Johannesburg – The head researcher for Cope could not recall hearing changes that would affect the party’s quorum, discussed at a 2010 conference, the South Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg heard on Tuesday.

Farouk Cassim, head of the Congress of the People’s research team, testified that he could not recall discussion about an amendment to the party’s constitution during a conference held at St George’s Hotel in Irene in May 2010.

The amendment referred to a change in the party quorum from two-thirds, to 50% plus one.

“I cannot recall that anything of that nature occurred during that conference,” Cassim said.

The quorum is the number of members who must be present to validate a party decision.

Cassim said he did not attend one of the sessions as it was not of relevance to the research team, which dealt only with policy aspects of the conference.

The matter before the court is part of the ongoing battle over the party’s leadership since Mbhazima Shilowa was ousted.

Both Shilowa and Cope leader Mosiuoa Lekota were in court on Tuesday.

In February 2011, Lekota obtained an interim court order recognising him as president of the party, and restraining ousted leader Shilowa from claiming the title of party leader.

On 8 February of that year, Lekota expelled Shilowa from the party after an internal disciplinary hearing.

Shilowa refused to participate. He was found guilty of mismanaging the party’s parliamentary funds.

Disciplinary hearing

On 18 July 2012, the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria struck an application by a faction of Cope aligned to Shilowa off the roll.

The application was to stop further disciplinary hearings against Cope members pending the outcome of the Shilowa-Lekota leadership dispute.

Judge Ronel Tolmay ruled that the application by five Cope leaders in Gauteng and Limpopo was not urgent.

The application was brought by caucus leader Ndzipho Kalipa, whip Moses Mayekiso, and Clara Sodlulashe-Motau, all of the Gauteng legislature; and Solly Mokhatshoa and Mabule Motubatse of the Limpopo legislature.

Lekota opposed the application, saying it was not urgent. Cope would become ungovernable if the party could not discipline its members, he said at the time.

Just before lunch on Tuesday, a member of the research team headed by Cassim said he had attended the commission dealing with the party’s constitution during the conference.

The commission was cut short due to time constraints, and he insisted that the clause was not discussed before the session closed.

Earlier, Cope spokesperson Dennis Bloem said Lekota was expected to take the stand on Tuesday.

The matter continues in the afternoon.

– SAPA

Johannesburg – Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng has criticised individuals he claims are attempting to “delegitimise” the Judicial Service Commission (JSC).

“A deliberate attempt is being made to delegitimise the JSC, and through some scare tactics intimidate or mock the JSC into recommending… certain white men and at times certain women,” he said in a copy of a speech obtained by Sapa on Tuesday.

“These developments seem to suggest that war has been declared against transformation.”

Mogoeng said it seemed these individuals wanted to discredit the JSC.

The chief justice was speaking to Advocates for Transformation (AFT) in Cape Town on Saturday.

He told the AFT that it and other “progressive organisations” had to defeat resistance to transformation.

“I have come to challenge you and other genuinely progressive bodies to resist all efforts geared at the protection of white-male dominance in the professions and the Bench,” Mogoeng said.

“The apparent discomfort with the progress we are making in transforming the judiciary… must be dealt with decisively.”

White men being ‘overlooked’

Earlier this year, JSC official Izak Smuts resigned amid controversy about a discussion document he wrote, criticising the way the JSC overlooked white men for judicial appointments.

Mogoeng said the individuals and NGOs, who spoke regularly about the “perceived” problem areas in the JSC, were mainly concerned about appointments.

“They seem to be more concerned about white men, who are not appointed, and do not seem to be concerned about the reasons for not recommending them for appointment,” he said.

Members of the profession had to lead the charge on the transformation of the judiciary.

“Sadly, they are conspicuous by their silence,” Mogoeng said.

– SAPA

Pretoria – President Jacob Zuma axed Communications Minister Dina Pule on Tuesday, replacing her with former Co-operative Government and Traditional Affairs Deputy Minister Yunis Carriem.

Announcing his reshuffled Cabinet in Pretoria, Zuma made several other changes in the executive.

Connie September would take over the portfolio of Human Settlements, and Transport Minister Ben Martins swopped porfolios with Energy Minister Dipuo Peters.

Deputy Land Reform Minister Lechesa Tsenoli would take over from Richard Baloyi as Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister, Zuma said.

It is the fourth time that Zuma has changed his Cabinet.

The new Cabinet will be sworn in on Wednesday.

