Johannesburg – Murder-accused paralympian Oscar Pistorius arrived at the Weskoppies Psychiatric Hospital in Pretoria before 09:00 on Monday, SABC reported.

Security was tight at the facility and a huge media contingent had gathered there.

Last week, the North Gauteng High Court ordered that Pistorius be evaluated by four specialists when admitted as a day-patient for mental observation.

Three psychiatrists and one clinical psychologist would evaluate Pistorius to determine whether his general anxiety disorder and his disability had an effect on him when he shot dead his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine’s Day last year.

Pistorius was ordered to go to Weskoppies from Monday and every weekday thereafter. He would stay there from 09:00 until 16:00, or until he had been excused. The evaluation would not exceed 30 days, Judge Thokozile Masipa said.

Pistorius’s trial has been postponed to 30 June.

The order was made after forensic psychiatrist Merryll Vorster told the court Pistorius had general anxiety disorder. Based on this, the State applied to have him referred.

General anxiety disorder is a common anxiety disorder that involves chronic worrying, nervousness, and tension.
SAPA

School governing body associations in the province and the entire country have committed to assist the task team investigating the alleged sale of posts in the education sector.

The team was initiated by Minister of Basic Education Angie Motshekga on May 16 during her meeting with the unions to outline her plans to investigate the allegations.
For more http://www.thenewage.co.za

Goleta – A man whose son was among the victims killed in a shooting rampage near a California university quaked with grief and rage as he described his “lost and broken” family and the proliferation of guns he believes led to his son’s death.

“Our son Christopher and six others are dead,” Richard Martinez told reporters gathered outside a sheriff’s station for a news conference on Saturday, the day after the shootings near the University of California, Santa Barbara, where his 20-year-old son was a sophomore. “You don’t think it’ll happen to your child until it does.”

Christopher Ross Michaels-Martinez, of Los Osos, California, was the last of six people killed by suspect Elliot Rodger before the gunman apparently shot and killed himself, authorities said.

Martinez choked back tears as he spoke, then grew angrier as he talked about gun laws and lobbyists.

“The talk about gun rights. What about Chris’ right to live?” Martinez said. “When will enough people say: ‘Stop this madness! We don’t have to live like this! Too many people have died!”

He then punctuated his words as he said, “We should say to ourselves: ‘Not! One! More!'” before dissolving into tears and falling to his knees as he stepped from the podium.

Martinez said he talked to his son just 45 minutes before he died inside the IV Deli Mart, where bullet holes and blood could still be seen on Saturday. After already killing five others at his apartment and outside a sorority house, Rodger walked into the deli and shot Michaels-Martinez, authorities said.

Michaels-Martinez was an English major who planned to go to London next year and to law school after graduation, his father said.

He pulled out a photo of his son as a small child in a Chicago Cubs baseball uniform and said they used to call him “mini-Sammy Sosa”, referring to the former Cubs star.

“Chris was a really great kid,” Martinez said. “Ask anyone who knew him. His death has left our family lost and broken.”

AP

Cape Town – The seeming demotion of former finance minister Pravin Gordhan to minister of co-operative governance and traditional affairs has been described as a “shock move” and “a waste of talent”.

President Jacob Zuma appointed Nhlanhla Nene to the position instead.

Nomura’s emerging markets economists Peter Attard-Montalto on Sunday described Gordhan’s new portfolio as “a tiny ministry with little power”.
For more http://www.news24.com

Cape Town – While Cyril Ramaphosa will be a very effective communicator with business and investors we do not think policy wise it’s a given that he will be investor friendly.

So said Nomura’s emerging markets economist Peter Attard-Montalto following the announcement of Ramaphosa’s appointment of edupty president on Sunday.

Montalto said a BEE economy (the world Ramaphosa comes from) is very different from a free market (private) business economy that would be growth enhancing.
For more http://www.news24.com

Cape Town – President Jacob Zuma’s new Cabinet gives South Africans little hope that the country’s problems will be tackled effectively, Democratic Alliance leader Helen Zille said on Sunday.

“President Jacob Zuma’s announcement of his new Cabinet does not inspire confidence that South Africa’s major challenges – weak economic growth, unemployment, and corruption – will be tackled effectively in the president’s second term,” Zille said.

Zille welcomed the re-appointment of Aaron Motsoaledi as health minister and Angie Motshekga as basic education minister to ensure continuity in Cabinet.

But, the retention of other ministers, or their move to other important portfolios, did not bode well.

These included Thulas Nxesi, who stays on as public works minister, and Mildred Oliphant who retains her position as labour minister.

“In particular, the move of Tina Joemat-Petterson to the department of energy is lamentable,” Zille said.

“Ms Joemat-Petterson performed very poorly as minister of agriculture, and does not deserve to serve in the executive.”

Zuma’s decision to expand his Cabinet was also labelled a bad move.

“What the government needs is a leaner, more effective administration, not an ever growing executive,” Zille said.

“It is clear that these new positions have little to do with efficiency, and everything to do with solving the ANC’s internal political problems at public expense.”

Moving Pravin Gordhan to co-operative governance and traditional affairs would negatively affect international investor confidence.

“We hope that over the coming years minister Nhlanhla Nene will prove that he can get rising government debt levels under control and that he can instil a sense of fiscal discipline that has been lacking in recent years,” Zille said.

“We hope that minister Gordhan will bring his trademark efficiency to the department of co-operative governance and traditional affairs, which has underperformed for several years.”

– SAPA

Pretoria – President Jacob Zuma on Sunday reconfigured his Cabinet.

“We have established a ministry of telecommunications and postal services,” Zuma said while making his Cabinet announcement.

“Our country has a fast growing telecommunications sector which in 2012 was estimated at being worth R180bn.”

The aim of the new ministry was to get more value out of the telecommunications sector, he said.

The communications department had been reconfigured to include more functions.

“We have established a new communications ministry which will be responsible for overarching communication policy and strategy, information dissemination and publicity, as well as the branding of the country abroad,” Zuma announced.

“This ministry will be formed out of the following components: the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa, the SA Broadcasting Corporation, Government Communication and Information Systems, Brand SA and the Media Development and Diversity Agency.”

The National Planning Commission and the ministry of performance, monitoring and evaluation will be merged.

“This ministry will also continue to be responsible for youth development.”

– SAPA