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Residents of Mahikeng and surrounding areas requested Parliament to give them more time to study the Traditional and Khoi-San Leadership Bill in order to make meaningful contributions on the draft legislation.

They told the Portfolio Committee on Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs that the time allocated for the public hearings on the Bill was not adequate, as some citizens only had less than a day to go through the Bill and were then expected to make comments.

“The time is not enough for the community to engage on the Bill, some of us only saw it for the first time today. Can you please allow us more time to go through it and come back for the public consultation,” Dipuo Matlhonoko said.

Another member of the community who claimed to have seen the Bill for the first time on the day of the public hearing, Mr Goitseone Motseoakhumo, said he needed two weeks to study it before he can make an input.

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Other members of the community advised 

Parliament to host more public 

educationsessions on the bill especially in 

rural areas  under traditional leadership and 

Khoi-San 

communities which, they argued, were mainly 

affected by the draft legislation.

Kgosi Gobusamang Shole from the Provincial House of Traditional Leaders asked the Committee to have the Bill translated into local languages, documents must be available is Setswana and for the Bill to be renamed “Traditional Affairs Bill”.

“The documents must also be available is Setswana. It is always good to read for yourself than to rely on interpretation and I also think the legislation should be renamed Traditional Affairs Bill because the current title makes the Khoi-San special than other tribes,” he told the Committee at the packed Mafikeng Civic Centre on Tuesday.

He also advised the Committee to consult further with houses of traditional leaders at local and provincial levels.

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Goitsemodimo Gaborone said the Bill will give 

more powers to the chiefs and was not in the 

interest of the community.

“Rural communities under traditional leadership are excluded from benefiting from natural resources, yet they are the owners of the land.

“Chiefs are still oppressing the people in rural communities, it is not true that communities do not respect traditional leaders – people feel undermined. Makgosi do not own the land, we all have equal rights to the land and the natural resources,” he said.

Committee Chairperson Mr Richard Mdakane said the Committee will return to the North West Province to meet with traditional leaders on issues raised by the public that were not related to the Bill.

“We are not here because we are scared to go to the Constitutional Court, but because the Constitution enjoins us to consult the public and we are here also to learn because we do not know everything, we value the views of our people,” he said.

For more http://www.allafrica.com

BY BAKANG MOKOTO

RUSTENBURG Local Municipality could be under new leadership in no time if what Forum 4 Service Delivery’s utterance is anything to go by. 

F4SD national spokesperaon, Elias Mogoru said they will robustly meet with the African Independent  Congress (AIC) for a high level discussion regarding the future of the Rustenburg Local Municipality.

“F4SD is of a view that the AIC is gradually seeing the light and will in due course release Rustenburg Municipality into the hands of community so as to take control the affairs of their platinum municipality,” Mogoru said.

No political party has won with the outright majority during Local Government elections back in 2016. 

He further said the coalition between the AIC and ANC was not based on what the people of Rustenburg were looking for from the AIC. 

“It is our strong conviction as F4SD that people of Rustenburg who voted against those who cannot deliver on their promises since 1994, wanted a corrupt-free and clean-run municipality. They also did that to strengthen our maturing democracy,”he said. 

Mogoru added that the wishes of the people of Rustenburg must be honored. According to Mogoru, AIC has agreed to meet with them to discuss the matter. 

“F4SD is confident that after this meeting, our counterparts in the Ekurhuleni will follow suit and AIC will listen to the voices of the masses on the ground,” he said. 

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BY KEDIBONE MOLAETSI

A MAN has been arrested in connection with murder of a police officer in Kimberly. Mzwandile Majosi, 28 appeared in Kimberley Magistrate’s Court on Thursday.

The Hawks provincial spokesperson, Capt Philani Nkwalase said the body of Constable Lentswe Edward Mogorosi was discovered in the veld near Lerato Park on January 8 at around 05:45am.

“The police officer had sustained multiple stab wounds on his face and body. Some of the deceased’s personal items were allegedly recovered during Majosi’s arrest.

“The investigations revealed that Majosi was convicted of robbery in 2008, theft conviction in 2010 and has a pending case of possession of drugs in Kimberley. Majosi decided to abandon his bail application soon after Hawks’ Investigating officer presented evidence against his bail application,” Nkwalase said.

