Bloemfontein – The Northern Cape government and the ANC were pushing ahead on Tuesday to take control of the Nama Khoi municipality in the Northern Cape.

The African National Congress won a by-election in the embattled municipality, based in Springbok in May 2013, taking control from an opposition party coalition council.

Northern Cape co-operative governance MEC Alvin Botes announced that a special council meeting had been called for Thursday to constitute a new council.

Botes, who was invited to address the meeting, said he would propose the new council institute various investigations against officials appointed by the previous council.

Provincial ANC secretary Zumani Saul said the party was happy with Botes’ decision to constitute a new council this week. The setting up of the new council had been delayed due to a court application against the MEC, to stop him interfering with the council. The court found against the council earlier this month.

Saul said the ANC supported and welcomed the MEC’s proposal for an investigation into the municipal manager. Botes said he would propose the council launch and finalise an investigation against municipal manager Aubrey Baartman.

The reason was that Baartman apparently did not have the proper qualifications for the post.

Baartman was appointed after the Congress of the People and the Democratic Alliance took over the municipality in 2011.

The ANC further supported Botes’ proposal for an audit of the qualifications of all senior managers in the municipality. In reaction, Cope provincial leader Fred Wyngaard said the planned special council meeting would be illegal.

He said the council managed to get permission to appeal the court’s earlier decision against them on Monday.

“Council business can only resume once the appeal has been heard by the court,” he said.

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A year after the shooting at Lonmin’s Marikana mine, in which 34 protesting miners were killed, the area remains tense, the Bench Marks Foundation said on Tuesday.

“We continue to walk on a knife’s edge in Marikana,” executive director John Capel said in a statement.

“Deaths are still occurring, the mines have still not addressed many of their (corporate social responsibility) promises and we have still not come to the bottom of what actually happened on that fateful day.”

Friday marks the first anniversary of the shooting at the mine, outside Rustenburg in the North West.

The 34 mineworkers were killed on August 16 last year when police tried to disperse them from a hill where they had gathered.

Ten people, including two policemen and two security guards, were killed in strike-related violence there the preceding week.

The Bench Marks Foundation, which monitors corporate performance in social responsibility, made a number of recommendations to Lonmin last year.

These included that the mine had a social responsibility to help the local communities deal with the trauma they experienced in the wake of the shooting.

It also recommended that the mine pay families of the injured and killed miners compensation equal to their lost income for the next 20 years.

The fact that there was not funding for the legal teams representing injured and arrested miners, and the families of those killed, at the Farlam Commission, set up to probe the violence at Lonmin last August, was also problematic.

Capel said this situation, in contrast with the apparent surplus of financial support for government bodies represented at the commission, fuelled the community’s mistrust of the government.

The Farlam Commission resumes on Wednesday, after it was adjourned pending a decision on possible funding for the legal team representing the injured and arrested miners, led by Dali Mpofu.

Mpofu previously signalled his intention to file papers with the Constitutional Court for a ruling on whether the state should fund their work at the commission. He made a similar request in the High Court in Pretoria earlier this month, but it was dismissed.

“There is a massive need to not only accelerate the Farlam Commission’s proceedings, but to address pertinent public interest issues such as the role of the police, the policing of protests in South Africa, and the culpability of the police and government in relation to this.”

It was vital to address the socio-economic problems that mining communities faced.

Capel called on Lonmin to grant its workers Friday off work to commemorate the lives of those killed in Marikana last year.

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Cape Town – A baby has been found dead in Ceres in the Western Cape, police said on Tuesday.

Captain Frederick van Wyk said residents found the body on Monday around 5pm.

“A case of murder has been opened and a post mortem will be conducted to determine the cause of death and no one has been arrested”, said Van Wyk.

He could not give further details.

Van Wyk asked anyone with information about the baby to contact the police.

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East London – Public transport must help people access socio-economic opportunities, Eastern Cape transport MEC Thandiswa Marawu said on Tuesday.

“This product will be a lasting legacy of the current term of government, which will be appreciated by many generations to come,” she said at the launch of the province’s integrated transport master plan in East London, according to a copy of her speech.

The plan was aimed at improving the quality of life of Eastern Cape residents, supporting economic growth, and improving access to community services and facilities. It would focus on inter-town and long-distance public transport. The intention was to establish a provincial public transport network.

Arrangements needed to be made with existing operators, such as the minibus taxi industry, to help make the shift to the new system. It was proposed the new system would be operated by businesses the local operators formed.

Several such contracts were envisaged based on geographic areas and operational circumstances, said Marawu.

Only 15.5 percent of households in the Eastern Cape had a car, and 15.9 percent used minibus taxis. Nearly fifty percent of travel within the province was for educational purposes, the highest in South Africa.

About a third of households spent more than 10 percent of their income on transport. A “shocking” 23 percent spent more than 20 percent of their income on public transport, she said.

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Johannesburg – Gauteng government departments spent R18.6 billion in the first quarter of this financial year, finance MEC Mandla Nkomfe said in the provincial legislature on Tuesday.

“This represents an increase of R500 million compared to the same period last year,” his spokesman John Sukazi said in a statement.

Nkomfe said R343.3m was transferred to non-profit organisations to benefit child care protection services, HIV and Aids initiatives and services to the elderly, among others.

The community safety department used its first quarter resources for operations including road blocks, speed traps and weigh bridges.

The province collected R998.9m in the three months ending in June. This represented a quarter of the annual projection.

Gauteng increased the amount of revenue collected by R165.5m, when compared with the same quarter last year.

