Johannesburg – Former chief justice Sandile Ngcobo will chair a presidential remuneration review commission on public service salaries, the presidency announced on Monday.

The commission was established by President Jacob Zuma to review the pay policies of the public service, spokesperson Mac Maharaj said in a statement.

“Through this commission, the state as an employer aims to ensure that government gets value for money paid on the salaries of public servants.”

Zuma announced during his State-of-the-Nation address in February that the commission would be established to investigate the appropriateness of the remuneration and conditions of service provided by the state to all its employees, with teachers receiving priority attention, said Maharaj.

– SAPA

Following a thrilling weekend of MTN8 quarterfinal action, four PSL outfits have secured their place in the semi-finals of the lucrative cup competition.

Kaizer Chiefs knocked University of Pretoria out of the tournament, defeating them 3-0, while Wits beat Bloemfontein Celtic by the same margin, as they progressed.

Orlando Pirates overcame SuperSport United through a penalty shoot-out, with Platinum Stars having eliminated Free State Stars in their 3-0 victory.

The draw for the semis was conducted today at the PSL’s headquarters in Park Town, Johannesburg, where the four teams were drawn against each other on a home and away basis.

Chiefs will host Pirates in the first leg of the MTN8 semi-finals, while Platinum Stars and WIts battle it out in the other semi,

The team shown first will play at home first, in the two legged affair. The first leg will be played on August 20 and 21, with the return on the weekend August 24 and 25..  

Platinum Stars v Wits Kaizer Chiefs v Orlando Pirates

For more http://www.soccerladuma.com

Cape Town – Residents in the city’s crime hot spots are being shortchanged because law enforcement staff are forced to deal with ongoing service delivery protests in other areas.

One-third of the City of Cape Town’s police officers had to be redeployed from their usual activities to deal with unrest and poo protests on major freeways, said JP Smith, mayoral committee member for safety and security.
For more http://www.iol.co.za

Atlantis – Police have arrested a 21-year-old man in connection with a shooting in which a seven-year-old Atlantis boy was killed and his mother wounded. Two other men were also wounded.

Ruhan Botha was enjoying a family braai with his 33-year-old mother, Liezel, on Friday and the rest of his family when shots rang out. Ruhan was fatally wounded and his mother wounded in the neck.
For more http://www.iol.co.za

A 79-year-old woman is suing a North West couple for R234 000 after she was attacked by their dogs four years ago, The Citizen reported on Friday.

In court papers, Hester Nel from Mooinooi said she had undergone emergency surgery after Gert and Maria van der Linde’s male and female Boerboels attacked her in April 2009.

Nel sustained various deep lacerations and abrasions to her head, arms, hands. legs and feet, as well as numerous ligament injuries to her legs and feet, according to the newspaper.

She was first taken to a general practitioner, whereafter she was transferred to a private hospital where she had surgery. She was treated for five days.

Some of her wounds became septic and required further medical treatment.

According to the court papers Nel had suffered disfiguring scars for which she needed reconstructive surgery, she also suffered from post-traumatic stress syndrome.

Nel alleged that the dogs either acted contrary to the nature of their class, or that the owners had been negligent.

The Van der Linde’s denied any negligence and said Nel was to blame for the attack.

They claimed Nel was warned about the dogs and told to phone before she entered the premises.

The civil claim was postponed in the High Court in Pretoria indefinitely. – Sapa

Johannesburg – The source who claims that Dina Pule’s boyfriend arranged to assassinate MPs probing her for misconduct is not credible, says the police.

According to a Sunday Times report, the former communications minister’s boyfriend, Phosane Mngqibisa allegedly plotted the murders of top Parliamentary officials Ben Turok and Fazela Mohamed who were probing Pule for misconduct.
For more http://www.news24.com

Cape Town – Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng lashed out at his “white brothers” who want to have him impeached over remarks on the transformation of the judiciary.

“If I was racist I would be saying only black women should benefit from transformation. Maybe there is something wrong with my logic,” he said on Friday during the keynote address at the International Association of Women Judges at the University of KwaZulu-Natal’s [UKZN] School of Law.
For more http://www.news24.com

Mahikeng – North West government officials are expected to appear before the Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) this week over their handling of the lucrative D-Account for mining royalties.

Mining companies deposit royalties for tribal communities into the account, which recently came under scrutiny after allegations emerged that it has been looted for many years, the Sunday Independent reported.

The account, which has not been audited since 1994, has had large sums of money withdrawn from it – money which cannot be accounted for.

Officials from the North West departments of finance and local government are expected to appear before Scopa public hearings to explain their departments’ roles in the handling of the account.

Lonmin confirmed last week that they had paid R372m into the account between 1970 and 2011.

The money is earmarked for the Bapo ba Mogale community. 

For more http://www.news24.com

Johannesburg – Four people have been arrested for allegedly killing a suspected burglar in Panorama Gardens, Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal police say.

Johannesburg – A 45-year-old man was arrested for driving at a slow speed on the N1 north in Midrand, the Johannesburg metro police department said on Sunday.

Spokesperson Wayne Minnaar said the man was driving at 30km/h on the highway’s fast lane on Saturday night.

“He was caught driving with the vehicle’s lights off, cruising on a national road that is a 120km/h zone,” Minnaar said.

When the man was pulled over and instructed to get out of the car, he struggled to stand upright to take a breathalyser test, Minnaar said.

“He tested 0.90mlg which is nearly four times above the legal limit of 0.24mlg.”

The man was arrested and taken to the Midrand police station.

He was expected to appear in the Randburg Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday to face a drunk driving charge.

SAPA