Northern Cape Hawks Provincial Head, Major General Kholekile Galawe welcomed the court outcome and applauded the investigating team for their commitment in ensuring that cop killers remain behind bars.

The case was postponed to March 23 for further investigation.

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BY REGINALD KANYANE

MEC for health, Dr Magome Masike will meet with all the CEO’s and Chairpersons of Hospital Boards at North West EMRS college in Orkney on Friday.

The department spokesperson, Tebogo Lekgethwane said: “The purpose of the meeting is to assess service delivery progress, identify challenges and chart way forward. Chairpersons of Hospital Boards are elected in terms of the National Health Act no 61 of 2003 to represent communities in their struggle to find their legitimate share in the governance and transformation of the health institutions and the health system generally.

“They will therefore be expected to present issues that communities have raised as matters of concern or which hampers health service delivery. Masike will also hear from them suggestions from communities on how best to improve health care service delivery in the province.”

Masike will also use the platform to update the meeting on how far the department is in resolving some of the known community complains like shortage of medication, shortage of ambulances, shortage of health professionals and others.

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Johannesburg – Terror-accused twins Brandon-Lee and Tony-Lee Thulsie are expected back in the Johannesburg Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday.

They would hear whether the court would grant the State a three-month postponement for further investigations.

The twins were arrested in July during raids in Newclare and Azaadville on the West Rand. They face three counts of contravening the Protection of Constitutional Democracy Against Terrorist and Related Activities Act.

According to their charge sheet, the brothers, who were arrested along with siblings Ebrahim and Fatima Patel, were allegedly linked to the self-proclaimed Islamic State group and were allegedly planning to set off explosives at a US embassy and “Jewish institutions” in South Africa.

The investigating officer found the twins had been active on social media prior to their arrests, allegedly discussing matters that could incriminate them.

Their lawyer, Annelene van den Heever, argued at their last appearance that the matter should be struck off the roll until the State had its house in order.

NPA spokesperson Phindi Louw told reporters outside court after their last appearance on Monday that the investigation was complex. She said they were convinced they had a case against the twins.

For more http://www.news24.com

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BY KATLEGO MOKAILA
Despite the good rains in recent months, our normal water needs still cannot be met and we are not out of the clear yet. The drought is far from over and even with a normal season it will take a number of years for the system to stabilize to an acceptable level.

North West province, which according to 2011 Census report has more than 3 million people is one of the driest province that is largely dependent on ground water. This then would mean that the drought situation must be taken seriously by everyone because  surface water is declining rapidly.

Climate change is still in our midst and South Africans have observed its effects first hand, even today we are experiencing changes in rainfall patterns and increasing heat. To say water is a precious resource is not an exaggeration from government but a reality. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, most of the three percent of freshwater is inaccessible. Over 68 percent of the freshwater on earth is found in icecaps and glaciers, and just over 30 percent is found in ground water. Only about 0.3 percent of our fresh water is found in the surface water of lakes, rivers, and the earth’s fresh water available for human consumption. This means that South Africa as a thirsty country, beyond doubt it is squeezing its limited drops to meet the demands of its people.

Government has had to spend millions of rands on drought relief interventions such as water tankers and borehole drilling among others in worst affected provinces and it is still not enough. This clearly means we should save water and change our casual behavior in our daily use.

The recent rainfalls have not made that much of an impact, it was like just a drop in the ocean, let’s continue being water wise. Every drop should count, as long as there climatic conditions such as El Nino and La Nina, water scarcity will continue to be a lifetime headache to all because is not a passing occurrence hence we need to adapt to it.

Let’s also adapt to rain water harvesting. Water should not go to waste, rain water is free and it should be used for meaningful things and not wasted.

The following tips could be useful:

·         To store rain water, use a drum or bucket when it is raining so that you can use the water after it has rained, but be careful and close the bucket so that children should not fall in and drown in it.

·         Educate children on how to save water and not to play with water as it is dangerous.

·         Use a bucket to wash your car

·         Save water that falls off during a shower

·         Save grey water and store rain water

Most people do not take the drought situation seriously because they are always fetching water from their taps or they wait for a water tankering truck to deliver water to them and if that doesn’t happen, they object.