“It means that for the remainder of the current financial year, an average amount of R992.9m per quarter must be collected to meet the targeted projection of R3.972bn,” Sukazi said.

The provincial government was working with departments to help improve their revenue collection and management.

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Johannesburg – Traditional leaders should hold government accountable if it failed to improve the lives of rural communities, North West local government MEC Manketsi Tlhape said on Tuesday.

“Government should be taking the lead from traditional leaders as they know and understand the needs of their communities,” Tlhape said.

If necessary, traditional leaders should summon government and advise it on what needed to be done in their communities, she said.

“They should be directing government’s programme because they are better placed in the communities.

“We must demonstrate co-operation between traditional leaders and government in our province, our communities should see us working together not against each other.”

Tlhape was on a consultation drive in the province following her appointment to the provincial cabinet last month.

She has met traditional leaders in Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati, Ngaka Modiri Molema Districts and the North West House of Traditional Leaders.

“Issues that traditional leaders have raised, include capacitating the administration supporting staff complement at traditional council and district offices,” Tlhape said.

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Durban – Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa urged Ulundi residents on Tuesday to help police in their hunt for the killers of an ANC councillor.

Mthethwa said: “We call upon members of the community to come forward with information, no matter how little it may seem, which would assist in the apprehension and most importantly securing of convictions.”

The statement was issued after Mthethwa and the KwaZulu-Natal provincial police commissioner Lt-Gen Betty Mmamonnye Ngobeni visited the family of the slain councillor Makhosonke Msibi in Ulundi.

Msibi was gunned down on Sunday night after returning from a meeting in Nongoma.

Police spokesman Lt-Col Vincent Mdunge said on Monday that a man knocked at the door of Msibi’s house. His son opened the door and a man asked to see the councillor.

According to Mdunge the man fired shots at Msibi when he emerged. The 48-year-old councillor sustained multiple gunshot wounds and was declared dead at the scene.

Mthethwa called for political tolerance ahead of the 2014

national elections.

“We are aware that we have now entered a silly season where some leaders would make inflammatory remarks which fuel violence and political intolerance. We urge them to exercise maturity and refrain from making remarks that are destructive and perpetuate killings and violence,” said Mthethwa.

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Durban – The death toll in last week’s bus accident near Pongola in northern KwaZulu-Natal has increased to seven, the community safety department said on Tuesday.

Five people initially died at the crash scene 15 kilometres from Pongola last Tuesday and one more succumbed to his injuries a while later.

A tyre burst on the N2 around 11am, causing the bus to crash into a wall, MEC Willies Mchunu’s office said in a statement.

Mchunu will attend a memorial service for the crash victims on Thursday.

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New Mamelodi Sundowns striker Cuthbert Malajila believes that a ‘one-game-at-a-time’ attitude will be key to his new team achieving success in 2013/14.

After finishing last season outside the top eight, Brazilians coach Pitso Mosimane went all out and bought a brand new team, including the Zimbabwean marksman from Maritzburg United, where he netted 13 goals in 2012/13.

On his Sundowns debut against Bloemfontein Celtic, the 27-year-old delivered a sterling performance – in the first half he set up Bongani Zungu with a sliding pass, only for the former Tuks midfielder to hit the post.

And in the second half, Malajila scored with a brilliant volley after a pin-point pass from Teko Modise.

“I know everyone is talking about Sundowns trying to win the League title, but we need to take it one game at a time,” he tells KickOff.com.

“It is too early to start saying Kaizer Chiefs or Orlando Pirates will give us a fight because there are 29 matches remaining. All the teams still have a chance and we need to take them very seriously. There’s a long road ahead of us.”

Malajila is in the best form of his career and despite facing competition from the likes of Katlego Mashego, Katlego Mphela and Richard Henyekane, he is likely to be Mosimane’s first-choice striker this season.

However, he refuses to set targets for this season.

“How many goals do I want to score? I can’t say. I believe in myself, but I don’t have targets.

“The coach spoke to me after our camp in Limpopo and he told me exactly what he wants and he made it clear that his plans will depend on the opponents we will be facing.”
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Lebohang ‘Cheeseboy’ Mokoena has been cleared to resume full training, but admits he is still withdrawn at training.

Mokoena underwent a hip operation almost a year ago. In fact, the last time ‘Cheeseboy’ played for Mamelodi Sundowns in an official match was on September 2 in a 2-1 loss to Maritzburg United.

The player tells the club’s official website he is keen to get back into action: “The vibe is very positive here at Chloorkop and its plain to see that the players are determined to do very well this season and I can’t afford to miss that.”

Sundowns’ website reports: “According to the team doctors the player is now working to regain full fitness, but Mokoena admitted that he doesn’t want to rush himself.”

The 26-year-old has been out for so long he says he feels like a new player!

“I’m very excited to be cleared off the injury list and I feel like a completely new player because I haven’t played football for a long time” ‘Cheeseboy’ tells Sundowns’ official website.

Mokoena has already featured in two club practise matches, coming on as a late substitute against Azam FC of Tanzania and playing the whole second half when the first team played Sundowns reserves.

The fan favourite says he is commited to doing extra work on his fitness, but admits he still has to work on his mental strength.

“At training I really want to get involved in the thick of things but whenever I see strong tackles fly at training I still get withdrawn a little bit. You see once you have been out injured for too long, you definitely will do anything to avoid going back there.

“I know my fitness levels and right now I’m nowhere near that but I’m putting in extra training on my legs, sometimes before and after training because I’m very determined to play for the team once again.”
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