For more http://www.news24.com

Johannesburg – The ANC appears to have become a victim of the City of Johannesburg’s billing crisis.

eNCA reported on Tuesday that the ANC received a bill stating that it owed R3.5m in unpaid rates taxes and electricity for its Luthuli House headquarters. The bill threatened legal action unless the outstanding amount is paid.

However, the ANC said its bills were paid up in full, and its account was in fact in credit.

ANC spokesperson Keith Khoza told eNCA the party had “lodged a formal complaint disputing the amount shown against what was paid. It’s part of many bills sent out to many residents that was faulty”.

The City of Johannesburg did not want to comment apart from admitting that the ANC does not owe the municipality any money, and the problem had been amended.

The City has been dogged by errors in its billing system since 2011, and is in the process of dealing with complaints and ironing out the problems. A turnaround strategy is in place to address the problem, according to a City of Johannesburg official.

For more http://www.news24.com

Johannesburg – National Freedom Party leader Zanele KaMagwaza Msibi is set to visit former president Nelson Mandela in hospital, the party said on Tuesday.

“Former president Nelson Mandela is the father of the nation and I am going there to wish him a speedy recovery on behalf of my political party,” Msibi said in a statement.

“We pray that God keeps him for the next few years as the nation and the world still has a lot to learn from him.”

Msibi will visit Mandela at the Medi-Clinic Heart Hospital in Pretoria later on Tuesday. She said the NFP hoped the Mandelas would resolve the ongoing family feud as soon as possible.

“We abhor the obvious conflict within his family at the time when his family needs to be united for his sake. We hope everything will be resolved before this internationally recognised icon bows down.”

Mandela, 94, is being treated for a recurring lung infection.

According to the presidency, he is still “critical but stable”. He has been in hospital since 8 June.

SAPA

More than 16 villagers in 36 wards in Madibeng Local Municipality under Bojanala district embarked on a strike which they say it was long overdue.

The march that was organised by SANCO turned out to be the second biggest Madibeng has ever had over the same problem and there was a heavy police and North West Traffic police presence.

Residents handed their memorundum to premier Thandi Modise.
For more http://www.thenewage.co.za

Potchefstroom – An ANC’s probe into claims of corruption against former Tlokwe mayor Maphetle Maphetle was slow, the party’s national executive committee (NEC) member Gugile Nkwinti said on Monday.

This, however, did not warrant the party’s councillors in the municipality voting him out of office, Nkwinti said in Potchefstroom.

“From our side we should have been faster perhaps, but they should not have been so impatient as well as to act in the manner which they have done, bringing the ANC into disrepute.

“We have not said those allegations are not true… Now before we did that [investigated] they acted again.”

On Tuesday Maphetle was unseated for a second time since November, when DA Councillor Annette Combrink was voted in as the new mayor.

DA North West leader Chris Hattingh said at the time that 29 councillors of all parties, including the ANC, unanimously voted to return Combrink to the position of mayor.

On Wednesday, the North West ANC’s provincial disciplinary committee said its 14 councillors, who voted to unseat Maphetle, were expelled from the party. They would also be removed as Tlokwe councillors.

Corruption claims

While DA was in charge last year, it requested a forensic investigation into irregularities at the municipality.

The probe found that the council had irregularly bought Maphetle a R736 000 customised Mercedes-Benz.

Maphetle had allegedly abused the municipality’s disaster management fund and poverty relief fund.

The report contains a recommendation that formal disciplinary action be taken against him and other officials.

In May, the DA laid criminal charges against Maphetle.

In June Public Protector Thuli Madonsela said she would investigate the claims of corruption involving Maphetle.

Nkwinti said the NEC had endorsed an investigation into the claims against Maphetle. Again on Monday the former mayor was told the investigation would go ahead.

The matter would be referred to the ANC’s integrity committee.

However, he said action needed to be taken against those ANC councillors who sided with the DA and voted Maphetle out.

“Remember there was a vote and the ANC was elected into power by the people here. The people have not yet expressed themselves and said they don’t want the ANC.”

He said the “balance of forces” could not be changed and there could not be a party in power without a mandate from the people.

By-elections

Nkwinti, who is the NEC deployee in the province, attended a provincial working committee (PWC) meeting on Monday to discuss Maphetle’s unseating and the appointment of new proportional representation councillors.

A by-election would be held soon to elect new ward councillors.

After the PWC meeting Nkwinti and the ANC’s provincial leadership went on a walkabout at the Potchefstroom taxi rank.

