Picture: http://www.enca.co.za 

By OBAKENG MAJE

The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) in the North West calls on the mining magnate, Patrice Motsepe to ‘shut down’ KalGold mine near Kraaipan indefinitely. This comes after allegations that two mineworkers have tested positive for COVID-19 at KalGold mine which is a subsidiary of Harmony Gold where Motsepe is the owner.

EFF provincial secretary, Papiki Bauile said all mineworkers at KalGold mine should be subjected to mandatory screening and testing. Babuile said they equally call on the North West Department of Health (NWDoH) to also intervene in this matter.

“On Tuesday, we woke up to the sad news that two mineworkers at KalGold mine which is owned by Harmony Gold have registered two cases of COVID-19. According to mineworkers who wished to remain anonymous, the results of mineworkers who tested positive were known since Monday, but no precautionary measures have been taken to protect other mineworkers.

“It is business as usual as the production department and other related departments at the mine are 100% operational. We specifically called on mining houses to stop prioritizing profits at the expense of human life,” he said.

Babuile said just last month, the EFF released a statement cautioning against the re-opening of mines amidst the escalating cases of COVID-19 in the province. He said they have even opened criminal cases against some mining houses in the province.

“We call on Motsepe to close the mine and ensure that all mineworkers are subjected to mandatory screening and testing, but failure to do so, will result in the EFF to visit the mine,” said Babuile.

He added that they have lost hope in the Department of Minerals and Energy (DMR) as they have long taken the decision to favour mining houses instead of workers. Meanwhile, the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) has come out calling for universal testing of all mineworkers following the rapid spread of the virus in the mining sector.

AMCU president, Joseph Mathunjwa said: “The union is adamant that this is the only way to curb a possible crisis in the sector. Over the past weekend it came to light that a record number of 19 new infections have been found at Impala’s Marula mine in Limpopo. This brings the total number of infections in mining to 32, with one mineworker who has died of the pandemic as of 17 May 2020.

“We have consistently called for proper testing before mineworkers go underground. Screening is not sufficient as it fails to detect those workers who don’t display the known symptoms like high temperatures. We’ve been saying this all along, but the Department of Mineral Resources and the Chamber of Mines [now known as the Minerals Council] would not listen to us.”

National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) in North East Regional Secretary, Phillip Mankge said the COVID-19 is a killer virus and the government has directed mines to resume operations at 50% capacity and issued clear guidelines to the mines to adhere to the regulations. Mankge said the NUM is extremely disturbed by the number of cases already confirmed since the mines were allowed to resume operation.

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By BAKANG MOKOTO

The North West Dingaka Association (NWDA) said they are adamant that the fight against COVID-19 pandemic will be won soon. This comes after they had an interactive session with other stakeholders such as the North West Department of Health (NWDoH), North West Traditional Healers Practitioners (NWTHP), and the North West Arts, Culture, Sport and Recreation (ACSR) recently.

The NWDA chairperson, Anna Rabotapi said the interactive session was informative and featured an update on the National Command Council’s work on Covid-19 and guidelines for traditional practitioners in dealing with the virus and the lockdown.  She also expressed her gratitude to the two departments for taking the initiative.

“This is the kind of engagement we have been longing for. Today’s session was very informative and useful for us as traditional practitioners. We are so grateful to have had held a joint meeting with MECs’ both portfolios to discuss the role of traditional practitioners in the fight against Covid-19,” Rabotapi said.

The MEC for ACSR, Virginia Tlhapi said: “We work closely and support the work of the Dingaka Association in the province. The traditional healers and members of the Dingaka Association came from across the province and raised their concerns over the lockdown restrictions.

“They explained how the lockdown has impacted on their work. We informed them that we were serious about the engagements with the traditional medicine sector and we will continue meeting and consulting with them on an on-going basis in the fight against Covid-19.

North West MEC for DoH, Madoda Sambatha also shared the same sentiments. Sambatha encouraged the traditional health practitioners to work together with his department in helping the local population to overcome the Covid-19 pandemic.

“We call on traditional practitioners and dingaka to observe the regulations as stipulated by the government. Please, you should not chase money but safe lives as you are called to do so,” said Sambatha.

Meanwhile, COVID-19 infections continue to soar. The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the province is 72, an increase of two from previously reported cases.

“All two new cases in the province are in Ngaka Modiri Molema District. Ratlou Local Municipality has registered its first case, while Mahikeng Local municipality increases its numbers to 5. The Ditsobotla Local Municipality has one registered case and this brings all registered COVID-19 cases to seven in the district, says Sambatha.

He said there is no new case that was recorded in Bojanala Platinum district in the past three days. Sambatha added that the province contributes 0.4% of South Africa’s burden of disease.

“Bojanala contributes 56% to the provincial burden of disease. The total number of screenings in the province is 1 965 869 and 1 945 people screened showed COVID-19 symptoms. They were referred for testing and a total of 984 contacts of the 72 confirmed cases were identified and 94% (925) were successfully traced.

“We thank our tracing teams, nurses, doctors, paramedics, and all healthcare workers who continue to serve with pride during these difficult times,” said Sambatha.

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By REGINALD KANYANE

The Phokwane Local Municipality has been dissolved after being marred with a series of alleged corruption, fraud, and mismanagement for the past four years. Northern Cape Provincial government said in a statement that it implemented Section 139(1) (c) given all the above governance and administrative challenges.

Northern Cape Premier, Dr Zamani Saul said: “The beleaguered municipal council failed to fulfill its executive obligations. The council failed to hold critical council meetings to appoint senior managers, failing to consider the section 106 report, failing to approve the 2019/20 financial year budget, the mid-year budget and performance assessment report, and the 2019/20 adjustments budget.

“The proliferation of litigation matters has ultimately resulted in the municipality having two mayors and two speakers. This confusion permeated into the administration and resulted in the dual convening of municipal council meetings, giving of conflicting instructions to the administrator and officials.”

Saul added that the manifestation of political dynamics within the council further circumvented the implementation of the Section 106 report which investigated the serious malpractice at the municipality. He said the municipality having two speakers and mayors resulting in financial and legal constraints.

“The unfortunate sequence of events at Phokwane Local Municipality has unfortunately been unfolding at the expense of the people, robbing communities of basic service delivery. It is in this context that after numerous interventions and for the benefit of the people of Phokwane, the municipal council is hereby dissolved with immediate effect.

“The Provincial Executive Council (EXCO) has delegated the MEC of CoGHSTA to amongst others publish the powers and function of the administrator who will continue to be supported by the administration team of the financial expert and an engineer from the Municipal Infrastructure Support Agency (MISA),” he said.

Saul said all necessary processes will be put in place to ensure that by-elections are held.

He said as a result of this intervention, the municipality will be in a better position to work with the Department of Health to deal with the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

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