Archives

Pupil’s death yet to be probed


Johannesburg – An investigation into how a 5-year-old boy died at a Soweto school last month has yet to be launched, the Gauteng education department said on Wednesday.
The Grade R pupil died after being run over by a lawnmower at the school.

Spokesperson Phumla Sekhonyane said the department would appoint independent investigators to conduct the probe.

“When there’s an incident like this, we appoint someone externally so there is an independent view,” she said.

“We never use our own people so that there are no cover-ups or anything like that.”

The Grade R pupil died after being run over by a lawnmower at the school.

It was unclear whether anyone from the school had been held accountable.

SAPA

Bodies still missing as floods calm down


Johannesburg – Four people were still missing in Mpumalanga and Limpopo on Wednesday after extensive flooding in several parts of the country.
Two women, aged 64 and 69, have been missing from Makhado and Bela-Bela since the weekend, police spokesperson Hangwani Mulaudzi said.

“She [the 64-year-old from Makhado] left Tshitale village in the morning to get some wood. She had to cross the Mambedi River at some point and her dog, which she usually travels with, returned to the house alone.”

Persistent rain made it difficult to recover the body of a 69-year-old woman who was swept away with her husband while swimming in Bela-Bela at the weekend.

The two were swimming in an undercover swimming pool at the Kariba Lodge on Friday when the Bela-Bela dam overflowed and they were swept away.

The body of her 74-year-old husband was found on Saturday.

A 15-year-old youth who was reported missing on Monday was found, Mulaudzi said.

The boy was crossing the river with a friend on Monday.

“They were swept away, but the friend managed to grab onto an object and get himself to safety. He then alerted police about his friend.”

“The family did not alert police that he was found [on Monday]. But he is back at school now,” Mulaudzi said.

In Gauteng, Johannesburg emergency management services spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi said no drownings had been reported on Wednesday.

“We are just busy with mop-up operations around the city.”

Affected by flooding

Earlier, Mulaudzi said about 100 homes were affected by flooding in Zandspruit, near Honeydew, west of Johannesburg on Tuesday.

An emergency shelter was set up in the area for the displaced group of about 200, but they were reluctant to leave their belongings behind, Mulaudzi said.

Diepsloot and Ivory Park were also affected by the flooding. No drownings were reported in both areas, he said.

“We will continue to monitor the affected areas.”

In Tshwane, 10 homes collapsed in an informal settlement in Stinkwater on Tuesday afternoon.

“We assisted in organising alternative accommodation, blankets, and food parcels,” emergency management services spokesperson Johan Pieterse said.

Power had been restored to Mamelodi, Silverton and Samcor Park after the areas experienced power failures due to the heavy rains.

Nellmaphius and a few outstanding streets in Watloo were still out of power, City of Tshwane spokesman Moeketsi Bokaba said.

The two areas were expected to be switched back on by Wednesday evening.

“Consumers are advised to treat all electrical points ‘as live’. Switch off all non-essential appliances to assist with the load on the electrical network.”

March showers

Water affairs department spokesman Themba Khumalo said the rain in Gauteng was the most persistent for the March period in 14 years.

“This is confirmed by the weather services,” he said.

The department was trying to control dam levels in the province.

“If we don’t, they will burst.”

He said places such as Vereeniging would be in danger of being flooded if the Vaal Dam were to burst. The dam was currently 105% full.

“By yesterday [Tuesday] we had opened eight sluice-gates to control the levels so that the water would flow into the Vaal River.

“That puts the river at [risk] of overflowing too.”

He said those who lived near rivers should ensure that they were a good distance from the flood-lines.

“In places like the Jukskei River in Alexandra residents build homes below the flood-lines which is why every year they are affected [by heavy rain and floods],” Khumalo said.

SA weather services forecaster Ezekiel Sebego said there was a severe weather watch for Wednesday and Thursday for the eastern parts of North West, Gauteng, Limpopo, and Mpumalanga.

