Cape Town – Parliament’s powers and privileges committee on Monday night officially adopted a report recommending the suspension without pay of 12 EFF MPs.

The committee report will now be tabled in the National Assembly for approval.

If the House approves the report, the suspension of the MPs – who include EFF leader Julius Malema – will be effective the next day.

On Friday, the committee recommended that Malema, EFF chief whip Floyd Shivambu, Mpho Ramakatsa, Khanyisile Litchfield-Tshabalala, Godrich Gardee, and Mbuyiseni Ndlozi be suspended without pay for 30 days.

Malema was found guilty on four charges of contempt of Parliament.

Shivambu and Ramakatsa were convicted on seven charges each.

Another group of MPs, consisting of Elsabe Louw, Ngwanamakwetle Mashabela, Nthako Matiase, Hlengiwe Maxon, Magdalene Moonsamy, and Andile Mngxitama, who were found guilty on two charges each of contempt of Parliament, also face suspension for 14 days without remuneration.

It was recommended that the rest of the 20 MPs, who were found guilty of one charge each of contempt of Parliament, be ordered to submit a verbal apology to the House.

The disciplinary process arose from the EFF’s disruption of the National Assembly during President Jacob Zuma’s question time on 21 August.

They were apparently unhappy with Zuma’s replies to questions about his private home in Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal, where R246m of taxpayers’ money had been spent on upgrades.

DA MPs Annelie Lotriet and Shahied Esau voted against the adoption of the report.

MPs from the IFP and the UDM were not present during Monday’s meeting.

The opposition parties had indicated they would have preferred a reprimand.

SAPA

Cape Town – Parliament’s powers and privileges committee on Monday night officially adopted a report recommending the suspension without pay of 12 EFF MPs.

The committee report will now be tabled in the National Assembly for approval.

If the House approves the report, the suspension of the MPs – who include EFF leader Julius Malema – will be effective the next day.

On Friday, the committee recommended that Malema, EFF chief whip Floyd Shivambu, Mpho Ramakatsa, Khanyisile Litchfield-Tshabalala, Godrich Gardee, and Mbuyiseni Ndlozi be suspended without pay for 30 days.

Malema was found guilty on four charges of contempt of Parliament.

Shivambu and Ramakatsa were convicted on seven charges each.

Another group of MPs, consisting of Elsabe Louw, Ngwanamakwetle Mashabela, Nthako Matiase, Hlengiwe Maxon, Magdalene Moonsamy, and Andile Mngxitama, who were found guilty on two charges each of contempt of Parliament, also face suspension for 14 days without remuneration.

It was recommended that the rest of the 20 MPs, who were found guilty of one charge each of contempt of Parliament, be ordered to submit a verbal apology to the House.

The disciplinary process arose from the EFF’s disruption of the National Assembly during President Jacob Zuma’s question time on 21 August.

They were apparently unhappy with Zuma’s replies to questions about his private home in Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal, where R246m of taxpayers’ money had been spent on upgrades.

DA MPs Annelie Lotriet and Shahied Esau voted against the adoption of the report.

MPs from the IFP and the UDM were not present during Monday’s meeting.

The opposition parties had indicated they would have preferred a reprimand.

SAPA

– Bafana Bafana arrived in Durban on Monday to prepare for the crucial ORANGE Africa Cup of Nations, Morocco 2015 qualifiers against Sudan and Nigeria.

Bafana Bafana kicked off their camp with a visit to the grave of their fallen captain and goalkeeper Senzo Meyiwa on Monday morning (10 November).

The players formed a guard of honour around the grave and placed flowers as a sign of bidding farewell to Senzo.

“It was very important for us as players to pay our last respects to Senzo and his family. It was a very humbling moment for us to be there. It was also a very sad moment and hopefully on Saturday we can make him proud. We believe the visit is enough motivation for us to do well against Sudan and we know that Senzo is watching down on us and it would be an honour to go and finish the job that he started and was leading every step of the way,” said England-based midfielder Dean Furman.