In thirsty Municipalities such as Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati District Municipality (DrRSMDM), dams such as Wentzel have no water, in fact there is no drop of water to be precise; however emergency support such as tankering have been deployed to all affected areas in the North West Province, including Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati District Municipality.

Currently 211 dams are monitored by the Department of Water and Sanitation, 28 falls under North West Province. Dam levels in the North West Province are currently up from 1.6% to 67.3%. Remember dam levels are monitored weekly.

This forecast is still quite concerning with regard to the recovery of our dams. While we have seen some slight improvements in dam levels with the national average increasing, the drought is not over and we need to intensify our efforts to save water. Water restrictions measures will continue to be implemented until South Africa becomes a water wise alert society.

NB: Katlego Mokaila is the Communications Manager in the Department of Water and Sanitation, North West Region

 taungdailynews@gmail.com

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BY KEDIBONE MOLSETSI
A murder case against six suspects who allegedly killed Democratic Alliance councillor, Johannes Baatjies and his associate, Shuping Nose was transferred to Kimberley High Court on Monday.

The Hawks provincial spokesperson, Capt Philani Nkwalase said Zonisele Magawu (29), Charles Thompson Mpondomisa (39), Matthews Legodu (49) Richard Hasana (33), Paullis Mvuleni Mgcera (50) and Tsame Frak Baxane (31) appeared in Postmasburg Magistrate’s Court on Monday.

“The matter was referred to Kimberley High Court for trial from March 13 and all six suspects remain in custody as their bail application was denied last year.

“They are facing the murder charges relating to the killing of Democratic Alliance (DA) councillor, Johannes Baatjies and his business associates Mr. Shupping Nose which occurred in August 2016,” Nkwalase said.

He added that Magawu was arrested shortly after the incidents, Mpondomisa, Legodu and Hasana were arrested in September while Mgcera and Baxane were arrested in October. 

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The Burger King-sponsored South African Men National U20 team (Amajita) has secured two friendly matches against Mali as they build up to the 2017 CAF U20 Africa Cup of Nations in Zambia next month.
The matches against the West Africans will take place on 16 and 19 February at Peter Mokaba Stadium.
 
And before the two games against Mali, Amajita will travel to Ndola, Zambia for another friendly match against Zambia that will be played on 8 February 2017.
 
U20 national coach Thabo Senong said he was excited to have secured friendly matches against hosts Zambia and Mali.
 
“We are very happy to have secured these matches and I believe we will gain a lot of momentum with these friendly matches against Zambia and Mali. We have two West African teams in our group, so these matches will assist us in addressing some strengths and weakness of the West Africans.
 
“In the match against Zambia, we will be looking more at ourselves. We need the players to gain confidence in the box, we need our midfielders and defenders to play as a unit and we need to re-emphasize the levels of fitness,” said Senong.
 
Amajita will begin their first phase of preparations this coming Thursday, 26 January 2017 before travelling to Zambia for an international friendly.
 
The team will then break camp for a few days before regrouping for the second phase of preparations on 13 February 2017 where they will pitch tent in Limpopo and play the two matches against Mali.
 
The first match against the Eagles of Mali will be played behind closed doors, on 16 February 2017 and kicks-off at 19h00 while the official international friendly will take place on Sunday, 19 February 2017.
 
Kickoff is scheduled for 15h00 and entrance will be free.
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JOHANNESBURG – The National Council of Societies for the Prevention of Cruelty against Animals (NSPCA) says there’s a massive increase in donkey poaching, with the animals being slaughtered in a barbaric way.

Donkey skin is in demand in China as it’s used to produce medicine which is believed to delay menopause.

More than 100 donkeys were illegally slaughtered in the Northern Cape and North West in the last three months.

Meanwhile, 5,000 donkey hides were discovered in a shack in Benoni.

The NSPCA’s Mpho Mokoena says, “People are using a hammer to hit them. When they fall down, they don’t even wait to see if the donkey is dead and just start skinning it.”

For more http://www.ewn.co.za

The Minister of Water and Sanitation department, Nomvula Mokonyane, will meet with the MEC’s responsible for Cooperative Governance in the nine provinces of the Republic.