RDM News Wire

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RDM News Wire

Montana comes out swinging against Madonsela

25th August 2015 Former Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) group CE Lucky Montana has come out swinging against Public Protector Thuli Madonsela’s report on maladministration at the parastatal. Speaking to Radio 702 on Tuesday morning‚ Montana said Madonsela was not a judge and that he would challenge... →

Rand remains weaker after plummeting to R14/$ on Chinese growth concerns

24th August 2015 The rand remained substantially weaker late on Monday after slumping to its worst level to date against the dollar — at R14 — amid global market routs and commodity price slumps after the Shanghai Composite closed more than 8% lower on the day‚ rattling investor nerves. The rand hit its weakest... →

S Africa found lacking in commitment to prosecute cross-border corruption

20th August 2015 That the number of investigations into foreign bribery is up is encouraging‚ but success should be measured in terms of the “prosecutions and sanctions” that follow. That’s the opinion of Corruption Watch’s executive director‚ David Lewis following the release of Transparency International's 2015... →

Photo by Duane Daws
Corruption Watch executive director David Lewis

Ministers meet to discuss visa regulation consequences

20th August 2015 The inter-Ministerial committee on migration‚ led by Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa‚ is scheduled to meet on Thursday. The committee - comprising the ministers of home affairs and tourism‚ as well as those from the security cluster‚ among others - was set up to “examine and solve the potential... →

Scuffles break out as PRASA staffers demand Montana’s reinstatement

19th August 2015 Senior employees at the embattled public rail agency head office in Pretoria refused to work on Wednesday demanding the reinstatement of the agency's axed head Lucky Montana. The striking employees were kicked out of the head office building PRASA (Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa) House in... →

Photo by Duane Daws
Former PRASA CEO Lucky Montana

Challenge to set aside mining charters

18th August 2015 In a fresh challenge to SA’s mining regime‚ lawyer Hulme Scholes and his firm have gone to court to set aside the Mining Charters of 2004 and 2010‚ arguing that they are unconstitutional‚ vague and contradictory‚ allowing for abuse by the mineral resources minister and officials‚ Business Day... →

Photo by Duane Daws
Malan Scholes director Hulme Scholes

Scopa shocked by grim picture painted by chief procurement officer’s report

13th August 2015 The Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) said it was shocked by the grim picture it received on Thursday from the Office of the Chief Procurement Officer on supply chain management practices of government departments. “The committee is shocked to learn that almost R500-billion was spent... →

Court asked to terminate eNatis contract immediately

13th August 2015 The Department of Transport has resorted to the High Court in Pretoria in a bid to enforce an order to terminate immediately a multibillion rand contract with the company that manages the country’s electronic national traffic information system (eNatis). The department on Wednesday asked Judge... →

Water trumps energy as a red boardroom issue – WRC

6th August 2015 Water is now a key economic business risk discussed in boardrooms‚ rather than the “green issue” it has been categorised as previously‚ said Dr Inga Jacobs of the Water Research Commission (WRC). “For the first time‚ water tops the charts for the highest global risk in terms of devastation‚ ahead... →

Saldanha Bay IDZ attracts ‘healthy interest’ from private sector

6th August 2015 Construction is well under way at the Saldanha Bay Industrial Development Zone (IDZ)‚ which is set to position the Western Cape as a rig repair hub‚ and non-disclosure agreements have been signed with 20 local and international investors. Alan Winde‚ provincial minister of economic opportunities‚... →

Unstable SAA gets another acting CEO

4th August 2015 Management instability continues unabated at South African Airways (SAA) where the human resources GM Thuli Mpshe has now been appointed to run the airline on a temporary basis and a dispute rages over the validity of the renewed contract of CFO Wolf Meyer‚ Business Day reported. There are two... →

DA calls on committee to summon Minister over nuke deal

3rd August 2015 The Democratic Alliance says it is planning to call on parliament’s portfolio committee on energy to summon Minister of Energy Tina Joemat-Pettersson to provide details on the country’s multi-billion rand Nuclear Build Programme. DA energy affairs spokesman Gordon Mackay said on Monday the party... →

Photo by Duane Daws
Energy Minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson

Oxfam calls for 'one million climate jobs' in SA

31st July 2015 More than 10% of South Africans “live in extreme poverty” on less than R16 a day‚ according to an Oxfam report to be released on Friday. “South Africa faces the triple challenge of poverty‚ inequality and unemployment‚” the Oxfam report said. →

African knowledge society crucial – Mbeki

30th July 2015 One of the major tasks which faced universities was advocacy to convince the political class in Africa that institutions of learning are “indeed situated at the centre of the African development agenda” and therefore need new significant investment to improve their capacity to discharge their... →

