Picture: Executive mayor of Ngaka Modiri Molema District Municipality, Khumalo Molefe
By REGINALD KANYANE
3 September 2025- The Ngaka Modiri Molema District Municipality said it has noted with concern the unprotected strike action currently being undertaken by some of its employees who blocked entrances with water trucks that are supposed to be providing services to communities.
The municipality said this industrial action, which commenced on Monday, is not sanctioned in terms of the Labour Relations Act and has therefore been declared unprotected.
The Ngaka Modiri Molema District Municipality spokesperson, Lehlohonolo March said as the municipality, they respect the constitutional right of employees to raise grievances. March said, however, such actions must be conducted within the parameters of the law, and through established labour relations platforms.
“The municipality sincerely regrets the inconvenience and disruption that the strike has caused to critical municipal services and the impact it has had on communities across the district.
“Following the executive mayor of Ngaka Modiri Molema District Municipality, Khumalo Molefe’s intervention yesterday, management has been engaging with SAMWU affiliates to find an amicable and lawful resolution to the issues raised,” she said.
March further said the municipality takes this opportunity to clarify that the unprotected strike is not in any way associated with any salaries nor service providers’ payments. She added that the municipality urges all employees to return to work immediately so that essential services to the communities can be restored without further interruption as negotiations continue with the SAMWU leadership in the municipality.
“Ngaka Modiri Molema District Municipality remains committed to open dialogue, fair labour practices, and ensuring uninterrupted service delivery to communities,” said March.
3 September 2025- Various villages such as Ga-Mogopa, Goedgevonden and Boikhutsong villages as well as Tshing and Ikageng Townships, which fall under JB Marks Local Municipality in Dr Kenneth Kaunda District, are a hub of activities this week as the provincial government has already started to address service delivery challenges across the local municipality, leading up to the roll out of Thuntsha Lerole programme scheduled for this Friday, 05 September at Ga-Mogopa.
This week’s Accelerated Service Delivery Programme will be led by the North West Premier, Lazarus Mokgosi, who will be joined by Members of the Executive Council (MECs), the District Executive Mayor and the local municipality Troika.
Mokgosi spokesperson, Sello Tatai said in a deliberate effort to promote and provide financial support to developing businesses, two local entrepreneurs will on Friday, receive dummy cheques from the Empowerment Fund. Tatai said three RDP houses will be handed over in Tshing Extension 9, this as part of a broader allocation of 147 houses in the region.
“In a bid to fast-track the issuing of title deeds to the rightful beneficiaries, a total of 300 title deeds will be distributed across the local municipality, with 10 being targeted for handing over during a community feedback session at Ga-Mogopa Community Hall.
“To boost local infrastructure and improve visibility and safety, a new solar high mast light will be installed at Ga-Mogopa village, while the six existing lights will be repaired,” he said.
Tatai further said among other services to be provided to the residents of JB Marks Local Municipality on Friday are a JoJo tank and related accessories as well as a vegetable garden kit, which will be handed over to the Mogopa Satellite Clinic. He added that aligned to the Social Relief of Distress programme, sanitary towels and school shoes will be distributed to learners at identified local schools, while food parcels will be handed over to ten identified needy households.
“Roads blading and potholes patching activities will also be carried out across the local municipality.
“As part of the day’s programme, government departments, state-owned entities and the private sector will provide on-the-spot services at Ga-Mogopa Community Hall, where Mokgosi will lead a community feedback session,” said Tatai.
He said the Thuntsha Lerole Reloaded programme will be rolled out in three other districts. Tatai said In Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati District, the programme will be rolled out at Lekwa-Teemane Local Municipality at Utlwanang Community Hall, while in Ngaka Modiri Molema District it will be at Matshepe Community Hall in Mahikeng Local Municipality.
“Through these integrated efforts, Phase 5 of the ASDP reaffirms the province’s commitment to efficient, responsive, and impactful service delivery,” he said.
