Author: Kgaogelo Magolego

The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) has warned disgruntled individuals and communities against boycotting elections, saying opting out of democratic participation could limit their ability to influence decisions affecting their daily lives. The warning follows the final voter registration weekend, during which some communities expressed dissatisfaction over ward changes resulting from municipal boundary reviews. Election-related protests were reported in parts of the North West and Limpopo, with residents raising concerns about their areas being moved into different wards following reviews by the Municipal Demarcation Board (MDB). IEC Deputy Chief Electoral Officer Masego Sheburi said elections provide citizens with an opportunity to…

The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) has called on political parties to play a greater role in encouraging South Africans to register and vote, saying they have the biggest incentive to mobilise voters ahead of the registration deadline. The appeal follows observations that only the four largest political parties – the ANC, DA, MK Party (MKP) and EFF – appeared to be actively campaigning during the latest voter registration weekend, while many smaller parties showed little public activity. On Saturday, Newsnote reported that the four major political parties were leading voter registration drives as the battle for South Africa’s metros intensified:…

South Africa’s four largest political parties came out strongly during the final voter registration weekend, with campaigns particularly intense in Gauteng, where the crucial metros of Johannesburg, Ekurhuleni and Tshwane have been governed through unstable coalitions since 2016. A lack of decisive outcomes from voters during the past two local government elections has resulted in nearly a decade of instability, with the ANC and the former official opposition, the Democratic Alliance, leading opposing coalitions in prolonged power struggles that have shaped the future of these key municipalities. ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula campaigned in Johannesburg, where the stakes are high. Political…

The South African government has given its strongest assurance yet that ongoing differences with Ghana over migration issues will not affect its support for, or participation in, the campaign demanding reparations for colonialism and the transatlantic slave trade. Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama is championing the campaign, which has the backing and full participation of Caribbean nations. On Thursday, the Minister in the Presidency, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, a senior member of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s Cabinet, briefed the media in Pretoria and reaffirmed South Africa’s position. She said there is no doubt that Africans, including those in the diaspora, deserve compensation for…

ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba appears to have abandoned — or simply forgotten — the party’s ideological stance as he continues to recruit political figures from across the ideological spectrum. The party has increasingly become a destination for politicians who have either been poached from other parties or recruited soon after leaving them, with many quickly finding themselves in leadership positions under the self-proclaimed “green umbrella”. Mashaba’s latest acquisition is Ayanda Allie, the former journalist who was last week expelled from Mmusi Maimane’s Build One South Africa (BOSA). Mashaba unveiled Allie during a media briefing in Johannesburg on Friday, revealing that…

Uncertainty remains in the Spanish territory of Ceuta, even as some of the estimated 50,000 Moroccan men who crossed into the enclave voluntarily return home. The men, most of whom appeared to be of military age, reportedly spent the day looting before beginning their return to Morocco. Many complained of hunger and said they had been unable to find food in the towns they entered. The mass return followed a chaotic day in which Spanish authorities deployed additional police and military personnel after the border was overwhelmed by the influx. Despite condemning the incursion as a threat to Spain’s territorial…

The government has expressed concern over the number of deaths recorded during the 2026 winter customary initiation school season. By the time the initiation schools closed, a total of 47 initiates, all male, had died. Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni described the fatalities as unacceptable, saying the government was doing everything possible to ensure the safety of initiates. “Cabinet conveyed its heartfelt condolences to the families of the 47 initiates who lost their lives during the 2026 Winter Customary Initiation Season and wished those injured or still receiving medical treatment a speedy recovery,” Ntshavheni said during a post-Cabinet media…

Calls are mounting for suspended National Police Commissioner General Fannie Masemola to be reinstated following former Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (IDAC) head Andrea Johnson’s testimony before the Madlanga Commission. During her appearance on Wednesday, Johnson conceded there was no sound legal basis for charging Masemola alongside alleged criminal kingpin Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala and his co-accused. Matlala and the other accused face fraud and corruption charges linked to the multimillion-rand South African Police Service (SAPS) tender awarded to Medicare24. Masemola, however, was charged separately with allegedly contravening provisions of the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA). Civil society organisations have argued that…

Former Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (IDAC) head Andrea Johnson came under further scrutiny at the Madlanga Commission, where commissioners questioned the legality and motives behind the arrests and prosecutions of senior police officials. Johnson was pressed to concede that there was no sound legal basis for charging suspended National Police Commissioner Major-General Fannie Masemola alongside alleged underworld kingpin Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala and other accused persons. The commission heard that Johnson and her team were aware that charging Masemola alongside Matlala and the other accused could create the impression that the national commissioner was implicated in the alleged corruption surrounding a…

A 47-year-old man from Boschkop may face jail time for attempted murder if convicted of deliberately infecting his girlfriend with HIV. The man appeared in the Pretoria Magistrates’ Court, where his case was postponed to 3 August 2026. The State alleges that the accused and the complainant were in a relationship between October 2025 and June 2026, during which he allegedly falsely claimed to be HIV-negative despite knowing that he was infected. He allegedly infected the woman during their relationship. NPA Gauteng spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana said the arrest in the landmark case followed an alleged admission by the man to…