Cape Town – All 25 EFF MPs on Thursday received formal letters from Speaker Baleka Mbete asking them to motivate why the party should not be suspended from Parliament for disrupting a sitting.

“We received the letters today and we have to respond by tomorrow,” said Economic Freedom Fighters MP Mbuyiseni Ndlozi.

EFF leader Julius Malema was expected to brief media at the party’s offices at Parliament at 13:00 to announce how it planned to respond.

Last Thursday, the EFF defied orders from Mbete to leave the National Assembly after they disrupted presidential question time.

They chanted that President Jacob Zuma should repay public funds spent on his home in Nkandla.

SAPA

Johannesburg – The ANC said on Thursday it noted the Supreme Court of Appeal’s order that the so-called Zuma “spy tapes” be released, after opposition by President Jacob Zuma.

“We trust that today’s [Thursday] outcome will bring the matter closer to finality,” African National Congress spokesperson Zizi Kodwa said in a statement.

The court ruled that within five days, the National Prosecuting Authority had to comply with a previous order, in an application brought by the Democratic Alliance, to release the tapes.

The actual recordings, internal memoranda, reports and minutes of meetings dealing with the contents of the recordings had to be provided.

Conversations on the recordings were cited as a reason to drop fraud and corruption charges against Zuma, shortly before he was sworn in as president in 2009.

Political conspiracy

The tapes allegedly reveal collusion between the former heads of the Directorate of Special Operations, the now defunct Scorpions, Leonard McCarthy, and the NPA’s former head Bulelani Ngcuka, to manipulate the prosecutorial process before the ANC’s Polokwane conference in 2007. Zuma was elected ANC president at the conference.

At the time, acting NPA boss Mokotedi Mpshe said they showed there was a political conspiracy against Zuma and so the case could not continue.

The DA applied for access to the recordings and despite winning previous court cases could not obtain them.

Zuma’s legal team had argued in the latest application that the DA would use them against him for political gain.

SAPA

North West MEC for Community Safety and Transport Management, Gaoage Molapisi will address more than 500 women from different departments and stakeholders who will be attending women against corruption campaign to be held in Majakaneng.

MEC is expected to highlight on the role of women on the fight against corruption in the public service, the success recorded by the women traffic officers during their women’s month special operations and further challenges faced by women as they perform their day-to-day operations.

“The women against corruption campaign is informed by the Chapter 14 of the National Development Plan (NDP), which is intended to create a zero tolerance for corruption in South Africa by 2030” departmental spokesperson Rebaone Moeng said.

The campaign will be held as follows:

Date: Friday 29 August 2014

Venue: Mokolobetsi Secondary school

Majakaneng (Madibeng Local Municipality).

Time: 07H00
-TDN
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Johannesburg- Paralympian Oscar Pistorius’s lawyer Barry Roux has lashed out at police inefficiency saying they were to blame for many criminals not being convicted.

“There’s tardiness. They don’t take the docket to court – sometimes they don’t take it because they sold it. Or sometimes they don’t take it because they have misfiled it,” Roux told law students at the University of the Witwatersrand yesterday, The Citizen reported.

He said the biggest problem in South Africa was that people who committed crimes did so knowing “there’s a fair chance they won’t get caught – or if arrested, won’t get tried”.

Roux called on police to “wake up”.

He also criticised certain procedures in court that led to delayed justice.

“If justice is delayed long enough people don’t show up anymore or simply forget what happened,” he said.

Pistorius was charged with murder following the fatal shooting of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. He shot her through a locked toilet door at his Pretoria home on Valentine’s Day last year. He claimed he mistook her for an intruder.

Judge Thokozile Masipa will hand down judgment in the trial on September 11.

For more http://www.citizen.co.za

By Obakeng Maje
Rustenburg- A 31-year-old woman from Thabazimbi appeared in Rustenburg Magistrates Court on Monday after being charged with perjury. 

She was arrested on Friday while opening a case docket claiming that she and her boyfriend were hijacked while at a parking lot in Rustenburg. 

The wide-awake police officials managed to realise that the same car that the complainant was reporting it to be hijacked, was actually reported to be hijacked a day before in Northam.

“It is alleged that police officials called Northam police station where it was confirmed that the car was reported to be hijacked. The complainant was then arrested and charged with perjury as she had already done a sworn statement under oath” captain Pelonomi Makau said.       

Upon appearance in court, she was granted R500 bail on condition that she report daily at her nearest Police Station until she appears again in court on Wednesday, 17 September 2014.  

The North West Provincial Commissioner; Lieutenant General Zukiswa Mbombo would like to warn dishonest people involved in this kind of criminal activity that police will deal with them effectively. 

