North West Provincial Legislature’s Portfolio Committee on Education and Sports Development, Arts, Culture and Traditional has received a request from the Department of Education and Sports Development for the postponement  of the meeting that was to be held on Tuesday 1 September, 2015, due to the fact that the department was not ready to submit the report.

The Committee had requested a comprehensive report from the Department of Education and Sports Development after an incident that occurred at North West School for the Deaf in the early hours of Monday morning where a fire gutted down the school hostel leaving three (3) learners dead and 53 others being hospitalised  after suffering minor injuries. It also requested the department to present a comprehensive report on the Christiana School for the Blind incident where a fire broke down at the school on the 29 November 2010, leaving four (4) learners dead.

The request has been granted by the Committee and the date for the next meeting will be communicated before the end of the week.

-TDN

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BY KEDIBONE MOLAETSI

The North West Department of Health hereby issues a warning to the community and students in particular about a con-man operating in the Province who deceives learners into thinking he is working for the Department of Health on behalf of nursing colleges to accept application forms for nursing studies at the cost of R1500 per application.  The departmental spokesperson, Tebogo Lekgethwane said the conman calls himself Mr Montshiwa to confuse people with Mme Mamotale Montshiwa who is the former Head of Mmabatho College of Nursing and now Director Nursing Services in the Department.

“The Department has already received a number of calls from learners who were following up on the applications indicating that they have since given Mr Montshiwa R1500 for application.  The Department has not appointed anyone to collect money for registration or application for nursing education.  Our bursaries are free to deserving learners who meet the funding criteria and admission requirements.  They are advertised annually for students to apply.

“Students and the community are urged to report any such a case to the South African Police Services (SAPS) should they come across anyone requesting money to have them registered with our nursing colleges or any of our institutions,” he said.

All enquires about nursing studies should be sent directly to our colleges which are Mmabatho College of Nursing (Tel: 018 384 1123) and Excelsius Nursing College (Tel: 018 406 8600)

-TDN

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Durban – Before entering the Butterworth Forensic Mortuary on Monday to identify their loved ones, the 35 families of those who perished in the Eastern Cape bus accident, gathered to pray.

Eastern Cape health department spokesperson Sizwe Kupelo said the families arrived early on Monday to view the bodies of those who died when the bus in which they were travelling overturned on the R408 between Butterworth and Willowvale on Saturday.

It was also reported 10 people died in a separate accident when a minibus taxi overturned on the R61 between Cradock and Graaff Reinet.

-TDN

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North West Premier Supra Mahumapelo is under pressure to explain the employment of his most senior civil servant, the director-general, and another senior official despite their alleged involvement in a tender storm that has cost the North West government as much as R250 million.

North West provincial director-general Dr Lydia Sebego and acting head of the provincial public works department Vuyo Mbulawa say their hands are clean, but the two could still face possible fraud and corruption charges for their role in the tender.

The two started in their new top positions last month.

For more http://www.news24.com

Johannesburg – A woman in her fifties sustained severe burns in a shack fire in Ikageng, Potchefstroom, early on Monday morning, paramedics said.

The woman, found lying outside her shack in a critical condition, was treated and rushed to hospital for further care while fire and rescue services extinguished the blaze, ER24 spokesperson Chitra Bodasing said.

For more http://www.news24.com