“When I heard that he had passed on I was in total shock and devastation and could not believe it. It will take a little while to sink in. We are happy the game has been moved to his home city of Durban (initially it was planned for Nelspruit), and we believe it is a great gesture.

“Not all of us were able to make it to the funeral so we are glad we got the opportunity to see his final resting place, what is left is to do well on Saturday. Seeing his graveside made it real for us and we remembered the times we shared, his character and what he gave us as people and players.

“For me personally it sunk in when I saw his grave and I think the other boys felt that way. It is, without doubt, going to be an emotional week of preparation but when the game comes we must be fully focused on the job at hand, hopefully Moses Mabhida will be full and they get behind because it is also going to be an emotional match,” said Furman.

Senzo’s former teammate at Orlando Pirates, striker Lehlohonolo Majoro, was part of the Bafana Bafana squad that went to Heroes Acres Cemetery in Chesterville where the goalkeeper was laid to rest.
“I was here with my teammates to bury Senzo and this was a great opportunity for those who could not make it so they could get closure as teammates and friends of the late Senzo. It is everyone’s dream to qualify for AFCON 2015 and it was also the late captain’s dream so it is our duty to continue with the legacy he left behind because he showed with his great performances that he wanted to be there.

“What is left for us now is to make it a reality, and it is only fair that we could play this match here and qualify in Senzo’s hometown. I want to believe it’s a blessing in disguise,” said Majoro.

Bafana Bafana head coach Shakes Mashaba was glad they were able to honour Senzo in the manner they did as the national team.

“First of all we need to thank the family for allowing us this time to pay our last respects, it was very important for us to find closure. It was befitting, but I just hope it does not have a negative impact on the players but we can only hope for the best.

“I think it’s going to be very important for us to win this weekend as it will be befitting for the late Senzo. But we don’t want to put our boys under pressure by saying they must win, we just want them to do what they are used to doing. We have to play to the best of our abilities like Senzo showed us,” said Mashaba.

“It is always the case that when we have such events we have different moods – others are still trying to get to terms with what has happened and I believe it will get better after the visit,” added Mashaba.

South Africa welcomes Sudan at the Moses Mabhida Stadium on Saturday, 15 November 2014. Kick-off is at 15h00.

Bafana Bafana then travel to Nigeria for a date with the Super Eagles four days later (Wednesday, 19 November).

The match will take place at the Ibo International Stadium in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State. Kick-off is 18h00 local time in Nigeria (17h00 SA time – corrected time).

Meanwhile, tickets for that match are already on sale and available at Computicket outlets, Shoprite, Checkers and Shoprite/Checkers stores countrywide for R80 all round.
-TDN
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Johannesburg – The NPA will decide on the way forward in the case of the man accused of killing Bafana Bafana captain Senzo Meyiwa once he has a lawyer, it said on Monday.

“He must appear in court [on Tuesday], and the reason is for legal aid assistance – it is not for his bail application yet,” National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Nathi Mncube said.

“It will just be a brief appearance. Then we will find out what happens going forward, once he has an attorney and has consulted with the attorney.”

Gauteng police spokesperson Lungelo Dlamini declined to comment on the matter, referring to a media briefing last week where it was said that police would communicate if there was an update.

Meyiwa, also captain of Orlando Pirates, was killed in Vosloorus, Ekurhuleni, while visiting his singer and actress girlfriend Kelly Khumalo last month.

Two people allegedly entered the house and demanded cellphones before shooting Meyiwa and fleeing.

Zanokuhle Mbatha, 25, from Vosloorus, will appear in the Boksburg Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday. He previously appeared in court on 31 October.

Divisional commissioner of detective services Lieutenant General Vinesh Moonoo told reporters at the media briefing on 3 November that police were confident Mbatha played a part in the crime.

“We are confident he is linked to the crime and he will be charged with murder and robbery,” he said.

The Star on Wednesday quoted unnamed relatives and friends of Mbatha.

His cousin reportedly told the newspaper: “I don’t think this makes sense. My cousin used to wash both Senzo’s and Kelly’s cars… If you know a person it is easy to point him or her out.”