By the weekend the wet weather would move to other parts of the country, he said.

“By Friday, Saturday, and Sunday the rain will be moving to lesser affected provinces [such as] half of North West and the Free State.

SAPA

I wasn’t a danger to her- murder accused


Cape Town – Slain Mpumalanga teenager Charmaine Mare was never in danger while staying in Cape Town, the Western Cape High Court heard on Wednesday.
“I cannot ever say I was a danger to her. I never once physically molested her or assaulted her,” testified her guardian at the time, Johannes Christiaan de Jager.

De Jager, 49, has denied killing Mare last January while his girlfriend, her daughter and his son were away on a cruise.

He maintains she fell to her death when he grabbed her arm in the bathroom.

Prosecutor Romay van Rooyen pointed to behaviour that seemed to contradict De Jager’s view of himself.

She asked why Mare’s friend in Mpumalanga tried to phone Kraaifontein police four times to ask them to go to De Jager’s home.

“I don’t know why,” he replied.

She asked why Mare would send cellphone voice recordings of him making advances towards her, to her friends.

He said he could not answer for her.

“Do you not think maybe it was a cry for help to people she knew to help her get away?” Van Rooyen asked.

De Jager said if the teenager had been in trouble, she would have said something to the teenage girls across the road.

He said he organised a braai a week before her death in which she was introduced to everyone in the neighbourhood.

Van Rooyen asked why Mare had asked a local estate agent for money.

“He only told me that she wanted money and wanted to go back to the Transvaal and that he gave her his telephone number, probably for her to call or when there’s trouble,” he said.

The prosecutor asked why Mare was so desperate to get away that she would borrow money from a stranger.

“In discussions with her, she said she missed her parents so I assume she wanted to go back [to Mpumalanga].”

The trial continues.

SAPA

Arms Commission adjourned


Johannesburg – The Seriti Commission of Inquiry into the 1999 arms deal adjourned on Wednesday.
The inquiry would resume on Monday, spokesperson William Baloyi said in a statement.

He said two witnesses from arms parastatal Armscor – Barry de Beer and Pieter Burger – had completed their testimony.

A third witness from Armscor, Fritz Nortje, would take the stand on Monday.

The commission, sitting in Pretoria and headed by Judge Willie Seriti, is investigating allegations of corruption into the multi-billion rand arms deal.

SAPA

SA Army: Training Programme open


SA Army: Training Programme

Location: ALL PROVINCES, South Africa

Closing Date: 31 March 2014

The SA Army, through its Military Skills Development System (MSDS), is offering young South African citizens an opportunity to serve in uniform over a two-year period. The Military Skills Development System is a two-year voluntary service system with the long term goal of enhancing the SA National Defense Force’s deployment capability.

MSDS Candidates will be appointed in a specific corps career and will be called up to a Training Unit, where members will complete their Basic Military Training, Corps Functional Training, in the first year and be utilized and deployed in the second year of the MSDS.

Requirements

Be a SA Citizen
MSDS Applicants must be between the ages of 18-22 years
MSDS Graduates up to the age of 25 years
Successfully completed Grade 12
Not be area bound
Have no record of criminal offense
Preferably Single
Comply with medical fitness requirements for appointment in the SANDF
Be prepared to serve in uniform, undergo Basic Military and Functional Train
Training

The SA Army’s mandate focuses on the provisioning of combat ready forces and plays a leading role in landward operations. Training will be decentralized to operational units where members will be appointed to undergo Basic Military Training, Corps training and deployment. MSDS applicants must be between the ages of 18 to 22 to be considered. Applicants who are in possession of a post Grade 12 qualification (Degree, Diploma or N6) must be between the ages of 18 to 25 may also be considered.

Successful applicants will be required to serve in uniform and undergo Military Training. Incomplete forms will not be considered. Only applicants who have passed Grade 12 may apply and must not be older than the age as stipulated above on the date of reporting for training.