Photo by Al Jazeera
Thabo Mbeki

Task team to probe damage caused by new visa regulations

29th July 2015 Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom has told Talk Radio 702's John Robbie that Cabinet has appointed a task team to look into the damage being caused to tourism by tough new entry requirements imposed by Home Affairs Minister Malusi Gigaba. Hanekom said that he supported the effort to improve entry... →

Photo by Duane Daws
Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom

Revealed: real price of nuclear energy

29th July 2015 The price of electricity generated by nuclear power is expected to be higher than that from any other technology except for gas and diesel‚ two separate and independent analyses have found‚ the newspaper reported. The government is pressing ahead with a politically driven plan to procure 9 600 MW... →

Vodacom‚ Neotel get access to confidential documents in merger bid

23rd July 2015 Mobile network giant Vodacom has won a small victory in its R7-billion bid to take over fixed-line operator Neotel. It was on Wednesday granted access by the Competition Tribunal in Pretoria to confidential documents used to inform the Competition Commission's investigation into the merger. →

New dinosaur from South Africa gets Sesotho name

25th June 2015 South African and Argentinian palaeontologists have named a 200-million year old dinosaur from South Africa‚ “Sefapanosaurus”‚ from the Sesotho word “sefapano”. The researchers from South Africa’s University of Cape Town (UCT) and the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits University)‚ and from... →

Sefapanosaurus

Intellidex: BEE deals generate R317bn of value

25th June 2015 “Recent statements that BEE deals do not create substantial value are false.” That’s the conclusion Intellidex chairperson Stuart Theobald has drawn from research released on Thursday which‚ it is claimed‚ for the first time puts a number to the value of black economic empowerment transactions. →

Child visa impact biggest on SADC countries – government

25th June 2015 The new visa regulations for child travellers have had the biggest impact on children entering South Africa from neighbouring countries and not from traditional tourist markets‚ the Department of Home Affairs said on Wednesday. The department held the briefing to release arrivals statistics... →

Ten steps to create jobs through labour reform – IRR

24th June 2015 South Africa’s current jobless rate - on the official definition which excludes those too discouraged to keep actively looking for work - stands at 26%. This is substantially higher than the equivalent unemployment rates in Brazil and Russia (6% each)‚ India (9%)‚ and China (4%). The Institute of... →

Court declares R2.5bn eNaTIS contract invalid

24th June 2015 The high court in Pretoria has declared that the extension of the eNaTIS system contract from 2010 to 2015 by former transport department director-general George Mahlalela was invalid from the date of extension. Tasima was awarded the tender to operate‚ manage and maintain the country’s vehicle... →

Tourism study shows how much industry is hurting from new immigration rules

23rd June 2015 An estimated 100 000 foreign tourists will not visit South Africa this year as a consequence of the new stringent immigration regulations. This is according to an impact assessment study conducted by Grant Thornton for the Tourism Business Council of South Africa. →

Court battle over medical aid bid to cut patient benefits

19th June 2015 The Department of Health is intending to change the regulation that ensures certain diseases are paid for no matter the cost by medical aids. At the same time‚ a court case over the regulation began in the Western Cape High Court yesterday (Thursday). Currently‚ the Medical Schemes Act ensures... →

Car licences can’t be withheld for outstanding e-tolls – JPSA

18th June 2015 Any amendments to the e-road regulations under the South African National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) Act to withhold car licence discs on the basis of outstanding e-tolls must first be published for public comment‚ the Justice Project South Africa (JPSA) reiterated on Thursday. The non-profit... →

Madonsela wants to leave public protector's office stronger than she found it

12th June 2015 When her non-renewable seven-year term of office expires in October 2016‚ Public Protector Advocate Thuli Mandosela hopes to leave behind an office that would have improved how government treats its people. Madonsela‚ who was among the three public figures the University of Cape Town honoured... →

Photo by Duane Daws
Public Protector Thuli Madonsela

New ‘Operation Pyramid’ to secure SA’s borders – Cabinet

12th June 2015 The Department of Home Affairs will link up with other government agencies for a new initiative to be called “Operation Pyramid” to secure South Africa’s borders. Acting Cabinet spokesperson Phumla Williams said on Thursday that Operation Pyramid‚ to be launched later this month in Skukuza‚... →

‘Uptick’ in Gauteng toll revenues since rates lowered‚ says Rampahosa

10th June 2015 Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa says there has been an “uptick” in Gauteng toll revenues since the announcement of the lowered rates. Answering questions in Parliament’s National Assembly‚ Ramaphosa responded to a question by the Democratic Alliance about the new e-tolls dispensation saying... →