3 September 2025- The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Northern Cape said as fires expose inadequate disaster management from local governments, it continues to probe the readiness of fire-fighting structures at local level. The DA said it has submitted questions to determine the amount of operational fire-fighting vehicles, qualified fire-fighters and fully functional fire stations in the province.
DA Northern Cape Provincial spokesperson on Agriculture and Member of Provincial Legislature (MPL), Reinette Liebenberg said last week, a veld fire raged along the R31 on the outskirts of Kimberley, coming dangerously close to residential properties in Carters Glen and to the construction site of nursing accommodation near the mental health hospital. Liebenberg said when a secondary fire in the fields adjacent to the Tswelopele Correctional Facility was reported to the Sol Plaatje’s emergency services, residents were told that the sole functional fire truck in the municipality was already deployed to the fire along the R31.
“No other vehicles were available. For a municipality of Sol Plaatje’s size to have only one functional fire truck is alarming and raises concerns about residents’ safety if disaster should strike.
“The Northern Cape is a province of extremes and inadequate municipal disaster management could have far-reaching consequences. Aside from devastation in urban areas, the Northern Cape Department of Agriculture, Environmental Affairs, Rural Development & Land Reform estimates that 413 700 hectares of grazing land was lost in uncontrollable fires between April 2023 and February 2025,” she said.
Liebenberg further said this happened with just 15 wildfires accounting for the loss of more than 10 000 hectares each. She added that she has been asking for provincial disaster management structures to report on their functionality to the Northern Cape Provincial Legislature since December 2024, when drought-like conditions affected 530 farms covering approximately 22.3 million hectares of land in the Northern Cape.
“The Northern Cape is one of three provinces where agricultural production is concentrated. We cannot afford to turn a blind eye to adverse weather conditions that threaten the prosperity, economic development, and food security of the province,” said Liebenberg.
3 September 2025 – The Portfolio Committee on Home Affairs has today resolved to give members of the committee space and time to reflect and consult on the eight candidates recommended to fill three vacancies that will arise on 4 November 2025 within the Electoral Commission of South Africa.
The committee today considered correspondence from the Chief Justice of the Republic of South Africa in her capacity as the Chairperson of the panel envisioned in Section 6(3) of the Electoral Commission Act.
The panel, which comprises the Chief Justice, the Chairperson of the South African Human Rights Commission, the Chairperson of the Commission for Gender Equality and the Public Protector, has, as per 6(4) of the Act, submitted a list of recommended candidates to the committee.
The candidates recommended by the panel are:
Judge MI Madondo
Judge D Pillay
Adv C Chaplog-Louw
Mrs J Pitso
Mr G Abrahams
Mr MS Moepya
Dr RL Martin
Mr NX Nyembezi
The Chairperson of the Committee, Mosa Chabane said the committee was of the view that further consultation would serve to strengthen the process and ensure greater openness and transparency. Chabane said the committee will soon schedule a meeting, where a report with the recommended candidates will be considered.
“The committee is acutely aware of the impending end of the term of the three incumbent commissioners and commits to concluding the process as per the Act.
“The committee also considered its report emanating from the IEC’s 2024 national and provincial elections and made various recommendations aimed at improving the voting experience,” he said.
Chabane further said these recommendations include the need for the IEC to improve queue management systems, reduce waiting time at voting stations, full-scale testing of the voter management devices and other ICT-related systems before elections and to simplify and broaden its communications strategies.
He added that the committee considered correspondence from the IEC regarding the entity’s intention to table amendments to the Electoral Act to clarify the process and timeframes for objections, especially in consideration of the impending 2026 Local Government Elections.
“The committee agreed that it would amend its programme to ensure that it prioritises the amendments to ensure that planning for the local government elections is seamless,” said Chabane.
Picture: The Chairperson of the Committee, Supra Mahumapelo
By KEDIBONE MOLAETSI
3 September 2025 – The Portfolio Committee on International Relations and Cooperation and the Southern African Liaison Office (SALO) held a successful virtual colloquium on the people’s expectations for South Africa’s G20 Presidency: A conversation with non-state actors.
