Johannesburg – Public servants should not expect bribes, Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Friday.

“Public servants should not expect to be paid a bribe for executing the tasks that they are paid a salary for,” he told delegates at the National Education, Health and Allied Workers Union (Nehawu) special congress in Benoni, on the East Rand.

He called on them to serve the country with pride and dignity at all times.

“We need to recognise that we wear a badge of honour to serve our people.”

Ramaphosa said a good public service was needed for government to effectively implement the National Development Plan.

“Workers in the public service should work hard and inspire young graduates to take up careers in the public service,” he said.

Sapa

Port Elizabeth – An undertaker who ordered staff to saw off the legs of a corpse because it was too tall to fit into a coffin, has appeared in court charged with mutilation.

Ronel Mostert, who ran a funeral parlour in Grahamstown, appeared in Grahamstown Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday after one of her employees blew the lid on a three-year-old secret.

Mostert allegedly ordered staff “to get an angle grinder and cut off the legs” because the 33-year-old “man was too tall to fit into the coffin,” according to court documents.

The employee, Siphamandla Dyasi, claimed the incident had been haunting him and so he decided to come clean.

“I still hear the sound of the angle grinder in my head. I could not take it anymore,” he said in written testimony. “For all these years I have had difficulties sleeping.”

He alleged that Mostert had threatened them with dismissal if he told anyone about incident.

The remains of the man have been exhumed as part of the police investigation. They showed burn marks where the legs had been sawn off.

Police told AFP more allegations of corpse mutilation at Mostert’s Siyakubonga Funeral Services had surfaced since the case began last month.

The case has been postponed until June 27 for further investigation.

Sapa-AFP

North West Premier Supra Mahumapelo has applauded the life sentences that two men accused for the murder of a Tshwane Metro Police official were given by the North West Division of the High Court seating in Ga-Rankuwa this week
“The two life sentence that 31-year-old Jabu Javas Basaya and one that his accomplice, 26- year-old Lucky Edwin Baloyi received  should sent a strong message to criminals that there is no place in our society for those who attack and kill law enforcement officers,” Premier Mahumapelo said.

“We commend police for the swift reaction and teamwork that resulted in the speedy arrest and successful conviction and trust that the family of the deceased official finds closure in the knowledge that justice was served,” Mahumapelo added.  

According to police, the convicted pair was arrested shortly after shooting at three Tshwane Metro Police officials at a vehicle check point along Molefe Makinta Highway two years ago and robbing one of them of his service pistol.

“The officials returned fire and that led to injury of one of the accused who was admitted to hospital. A metro official who was wounded in the fire exchange was rushed to Legae Private Clinic where he later died,” Colonel Sabata Mokgwabone said.

“A joint intensive search by Ga-Rankuwa, Mabopane, Hebron, and Tshwane Metro police officials led to the arrest of one of the suspects shortly after the incident” Mokgwabone said.

Basaya was sentenced to life imprisonment for murder, twenty years for armed robbery, 3 years for each of five counts of attempted murder and 6 years for unlawful possession of firearm and ammunitions.  

The court also sentenced Baloyi to 25 years imprisonment for murder, 10 years for armed robbery, 6 years for each of 2 counts of attempted murder, and 3 years for possession of unlicensed firearm and ammunitions. Sentences will run concurrently.         

The conviction of the duo follows that of the murderers of Warrant officer Othisitse Ganenang of the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigations (the Hawks) who were last week sentenced to a total of 170 years in the North West High Court.-TDN
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By Obakeng Maje
Madibeng- The residents of Madibeng were left in the dark with no electricity in the cold weather after Tshwane municipality pulled the plug.

Democratic Alliance said the municipality defaulted on paying their electricity bill valued at R40 million arrears.

The Democratic Alliance spokesperson Tiaan Kotze said they will write to the Co-operative Government and Traditional Affairs Minister Pravin Gordhan and ask for his intervention in the Hartbeespoort electricity crisis.

Electricity in the area was cut off again by the Tshwane Municipality on Thursday after the Madibeng Municipality failed to pay its account which is R40 million in arrears.

“The Tshwane Municipality confirmed that they had pulled the plug after battling for weeks to get a response from Madibeng about the outstanding debt. A notice for the power cut was issued last week” he said.

DA said this is totally unacceptable and Madibeng municipality is quick to disconnect electricity when its residents just falls R400 in arrears  while the municipality fails to pay its own bills.

“This maladministration will no longer be accepted. I will write to Minister Gordhan and ask for his intervention to save Madibeng residents from future power cuts” Kotze said.-TDN
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