After speaking to people Nkwinti said “it’s not looking good for the ANC. Services are not coming through”.

People told Nkwinti they did not have houses, and that Tlokwe’s budget had been sent to Wolmaransstad.

A woman in a wheelchair told him she did not have a decent home and the roads were not good.

North West ANC secretary Gordon Kegakilwe said the party was doing well in the area.

“We are here now in the taxi rank to tell the people that it’s only the African National Congress that can change their lives for the better.

“We have achieved a lot. Our people now have electricity, our people have water, Tlokwe municipality is providing them with blue drop status of water. The roads are tarred in the location which you have never seen before. We are saying to our people it is only the ANC which can keep providing,” he said.

DA take over

However, several residents earlier said they were happy the DA had taken control of Tlokwe and hoped for better services.

Kegakilwe said the ANC had filed papers in the South Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg to have Tuesday’s council meeting, at which Maphetle was unseated, declared null.

“For now, as the ANC we don’t recognise that meeting, we don’t recognise Combrink,” he said.

“Combrink will never do anything for the people of Tlokwe… she will never assist the people, she has never assisted them. They will keep on promising what they can’t achieve,” Kegakilwe said.

He said the ANC was confident it would win the court case.

“We are confident, we have studied all the documents and we are quite sure. Her [Combrink’s] mayorship is not recognised. Comrade Maphtle is the ANC mayor.”

– SAPA

Johannesburg – Platinum Stars captain Vuyo Mere has withdrawn from the Bafana Bafana squad to play in the Cosafa Cup in Zambia.

Bafana play their first game of the tournament on Saturday.

The latest change to the Bafana squad means the original squad of 20 players has had 14 names withdrawn.

“His name was included during the initial stages of the discussions with Platinum Stars,” the SA Football Association said in a statement on Monday.

“But seeing that the club had already given Bafana Bafana four players it was felt the player should not be part of the travelling party so as not cripple their [Platinum Stars’] preparations.

“Safa regrets the inconvenience caused to the club and the player.”

Gladwin Shitolo of Jomo Cosmos would replace Mere.

The squad assembles on Wednesday.

Meanwhile defender Bevan Fransman will not be available for the first match on Saturday, due to club commitments.

Fransman is expected to line-up for Supersport United against English Premier league side Manchester City in a pre-season clash at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium on Sunday. He will fly out to Zambia on Monday to join the squad.

Bafana Bafana squad for the Cosafa Cup:
Goalkeepers:
Wayne Sandilands (captain), Siyabonga Mpontshane. Defenders: Devan Fransman, Buhle Mkhwanazi, Sibusiso Khumalo, Gladwin Shitolo, Thulani Hlatshwayo, Lehlohonolo Nonyane, Tshepo Gumede

Midfielders:
Sibusiso Msomi, Lerato Chabangu, Hlompho Kekana, Mzikayise Mashaba, Mandla Masango, Jabulani Shongwe, Ruzaigh Gamildien

Strikers:
Katlego Mashego, Edward Manqele, Lebogang Manyama, Thabani Mthembu
For more http://www.news24.com

Mbombela – The Congress of the People’s (Cope) court battle over leadership is not good for unity, Mpumalanga MPL Zale Madonsela said on Monday.

“Cope’s biggest challenge is suppression of internal democracy through the abuse of the courts,” Madonsela told a Sapa correspondent.

“We are confident of the case we have presented before the court, as we represent a position that is legally sound and politically sensible, but we remain absolutely convinced that the court is a wrong forum to solve political problems.”

This came as the South Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg was expected to continue hearing the Cope leadership case on Tuesday, between ousted party leader Mbhazima Shilowa and Cope president Mosiuoa Lekota.

In February 2011, Lekota obtained an interim court order recognising him as president of the party and restraining Shilowa from claiming the title of party leader.

Lekota is scheduled to testify on Tuesday.

Madonsela said the party’s congress national committee held a meeting in Johannesburg over the weekend, where it was decided that the party should contest next year’s elections in unity.

“While we await Mr Mosiuoa Lekota’s testimony with great anticipation tomorrow, we remain committed to a permanent political solution,” said Madonsela.

“Cope has called on the court to issue an order for an all inclusive national elective congress to be supervised by a credible independent body.”

At the meeting, Cope’s leadership was urged to finalise a comprehensive election plan to forward to the branches, said Madonsela.

– SAPA