Participants expressed their appreciation for the opportunity presented by the committee and SALO to make contributions on the matter, as presented by the colloquium, which would then be conveyed to a very high-level G20 meeting.
They said the colloquium was a rare opportunity to participate in international trade relations for their country. The G20 engagement groups highlighted the need for an all-inclusive South African G20 presidency based on the voices of ordinary South African citizens, which will find expression in the G20 Summit outcome document.
The Chairperson of the Committee, Supra Mahumapelo said it is important to ensure the work done by the G20 engagement groups make an impact both before and during the summit. Mahumapelo said most importantly, implementation must go beyond the G20 leaders’ meeting.
“The group representing the interests of the youth sector asked for their recommendations to be addressed by the South African government. Participants said that the G20 is regarded as an elitist grouping that risks leaving other sectors of society behind.
“They also noted that gender equality is a human right and needs to be streamlined into all the G20 processes. The SADC region and the continent must prioritise gender issues and decisively deal with elements of Gender-Based Violence (GBV),” he said.
Mahumapelo further said the G20 Task team should also consider including the marginalised and vulnerable groups such as the Khoi and the San in its task team. He added that a group representing the interests of the disabled raised its concern that the Department of International Relations and Cooperation has not been responsive to the processes needed for this sector to be part of the G20.
“The group representing the interests of rural youth expressed their concerns that they are being left out, especially those in the mining communities.
“They also said that they do not understand what is implied by a “Just Energy Transition”, because information does not reach them. We are committed to ensuring that all inputs received during the colloquium will be sent to the relevant G20 groups,” said Mahumapelo.
He indicated that going forward the committee will ensure that more such colloquiums are held on various topics of relevance to South Africa’s geopolitics to ensure that the committee leaves no one behind.
3 September 2025 – The Portfolio Committee on Public Service welcomes President Cyril Ramaphosa’s signing of a proclamation expanding the scope and temporal range of the Special Investigating Unit’s (SIU) investigation into the Integrated Financial Management System (IFMS) tender.
The committee said in addition to probing the National Treasury, the new proclamation now also includes the Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) and the State Information Technology Agency (SITA).
The Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Public Service and Administration, Jan de Villiers said SITA has consistently received qualified audit outcomes, ultimately regressing to a disclaimer audit opinion for the 2023/24 financial year. De Villiers said this means that key role players within the SITA accountability ecosystem have failed to provide credible financial reports that are supported by reliable information.
“SITA has been accused of slowing down, rather than speeding up, the government’s digitisation efforts. Digitalisation is key to the improvement of public service delivery by modernising government ICT infrastructure, among other initiatives.
“The expanded proclamation now enables the SIU to examine actions dating back to 1 July 2013, as opposed to the original 1 January 2016 start date. The alleged corruption related to IFMS has negatively impacted efforts to advance digital transformation in the public service,” he said.
De Villiers further said government departments are still using manual systems to provide human resource management, financial management, and supply chain management services, despite the committee’s long-standing call for a centralised human resource management system. He added that siloed and fragmented systems, which are still primarily paper-based, undermine professionalisation and efforts to build a capable state.
“The committee considers the expanded proclamation as a vital step towards upholding accountability and transparency in the public sector, especially given the committee’s focus on the implementation of the National Framework Towards Professionalising the Public Sector and the Government of National Union’s efforts in building an ethical and capable state.
“By broadening the scope to include additional departments and by covering a longer period of time, the SIU will be better positioned to expose maladministration, irregularities and systemic weaknesses in the procurement processes linked to the IFMS,” said de Villiers.
He said the committee urged the SIU to fast-track its investigation to ensure that, where wrongdoing is confirmed, those implicated are suspended and, where necessary, arrested. De Villiers said while the committee recognises that the SIU operates most effectively within a coordinated anti-corruption ecosystem, working alongside Parliament, the Presidency, law enforcement and public institutions, it is confident that, where wrongdoing is established, the SIU will use its mandate to pursue civil recoveries, make appropriate disciplinary referrals and recommend criminal prosecution in collaboration with law enforcement agencies.