How To Apply

Download Application Form (after the link opens, please click File | Download)

Certified copies of ID document, Grade 12 certificate or Post grade 12 qualifications and CV must accompany this application form to SA Army Recruiting, Private Bag X 981, Pretoria 0001

Enquiries

Administrative enquiries can be directed to the SA Army Recruitment Center at (012) 355 1438 or (012) 355 1420. If you are interested in the Military Skills Development System in the SA Army, please complete the coupon with the requested documentation enclosed and post it to

SA Army HQ, Dir Army HR, SA Army Recruiting Centre, Private Bag x981, Pretoria, 0001.

Specific related enquiries can be directed to (012) 355 1420 or (012) 355 1438. Further information can be obtained on http://www.dod.mil.za, http://www.army.mil.zaShould you not hear from the Department of Defence by 31 October 2014 please assume that you application has been unsuccessful.

The Department of Defence reserves the right to employment.-TDN
Follow us on Twitter@Taung_DailyNews or @IceT_

Pistorius Trial: Saayman testimony to be disputed


PRETORIA – It will now be up to an expert witness to dispute the findings of the state pathologist after Professor Gert Saayman dismissed attempts to discredit his testimony.
Saayman gave an extensive account of the injuries suffered by Reeva Steenkamp on the night she was shot dead by the ‘Blade Runner’.
For more http://www.ewn.co.za

1.8bn alcohol litres seized in a year


Johannesburg – Around 1.8 billion litres of illegally sold alcohol were seized around the country in the 2012/13 financial year, police said on Tuesday.
Thousands of illegal shebeens were also shut down during this period, said national police commissioner Riah Phiyega.

Following a press briefing in Isando, on the East Rand, she and Gauteng acting police commissioner Lieutenant General Joel Mothiba poured out thousands of litres of alcohol.

The two were joined by other police officials as they emptied different beer, cider, wine, and whisky bottles into a make-shift drain.

The stench of alcohol filled the air as the different coloured liquors frothed in the drain.

“Alcohol is socially acceptable but has a negative effect on families and communities,” said Phiyega.

People who owned illegal shebeens operated until the early hours of the morning, and patrons walking home from these shebeens at those hours became a target of crime.

“We want to decrease the amount of crime [which stems from] the illegal use of alcohol,” said Phiyega.

Mothiba said in Gauteng alone, 97 000 bottles of liquor were confiscated from illegal shebeens during the festive season.

About 350 000 illegal DVDs and CDs were also taken off the streets.

Most of the illegal goods were seized in Hillbrow in Johannesburg and in Pretoria.

Mothiba and Phiyega crushed the CDs and DVDs on Tuesday.

‘Crime is our enemy’

Phiyega said police were clamping down on people who operated their businesses illegally, as they hampered the growth of the country’s economy.

“We are not friends to crime, crime is our enemy,” said Phiyega.

She said illicit trading was not just limited to alcohol, CDs and DVDs, but included clothes, shoes, and even medicines.

“People selling counterfeit goods think it’s violentless crime,” said Phiyega.

The illegal traders also did not pay tax, and infringed on design and copyright, among other laws.

Phiyega said that in June 2013, police raided the premises of two Chinese nationals in Sunnyside, Pretoria, where they found illegal medicine worth R7m.

Police seized sexual enhancement medicines, contraceptives, slimming tea, and high blood pressure medication.

“Some of these products contained dagga,” said Phiyega, who added that consumers could not tell as the products’ lists of ingredients were in Chinese.

Phiyega called on the public to alert police about people who operated their businesses illegally.

SAPA

Oscar’s trial bigger than World Cup


Johannesburg – Oscar Pistorius’s murder trial is bigger than the Fifa World Cup, according to figures by media monitoring group Data Driven Insight (DDI).

“Unbelievable, worldwide the Oscar trial is bigger in media than the Fifa 2014 World Cup,” said DDI spokeswoman Tonya Khoury on Tuesday.

