Johannesburg – A picture of a pretty girl flashing an innocent smile is carefully propped up, a burning white candle next to it.

On a mattress, on the floor, sits her grief-stricken grandmother.

Gladys Madonsela is trying to make sense of the rape and murder of Thandeka Madonsela.

She was just 14 years old, a Grade 8 pupil at Rand Girls High in Parktown, Joburg.

She was raped, disembowelled and murdered in the early hours of Saturday morning. Her alleged assailants are two boys, aged 16 and 17.

For more details go to www.iol.co.za

Johannesburg-As part of the “I Play Fair, Say No to Doping” campaign, Bafana Bafana players and technical staff participated in an hour-long anti-doping workshop conducted by the South African Institute for Drug-Free Sport (SAIDS) at the Cape Sun Hotel last Thursday, 21 March 2013.

SAIDS is an affiliate of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), an organisation that promotes and co-ordinates the fight against doping in sport internationally.

The presentation by SAIDS project facilitator, Fahmy Galant, covered aspects of anti-doping and specific emphasis was placed on supplements and steroids and the adverse effects they can have on an athlete’s body. This is inclusive of how drugs affect the general performance of an athlete.

The presentation was aimed at giving the 23 national team players as well as the Bafana Bafana Team Doctor and officials an understanding on topics such as the purpose and context of SAIDS and their “I Play Fair, Say No to Doping” campaign and how it ties in with the Spirit and Ethics of Sports.

The anti-doping workshop is an initiative of the SAFA Medical Office and is meant to empower national team players with a deeper understanding of anti-doping laws and how they apply to football players.

The campaign is also aimed at giving a deeper understanding on how the anti-doping code applies to their specific code, in particular the athlete, coach, team management as well as parents. It is aimed at helping them understand doping control and procedures as well as the dangers of doping.

The ultimate synopsis is to see that all national team players understand the repercussions of doping. At the end of the hour-long presentation, the players were given pamphlets that provide information on the preferred medication and the banned substances.

By Obakeng Maje

Taung- Four suspects are due to appear before Taung Magistrate Court today for assault. Four accused are taxi drivers and they allegedly assaulted a private car victim whom they accuse of stealing their commuters.

North West police said the incident took place on Monday next to Taung District Hospital and the accused are aged between 25 to 36.

“Four suspects are due to appear before Taung Magistrate Court today for assault. They allegedly assaulted another motorist who allegedly picked hikers” police spokesperson Kelebogile Moiloa said.

Taung police said the victim was taken to a local clinic for medical attention and a case of assault was opened.

The confusion in taxi industry came to light after the old taxi rank was put under construction and the new makeshift taxi rank was allocated to taxis.

The taxi drivers vowesd that they will not use the new taxi rank as is too far and too small, however the Greater Taung municipality refutes the claims called them absurd as all needed elements are in place.

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Platinum Stars coach Cavin Johnson has been making the most of his quiet week at the Rustenburg-based club.

With most of Dikwena’s first-team squad back after being away on international duties at the weekend, the Absa Premiership rookie coach will have a full-strength squad to wreak havoc when struggling Mamelodi Sundowns visit the Royal Bafokeng Stadium on Saturday.

For more details go to http://www.thenewage.co.za

By Obakeng Maje

Taung,Mogopela B-A 21 year-old learner in Mogopela B, near Taung is furious at the Department of Education after she was told to return to grade 11 as they made mistake on her report.

Maphefo Precious Diphoko told Vaaltar FM news team that she quit school because of the treatment she received from Kgosietsile Lethola High School.

“Since this year I’ve been attending grade 12 classes. And two weeks ago I was called to a meeting by school principal and ordered me to bring my parents” wracked Diphoko said.

“The meeting took place and the principal said I actually failed grade 11,so I must go back to grade 11 class and repeat” she told Vaaltar FM news.

Maphefo said she feel coaxed as along she has been studying and writing grade 12 trials and tests.

Our crew tried to get clarity from both Department of Education and school principal,but with no luck.

A week ago North West SADTU secretary general plea that MEC for Department of Education in the province mme Louisa Mabe must resign according alleged emblezzment been going on in the sector.

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Johannesburg – The South African government on Tuesday faced calls for an inquiry into why troops were sent to the Central African Republic, after 13 soldiers died there in weekend clashes with rebels who seized the country.

The killings, Pretoria’s heaviest military loss since apartheid, raised questions over why the SANDF (South African National Defence Force) was present in Bangui – the official line being they were sent to train local forces.

The opposition Democratic Alliance said the “highly questionable deployment” should be probed by Parliament.

“The real fact is we don’t know why the SANDF were deployed in the CAR and that’s why we need a comprehensive investigation,” said the DA’s shadow defence minister David Maynier.

He added there was speculation the soldiers were sent to “support or prop up” ousted president Francois Bozize, who has now fled the CAR into exile.

President Jacob Zuma in January authorised the deployment to help local troops as part of a bilateral pact.

