BY REGINALD KANYANE

EDUCATION and sport development MEC, Wendy Matsemela applauded all winners during North West Sports Award event held at Rustenburg Civic Centre on Friday night.

Matsemela said the province will continue to honour its stars and she encouraged young people to participate in all sporting codes across the province.

Matsemela said sport is not just for entertainment. She said it was another form of employment to many people in South Africa.

“These men and women represent hard work and commitment to success and excellence. We are here to unveil role models who must be followed and emulated by our youth.  These young men and women we are celebrating this evening are a beacon of hope to the majority of young South Africans. The commitment of these sport stars to achieve excellence, have managed to convince the majority of our youth to understand that sport improves the lives of communities.

“We have proudly produced the likes of Andrew Kelehe, former Bafana Bafana player, Philemon Masinga and currently we have Kaizer Chiefs and Bafana Bafana goalkeeper, Itumeleng Khune as South Africa’s number one goalkeeper. This year marks the 2th edition of the North West Sports Awards,” she said.

Matsemela said the purpose of the awards was to celebrate excellence. She further added that sport promotes unity within the society.

“We will continue to celebrate excellence in sports and continue to encourage the current generation to participate in sports. This is a significant milestone, and we are celebrating the best sporting moments with the sport fraternity. Working together with all our top achievers, we can put our province on the map.

“We must be flexible as the province. We need to continue to develop sports at an early age especially in our schools. We also acknowledge the good work that the netball team is doing in Brutal Fruit Netball League currently. They are comfortably sitting at position one,” she said.

Biggest winners on the night were Comrades Marathon champion Gift Kelehe, and Kefiloe Tsotetsi who emerged as sportsman and sportswoman of the year respectively.

Matsemela also further sent her regards to disabled winners. Among those who were recognised was Aviwe Ngoni.

Ngoni won the Best Sportswoman of the Year with Disability and the Best Community Sports Development Award.

Magesh Sekailwe scooped the Best Sportsman of the Year Award with Disability. Sekailwe said this shall teach the general public that one can use sport for a living. He said that idea of disabled persons have much in common with high level of professional athletes might be laughable, but it is true.

“We should not discriminate against disabled persons. We had people like former runner, Oscar Pistorius who proved beyond reasonable doubt that disability is not a setback. Those involved with the scene understand the unique talent, skill and determination of the players mirrors that of real athletes, even if their physical fitness is different,” he said.

Mmabatho FM presenter, Sello Mokonopi scooped the Best Sports Presenter of the Year Award.

Award-winning sport editor for Sunday Sun and Daily Sun, Mathews Mpete won the Best Sport Journalist of the Year Award in print.

Rustenburg-born journalist said: “The awards bring hope in the province and the awards will change the landscape of sport in the country. This will encourage those who want to embark on the same industry to work hard. So to those who were nominated, we are all winners.”

Motsweding FM sport commentator, Brian Letsogo won the Best Sport Journalist of the Year in electronic. Letsogo shared the same sentiments and said the awards will encourage those do not believe in themselves as well.

“Sport is brings people together, and I am grateful for the recognition. We all know North West province is predominately rural, so this will bring encouragement so previous disadvantaged children. They will have that beacon of hope because one’s background does not determine his/her future.

“There are some people who are still living in abject poverty. However we can change their situation through sport. In the absence of sport, a fight against drug, alcohol abuse, crime, poverty and teenage pregnancy will be lost,” Letsogo said.

-TDN

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BY REGINALD KANYANE

A 38 YEAR-OLD man was arrested for abduction, two counts of rape and murder on Saturday.

The man was arrested after police embarked on an intensive search following the incident.

North West police worked with their Free State counterparts in the Vierfontein area to nab the man.

North West police spokesperson, Col Sabata Mokgwabone said the search yield desired results.

“The suspect was arrested at one of the plots between Leeudoringstad and Orkney road. He allegedly assaulted a 38 year-old man with a knobkerrie, stabbed him with a knife and slit his throat at Ysterspruit outside Orkney.

“The suspect then allegedly covered the victim’s body with mattress and set it alight. It is alleged that the suspect continued with his criminal acts by abducting a woman and later raped her. The woman was later found tied to a tractor inside a storeroom at a farm near Vierfontein,” Mokgwabone said.

He said the suspect was also reported for assaulting his girlfriend’s family member in Kanana prior to the horrendous incidents. Mokgwabone said several charges of assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm will be added to the charge sheet of the suspect.

North West provincial commissioner, Lieutenant General Baile Motswenyane acknowledged the police in North West and Free State provinces. She said their involved in the operation led to the apprehension of the suspect.

Baile also added that criminals have no space within the communities and police make sure they put them in jail.