DDI said despite restrictions on reporting, media coverage of the paralympian’s trial skyrocketed.

The social media platform Twitter added to the Pistorius news coverage of the trial in the High Court in Pretoria, DDI said.

On Monday, Judge Thokozile Masipa banned blogging and tweeting of graphic evidence by pathologist Gert Saayman. She reversed this decision on Tuesday morning.

DDI said this temporary restriction prompted about 2500 articles.

In the past 24 hours, news and social media hit over 106 000 unique inserts relating to the Pistorius trial, Khoury said.

Pistorius having retched in court was carried in 2300 news articles.

“The press in nine days hit the 750,000 mark,” she said.

“In a remarkable media frenzy, DDI has seen the media interest rise from an astonishing 8800 articles an hour (on day one) to 9200 in the 3pm hour on Friday. Seems the media , despite the critics, is on the rise.”

DDI also measured South Africa’s news headlines against the Pistorius trial and found that “nothing can move the media attention from Oscar”.

The data was compiled from 6.2 million social media platforms including blogs, forums, social networks and commentary, 60 000 global online newspapers, 2000 South African print publications, and 66 radio and television stations.

Sapa

Floods claim four victims


Johannesburg – Eleven people drowned in Mpumalanga in the past week because of heavy rains and 12 were rescued, police said on Tuesday.

Persistent rain and flooding had hit large parts of the province, including in Tonga, Nelspruit, Greylingstad, Piet Retief, and Badplaas, said police spokesperson Leonard Hlathi.

Three children, aged between 2 and 11 years old, were among those who had drowned from last Tuesday.

“The 2-year-old boy from Piet Retief fell into a hole that was dug for erecting a pit toilet,” said Hlathi.

Several people drowned when they attempted to cross flooded rivers in the area.

Two of the bodies had not been retrieved because of the dangerous condition of the rivers.

The 12 people, including motorists whose vehicles were swept away in flood water while they attempted to cross flooded bridges, were rescued by the Inland Water Police and Diving Service, said Hlathi.

Mpumalanga Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs MEC Simon Skhosana had handed over relief supplies to residents affected by flooding in the Nkomazi local municipality near Badplaas.

Skhosana, accompanied by Nkomazi Mayor Thulisile Khoza, handed over food parcels and blankets to the 38 affected families on Monday, department spokesperson George Mthethwa said in a statement.

“The provision forms part of the government’s relief effort for the affected families,” Mthethwa said.

Skhosana also visited several bridges in Mzinti, Tonga and Mlumati, to determine the extent of the damage caused by heavy rain and flooding in the area.

He said the department was co-ordinating reconstruction of the damaged bridges and the matter had been discussed with sector departments.

Motorists in the area were urged to avoid flooded rivers, bridges or dams.

“Parents are also urged to look after their children and discourage them from playing around rivers and dams because of the inherent dangers,” said provincial commissioner Lieutenant General Thulani Ntobela.

SAPA

Corruption worse under Zuma- DA


Johannesburg – Progress made since South Africa’s first democratic elections has been reversed under the leadership of President Jacob Zuma, the DA said on Tuesday.
“It is clear that the nation’s current leaders are not able to provide the leadership required to continue that progress,” the DA leader Helen Zille said in a statement.

Zuma released the country’s 20-year review document in Pretoria earlier in the day.

Zille said he highlighted progress made since 1994 under the leadership of former president Nelson Mandela and former president Thabo Mbeki, but failed to show what he himself had achieved.

“[He] disingenuously bracketed his term in office with that of his predecessors because he knows that the Jacob Zuma presidency is not a good story to tell,” said Zille.

She said the country’s political economy was now marred by corruption and declining accountability.

Unemployment and corruption became worse since Zuma took office and the gross domestic product had shown a decline, Zille said.

“The problem is not South Africa – the nation is strong, but the government is weak.”

Zille said her party had the ability to turn things around.

SAPA