“It is this kind of criminal activities that deny innocent citizens access to service delivery due to channelling of  resources to false and fraudulent activities like this case” said Lt Gen Zukiswa Mbombo.  
-TDN
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The Department of Culture, Arts and Traditional Affairs in partnership with South African Traditional Music Awards (SATMA) will be hosting the SATMA Nominee Launch for the second time in a row at Mmabatho Convention Centre on the 30th August 2014.

SATMA Awards are a platform to honour and market traditional music across the country. Since 2005 the SATMA’s have brought all races and ethnic groups together through celebration of diverse music that transcends tribal, racial and geographic line.

The SATMA will be celebrated under the theme “My Culture, Your Culture, One Nation” which calls for unity amongst South African ethnic and racial groups as well as African in the Diaspora through Traditional Music.

“As we will be heading into a Heritage Month, The Department of Culture, Arts and Traditional Affairs will be hosting a Media Briefing to launch the Satma Nominee Launch as well as the Heritage Month Activities” departmental spokesperson Shirley Montsho said.

The Media launch will be held as follows:

Date: 30th August 2014

Venue: Mmabatho Convention Centre

Time: TBC

-TDN
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By Obakeng Maje
Atamelang- Two suspects Samuel Mogoje(25) and Piet Barrington(40) appeared at the Atamelang Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday for an alleged murder of a 36-year-old man.

They were remanded in custody until 3 September 2014 for bail application.

“It is alleged that on Sunday at about 18:00, the victim and the two suspects were at a tavern when an argument ensued. The suspects allegedly assaulted the victim with fists and kicked him all over his body.  The victim was taken to the clinic where he was certified dead” captain Pelonomi Makau said.

Investigation into the matter continues.
-TDN
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By Obakeng Maje
Rustenburg- Police are investigating a case of Culpable Homicide after two vehicles, a Nissan Tiida  and Honda collided head-on along N4 road between Marikana Toll Plaza and Kroondaal on Wednesday at about 14:00.

“A woman who was driving the Nissan Tiida died on the scene while a male passenger was rushed to the hospital with serious injuries” Brigadier Thulani Ngubane said.  

The driver of the Honda who was alone in her vehicle also died on the scene.
-TDN
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By Obakeng Maje
Pampierstad- The police arrested twelve people in a protest at Sekhing village, near Pampierstad, says Warrant Officer Thuso Setumiso.

The villagers were allegedly picketing and barricaded the roads with tree branches and burning tyres.

“The community were protesting and police were called to monitor situation. Twelve people were arrested after the situation got out of hand. The arrested people will be formally charged for public violence on Thursday” Setumiso said.

The community took their grievances to the streets after they said the clinic that was supposed to be completed more than three years ago is been deliberately delayed buy the contractor.

The contractor was whisked away for protection and Setumiso said the community did not want to listen even to their councillor to resolve the matter. The police used rubber bullets to disperse unruly crowd and no injuries suffered.

Police investigations continue.-TDN
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By Obakeng Maje
The community of Cokonyane village, near Taung were up in arms after they accused one of the local teachers for kidnapping.

According to one of community representatives Ernest Orapeleng,28, said Thapelo Oss who is a teacher at Marubising Secondary School is allegedly working together with some of villagers in kidnapping some residents.

“The teacher is working with some of locals and they are using a hearse. Some of locals confirmed that they were chased by a hearse during the night, but escaped the fierce attack” Orapeleng said.

The classes were disturbed on Monday as villagers and school children gathered at the school field chanting and singing struggle songs and demanded that the alleged teacher to evacuate their school premises.

The situation was tense on Wednesday as mixed emotions ran through residents’ veins when they gathered at local tribal kraal.

Headman Mankuroane said he has not reported the matter to his high authority, chief Tshepo Mankuroane due to his illness, but will take community grievances to him on Friday.

The North West Department of Education spokesperson Brian Setswammung said they are still waiting for a final report from the school principal and they will respond after gathering all information.

“We have not gathered all details, but I promise that after we’ve received a final report from the school principal, we will respond” Setswammung said.

The villagers vow that they will take the law into their own hands if the chief and the department of Education does not heed to their call.

“We want the accused teacher to leave our school premises and must never set foot in Cokonyane village, otherwise we will burn him alive. We are sick and tired of people who come and commit crimes in our village and go unpunished” Willam Seane laments.

The accused teacher, Thapelo Oss said he does not know anything regarding allegations leveled against him, however said he still need to consult with his family and legal team before he can fully respond to allegations.

“I am so traumatized right now and I do not know what to say because I know nothing about those allegations, however I still have to meet with my family and explain to them about this before they read about it in the newspaper. So I am asking you to postpone the matter and wait until I met with my family and legal team to see what decision to take” Thapelo Oss told our crew.

Oss was given two days off from the school.

The villagers also alleged that Oss was chased away from other schools in Mokgareng and Maphoitsile villages for misconduct, however he refuted those allegations and said this is a smear campaign to discredit him.
-TDN
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