caf
Johannesburg – Speaking after his side were eliminated from the CAF Champions League by AS Vita, Kaizer Chiefs head coach Stuart Baxter was not happy with the officiating.
According to the Soccer-Laduma
website
, goals from Knowledge Musona and Morgan Gould were not enough for AmaKhosi as AS Vita went through as 3-2 aggregate winners, but Baxter was not pleased with the officiating and the AS Vita goalkeeper.
“We get the second goal, hope the ref is counting the seconds the keeper took, but three minutes was a smack in the face,” Said Baxter
“My biggest regret is that, when the world sees officiating like tonight, they laugh at Africa.
“The keeper was an embarrassment. Sometimes he (Nguemba Lomboto) took 15-16 seconds on the ball, it just got worse and worse.” Sport24
Pirates roast Swallows to occupy fourth spot
Johannesburg – Orlando Pirates moved back up to fourth place on the Absa Premiership log as they edged Moroka Swallows 1-0 at Orlando Stadium on Saturday evening.
The Dube Birds squandered chance after chance in the second half as Tlou Segolela’s first half strike remained the separating factor between the two teams.
Vladimir Vermezovic was marking his debut at Orlando Stadium since taking over the coaching role at the club earlier this month, and it was also his second Soweto derby encounter.
The first half chance of the fixture fell to Orlando Pirates when Mpho Makola looped a ball to Sifiso Myeni inside the box on eight minutes. The striker burst into the area but was brilliantly closed down by Greg Etafia.
Pirates deservingly took the lead four minutes later when Etafia palmed away Thabo Matlaba’s shot. It only got as far as Tlou Segolela, who was waiting at the back post, and he headed it into the back of an empty net.
Swallows’ first chance of the fixture arrived in the 21stminute in which Senzo Meyiwa drew a save from Siyabonga Nomvethe. His chance was saved, but the rebounded effort by Felix Obada was scrambled away in a mix-up between defender and goalkeeper.
Then, on the stroke of the half hour, Rudi Isaacs did well to get above Lucky Lekgwathi and header in a corner kick but it failed to hit the target – going high and wide.
The Dube Birds were enjoying a good share of attacking possession and they were awarded a free-kick on 34 minutes, but Lerato Chabangu saw his strike sail narrowly over the crossbar.
Bucs made a change at the restart, seeing Lennox Bacela come off and replaced by Helder Pelembe, while Obada was the first to crack a whip at goal with a powerful effort that sailed past the far post.
Matlaba failed to test Etafia with his stinging snapshot on 50 minutes from the edge area and so did Myeni, as his shot lacked any form of power to worry the shot-stopper.
The tempo of the encounter took a sudden drop and, as a result, allowed for the Dube Birds to try take control of the encounter.
The Buccaneers were living life dangerously with just a quarter of an hour left and Meyiwa beat away Nomvethe’s header from a throw-in. Vuysile Wana tried to follow up with the rebound but it was pushed out for a corner.
Zeca Marques was lucky to see his team see out the game with 11 men after men after Levi Mokgothu was shown yellow for a crunching tackle on Happy Jele with ten minutes to go. Backpagemedia
Militants killed in Kambul stand-off
Kabul – An Afghan interior ministry official says five militants who attacked the election commission headquarters in Kabul with rocket propelled grenades and machine guns have been killed, ending a four-hour stand-off.
Deputy Interior Minister Mohammed Ayub Salangi says two policemen were injured in the attack on Saturday.
There were no casualties among the dozens of Independent Election Commission staff and other people on the heavily fortified compound.
Salangi said the five insurgents wore the all-encompassing burqua to sneak unnoticed into a building that looked onto the heavily fortified Independent Election Commission headquarters.
It’s the latest in a series of high-profile attacks that come as the Islamic militant movement steps up a campaign of violence to disrupt presidential elections due to be held in a week.
AP
7 injured in a crash
Johannesburg – Seven people were injured after two vehicles collided head-on in Randburg, Johannesburg, paramedics said on Saturday.
A heavy goods vehicle and light delivery vehicle were involved in the collision, said Netcare 911 spokesperson Santi Steinmann.
“The female driver of the light delivery vehicle was entrapped in the vehicle and found to be in a critical condition.
“The jaws of life had to be used to extricate her from the vehicle,” Steinmann said.
The woman was airlifted to hospital. The other injured people were treated on the scene and transported to various hospitals.
SAPA
Nkandla on ANC NEC agenda
Cape Town – Public Protector Thuli Madonsela’s damning report on security upgrades at President Jacob Zuma’s Nkandla homestead will be on the agenda of an ANC NEC meeting in Cape Town on Saturday.
“Indeed on the agenda we also have what probably you have all come here for, the report of the public protector on the security upgrades at Nkandla,” ANC spokesperson Jackson Mthembu said while speaking briefly to reporters on the sidelines of the national executive committee (NEC) meeting.
Mthembu refused to be drawn on specifics.
“I won’t take any questions because once we open for questions, all of you would like to ask all sorts of questions which we’ll not be able to answer because we are not having a press conference,” he said.
“It’s just a briefing to keep you updated on what’s happening inside.”
