Author: newsnote correspondent

Deputy Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE), Dr Nobuhle Nkabane, says “coal is king” and remains critical for the country’s energy security. She said Eskom still relied heavily on coal to generate power even as the country embarks on its “just transition” to cleaner energy. Nkabane was addressing the annual Southern African Coal Conference in Cape Town on Thursday, attended by various players in the international coal and energy sector. Over 90% of energy supplied by Eskom is derived from coal. She said coal was more valuable to the South African economy than gold, and would continue to be a key…

Former Fifa president Sepp Blatter has claimed that Africa won’t host a World Cup again soon after South Africa 13 years ago.Blatter lauded South Africa for hosting the ‘best-ever’ World Cup. Blatter lauded South Africa for hosting the ‘best-ever’ World Cup in 2010 but believes no African country has the capacity to organise the global tournament again, at least not soon. The former Fifa boss says the expansion of the World Cup to 48 teams means only countries with a lot of money can host it and is also not possible for a single country to carry the burden. South Africa…

Many South Africans are being stripped of their South African citizenship when they voluntarily obtain citizenship in a second country. Gary Moore, a Senior Researcher at the Free Market Foundation, said many thousands of South Africans are having their citizenship stripped, with many, if not most, not knowing. Moore looked at a 2021 application made to the Pretoria High Court for an order to declare Section 6(1) of the Citizenship Act constitutionally invalid. Section 6(1) states that South Africans will automatically lose their citizenship if they voluntarily obtain citizenship of another country – a continuation of apartheid law. However, the South…

The Gauteng Department of Health says it has prioritised the fast-tracking of critical and advanced medical procedures. The department says there are currently over 32 000 people on waiting lists. “Currently the province has just over 32 000 patients at all public hospitals who are on the waiting lists for various procedures. The majority of which are elective surgeries.” Gauteng Department of Health spokesperson Motalatale Modiba says they hope to reduce the surgical backlogs through the utilisation of cluster hospital theatres and collaborations, as well as filling critical vacant posts. “The waiting period ranges from weeks and months for some,…

South Africa’s energy crisis is expected to be top of the agenda for President Cyril Ramaphosa’s State Of The Nation Address (SONA) on 9 February. The SONA aims to inform the public about the government’s planned priorities for the year ahead, but with South Africa entering day 32 of load shedding in 2023, the power crisis is dominating headlines and government talking points. Last year’s address by the president was also very focused on the worsening energy situation. At the time, Ramaphosa announced a slew of interventions aimed at improving the situation, including raising the cap for energy self-generation without a…

Residents in the City of Tshwane are begging for access to clean flowing water and the maintenance of neighborhood lighting. The request came as several of the capital’s biggest reservoirs’ water levels continued to drop. After the recent heatwave and frequent power outages severely damaged its infrastructure, Rand Water limited delivery. A rising number of places were left without water for more than four days in a row, including Mamelodi, Atteridgeville, Mooikloof, Centurion, and Mabopane. Basic services are desperately needed by people, places of business, and institutions. Atteridgeville’s parched residents said that the longer their taps went dry, the more…

A 20-year-old male suspect is expected to appear at the Standerton District Court tomorrow, Wednesday 01 February 2023 on charges of murder which took place on 09 January 2023 around 01:00. According to the report, on that fateful day police were called to a scene on the outskirts of a farm in Standerton. Upon arrival members found the lifeless body of Mr Thapelo Boesak Motloung (51) with some injuries which suggests that the victim was severely assaulted. The medical personnel were also called to the scene and upon arrival, they unfortunately certified him dead. A murder case was opened and…

Malema made these remarks while addressing the media on Sunday. The shutdown is planned for 20 March.   “The national shutdown means that there will be no school, no university, factories and no business will be operating on that day. All municipalities and all major cities will be shut own and there will be no work on that day. All major roads will be barricaded and all ports of entry including roads that lead to borders will be closed,” said Malema. “We cannot fold our arms and do nothing when the ANC government and Cyril Ramaphosa, who is involved in a…

By Jonathan Jansen What happens when those responsible for managing universities cannot trust each other to act with integrity? In a nutshell, as I discuss in my new book, Corrupted: A study of chronic dysfunction in South African universities, dysfunction is the consequence. This is the situation playing out in some South African universities – sometimes with fatal results. In early January 2023, a protection officer who was guarding Fort Hare University vice-chancellor Professor Sakhela Buhlungu was shot dead in an apparent assassination attempt. The shooting has been linked to ongoing investigations into corruption at the university. This appears to be just one example of how eroded…

Military website Global Firepower has published its military strength ranking for 2023 featuring 145 countries, with the ranking utilising more than 60 different factors to determine a given nation’s PowerIndex. The Global Firepower PowerIndex is calculated by focusing on weapon diversity rather than the total number of weapons available to any country to provide a better balance of firepower. The formula also allows smaller, more technologically-advanced nations to compete with larger, lesser-developed powers, and special modifiers – in the form of bonuses and penalties – are applied to further refine the list, which is compiled annually. One such special modifier is a…