-TDN

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THE DA in North West reacted with shock to a disparaging Facebook post by EFF member of the provincial legislature, Thabo Sehloho that was couched in racial undertones.

Sehloho posted a picture of the Rand Stadium where DA launched its elections manifesto with the remark: “Oh (blue) sheet! Someone forgot to provide transport and papsak for all the DA coloureds in the Western Cape?”

The post was taken down after The New Age made inquiries on what Sehloho really meant.

DA’s provincial spokesperson on health and education Dr Tutu Faleni said the statement was absurd.

“It is a desperate effort by the EFF to discredit what was a successful manifesto launch by the DA. From the onset the DA announced a target audience of 20 000 for the manifesto launch.

“The target figure was based on financial constraints other than filling up the relatively small Rand Stadium with the entire membership of the DA. We have excess of four million members (according to stats from the 2014 national elections) and we continue to grow daily,” he said.

Faleni added that the EFF should better focus on winning their first ward in the August 3 polls.

“The EFF is still to show the people of South Africa if it has what it takes to lead a ward, not to mention a municipality or even a province. Recent research shows that nine out of ten best municipalities are governed by the DA and we cannot be undermined by a party that is yet to win a ward in the local government elections,” he said.

In his defence, Sehloho denied ever posting any statement on his wall before claiming that his account had been hacked.

“I think my account was hacked. I cannot recall me writing that statement. The statement is rhetoric and as a politician I cannot make such statement,” he said.

Sehloho later tried to ‘sweet-talk’ The New Age into dropping the story claiming that he had more juicy stuff that the newspaper can write on.

Courtesy: The NewAge Newspaper

-TDN

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Picture: ATM Bombers appear in Mmabatho Magistrate’s Court

BY REGINALD KANYANE

FOUR suspects briefly appeared in Mmabatho Magistrate’s Court for ATM bombing and business robbery on Monday.Lawrence Mantshingo 43, Thembinkosi Mlaka 27, Xolile Mayekiso, 36 and Nkosinathi Mbele, 42 were arrested in Protea Glen, Soweto and Mahikeng on Thursday.

Mmabatho police station spokesperson, Capt Marble Mosidi said the suspects allegedly bombed an ATM with explosives at Sasol filling station in Golfview, Mahikeng on Wednesday.

According to police, several armed suspects wearing balaclavas fired shots that forced employees to take cover. The suspects allegedly blew the ATM as well as a safe inside the store with explosives.

“They took an undisclosed amount of money and also robbed a convenient store of various goods. The suspects allegedly fled the scene with two cars, a Nissan X-trail and Volkswagen Golf. The suspects were arrested through assistance of Crime Intelligence in Gauteng Province.

“The Hawks is conducting investigations. We believe that the suspects may be linked to other cases within Mahikeng and neighbouring areas where ATMs were blown with explosives. The suspects were remanded in custody until May 4 for formal bail application,” Mosidi said.

-TDN

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BY REGINALD KANYANE

ANC in North West welcomed the stoppage on Chris Hani’s killer, Janusz Walus court application for parole over assassination of SACP general-secretary, Chris Hani. Walus eliminated Hani in cold-blood back in 1993. The party said the murder of Hani virtually brought civil war to the country.

Provincial secretary, Dakota Legoete said: “We believe that North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria, Judge Nicolene van Nieuwenhuizen took the sound decision. The court heard Walus’ application today in Pretoria. However Walus application was turned down and we believe that he never disclosed all the information on comrade Chris Hani’s murder.

“It is impossible that Walus together with Clive Derby-Lewis could have been the only two behind the carnage. We believe that there are more people behind the murder of the former SACP general-secretary that he still refuses to disclose,” he said.

Legoete further added that they believe that Walus did not show any remorse for his actions. He said Walus deserved to stay a little longer in jail.

“The ANC in Bokone Bophirima also appreciates the legal submission in court by advocate Gcina Malindi SC on behalf of the SACP and the Hani family. Malindi said Hani’s murder remained an exceptional crime. The assassination of a prominent political leader was committed on the eve of the arrival of our democracy.

“We believe that could have resulted in civil war. It is also correct that Walus’ release would undermine nation building and reconciliation. The ANC stands by the point that Walus is far from being rehabilitated. He still not denounced his hatred for communism which seems to have been the key motivation for comrade Hani’s murder,” he said.

-TDN

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Johannesburg – The ANC has officially opened a case of treason against EFF leader Julius Malema, it said on Monday.

“The ANC has just opened a case of high treason against EFF and its leader Julius Malema in his personal capacity with Hillbrow police station,” national spokesperson Zizi Kodwa told News24.

“The threat to remove a lawfully, democratically-elected leader through an undemocratic process is against the law and the Constitution.

