PRETORIA – The South African Police Service has said that a series of social media posts depicting a building in Pretoria – a police building – as a centre for human trafficking is fake news. In a statement today, the police said the building on Johannes Ramokhoase Street in the CBD was in fact a […]

Gross domestic product for South Africa fell by just over 16 percent between the first and second quarters of 2020, giving an annualised growth rate of ‑51 percent, according to figures released today by Stats SA. The one sector to see good growth (15 percent) was agriculture. [Thread]Steep slump in #GDP as #COVID19 takes its […]

After 400 Clicks stores across the country were apparently shut by Economic Freedom Fighters supporters today, and seven damaged and/or petrol-bombed, charges are to be laid against the EFF, several of whose leaders exhorted members to “Attack” the pharmaceutical chain today over a controversial advertisement. Clicks apologised publicly on Friday for the TRESemme hair product […]

A band of citizens in inner city Johannesburg this weekend became the latest private grouping trying to make an impact on the often-overlooked and dire garbage situation plaguing the streets, and they took to one of the worst-hit areas, Hillbrow. “The CleanCitySA Adopt a Street Volunteers Network was successfully launched in Hillbrow today,” CleanCitySA said […]

On Wednesday the Auditor General released publicly the final first special audit report into COVID government expenditure made under TERS till the end of July – including UIF COVID-19 Ters transactions – indicating serious risks and violations. As a result, the Unemployment Insurance Found Commissioner Teboho Maruping was suspended. Here are some of the AG’s […]

The head of department for Human Settlements in Mpumalanga, who has made statements in the media before on behalf of the province, has appeared in court after it was discovered he has been living in South Africa illegally for 25 years and claimed on three separate occasions to have been born in different places in […]

Eskom today said two station chiefs had been suspended after Stage 4 loadshedding this week was responded to with “apathetic behaviour,” and said that urgent culture change at the utility had to be accelerated. The managers of the Tutuka and Kendal power stations were summarily suspended pending disciplinary enquiries, Eskom said in a statement. It […]

The Vaal Dam has continued to fall this week, hitting levels unseen since the beginning of 2017, when large parts of the country were in the grip of a devastating drought. But other dams feeding the north of the country have kept good levels. “As the Vaal Dam persists to drop week-on-week, it now hovers […]

In a bid to sell more South African wine overseas, a new matchmaking portal has been launched to bring together buyers and sellers of Western Cape wine. Cape Export Network is a platform for South African wine producers to freely advertise their products and connect them with international importers and buyers of wine, and has […]

The Eastern Cape, which in 2018 changed the name of Grahamstown to Makhanda, is at it again. This time it wants to change East London, King William’s Town, Berlin and the East London Airport. The proposals are to change the name of East London to KuGompo, King William’s Town to Qonce, Berlin to Ntabozuko and […]

The Passenger Railways Association of South Africa, clawing its way back from years of mismanagement and corruption, has a new man in charge after a court order last week ruled that the appointment of an administrator in December last year was unlawful. “We are pleased that the National Treasury has appointed Mr Badisa Matshego as […]

Kebone Masange, the head of the department of human settlements in Mpumalanga, was arrested in Pretoria today by Home Affairs officials for allegedly being in possession of numerous identity documents, according to a news report in City Press. The story also said that he had not been vetted for the position when he got it […]

Despite Eskom’s inability to meet the country’s electricity needs and plunging everyone into darkness with loadshedding – taken to Stage 4 today – the government rejects alternatives because it wants Eskom to keep its monopoly, according to the Democratic Alliance. “At a time when the country desperately needs economic growth, Eskom once again plunges us […]

As cold weather persists through many parts of South Africa, Eskom has said it would move loadshedding from Stage 2 to Stage 4 today – the first time since March – because of high demand and multiple unit breakdowns. “Eskom regrets to announce that loadshedding will move from Stage 2 to stage 4 at 15:00 […]

Saying he no longer felt at home in the Democratic Alliance after 22 years, the Gauteng leader John Moodey resigned today. “I am aware of many more DA members who feel the same way I do,” he said in his statement. “If the DA is pleased with being a 20 percent party I’m not.” The […]

On the same day that a Democratic Alliance-requested debate in Parliament took place to discuss #FarmAttacks in South Africa, several African National Congress leaders have broken the usual party silence about the issue, with the KwaZulu-Natal Premier saying that everything should be done to catch the perpetrators of the most recent attack, this weekend in […]

Over the past two weeks, several incidents have occurred at the Kruger National Park that have caused visitors and potential visitors (who can’t get in) to wonder what exactly is going on at one of the world’s most famous game parks. In the middle of June, SANParks said it was recalling staff to prepare the […]

Members of the ANC who are formally charged with corruption or other crimes must immediately step down from their positions, the ANC said today in a statement summing up the decisions of its highest body over the weekend. The meeting also drew attention to “what seemed like an choreographed campaign” against President Cyril Ramaphosa, and […]

Only days after the most recent brutal farm murder, a debate on farm killings is scheduled to take place in Parliament tomorrow, according to the Democratic Alliance. The most recent farm murder took place over the weekend, when Glen and Vida Rafferty were shot and killed on their farm near Newcastle, KwaZulu-Natal. Large motorbike rallies […]

After announcing four other original productions in July, Showmax has said it will be involved in another two new international co-productions: an epic African mythology series “Blood Psalms,” with Canal+ International, and the Megan Fox action movie “Rogue.”   “This continues a move towards co-productions from Showmax’s parent company, MultiChoice, which partnered with HBO on […]

Ministers, MECs and mayors should stay out of the administration of public services and let public servants do their work, and appointments should be made on qualifications not political considerations, according to a letter by President Cyril Ramaphosa to mark the start tomorrow of Public Service Month. “The civil service must be seen as a […]

While signs of spring are appearing visibly in the West Coast National Park and Franschhoek (see the photos below of flowers and snow), the mountains above the town and in Stellenbosch are even snowier than the freak snowy conditions on Table Mountain today. Everyone is being told to bundle up. Temperatures in Sutherland are reported […]

Nine people and nine companies have appeared in the Bloemfontein Regional Court in connection with 286 charges that include fraud, money laundering, and corruption by both a public officer and private persons. The money stolen amounted to over R7 million, which the suspects allegedly divided among themselves. The National Prosecuting Authority today named the accused […]

The Zandile Gumede story seems to go from disaster to disaster … for the African National Congress. Today the disgraced former eThekwini mayor was told to take a leave of absence from the KwaZulu-Natal legislature – a job she only got last week – but with her full R1.1 million salary. “Life, it seems, is […]

Six men were arrested west of Johannesburg today, after a combined force of PRASA and the police caught them with railway assets worth R5.5 million, as well as equipment used in illegal mining. “This is fuelling suspicion that elements involved in illegal mining, known as the zama-zamas, are now targeting rail infrastructure,” PRASA said in […]