De Villiers said the committee will exercise its oversight to ensure that accountability is upheld at every stage of the process.
“We support this new approach and reaffirm our commitment to monitoring the progress of the expanded investigation to help ensure that outcomes are communicated transparently to the public.
“We see this as an important step towards restoring public confidence in government systems as well as professionalising and modernising the state,” he said.
3 September 2025- Following a thorough assessment and verification of facts on the purported council meeting of Ramotshere Moiloa Local Municipality, which sat on 9 July 2025 to remove the mayor, Dina Pitso, the North West Provincial Government (NWPG) can confirm council had failed to comply with the applicable prescripts including Standing Rules and Orders for meetings of the Council and Committees of Ramotshere Moiloa Local Municipality.
The North West Premier, Lazarus Mokgosi said therefore the status quo on the mayorship of Ramotshere Moiloa Local Municipality as existed before 9 July 2025 remains.
Mokgosi said it is therefore the position of the provincial government following the recent joint-sitting of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Standing Committee on Public Accounts and Standing Committee on Auditor General that there are compelling reasons for intervention in the said Municipality.
“It is on this basis that the North West MEC for Cooperative Governance, Human Settlement and Traditional Affairs (COGHSTA), Gaoage Molapisi, will officially outline the considered options aimed at bringing about administrative stability in the municipality on 5 September 2025 at Ramotshere Moiloa Local Municipality.
“The provincial government will also meet with traditional leaders, labour unions, business and faith-based organizations to solicit their inputs on the ongoing efforts by the government to stabilize the Municipality,” he said.
Mokgosi further said this includes measures aimed at ensuring the safety of workers following weeks of administrative turbulence. He added that the provincial government is equally engaging law enforcement agencies for swift intervention, particularly in finding a solution on the alleged unlawful occupation of the municipal precinct by security personnel not contracted by council.
“All these intervention measures are aimed at giving assurance to the community about government plans to ensure the smooth running of the Municipality as well as uninterrupted provision of services,” said Mokgosi.
Picture: DA Northern Cape Provincial spokesperson on Finance and Member of Provincial Legislature (MPL), Fawzia/Supplied
By AGISANANG SCUFF
2 September 2025- The Democratic Alliance (DA) said the oversight it conducted in the Northern Cape to the De Aar railway station, confirmed how South Africa’s rail network has all but collapsed, taking with it the hope of growth and development needed to drive job creation. The DA said the most recent Quarterly Labour Force Survey confirmed that nearly one in two people in the Northern Cape cannot find a job.
DA Northern Cape Provincial spokesperson on Finance and Member of Provincial Legislature (MPL), Fawzia Rhoda said regional economies are hamstrung by the lack of affordable and reliable railways, as rail freight volumes plummeted from 226 million tonnes in 2017 to only 152 million tonnes in 2024. Rhoda said reduced capacity harms business confidence, makes everything more expensive for consumers, and causes job losses.
“De Aar has not been spared from this economic onslaught and the town that used to be synonymous with the hustle of trains connecting the local economy to Port Elizabeth, Cape Town, Upington, Kimberley, Namibia, and beyond has fallen victim to sluggish growth.
“In the absence of reliable railways, trucks transporting goods have taken over the town and the abnormal loads crush the roads designed for lighter vehicles,” she said.
Rhoda further said they called for a multi-pronged approach for better maintenance in the short term. She added that in the long run, they need affordable rail freight to ease congestion and reduce the need for maintenance.
“We must speed up the concession of freight rail lines to capable private operators through transparent and competitive tendering processes that identify the best partners for growth.
“We also need to modernise, upgrade and maintain rail infrastructure, with strict law enforcement to protect our essential infrastructure,” said Rhoda.
She said this must go hand-in-glove with a comprehensive review of South Africa’s tariff regime to lower input costs for manufacturers and exporters. Rhoda said the time for endless talk is over.