“We call on SAPS to investigate a charge of high treason,” he said.

He said the ruling party was doing this for all South Africans as well as to defend and protect the country’s hard won democracy and freedom.

This was after Malema told Al Jazeera that his party would “remove this government through the barrel of a gun”.

During an episode of Talk To Al Jazeera last week, Malema told Jonah Hull that if the ruling ANC continued to respond violently to peaceful protests, “we will run out of patience very soon and we will remove this government through the barrel of a gun”.

Malema was asked what this meant and if he was literally saying people should take up arms against the government.

Malema responded: “Yeah, literally. I mean it literally. We are not scared. We are not going to have a government that disrespects us.”

Kodwa had told News24 earlier that his utterances were treasonable and constituted a violation of the Independent Electoral Commission charter which was signed by all political parties committing them to a free and fair election.
Courtesy: News24.com

ABIDJAN – Congolese rumba music legend Papa Wemba died after collapsing on stage in the Ivory Coast in the early hours of Sunday morning, according to the private morgue where his body was taken.

Wemba, born in 1949, was performing at the FEMUA 2016 festival when he collapsed on stage. Videos posted online showed the artist falling on his back mid-song before band members rushed to his side.

He died before reaching hospital, a spokesman for the Ivosep morgue in Abidjan said.
For more http://www.ewn.co.za

WATCH: Papa Wemba collapses on stage in Ivory Coast

https://youtu.be/1B4t6CZe6DE

Baroka FC coach Kgoloko Thobejane says it would not have been right for them to humiliate Polokwane City in front of their own fans.

The First Division leaders won the Nedbank Cup quarterfinal 2-0 against their neighbours, though in reality it could well have been six or seven.

So confident was Thobejane of the win that he already started celebrating on the sidelines five minutes from the end, but afterwards he was much more circumspect. 

“From the first minute, when we touched that ball, I saw that Polokwane was not there,” he told SuperSport after the match. “I was trying to make some changes to say we could score two or three before we could change but eish… just look at them [Polokwane].

“I feel very much pity because they have a very strong team, and they are hungry … they want to play football. They are our brothers this Polokwane City.

“These two goals were good for them because if we scored six … eish. How can you humiliate your own brothers in their own backyard in front of all these people?” 

Thobejane called on the province’s fans to embrace Baroka and support them in their semifinal against SuperSport United.

“They know now, these supporters, that there is an elephant in this province. Let them come in numbers and follow this elephant, support it so it can grow and grow,” he adds.
Courtesy: http://www.kickoff.com

Orlando Pirates will face Free State Stars in the Nedbank Cup semifinal, while Baroka FC face SuperSport United.

The semifinal draw was made straight after Baroka’s 2-0 win against Polokwane City at Old Peter Mokaba Stadium.

Pirates, who beat Mamelodi Sundowns last night, will travel to the Free State, while Matsatsantsa host the First Division leaders.
Courtesy: http://www.kickoff.com

Generations: The Legacy lead actor Rapulana Seiphemo will be back at work in two weeks.

Generations publicist Gaaratwe Mokhethi told City Press that Seiphemo was recovering well after his horrific car accident, and would report to work early next month.

“He is contracted to us. He is still part of the family. We cannot wait to have him back,” she said.

Mokhethi said the show’s producers had been keeping in touch with the actor since he was critically injured earlier this year.

“He is still not 100%, as he will be continuing to take his medication at work,” she said.

Seiphemo was not available for comment.

In February, the actor was involved in a fatal car crash on the N14 near Diepsloot that left three people dead and three others, including Seiphemo, critically injured. The actor was treated in the intensive care unit of Milpark Hospital, while the other two were treated in public hospitals.

Seiphemo and Connie Ferguson were among the few actors brought back to rescue the soapie in August 2014 after Generations producer Mfundi Vundla axed 16 principal cast members when they went on strike demanding better pay, contracts and royalties. After a break of a few months, the refurbished Generations: The Legacy was launched on December 1.

Meanwhile, Generations – The Legacy leading lady Ferguson is parting ways with the soapie after a year and a half.

Gaaratwe told City Press they were not replacing her, and her character Karabo Moroka would not return. She refused to divulge how Karabo would exit the show.

“We will have other actors join the show and give names once the time is right,” she said.

On April 6, Generations’ producers issued a statement on the soapie’s website, which confirmed Ferguson’s exit.

According to the statement, she was “working on a couple of projects” that needed her “undivided attention” and had asked to be released from her contract.

Rumours of her departure started doing the rounds in SABC corridors last October. At the time, Vundla denied them. “No, it is not true. This is a fabrication,” he said.
Courtesy: City Press