Bad drivers in South Africa will no longer be able to get away with misbehaving as mounting demerit points could see them lose their licences. Are you ready for the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences Act to be rolled out nationally this year? Carte Blanche investigates whether AARTO can finally make the nation’s roads […]

Tourism Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi-Ngubane has suspended the Tourism Equity Fund’s (TEF) activities until discussions have taken place with AfriForum and Solidarity. This decision comes after the two institutions sent an urgent letter to the Minister about the fund, which intends to only offer financing to black-owned tourism businesses. In the Minister’s reply, she announced that […]

The impact of heavy rains, caused by tropical storm Eloise, has resulted in Stage 2 load shedding in South Africa that will continue through the weekend. Eskom says the loadshedding, which has been implemented from noon today, has been exacerbated by the forced shutdown of five generating units at the Medupi Power Station. The power cuts […]

The National Consumer Commission (NCC) has launched an investigation into allegations of price gouging in South Africa, relating to garlic and ginger. What is price gouging? “The law defines price gouging as an unfair or unreasonable price increase that does not correspond to or is not equivalent to the increase in the cost of providing […]

Whisky Magazine announced today (4 February) that Andy Watts, Distell Master Distiller of a range of proudly South African whiskies, Bain’s Cape Mountain Whisky and Three Ships Whisky, will be bestowed the great honour of being inducted into Whisky Magazine’s Whisky Hall of Fame! The induction will take place on 25 March during an online […]

If people who work for the government tell us our safety depends on us not knowing what they do, we might suspect that they wanted to cover up wrong-doing. Unless, it seems, they work for state security agencies. South Africa’s media are awash with shock at “bombshell” revelations about the country’s security services at the […]

South African National Parks (SANParks) today, 04 February 2021, says it welcomes the decision by the Constitutional Court – dated 1 February 2021 – to dismiss the application for leave to appeal a High Court decision allowing for the Skukuza Regional Court to continue operating inside the Kruger National Park (KNP). The application for leave […]

Greyhound and Citiliner have announced they will be closing operations on 14 February 2021, after 37 years in South Africa… another casualty to Lockdown and the Coronavirus Pandemic. The company thanked its customers and said: “It has been our pleasure connecting you across Southern Africa for the past 37 years.” Chris Hunsinger – DA Shadow […]

There are many reasons for the global spotlight to be on South Africa, but right now the country is gaining a lot of attention because of its interest in cryptocurrencies. Cryptocurrencies, particularly Bitcoin (BTC), are rising considerably in popularity in South Africa to such a massive extent that many crypto space experts consider the country […]

Ford Motor Company this morning announced an investment of $1.05 billion (R15.8 billion) in its South African manufacturing operations. This marks the biggest investment in Ford’s 97-year history in South Africa, the company said. The South African government welcomed the announcement, which is one of the largest-ever investments in the South African automotive industry. It […]

Sport, Arts and Culture Minister, Nathi Mthethwa, has expressed sadness at the passing of sport broadcaster, Sandile kaNqose. The popular broadcaster, who always had a ready smile, reportedly passed away on Monday at the age of 42. A die-hard sport fan, who had an insatiable passion for broadcasting, Nqose resumed his career at eNCA in […]

Traders who missed the peak tourist season say that despite the announcement by President Cyril Ramaphosa on Monday night that beaches are now open once again, the damage has been done. Thembisile Ngidi, who has plied her wares on Durban beachfront for 15 years, says the busiest days of the year are in December, and this season they […]

The head of the Passenger Rail Agency of SA’s legal division, Martha Ngoye, who probably saved PRASA billions, has been fired, according to a statement by the chairman of the board of control, Leonard Ramatlakane. Two other executives have also been dismissed, on what look like spurious grounds. On Saturday 30 January, Ramatlakane announced that […]

South African consumers will have to dig deeper into their pockets as the price of petrol is set to increase by 81 cents a litre this week. In a statement on Monday, the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) said the price of 93 (ULP and LRP) and 95 (ULP and LRP) will increase […]

Lawyers acting on behalf of the Democratic Alliance (DA) have this weekend submitted to the Zondo Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture an extensive list of questions to be posed to South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa. DA Leader John Steenhuisen said in a statement on Tuesday: “As ANC president, Cyril Ramaphosa needs to […]

kulula.com has launched a domestic sale in the romantic month of February to promote the love for local travel this year. Making sure ‘love is in the air’, the ‘sale at first sight’ promotion offers special fares until Thursday (4 Feb) – from as low as R354. The airline says: “With 347 800 seats on […]

The Federated Hospitality Association of South Africa, FEDHASA, has welcomed tonight’s Presidential address that confirmed shorter curfew hours and the lifting of the outright ban on alcohol sales, bringing great relief to a hospitality sector which has borne the brunt of heightened restrictions aimed at curbing the spread of COVID. “We are thrilled with tonight’s […]

South Africans are tonight toasting President Cyril Ramaphosa’s announcement that although the country will remain on Level 3 Alert, several restrictions are being eased. Alcohol sales and restaurant consumption is again allowed. Beaches and parks are open once more. Here are more details on the revisions… Alcohol Alcohol sales from retail outlets will be permitted […]

Disinformation, bad science and fake news have spiked to unprecedented levels as the globe has been battered by COVID-19 for over a year. This week Carte Blanche takes some of South Africans’ most frequently asked COVID-19 questions to some of the country’s top scientists. You can watch the show on Sunday 31 January in South […]

The Namibian government will put 170 wild elephants up for sale today, 29 January, justified by false population statistics and disputed claims of human-elephant conflict. More than 100,000 people have signed a petition condemning the action… writes Don Pinnock, Daily Maverick. See petition here. The Namibian government says it has too many elephants and that […]

The Department of Health has discouraged the use of Ivermectin vaccine for management of COVID-19, until the study on its efficacy and safety is concluded. In a statement on Thursday, department spokesperson Popo Maja said that the National Essential Medicines List Committee (NEMLC) COVID-19 Sub-Committee has carefully considered all available evidence on the treatment or […]

COVID-19 has now killed more than 43 000 people in South Africa after 555 more patients succumbed to the respiratory disease on Thursday. According to the Health Minister, Dr Zweli Mkhize, 249 fatalities were recorded in KwaZulu-Natal, 150 in the Eastern Cape, 70 in Gauteng, 45 in the Western Cape, 21 in Mpumalanga and 10 in […]

The construction of a multimillion-rand Lottery-funded old age home in a rural Limpopo village has been abandoned. Now thieves are stripping the buildings and stealing material from the site. R26 million was given to a mystery non-profit organisation by the National Lotteries Commission to construct an old-age home in rural Limpopo. The home is half-built […]

In June 2020, the first Ivermectin news that received public attention was a report that Ivermectin inhibited the replication of SARS-COV-2 in monkey kidney cells (1)… writes Justin Ward. This sparked considerable interest in the drug and over the next six months, many studies were completed including randomized controlled trials (RCT) as well as prospective […]

AfriForum says SAHPRA’s announcement that it will allow, for humanitarian reasons, a controlled access programme for the use of ivermectin in humans to treat COVID-19 is a step in the right direction BUT still “extremely restrictive”. Therefore AfriForum’s case against SAHPRA, which will be heard on 2 February 2021, will continue, said the organisation. AfriForum […]