The 2016 Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG) has been released today. It is the 10th release by the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, and reveals overall significant improvement in governance over the past ten years across Africa, with unfortunately deterioration in Safety and Rule of Law holding progress back. Sadly South Africa is one of those that has deteriorated […]

It’s the debate that keeps giving. Here are just three of the many takes on the first 2016 debate between American Presidential candidates Donald Trump (Republican) and Hillary Clinton (Democrat): 1. With Afrikaans Accents Ja nee! This video was uploaded by Afrikaans4Dummies: “When Donald Trump, the bombastic billionaire reality TV host we all know and […]

Although South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma has called for unity in addressing the current university fees crisis in South Africa, which has seen student protests raging on campuses around the country, his words appear to have distanced students even further… with many on Twitter calling his speech a “fail” and “empty”, displaying “no leadership”. Speaking […]

UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson referred to the continent of Africa as “country” while delivering a speech on his first three months as Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs.  Speaking at the Conservative Party conference, Johnson said: “For all its difficulties, life expectancy in Africa has risen astonishingly as that country has entered the global […]

The South African Broadcasting Corporation’s Hlaudi Motsoeneng has captured the country’s attention again with a new SABC appointment and quotes and claims that go beyond normal big or perhaps even pig headedness! But the country’s Public Protector and opposition party the Democratic Alliance (DA) will be investigating his appointment. Yesterday, after it was announced that Hlaudi – […]

Newly elected Johannesburg mayor Herman Mashaba has revealed that over the past three years, the previous (ANC) administration spent R190 million of public money on travel. In the last financial year alone, R73 million was spent on travel, according to the Democratic Alliance’s Mashaba! This revelation is just one of the latest from the DA, exposing […]

CAPE TOWN – Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan said today that the situation in South Africa is like a snooze button on an alarm clock. “The country has to wake up. The sleep is over,” he said. Speaking at the Ahmed Kathrada Foundation Heritage Day banquet, Gordhan also joked – in response to a joke made by […]

KIMBERLEY – Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa says Heritage Day gives South Africans an opportunity to reflect on their history, their cultural heritage, their rituals and their languages. “It obliges us to pay attention to the values upon which we seek to build a united and prosperous nation,” he said on Saturday. Speaking at the national Heritage […]

An extremely concerned Winnie Madikizela-Mandela spoke candidly in South Africa today about the need for her party, the African National Congress (ANC), to “introspect” and work out where it went so wrong, and to incorporate a new “layer of fresh leadership”. (Watch video below.) Speaking at a press conference with former Manchester United captain Rio Ferdinand […]

South Africa’s Minister of Higher Education and Training Dr Blade Nzimande has announced it is up to the country’s universities to “individually…determine the level of (fee) increase that their institutions require…”. But he cautioned that no university’s fees should be raised by more than 8% for 2017. This follows a blanket freeze on fees in […]

In the early hours of this morning a group of humanitarians placed 2,500 used lifejackets in Parliament Square, London… to highlight the plight of refugees. South African expat BEV TROMP captured these photos of the sombre scene. “Each lifejacket represents three human lives lost trying to escape war & find refuge,” says Bev. “Madiba would have had […]

PRETORIA – Government says it has noted with concern media reports that protesting students at the University of Stellenbosch have been injured after clashing with security on campus (see below). Government Communication and Information System (GCIS) Acting Director-General Donald Liphoko on Friday echoed the Department of Higher Education and Training’s assurance that the matter of student […]

The Democratic Alliance (DA) has warned that South African President Jacob Zuma’s nuclear deal will be disastrous for the country. It will literally bankrupt us, diverting billions of rands from poverty reduction projects, while producing a nuclear white elephant in two decades’ time, claim the DA. But it will make a lot of money for […]

PRETORIA – The Presidency has refuted media reports that President Zuma and his Deputy favour a jet set lifestyle, reiterating that they prefer to use aircraft within the South African Air Force (SAAF) fleet. The Presidency on Wednesday said allegations made by aviation experts in the media that President Jacob Zuma prefers chartered aircrafts are not true. “The […]

PARLIAMENT – Jacob Zuma complained today in Parliament that he is “abused”. He was responding to Julius Malema’s earlier verbal attack on him, in which the Economic Freedom Fighter (EFF) leader said Zuma, as a “criminal of note”, should not be allowed to address the House. Malema said “We won’t listen to Zuma, the criminal” and accused […]

PARLIAMENT – Economic Freedom Fighter (EFF) leader, Julius Malema, said today in Parliament that President Jacob Zuma should not be allowed to speak in the House as he is “single-handedly” corrupting and collapsing South Africa due to his own personal interest. Malema that the President had broken his Oath of Office and had acted out of the Constitution, […]

Minister of Home Affairs, Malusi Gigaba, today highlighted the implications of controversial Pastor Steven Anderson’s proposed visit to South Africa this month… and announced that the American and members of his church are prohibited from entering the country. Anderson has also been declared a “prohibited person” in SA. In a media briefing today, Gigaba said they had […]

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – A police investigation into South African Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan is destabilising the government and creating uncertainty across Africa’s most industrialised economy, deputy finance minister Mcebisi Jonas said on Tuesday. Gordhan declined last month to obey a police summons linked to the inquiry into whether he had used a tax service unit […]

JOHANNESBURG – President Jacob Zuma has complied with the Constitutional Court order to #PayBackTheMoney! In a statement, issued today by the Presidency, it said the South African President has paid over the amount of R7,814,155.00 to the South African Reserve Bank. The payment was ordered by the Constitutional Court of South Africa in respect of the personal […]

The Democratic Alliance is delivering its corruption-fighting message in South Africa and around the world, with DA leader Mmusi Maimane telling CNN’s Christiane Amanpour that the DA promises to end corruption in the country. (Watch video below.) Maimane told Amanpour “what South Africa needs at this point in time, is stable leadership in the Presidency.” In the […]

Shadow Minister of Finance, David Maynier, kept yesterday’s promise of “I’m going to roast rogue Minister Mosebenzi Zwane tomorrow in Parliament”… but it was DA’s Chief Whip John Steenhuisen who truly ranted, raging at the Speaker of the National Assembly for not making Zwane answer the question. “You are trampling on the Constitution again,” he accused the […]

PRETORIA – The Mayor of Tshwane, Solly Msimanga, has continued his impressive Magufuli-esque cost-cutting campaign… announcing today that he has put an immediate stop to all purchases or leasing of luxury cars for politicians and senior officials. Msimanga says: “A Hundai i20 or Toyota Corolla can do the same job for a politican as an […]

South African President Jacob Zuma is facing calls from ANC supporters to step down, following his party’s worst election results since the end of Apartheid in 1994. In this Reuters video, reporter Ivor Bennett says although there is still a lot of support for Zuma in the country, the voices of dissent are growing. Protesters – […]

JOHANNESBURG – Supporters of the #OccupyLuthuliHouse protest, which was to go ahead this morning albeit scaled down, have been urged to stay away as fears mounted this morning that it could lead to bloodshed like Marikana. According to witnesses, the entire precinct of the ANC headquarters, Luthuli House, was on virtual lockdown Monday morning with a huge police presence […]

From slavery to colonialism and school rules: a history of myths about black hair… “Your hair feels like pubic hair.” That was one of the first insults that someone hurled at my hair. She was a junior at my school. She would touch my hair and repeat this sentence to all present. I had to […]