Earlier, reporters were allowed into the conference venue for a few minutes for a photo opportunity.
Zuma sat on the podium with the rest of the African National Congress leadership with his head bowed down. Later he waved his hands at the NEC group seated in front of him joking with photographers saying they should be focusing their cameras in their direction.
Also on the agenda for Saturday was the annual report on the state of the party to be presented by secretary general Gwede Mantashe.
The NEC began sitting on Friday where other issues, including preparations for the upcoming elections were discussed.
“There’s no way that we could have not discussed elections.”
A media briefing on the outcomes of the NEC meeting will be held in Johannesburg on Monday.
Questions on the public protector’s report would likely be put to Mantashe.
There has been mounting pressure from opposition parties for impeachment proceedings to be initiated against Zuma.
Madonsela found that Zuma had unduly benefited from upgrades at his private residence, which included a swimming pool, a chicken run and a visitor’s centre.
SAPA
Proteas into World Cup T20 semis
Chittagong – South Africa beat former champions England by three runs in Chittagong on Saturday to reach the semi-finals of the World Twenty20.
South Africa put up the tournament’s highest total of 196-5 before keeping England down to 193-7 in 20 overs in a Group One match played at Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury stadium.
The defeat put 2010 champions England out of the semi-final race after two losses in three games.
South Africa, playing without their captain Faf du Plessis who was suspended for slow over-rate, were guided by stand-in skipper AB de Villiers who hit a 28-ball 69 not out and a 37-ball 56 by Hashim Amla.
South Africa are the second team to qualify for the semis after India cruised to the last four from Group Two.
AFP
ANC to campaign at CT Jazz festival
Cape Town – ANC top brass are expected to don their election hats at this year’s Cape Town International Jazz festival, party spokesperson Jackson Mthembu said on Saturday.
Speaking on the sidelines of the ANC NEC meeting Mthembu welcomed the “coincidence” that the party’s national executive committee was meeting in the Mother City while one of the most prestigious entertainment events on the South African calendar was taking place.
“This NEC was held here [because] as you know it coincides with something good happening in the Western Cape, Cape Town particularly,” Mthembu said.
“In our campaign we interact with all sectors of society, including musicians, artists, you name it, so the coincidence was wonderful for the African National Congress.”
Tickets to the festival were sold out well before the concerts got underway.
A weekend pass would cost festival goers R795, while a day pass cost R490.
Companies are known to sponsor their clients and special guests such as politicians with tickets.
– SAPA
Malema- EFF will change North West
Mahikeng – The Economic Freedom Fighters are ready to change the North West, its leader Julius Malema said on Saturday.
“North West is the home of the EFF. You are the second best rally after Tembisa… this is the sign that we are ready to take North West,” he told supporters at the launch of the provincial election manifesto at the Montshioa Stadium near Mahikeng.
Malema said the African National Congress failed people in Mahikeng to an extent that the people longed for the Bophuthatswana government.
Bophuthatswana, which was led by Lucas Mangope, was one of ten homelands during apartheid.
“People said they did not like Mangope for suppressing politics but at least Mangope was able to provide services,” Malema said.
He said the EFF would bury corruption.
“Today is the funeral of corruption, maladministration and jobs for sex,” he said to loud applause from the crowd.
Malema said RDP houses built by the ANC were worse than the match box houses built by the apartheid government.
“The ANC house collapses soon after the handing over ceremony. It literally follows them.”
He said there was no good story to tell but a “suffering story” to tell.
Malema said his party would partner with mineworkers to ensure that they get paid R12 500.
“We want security guards to be paid R7 000. They protect us, they work hard.”
He said the EFF wanted all to be equal.
Malema said black economic empowerment was only benefiting a few people.
“The wealth of South Africa circulates between the family of Cyril Ramaphosa and Patrice Motsepe.”
– SAPA
‘Sex slave’ arrested by cops
Johannesburg – A foreign woman who claims she was tricked into coming to South Africa seven years ago by a man she met on the internet, has been arrested in Springs for entering the country illegally, the Lowvelder reported.
Springs police arrested the woman earlier in the week, the newspaper reported on Friday.
“She has no documents and so she’s an illegal immigrant,” Captain Mothutsane was quoted as saying.
She was reportedly discovered on Wednesday by a passer-by who saw her being manhandled aggressively by an unknown man.
“I saw from his body language that he was threatening her so I drove around the block. When I came around again and stopped, he ran away and I asked her if everything was alright,” the passer-by known only as Leon was quoted as saying.
The woman told him she was American, aged 26 and that her name was Anna Kreller.
Seven years ago she allegedly met a man from Cape Town on the internet who tricked her into believing he wanted to marry her, she reportedly said.
The man travelled to America to fetch her and brought her back to SA.
She also allegedly told Leon that when she arrived, the man took her passport and assaulted her.
He then forced her into a life of prostitution and she was given to other people who had held her captive in a house in Geduld in Springs, the paper reported.
Gauteng provincial police spokesperson, Brigadier Neville Malila, reportedly told the paper they were aware of the woman being taken to the Springs police station, but still had to decided whether or not to open a case.
SAPA
The Guardian 