Author: Silver Sibiya
ANC SG Fikile Mbalula has accused the DA-led multi party coalition at the City of Tshwane, of collapsing the municipality. The City still doesn’t have a mayor and mayoral committee after last week’s resignation of the Executive Mayor Murunwa Makwarela after he was to be still insolvent and trying to prove he has been rehabilitated by producing a fraudulent certificate. Makwarela, a Cope candidate, was appointed to the mayorship after the resignation of the DA’s Randall Willliams in February. The DA multiparty coalition took over in 2016 after ANC lost the local government elections. A new mayor is expected to…
The interdict against the Nehawu labour strike has brought relief to many patients, some of whom were scared to go to hospital because of the intimidation by the striking workers. Health workers under Nehawu had embarked on a strike that turned violent as some doctors and health practitioners were intimidated as they tried to get into hospitals to treat patients. Some patients were turned back from the hospitals and it was reported some even died because they couldn’t get life-saving treatment. Health Minister Joe Phaahla was quoted as saying the protest action may have caused the deaths of four patients…
The Executive Tshwane Mayorship is vacant again following the North Gauteng High Court decision that current Mayor Murunwa Makwarela’s rehabilitation certificate is ‘fake’ forcing him to vacate his seat with immediate effect. The coalition parties in the Metro DA, ActionSA, FF+, IFP and the ACDP have opened a case at the Brooklyn police station against Makwarela. Cope in Tshwane in the City confirmed in a statement that Makwarela has resigned as the Mayor. “We duly accepted the resignation of Dr Murunwa Makwarela as the Executive Mayor of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality following the questions raised over the legitimacy of his Rehabilitation…
In another twist to the Tshwane Executive Mayoral saga, Dr Murunwa Makwarela has been reinstated as the Mayor with immediate effect after his lawyer said there was proof that he had been rehabilitated following his sequestration in 2016. The law doesn’t allow council members who are sequestrated to be in public office. Yesterday his lawyers sent a letter to the Metro’s City Manager Johann Mettler informing him that Makwarela would be reinstated and added that as the withdrawal of the vacancy declaration was submitted within 21 days, Makwarela is able to return to his role as Tshwane Mayor. Mettler then…
The Gauteng government will use most of this year’s budget on social services, beef up infrastructure and crime fighting services as well as to uplift the township or kasi economy. Finance MEC Jacob Mamabolo tabled his budget of just under R500 billion today at the Gauteng Legislature in Johannesburg. Gauteng contributes 35% to the country’s GDP which amounts to more than R1.2 trillion. The provincial economy is estimated to have grown by 2.1% in 2022 against an expectation of 1.8%. The province’s economic output is projected to moderate to 1.5% this year before stabilising at an average annual rate of…
The family of three-year-old Kganya Mokhele, who died tragically after a shelf allegedly fell on him on Tuesday at the Little Ashford Preschool in Bedfordview, are demanding answers from the school Yesterday the family met the MEC for Education Matome Chiloane at the preschool and while they were there drops of blood were still visible from the doorsteps of the classroom where the accident allegedly occurred. Mokhele’s grandfather Sipho Radebe accused the preschool of lying to them and demanded that they be held accountable for the tragedy. Radebe has alleged that the school refused to share footage of the incident…
Protesting Wits University students are calling on President Cyril Ramaphosa, to reshuffle the Minister of Higher Education Blade Nzimande, during his cabinet reshuffle this evening. The students have been protesting since last week, calling for an end to financial exclusion and provision of accommodation among others. The first call for Nzimande to step down was made by the historic Fees Must Fall protests in 2015 and now the Wits students are also joining in the calls for the Minister of Higher Education to be moved out. Wits University Chairperson of the Law Students’ Council Thato Lebitso said Nzimande must be…
Tensions finally exploded between Wits University students and security officers when the group started throwing objects towards each other during the second day of protests and demonstration by students against being excluded from the university because of historical debt. Tensions were raised when the guards tried to stop the students from entering the Wits administration building, the Great Hall. The pushing and shoving went on for a while but Nehawu workers who had joined the strike in sympathy finally succeeded in stopping both sides from fighting each other. Minutes after the violence stopped four police Nyalas came charging to disperse…
Businesses have shut down in and around Braamfontein, Joburg following a protest by Wits University students on Thursday. The students are demanding financial inclusion and enough funds for accommodation, and to be allowed to register for the 2023 academic year while NSFAS is still trying to clear their historical debt with the university. Traffic was disrupted in Braamfontein, Auckland Park and Parktown as the students embarked on a second day of demonstrations and this affected Empire and Jan Smuts; those roads were barricaded with burning objects and plastics. After much shoving and pushing, the police and the JMPD officers were…
Some of the Wits students who embarked on a protest this morning said they have been forced to sleep at libraries, as they cannot afford campus residence fees. Jackson Mdluli, said they are being marginalised and this has been happening for months where students without accommodation have been sleeping in the Wits library while some slept outside ATMs. BOwen Stuttgart said most of his classes were moved online due to protests and some students were denied access but that didn’t happen to him. However, he said he was unhappy with how the students conducted themselves. “They have valid issues, many…