“South Africa’s economy is in crisis, and it is time for urgent action to fix our economy and create jobs,” she said.
Picture: The police during Joint Operations/Suppled
By BAKANG MOKOTO
2 September 2025- A multi-disciplinary joint operation between South Africa and Botswana was conducted along the borderline of the two countries from 28 until 31 August 2025. The operation focused on addressing cross-border crimes such as stock theft, human and drug trafficking, as well as the prevention of illegal migration.
The Northern Cape police spokesperson, Sergeant Timothy Sam said teams from both countries participated actively in compliance inspections, Vehicle Check Points (VCPs), stop-and-search operations, borderline foot and vehicle patrols, and farm visits. Sam said VCPs on the Witdraai and Van Zylsrus roads resulted in 294 vehicles and 589 individuals being stopped and searched.
“The operation further led to the arrest of four suspects for drug related offences and contraventions of the Immigration Act, with court appearances expected soon.
“Mandrax and CAT with an estimated value of R900 were seized, while fines amounting to R7200 were issued for contraventions of the Road Traffic, Liquor and Animal Identification Acts,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Deputy Police Commissioner for Policing, Major General Keagekae Johny Besnaar, reaffirmed the SAPS’s commitment, together with Botswana law enforcement and other stakeholders, to safeguarding the borderline between the two countries. Besnaar emphasised that such collaborative actions directly benefit the public and confirmed that the police will continue intensifying efforts to combat illegal and unregulated activities along the borders.
2 September 2025- The accused, Thabo Thabang Mongalane (24) was sentenced to 15 years imprisonment by the Schweizer Reneke Regional Court for rape. The conviction stems from an incident that occurred on 31 October 2020, when Mongalane and his friends planned an outing to Wentzel Dam in Schweizer Reneke.
The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson in North West, Sivenathi Gunya said evidence presented in court revealed that the group were all coming from a funeral and decided to meet at the Motor Sports ground in Loelegeng Township, whilst waiting for other friends that gone home to change after the funeral. Gunya said Mongalane was left with the victim (16) in the house, and he then proposed that they both take photos with his phone.
“After taking pictures, he further suggested to the victim that they go and wait for their friends in Phakedi Street next to Motoro Sports ground, and she complied.
“On arrival in the said street, Mongalane entered a certain yard, and the victim followed and stood outside the house. Mongalane invited her inside the house, but she refused to enter,” he said.
Gunya further said he forcefully dragged her, pushed her against the wall, and tried to kiss her by force. He added that Mongalane pushed the victim inside the house, closed the door with the couch that was behind the door.
“The court heard that Mongalane overpowered the victim and raped her. After the rape, he told the victim that she would never leave the place while crying. The victim opened the door, and they left the house.
“On the street, they took different directions. The victim was still crying, and she met her boyfriend, to whom she reported the matter. A police docket was opened, and Mongalane was arrested and later released on bail,” said Gunya.
In court, Mongalane pleaded not guilty to the charge. However, state prosecutor Sephapho told the court that Mongalane planned the incident and that the rape of children is on the rise and perpetrators of this offence must be punished to serve a term of imprisonment. He urged the court not to deviate from the prescribed minimum sentence.
The court found that there were compelling and substantial circumstances to deviate from the prescribed minimum sentence. This includes the accused’s age, whether he is a first offender and his personal circumstances.
He was sentenced to undergo 15 years imprisonment. The court ordered that Mongalane’s name be included in the National Register for Sexual Offenders and declared him unfit to possess a firearm.
Meanwhile, welcoming the sentence, Dr Rachel Makhari, Director of Public Prosecutions in the North West, commended the collaborative efforts of the prosecution team, South African Police Service and all stakeholders involved. Makhari emphasised that the outcome serves as a significant deterrent to perpetrators of Gender-Based Violence (GBV).
“The NPA reiterates its unwavering commitment to prosecuting crimes of GBV, particularly against women and children,” she said.
The Guardian 