Author: Dimakatso Genkoe

Seventeen more illegal miners have resurfaced at an abandoned mine in Stilfontein, near Klerksdorp in the North West. According to the provincial police spokesperson Brigadier Sabata Mokgwabone, the miners resurfaced from two shafts and are being processed by authorities. “Of the 17 illegal miners, 14 resurfaced from Margaret shaft and three at Shaft No 10. The fourteen illegal miners are foreign nationals from Lesotho, Zimbabwe and Mozambique,” said Mokgwabone. The miners said some of their colleagues will surface on Friday, while others are too weak to resurface from the shafts. Moreover, they recounted difficult conditions underground, which include starvation and…

Sanity has finally prevailed at the Moses Kotane Local Municipality in the North West, after last month’s council meeting to appoint a new speaker ended in chaos, with ousted speaker Gugu Mtshali dragged out of the chambers. This as the municipality on Wednesday held a smooth process this time around, to elect acting speaker Pertunia Letlape, who replaced Mtshali following her resignation earlier this month. At the time, videos went viral on social media showing Mtshali disrupting the council meeting and tearing council papers, as she refused to accept the election of the previous acting speaker. Bouncers were then called,…

Power utility Eskom has requested about 1.7 million zero buyers to upgrade their meters before 13 December, to avoid paying temper fines.Eskom said the rollover process has seen a decrease in the number of zero buyers with about 400 000 of them coming forward by buying a prepaid token before the first initial deadline of 24th Sunday. Moreover, 5.5 million customers including the 400 000 former zero buyers have been successfully rolled over to KRN 2.The entities Group Chief Executive for Distribution Monde Bala said they will continue to encourage customers to pay for electricity.“We will continue to treat these…

Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Minerals Resources has recommended that a full inquiry into last year’s deaths of 13 miners at the Impala Platinum mine in Rustenburg, North West, be conducted. The committee has also requested Minister Gwede Mantashe to closely monitor the process. Last year, 13 miners lost their lives and 73 others were injured, when the winding rope connected to a cage that hoists people up and down the mine shaft started moving downwards unexpectedly. The committee on Tuesday adopted a report following its oversight visit at various mine shafts in the North West and Gauteng last month. The…

Fourteen illegal miners, including a 14-year-old boy, have resurfaced at an abandoned shaft 10 which is linked to shaft 11 in Stilfontein near Klerksdorp in the North West. All the fourteen miners are Mozambican nationals, and police said others ran back to the shaft when they noticed them. Police said the miners resurfaced during the night, thinking that law enforcement authorities would not be on site. “It just goes to show that these two shafts are linked, and that no one is trapped. They can actually come out on their own. They’re just refusing to resurface because they’re avoiding arrest,”…

The Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Community Safety in the North West, Freddy Sonakile, said they’re going to engage with other stakeholders, including the Treasury, to discuss whether the stand-off at the Stilfontein mine, should be declared a national disaster. This as several illegal miners are still held underground, almost a month after food and water supplies were blocked from reaching them. Sonakile led members of the committee at an oversight visit on Friday, where he highlighted that the police budget has already been stretched for the Stilfontein operation. “The police and everyone are operating from the budget, that…

North West Police are confident that their rescue mission to retrieve the suspected illegal miners who are still underground at the unused shaft in Stilfontein near Klerksdorp will commence soon. Police spokesperson Brigadier Sabata Mokgwabone told Newsnote that their preparations are well underway, and the next phase of the plan will commence anytime.“At the moment we are basically implementing the rescue operation plan of the committee which is led by MEC (Wessels Morweng – Community Safety). Already what we call groundwork has been done, then clearing of thesite was done on Wednesday and the clearing of the site was done…

Eskom in the North West said it is pleased with the progress it has made to recode electricity prepaid meter boxes in the North West, as 78% of their customers have completed the upgrades. The utility’s remarks come as 24th Sunday is a deadline for customers to recode their meters, or risk being left in the dark. Eskom stressed that failure to re-code on Sunday, will prevent customers from loading electricity tokens. However, the utility’s spokesperson in the North West, Ezekiel Baruti, highlighted that there are those who haven’t yet upgraded their boxes for various reasons. “Eskom has made things…

In a proactive move aimed at safeguarding water supplies, Magalies Water has alerted its bulk customers in the North West and surrounding regions about impending water demand management strategies. This warning comes on the back of below-average rainfall in many interior and central areas of South Africa, leading to higher than usual water consumption rates. According to the South African Weather Services, temperatures across the country are anticipated to remain predominantly above normal due to the ongoing El Niño effect. This climatic phenomenon has resulted in a marked increase in water usage, which has placed significant strain on the utility’s…

North West MEC for Community Safety and Transport Management Wessels Morweng said the rescue team appointed to retrieve illegal miners who are underground at an abandoned shaft in Stilfontien, would be tactical as they consider them armed and dangerous. The team was appointed last week, following an oversight visit by Police Minister Senzo Mchunu and other senior officials from the SANDF. The rescue team led by Morweng comprises SAPS, District Mayor and Local Mayor, community leaders, mine owners, mine rescue technical team and government departments. Morweng together with the National Deputy Commissioner for Police Lieutenant-General Tebello Mosikili briefed the media…