Author: Tshegofatso Letsie

The Department of Tourism Minister, Patricia de Lille, has hit back at America’s latest updated travel advisory for South Africa, which warned travellers about a supposed high risk of terrorist violence in the country. It further imposed stricter security measures for its government employees and citizens coming to South Africa. De Lille sought to allay fears of prospective travellers following the update. “We understand that travellers may have concerns, and we encourage all visitors to exercise the same level of vigilance and awareness they would when visiting any international destination. Visitor safety is and continues to be a national priority. …

The Department of Correctional Services (DCS) believes it’ll be represented by what it described as a “formidable” team at this year’s Comrades Marathon. The Department says it will deploy about 270 officials to the much-anticipated race between Pietermaritzburg and Durban on Sunday. National Commissioner, Makgothi Thobakgale believes they’ll be ready for the race of their lives following intense preparations. “Our athletes donned in unmistakable Correctional Services colours, have undergone rigorous training in preparation for this iconic race, hence we talk of a team poised to make a bold statement on the road,” said a confident Thobakgale. The Department is no…

Higher Education and Training Minister, Dr Nobuhle Nkabane, has sought to clarify viral moments of her appearance before the Department’s Portfolio Committee in Parliament. These were various video clips of her chewing what appeared to be gum and seemingly apprehensive when fielding questions from MPs circulated on social media. Amongst others, the Committee wanted clarity on the appointments of the reversed SETA board members as well as more details regarding the panel that was established to oversee the process. In her defence, Nkabane implored the public to watch the full proceedings and not just snippets that went viral. “Claims that…

The North West Department of Education has bemoaned the persisting challenge of teenage pregnancy in the province. MEC Viola Motsumi says it’s one of the leading factors that affect the Department’s ambition of obtaining first position in the national matric results. This emerged during an outreach programme on addressing teenage pregnancy held at the Bojanala District in Phokeng Village, near Rustenburg on Sunday. The initiative was in partnership with the Royal Bafokeng Institute, The Department of Health including health professionals and doctors from the Steve Biko Academic Hospital. Motsumi said efforts by the Department and its partners to end pregnancy…

James Moloi has been re-elected as President of Athletics South Africa (ASA), President, James Moloi after receiving majority of the votes during the federation’s Quadrennial General Meeting held in Kempton Park, Ekurhuleni, on Saturday. His re-election marks his fourth year leading the organisation since he assumed the role back in 2021. Delivering his acceptance speech, Moloi thanked the support and confidence the council showed in him while committing to elevate ASA. “I am thankful for the support shown by the council, which shows that we’ve done well for the last four years. Now I’m going to do my level best…

The North West Department of Community Safety and Transport Management is optimistic that its crime prevention programmes are yielding positive results. This after registering a decline in all categories of crime in the 2024/25 financial year. The Department’s MEC, Wessels Morweng released the fourth quarter crime stats alongside stakeholders in Potchefstroom on Thursday. “The province has achieved a significant 7.6% reduction on 17 community reported crimes. This was in total 1 972 cases less, that were reported as compared to the same period in 2024. All crime categories recorded a decline, with contact crimes having a decrease of 7.7%. Owing…

The recent General Household Survey for 2024 released by Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) shows that nationally, 22.2% of households rated their access to food inadequate or severely inadequate. According to the report, KwaZulu-Natal, Northen Cape, Eastern Cape, and Mpumalanga have the poorest access to food. It added that the number of people reliant to government grants increased from 12.8% in 2003 to 30.9% in 2019 and went up to 40.1% in 2024. Director for Service Delivery Statistics, Niel Roux shared other highlights from the Survey. “Forty-five point-five percent of children lived with mothers only while less than a third…

The North West Legislature Portfolio Committee on Health and Social Development has expressed concern over what it reports to be the high number of social grant beneficiaries who are opting to receive their payments through personal bank accounts. This emerged from its oversight meeting with the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) and the Department of Social Development, where the committee discovered that about 43 945 beneficiaries are opting to receive their money via direct bank payments, bypassing both the traditional SASSA gold cards and the Postbank black cards. The meeting was held to assess the ongoing migration of SASSA…

Residents will experience low water pressure to intermittent supply as Rand Water is set to begin critical infrastructure maintenance between the 29th of May to 2nd June and some continued recovery work scheduled for July. These repairs will interrupt water supply at crucial pumping systems of Eikenhof, Palmiet, Mapleton and Zwartkopjes which distribute water to numerous municipalities of Tshwane, Ekurhuleni, Johannesburg and the North West. The entity’s CEO Sipho Mosai emphasized the significance of the maintenance, explaining that it is part of efforts to bolster operational efficiency, reliability and capacity. He adds that this is done in winter to ensure…

Seasoned American actor, Viola Davis, has come to the defence of South Africa to dispel unsubstantiated claims of a white genocide made by US president Donald Trump. Despite a meeting between President Cyril Ramaphosa and the Trump administration seeking to dispel the allegations, the narrative continues. The acclaimed actor and producer impressed many South Africans when she spoke out and dismissed the claims as misleading and harmful. “Spent a lot of time in Cape Town, Stellenbosch, Franschhoek, Paarl and Durban. “There is no argument, there is no justification. I have seen the ravages of apartheid. I’ve seen the townships- ALL…