Author: Silver Sibiya

President Cyril Ramaphosa says US President Donald Trump will be the “biggest loser” for choosing not to attend the G20 Leaders’ Summit in Johannesburg next weekend. Speaking to the media on the sidelines of the Kliptown Cleanup Campaign in Soweto today, Ramaphosa reacted to Trump’s announcement that neither he nor any senior US official will participate in the summit — a decision analysts warn could further isolate Washington at a time of heightened global economic uncertainty. Ramaphosa insisted the G20 gathering will proceed successfully without Trump. “If you boycott an event or process, you are the biggest loser,” he said.…

Police have opened a case of attempted murder after three people including a one-year-old child were shot and injured in Westbury on Thursday night. The shooting happened at around 20:30 on 13 November 2025.According to police, two suspects were chasing a man who fled into a house in the area. The gunmen followed him and opened fire inside the home. Three people in the house were hit by stray bullets, while the man being pursued managed to escape. The victims were rushed to nearby medical facilities and are reported to be in serious but stable condition. Police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel…

President Cyril Ramaphosa arrived at Walter Sisulu Square in Kliptown, Soweto, this morning to participate in the CEO-City Clean-Up Partnership Programme.He is currently in a closed meeting with private-sector CEOs, government officials, and civil-society leaders to develop sustainable solutions to Johannesburg’s urban decay.The initiative, launched earlier this week by Mayor Dada Morero, aims to restore dignity and functionality to the city’s neglected areas.Ramaphosa will later conduct a walkabout at the historic square and plant a tree before briefing the media.Gauteng Premier’s spokesperson Elijah Mhlanga said: “We want to lead from the front in showing our people what to do.”

A banner declaring South Africa the “most race-regulated country in the world” has sparked a legal showdown between the trade union Solidarity and the City of Johannesburg, highlighting tensions between freedom of expression and government authority just weeks before the G20 Leaders’ Summit. City of Johannesburg Mayor Dada Morero condemned the banner, accusing Solidarity of deliberately stirring racial tensions. “Our country’s laws are inclusive and aimed at protecting all citizens, regardless of race,” Morero said, defending the transformation policies underpinning employment equity and Black Economic Empowerment. Solidarity, however, argues that the city overstepped its authority by removing the banner from…

The Ahmed Kathrada Foundation has called on South Africans to unite in condemning US President Donald Trump’s “false and dangerous” claims of a white, Afrikaner genocide in South Africa, warning that the remarks threaten to inflame racial tensions and distort the country’s image internationally. Trump, in a post on his Truth Social platform this week, alleged that white Afrikaners are being “killed and slaughtered” and that their farms are being “illegally confiscated.” The Foundation said the comments echo long-debunked conspiracy theories propagated by far-right groups and serve a political purpose within Trump’s “Make America Great Again” (MAGA) movement. “This rhetoric…

Ekurhuleni Mayor Nkosindiphile Xhakaza has defended the municipality’s delay in suspending Metro Police Deputy Chief Brigadier Julius Mkhwanazi, following explosive allegations revealed by the Madlanga Commission. The Commission heard that Mkhwanazi allegedly called his own SWAT team to clean up a murder scene in Brakpan and approved the installation of blue lights on private vehicles belonging to businessman Vusimusi “Cat” Matlala. Speaking during the unveiling of new vehicles for the city’s Festive Season Safety Campaign on Wednesday in Kempton Park, Xhakaza said the City acted as soon as credible information became available. “I’m not making excuses, but there have been…

ActionSA says its call for greater funding for the South African Revenue Service (SARS) — instead of increasing Value Added Tax (VAT) has been vindicated. The party’s proposal to strengthen SARS’s capacity has paid off after the agency received an additional R4 billion earlier this year. According to the Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) tabled in Parliament on Wednesday, SARS is now expected to collect about R19.7 billion more in revenue for the 2025/26 financial year than what was initially projected in the February Budget. ActionSA says it has long argued that South Africa’s revenue problems stem not from insufficient…

The City of Johannesburg will on Wednesday launch a landmark CEO–City Cleanup Programme, aimed at restoring the city’s infrastructure, improving service delivery, and reviving civic pride. Mayor Dada Morero says the initiative marks a “moment of truth” for Johannesburg, bringing together government, business leaders, and communities in a collective effort to reverse years of urban decay and service backlogs. “This is more than a campaign — it’s a partnership to restore Johannesburg’s glory,” Morero said. “Leadership is not about position; it’s about participation.” The programme will begin with cleanup and revitalisation work in the Inner City, Braamfontein, Hillbrow, Berea, Yeoville,…

Residents of Reiger Park in Ekurhuleni have voiced frustration over the lack of police resources in their area, following a spate of deadly gang-related attacks. They raised their concerns during Acting Police Minister Firoz Cachalia’s visit to the community after six people were killed in Reiger Park and two others in Westbury recently. Some residents have questioned whether the minister’s new crime-fighting plan will bring real change. Community leader Lycinder Grootboom said many coloured communities across the country are living in fear.  “I’m hoping this visit is not just for show because there has been an outcry in all coloured…

Zimbabwean opposition politician Job Sikhala (53) and his uncle, Alexander Ferrowst Thema (78), briefly appeared in the Pretoria Magistrates Court on Monday on charges of possession of explosives. Police allege that on 6 November 2025, the pair were stopped while driving along Kgosi Mampuru Street in Pretoria, where a search of their vehicle uncovered 26 blasting cartridges and 15 connector cap fuses. Sikhala, a former Member of Parliament and senior figure in Zimbabwe’s Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC), has been a vocal critic of the ruling ZANU-PF government. He spent more than a year in detention in Zimbabwe for charges…