Labour tenants in 'bureaucratic limbo' while claims stall

10th June 2015 More than 14 years after the cut-off date for labour tenants to claim rights to the land they live on‚ the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform has been ordered to prove its commitment to deal with the backlog of 22 000 claims. In the Land Claims Court in Johannesburg‚ Judge Mokotedi... →

PetroSA to declare substantial losses

10th June 2015 State-owned oil company PetroSA is expected to announce a massive loss when it releases its financial statements at the end of July‚ the newspaper reported. This is due to the dismal failure of Project Ikhwezi‚ which aimed to extend the life of Mossgas‚ its gas-to-synthetic fuel refinery. →

Eskom to implement stage 1 load-shedding

8th June 2015 Eskom will implement stage 1 load-shedding from 17:00 on Monday afternoon‚ which the power utility says is likely to continue until 22:00 in the evening. It said this was due to a shortage of generation capacity resulting from technical faults at some of its units. →

DA says Hanekom must explain about-turn on visa regulations review

8th June 2015 The Democratic Alliance wants Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom to appear before Parliament’s tourism portfolio committee to explain his about-turn on a review of the new controversial visa regulations. DA shadow minister of tourism James Vos said on Monday that he had written to the chairperson of... →

Photo by Duane Daws
Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom

MPs to discuss police report on Nkandla spending

3rd June 2015 A third Parliamentary ad-hoc committee has been established to deal with spending on security at President Jacob Zuma's Nkandla home – but opposition parties have strongly objected to the terms that it only study the report by the report by Police Minister Nathi Nhleko. They argued that the... →

FIFA confirms that $10m went to Concacaf’s Warner

2nd June 2015 The South African government approved the transfer of $10-million to “support the African diaspora in Caribbean countries as part of the World Cup legacy”‚ FIFA has confirmed in a statement. A US indictment claims that the payment was a bribe to then head of regional football body Concacaf‚ Jack... →

Committee praises arrests in Hawks investigation into gold mining syndicate

1st June 2015 Two men are due to appear in court today after a weekend bust by the Hawks during which they confiscated illicitly mined gold and 3 000 IDs belonging to deceased people‚ pointing to fraud amounting to R400-million. The Portfolio Committee on Mineral Resources hailed the Hawks operation as “a... →

Zuma’s pool makes a fool of police minister - Corruption Watch

29th May 2015 David Lewis‚ head of the country's leading non-governmental anti-graft agency‚ Corruption Watch‚ has criticised Police Minister Nathi Nhleko's report exonerating President Jacob Zuma of having to pay anything for the upgrades to his Nkandla home. Nhleko yesterday concluded that upgrades to the... →

Photo by Duane Daws
David Lewis

Police Minister exonerates Zuma in row over tax cash spent on private residence

28th May 2015 Police Minister Nathi Nhleko says that the firepool‚ amphitheatre‚ kraal‚ chicken run and visitor's centre at the president's Nkandla home are all security features and Jacob Zuma is not liable for any costs associated with them. In summarising his 51-page investigation into the features‚ which... →

PetroSA does a Tsotsi on executives

28th May 2015 State-owned oil company PetroSA has placed its top three executives‚ including the CEO‚ on gardening leave due to poor performance‚ Business Day reported. The three – CEO Nosizwe Nokwe-Macamo‚ CFO Lindiwe Mthimunye-Bakoro and acting VP of upstream operations Andrew Dippenaar – were this week... →

PetroSA CEO Nosizwe Nokwe-Macamo

Zuma promises to release Marikana report

26th May 2015 President Jacob Zuma has told parliament that he will release the report of the Farlam commission of inquiry into the Marikana massacre by the end of next month. Zuma was responding to mounting pressure‚ including a threatened court action by the families of the victims of the incident which saw... →

Photo by Duane Daws
President Jacob Zuma

Johannesburg rates to go up as city spends on capital projects and skills for youth

26th May 2015 The country's biggest local government budget of R52.6-billion was tabled on Tuesday by the City of Johannesburg’s member of the Mayoral Committee for Finance‚ Geoffrey Makhubo‚ with a focus on capital expenditure‚ housing and youth employment. Makhubo presented his budget for the year 2015/16 at... →

Bucket system eradicated by year-end – Mokonyane

25th May 2015 The bucket system programme in formal areas will be a thing of the past by the end of 2015‚ Water and Sanitation Minister Nomvula Mokonyane said on Monday. About 88% of South Africans have access to clean drinkable water and almost 78% have access to decent sanitation‚ Mokonyane claimed. →

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