– SAPA

Johannesburg – Lonmin could not criticise Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa for his role in events during the unprotected strike at Lonmin’s Marikana mine in August 2012, the Farlam Commission of Inquiry heard on Monday.

“I cannot criticise Mr Ramaphosa on what he did. He did what any responsible businessman would’ve done,” Schalk Burger, for Lonmin, told the commission in his final arguments.

Ramaphosa was a non-executive director of Lonmin at the time of the August 2012 wage-related strike.

He had been accused of using his political influence to get the police to act against the striking workers.

Burger argued that Ramaphosa’s motive was to “stabilise the situation and bring the violence to an end”.

Wage demand

He added that the commission’s evidence leaders had not suggested that Ramaphosa did not exercise his best endeavours.

Earlier, Burger argued that Lonmin could not breach the legal framework to negotiate with mineworkers.

He said that one of the problems they had was that none of the strikers could explain how they reached the figure of R12 500 for their wage demand.

“We haven’t heard that to this day. We don’t even know if a housing allowance was included in that. What we do know is that that was net… and that it was non-negotiable,” Burger said.

He referred to the testimony of striker Mzoxolo Magidiwana who testified that even if Lonmin had gone to the hill where the strikers had gathered and asked them to disarm themselves, go home, and then engage in talks with Lonmin, they would not have entertained that.

Unrealistic request

Burger said it was an unrealistic request to have expected Lonmin to engage with the strikers outside of structures given that they were armed, ignoring a court order, and running amok.

“What is the point of criticising Lonmin for not talking to the strikers?” Burger asked.

“If they had talked, it would’ve caused rippling into the mining industry which we would not have been able to unravel… it would not have prevented the tragedy on the 16th [of August].”

The commission is investigating the deaths of 44 people at Lonmin’s platinum mining operations in Marikana, North West, in the strike-related unrest in August 2012.

Thirty-four people, mostly striking mineworkers, were shot dead in a clash with police on 16 August 2012.

More than 70 people were wounded and more than 200 were arrested. The police were apparently trying to disarm and disperse them.

In the preceding week, 10 people, including two policemen and two Lonmin security guards, were killed.

– SAPA

Johannesburg – An inspection of the road used by Duduzane Zuma on the night he crashed into a minibus taxi will show whether it was possible for water to collect at the point he said it did, an inquest heard on Monday.

Prosecutor Yusuf Baba and Zuma disagreed on where the decline started between the M1 south, Woodmead, Marlboro, and the Grayston Drive, Sandton, off-ramp, the Randburg Magistrate’s Court heard.

“If there were to be a water build-up it would have to be between Woodmead and Marlboro,” Baba said.

“I disagree,” the president’s son replied.

“From Woodmead to Marlboro it is still relatively flat. The decline is between Marlboro and Grayston.

“So the point of water collection I believe would be more possible at the Grayston area as opposed to Marlboro,” Zuma said.

Zuma’s Porsche rear-ended Jabulani Vusi Dlamini’s minibus taxi in the rain on the M1 south Grayston Drive off-ramp on 1 February around 22:00. Minibus passenger Phumzile Dube was killed and three others were injured.

According to Zuma’s statement, he lost control of his Porsche after it hit a puddle. It spun and hit the back of the taxi, coming to a standstill facing oncoming traffic.

The Johannesburg metro police was asked to escort the legal teams on the route.

– SAPA

Johannesburg – Comedian and ventriloquist Conrad Koch says he will challenge a gag order against his puppet.

Koch said on Monday he strongly denies allegations made by musician Steve Hofmeyr that tweets criticising the singer amounted to hate speech.

Hofmeyr said he had obtained a court order barring the satirist and his puppet, Chester Missing, from making any statements about him in public or on social media.

Hofmeyr was reacting to a series of tweets from the puppet criticizing the singer for what he described as racism.

Hofmeyr tweeted to about 121 000 followers that the ANC is victimising whites.