Four hundred soldiers were cleared to go, but just over 200 were sent.

At the time, the SANDF said the soldiers would also protect a small group of South African troops already on the ground.

South Africa has forces in African hotspots like Sudan, and Zuma said on Monday the deployment was part of efforts to bring peace to the region.

But Maynier said the probe should aim to determine whether Zuma had misled lawmakers as to the reasons why the troops were sent to Bangui.

The South African soldiers fought a nine-hour battle at the weekend with rebels who swept into the capital Bangui. Altogether, 13 were killed and 27 injured.

The bodies of the dead soldiers arrived home on Tuesday night.

The DA has called for a parliamentary committee to be set up to probe the matter. – AFP

Johannesburg – Oscar Pistorius’s brother Carl is expected to appear in the Vanderbijlpark Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday on charges of culpable homicide.

The charges relate to an accident in 2008 which led to the death of a 36-year-old woman.

In a statement last month, the Pistorius family’s attorney Kenny Oldwadge said culpable homicide charges were brought against Carl Pistorius after the accident, but were later withdrawn by the State.

The National Prosecuting Authority later reinstated the charges.

Oldwadge said there was “no doubt that Carl is innocent”, and he said the charge would be challenged in court.

“Carl deeply regrets the accident. Blood tests conducted by the police at the time proved that he had not been under the influence of alcohol, confirming that it was a tragic road accident after the deceased collided with Carl’s car.” – Sapa

By Obakeng Maje

Taung-With only two days before the long Easter weekend and the much anticipated high volume of visitors , the province’s Operation Paseka has started in earnest.

In the past few days in North West, the provincial visible policing unit, tactical response team, public order policing unit and the flying squad will be out in full force to enforce law and order.

The Department of Human Settlement and Safety spokesperson Simon Mmope said the operation comprised stop and searches, vehicle patrols, foot patrols and our traffic officers will be more observant on the roads.

“We wil more observant and our visibility will not be comprimise. We will impound any road unworthy vehicles that pose any risk on our roads” Simon Mmope said.

“The operations are executed to prevent and combat any wrongdoing in order to ensure a safe and secure environment for all road users, especially as we are approaching the Easter holidays” Mmope said.

The Department said hefty traffic fines will be issued to those who will be found to be in contravention of the law.

Department bought 16 new vehicles to add to the existing ones. According to the statistics six people has already lost their lives since last week. 

“Through the extensive visibility of police vehicles in the province, we will manage to curb the occurrence of drink and driving on the roads. This will minimise death rate.” He said. 

The municipal traffic will continue with roadblocks in support of the Arrive Alive Campaign.

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The third week of the Sasol League was not lacking in goals as a total of 112 goals were scored from the matches that were played on Thursday and over the weekend.

With many of the national team players returning to their clubs and those who never made it to Cyprus wanting to prove a point, the games over the past weekend were always going to be action packed with lots of drama.

Three-time national champions and defending champions Palace Super Falcons showed that they had no intention of giving up the title with another vintage performance scoring twice against a strong Tuks team. The dazzling performance sent out a clear indication to all teams that anyone who wanted the league title would have to dig deep to take it from them.

Whilst only the inland provinces have begun their title chase, the amount of goals scored was evident that the teams have hunger and determination to score goals; something that bodes well for the rest of the season. 

Golden Ladies, Mamelodi Sundowns, Moroka Swallows and Classic Academy are some of the teams that have put their hands up as title contenders at this early stage in the competition. All teams bagged four goals or more in their respective games with Golden Ladies finding the back of the net nine times in their game against Clive United.

Weekend results:Golden Ladies9Clive United0  

Palace Super Falcons2TUKS0  

Mamelodi Sundowns6NWU Vaal Campus1  

Moroka Swallows4Lusaka Ladies1  

Classic Academy6The Bold & Beautiful1 

Bafana Bafana coach Gordon Igesund took time off his busy schedule on Tuesday, 26 March 2013 to interact with football followers through Bafana Bafana’s official twitter account @Bafana _Bafana1.

It was the first time that the coach has had such an interaction with the Bafana fans and said afterwards that it was a relaxing and exciting exercise.

He added that he would like this interface to be a regular feature.

The interaction with the fans, which lasted over an hour, afforded the coach the opportunity to understand what the football supporters think as well as to answer some of their questions.

Hundreds of fans sent out their questions but due to time constrains, the coach could not cover all the issues. He however, thanked all those who took time to ask questions adding this gave him an insight on the thinking of fans. At the end of the session, the coach picked five best questions who each will receive a Bafana shirt.

Not surprisingly, the question that dominated the debate was around the selection of players, in particular the omission of Orlando Pirates midfielder Andile Jali from the current set up.

The coach said every South African player deserved a chance to play for the national team provided they are on form, emphasising all players were selected on merit and merit alone.

The coach said he will now focus on the return legs of the 2014 World Cup qualifiers against Central African Republic and Ethiopia scheduled for June.