Is the crime holiday over? As lockdown restrictions ease, criminal activities in South Africa are sharply spiking, according to Carte Blanche on this Sunday’s broadcast. Presenter Macfarlane Moleli says: “As the national lockdown restrictions continue to ease, experts around the country are seeing a spike in criminal activities. It seems the perpetrators are making up for […]

President Cyril Ramaphosa has honoured the late human rights lawyer and social activist, Advocate George Bizos, by declaring a Special Official Funeral Category 1 for him. President Ramaphosa authorised that the national flag be flown at half-mast at every flag station in the country from Saturday, 12 September, until the evening of the Special Official […]

South Africa’s recovery rate has now jumped to 88.9% after 573 003 patients recuperated from COVID-19. Meanwhile, novel Coronavirus cases have hit 644 438 after 2 007 infections were identified on Thursday, while the death toll stands at 15 265. Of the latest 97 fatalities, 26 are from Mpumalanga, 21 from Gauteng, 17 from KwaZulu-Natal, 15 from […]

President Cyril Ramaphosa says the plunge in South Africa’s gross domestic product during the second quarter of 2020 reflects the severe impact of the global Coronavirus pandemic on the economy and should spur all South Africans to do all they can to help rebuild the economy.   While the 16.4% contraction in the second quarter […]

Nyameka Goniwe, widow of Matthew Goniwe, died a week ago. Matthew was an anti-apartheid activist and one of the ‘Cradock Four’… writes Riaan de Villiers. An activist in her own right, who participated in local government in later years, Nyameka died at age 69 – just over 35 years after the death of her husband. […]

Not even half of all school children who qualify to benefit from the National School Nutrition Programme are receiving meals, according to the Department of Basic Education (DBE) briefing to the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee. This was revealed on Tuesday (1 September), when the state of reopening schools, updates on the National School Nutrition Programme, and […]

The water situation in the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality has reached a crisis and prompted the City to finally declare it Day Zero. Nelson Mandela Bay has declared Day Zero as dam levels fall 19%. Water is being trucked in after some areas’ taps ran dry for six days. Businesses are struggling to operate. The […]

Democratic Alliance (DA) leader John Steenhuisen says it is unfortunate that, in leaving the party he (until recently) wished to lead, John Moodey – who resigned as DA Gauteng Leader yesterday – has “spread blatant falsehoods which appear to be an attempt to justify his reasons for leaving”. Addressing the media today, Steenhuisen said it’s […]

The Democratic Alliance (DA) Provincial Executive Committee in Gauteng has appointed the DA Gauteng Caucus Leader, Solly Msimanga MPL to the position of acting DA Gauteng Provincial Leader. This follows the resignation of John Moodey earlier today. Msimanga is a former Provincial Chairperson. He is the Leader of the Official Opposition in the Gauteng Provincial […]

When South Africans express shock at corruption, few seem to know that it is perhaps the country’s oldest tradition. Citizen anger about corruption, a constant theme in South African political debate, reacts to a very real problem. This was underlined recently by news that well-connected people had enriched themselves at the expense of efforts to […]

This weekend Herman Mashaba launched his new party, Action South Africa. He has drawn several disaffected ANC and DA members like Makhozi Khosa and Funzi Ngobeni. (One probably shouldn’t mention Vytjie Mentor, who gave shaky testimony at the Zondo Commission and has lots of question marks about her past, which she brings with her into […]

This Sunday Carte Blanche investigates the situation in Standerton, South Africa, that has shocked the nation. Video footage this week of the streets of Standerton in the Lekwa municipal district in Mpumalanga, showed how the residents and municipal workers are burning fires late into the night and dumping their rubbish right outside the municipal buildings. […]

I have to admit, I have never spent more time avoiding “real work” to watch YouTube like I did this week, I bluffed myself that is was “sort of” real work as the content I was consuming was #StateCapture and the #ZondoCommission.   #Netflix may lose a subscriber if this type of content keeps pouring out. […]

South Africa’s National Treasury and the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) today presented “damning findings” before Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Public Works and Infrastructure which, according to the Democratic Alliance (DA), suggests that Minister Patricia De Lille was much more involved in the procurement of the Beitbridge “Washing Line” than she has previously admitted. These findings […]

Soccer star Lucas Radebe along with other South African celebrities like Francois Pienaar and Karen Zoid are inviting South Africans abroad to join them to raise funds for South Africa’s COVID-19 Solidarity Fund this weekend, which is a Bank Holiday weekend in the UK. South Africans across the globe can join the well known personalities […]

The ANC Parliamentary Caucus says it has learnt with “great shock and sadness” of the sudden passing of ANC MP Comrade Hishaam Mohamed due to a heart attack early Monday evening. Mohamed joined the National Assembly in the 6th Parliament, serving as a member in the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Correctional Services and Whip […]

President Cyril Ramaphosa’s seven-page letter to his ‘comrades’ in the ANC yesterday has been met with much skepticism around the country. The letter, which holds hope and promise, begins with a bold heading in capitals – “Let this be a turning point in our fight against corruption”. The letter details the public’s “sense of anger […]

President Cyril Ramaphosa has strongly reprimanded Finance Minister Tito Mboweni following comments made by the Minister on social media regarding the removal of Zambia’s Central Bank Governor by President Edgar Lungu. In one of his tweets, Mboweni “promises to mobilise”, if not given the reasons the Zambian Central Bank Governor was fired by President Lungu. […]

Before the heroic return of opposition figure, Tundu Lissu, in late July 2020, Tanzania’s political landscape lacked the exuberance and ebullience that comes with an election season. Lissu’s return reignited the hopes of a despondent opposition that had been subdued by the oppressive and restrictive political environment during President John Magufuli’s five-year term. Lissu has […]

The Democratic Alliance (DA) in the Northern Cape says it welcomes the life sentences handed down to four of the five accused, and eighteen years for the fifth accused, in the murder trial of DA councillor, Johannes Baatjies, and his business partner Jeffrey Shuping Nouse who were shot dead in 2016, just hours before Baatjies […]

Even though the deputy president is meant to carry out government’s business in Parliament, South Africa’s David Mabuza has been obviously absent lately. His non-appearance at an important meeting yesterday was his seventh missed meeting since late 2019. The Democratic Alliance has called on President Cyril Ramaphosa to appoint a replacement from his Cabinet, as […]

Mvuleni Mapu, Acting City Manager of the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality in the Eastern Cape of South Africa, was arrested at his home on charges of fraud and corruption in the early hours of Friday morning. According to the Hawks the charges against Mapu are based on actions within the Municipality’s department of human settlements, […]

Every day, Zwelakhe Mnomiya from Gqamu in KwaZulu-Natal walks about 20km to and from school. The grade 11 learner is among dozens of children who make the journey on foot to Gcotoi High School in rural Kranskop. According to Gcotoi High, more than 100 learners walk between 11 and 20 km to and from school […]

Photos from today’s large protest convoy against farm attacks in Mookgophong (formerly Naboomspruit) and across the nation show some haunting scenes, as the farmers and farm workers who gathered together looked up at the sky with their arms crossed above. The protest came as three of the five suspects in the murder of Alwyn van […]

With South Africa moving to alert level 2 at midnight, President Cyril Ramaphosa has cautioned South Africans against letting their guard down by not observing COVID-19 health and safety protocols. South Africa moves to level 2 of the lockdown at midnight, in a move that will see many restrictions lifted. “With this comes increased risk […]