Koch and his popular puppet are known for controversial political commentary.

– AP

Johannesburg – An elderly man was killed in a robbery at his home in Bedelia in Welkom, Free State police said on Monday.

Two men dressed in black entered the couple’s home on Friday and demanded cash, said police spokesperson Stephen Thakeng.

“Mr Jack Smith, 73, was hit with an unknown object on his head and face until he died in his house. Mrs Aletta Johanna Smith, 72, was also hit with an unknown object and she sustained injuries on her head,” said Thakeng.

The men stole a safe with an undisclosed amount of cash and fled on foot.

No arrests had been made.

– SAPA

Johannesburg – Seventeen people arrested for human trafficking appeared in the Durban Magistrate’s Court on Monday, said KwaZulu-Natal police.

Their case was postponed to Tuesday for the court to get an interpreter, said police spokesperson Thulani Zwane.

The group was arrested on Thursday when police raided a house in Grosvenor Crescent in Greenwood Park, north of Durban.

Fourteen Thai women aged between 20 and 26, who were allegedly being used for the sex trade, were found in the house, said Zwane.

“It was discovered that 12 of the women are in South Africa illegally. However, it is still yet to be determined if they were being kept here against their will,” Zwane said.

Three South African men also found in the house were arrested.

Two of them were believed to have been clients while the other, a 62-year-old, was alleged to have been running the business.

– SAPA

Cape Town – Hotel receptionist Monde Mbolombo cannot remember why he spoke on the phone about five people involved in an alleged plot to kill honeymooner Anni Hindochi, the Western Cape High Court heard on Monday.

Mbolombo, 35, was asked in cross-examination why he told accomplice shuttle taxi driver Zola Tongo on the phone: “There is five of us remember.”

This was during a call at 18:38 on 13 November 2010, the same day Anni was shot dead in an alleged fake hijacking in Gugulethu.

“I don’t want to lie. I have been trying to think for a long time [about] what is it that I was talking about but I just cannot remember,” Mbolombo replied.

In the same phone call, Tongo told him there were three people who would do the job. Mbolombo told him he was only aware of two people.

He then phoned accomplice Mziwamadoda Qwabe who confirmed two people would do the job.

Francois van Zyl, for Anni’s husband Shrien Dewani, did not seem to be satisfied with Mbolombo’s answer.

“The question is Mr Mbolombo, was there not indeed a fifth person who has not yet been named or who is being protected?”

Mbolombo replied there was not.

Dewani is on trial for allegedly plotting with Tongo and others to kill Anni while they were on honeymoon in Cape Town in November 2010.

He has pleaded not guilty to charges including kidnapping, murder, and defeating the ends of justice.

He claims the couple were hijacked as Tongo was driving them through Gugulethu in his minibus on Saturday, 13 November.

He was released unharmed and Anni was driven away. She was found shot dead in the abandoned minibus in Khayelitsha the next morning.

Staged hijacking

The State alleges he conspired with others to stage the hijacking in return for R15 000.

He maintains that Tongo helped him organise a surprise helicopter trip for Anni for R15 000.

Tongo is serving an 18-year jail term and Qwabe, a 25-year jail term.

Xolile Mngeni was serving life in jail for firing the shot that killed Anni, but died in prison from a brain tumour on 18 October.

On Monday, Mbolombo told the court that all he knew by 10:30 on the day of the murder was that the two hitmen needed gloves so they would not leave their fingerprints on the car.

Van Zyl asked whether he knew which car they were talking about but he said he did not know then.

Mbolombo said that Tongo later told him his car needed to be washed after the incident.

The receptionist did not know whether they were going to kill her in the car and who was going to wash the car.

At first, he presumed Tongo would take the car to be washed since he was the owner but later said he was guessing and it could have been Tongo or Qwabe.

“Did you tell Qwabe that the car must be washed?” the lawyer asked.

The witness replied that he never instructed Qwabe to do that.

The only instructions he ever gave to the hitmen was for them not to get lost in Gugulethu that night.

– SAPA