Author: Gomolemo Mothomogolo
City of Tshwane Mayor Cilliers Brink is adamant that he will not be going back to the negotiating table with the striking workers amid widespread service delivery disruptions because of the ongoing strike. Brink said the city can’t mediate criminality and has reiterated that there is just no money to fund the 5,4% salary increases demanded by the workers. “You can mediate many things and you can have conversations about many things but the one issue you cannot mediate is that we don’t have R600 million to grant salary increases. The money just isn’t there. “The second issue is you…
Judge Ratha Mokgoatleng granted the postponement of the Senzo Meyiwa murder trial to 2 October after defence lawyers requested time to consult with their clients regarding photos downloaded on accused Number 3, Mthobise Mncube’s phone. In his ruling Judge Mokgoatleng said in any event the court was going to recess until 2 October and consequently he postponed the case to the same date for continuation. “The provision is that the defence must also consult with their experts concerning the ballistic evidence because Lieutenant Colonel Mangena’s evidence has been adjourned until then for cross examination. So once we commence on 2…
The City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality has suspended its bus services and has urged commuters to make alternative arrangements. On Tuesday the municipality tried to resume its operations which it had stopped because of an ongoing strike but on Wednesday decided to discontinue the service after reports of violence and arson attacks on property belonging to the City. Member of the Mayoral Committee responsible for Roads and Transport Katlego Mathebe said in a statement the City regrets its decision to withdraw the bus services with immediate effect adding that two more vehicles were torched allegedly by the striking workers bringing…
Two City of Tshwane vehicles were torched on Wednesday as the protest for salary increments by aggrieved workers rages on. Some Tshwane employees downed tools demanding that the City implement the 2021 South African Local Bargaining Council (SALGBC) collective agreement which would see the workers receiving a 3.5%, 4.9% and 5.4% salary and wage increase for years 2021, 2022 and 2023 respectively. The Metro lost its bid to get exempt from implementing the salary hikes and vowed to take this decision on review. The City of Tshwane spokesperson, Selby Bokaba said two of its vehicles were torched allegedly by striking…
The Senzo Meyiwa murder trial hit another snag again on Wednesday after Defence lawyer Charles Mnisi demanded the disc with all the pictures downloaded from accused Number 3, Mthobisi Mncube’s phone and said he won’t be able to continue with the cross-examination if the photos are not furnished to him. Mnisi briefly cross-examined state witness and police officer Constable Sizwe Zungu who had placed the five men on trial for Meyiwa’s murder in Vosloorus on the day the Orlando Pirates goalkeeper was killed. Mnisi then requested to be furnished with all the pictures downloaded on Mncube’s phone in order for…
The Judge Presiding over the Senzo Meyiwa murder, Ratha Mokgoatleng, ordered that accused Number 5 Sifisokuhle Ntuli be taken to a medical doctor and he must not just be given “tablets or castor oil” to deal with his illness. The court was to continue with the cross-examination of Constable Sizwe Zungu who had placed all five accused in Vosloorus on the day that Mewiya was gunned down at his girlfriend, Kelly Khumalo’s home, in the same area. However, defence lawyer, Zandile Mshololo asked for an early adjournment saying her client was not feeling well. “My Lord, my client , informed…
The City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality has served seven employees working at its bus services department with letters of its intention to dismiss them on allegations of intimidating non striking workers. Over the weekend, the municipality announced that its bus operations will resume after services were halted due to the ongoing unprotected strike that has disrupted service delivery. “The seven employees, dubbed the strike ‘instigators’, five of whom were SAMWU shop stewards, are accused of preventing the buses from being prepared for operations which were expected to resume on Tuesday morning. “They allegedly intimidated their non-striking colleagues at the C…
for children and adolescents. “For us that is how we access those resources but we have to do more in South Africa when we are looking at mental health resources that are available. It is already strained. It was strained pre COVID-19. We need to see an increase especially in child and adolescent mental health services,” said Cassey. “We don’t have enough psychiatric wards for learners in crisis often at the moment when you have an adolescence who has attempted suicide they would have to be admitted into an adult wards and that’s not okay. We have to advocate for…
Families who live in Hercules, a Tshwane informal settlement, are pleading for assistance after they lost all their belongings and valuables in a fire that destroyed over 10 shacks on Tuesday leaving at least 30 people displaced. When Newsnote visited the Hercules informal settlement on Saturday, some residents whose shacks were destroyed were still trying to rebuild while others are now living and sharing three tents said to have been supplied by the municipality on Friday. Celia Modisakeng, said the tents are only a temporary measure because the municipality said they will take them back after three weeks and pleaded…
State witness and police officer Constable, Sizwe Zungu has placed all the five men accused of killing Bafana Bafana captain, Senzo Meyiwa, at Sotho Hostel in Vosloorus on the day of his murder on 26 October 2014. Zungu, who is attached to Visible Policing at Sebenza Police Station in Edenvale, was testifying at the North Gauteng High Court on Thursday and told the court that the five men on trial were at Sotho Hostel in Vosloorus the night Meyiwa was shot and killed. He told the court that he (Zungu) arrived with his relative identified only as Makhosonke at the…