KwaZulu-Natal Social Development MEC, Nonhlanhla Khoza, has called for a harsh sentence for the pastor who allegedly raped 13 children at Luvisi village in Nquthu, northern KwaZulu-Natal.

It is alleged that the 56-year-old reverend has been luring young girls and boys, aged between five and 17 years to watch cartoons and later play pornographic videos to watch with them.

The man was allegedly caught when a boy reported the matter to his mother, including the allegation that 11 boys and two girls, suffered at the hands of the man. 

The victim’s mother verified the information with other victims before reporting it to the local police.

It is alleged that the reverend started molesting children in 2021, with the last incident on Sunday, 18 September 2022.

Khoza has strongly condemned the rape and abuse of children by a man trusted by the community. 

The MEC said it was shocking that children were raped by the reverend over a period of one year and no one in the community was able to stop the horrendous incidents.

“It is very shocking that a man trusted by parents took advantage of children by sexually abusing them. We are very disturbed that a man, who is supposed to be helping parents in raising their children, is the one allegedly involved in such despicable cases in the community,” Khoza said.

She said religious leaders are expected to have high moral standards in building a violence-free society, where children and women are safe.

Khoza called on parents and communities to be extra vigilant and pay more attention to their children.

“We are calling on communities to support victims and their parents to build solid cases and bring the perpetrators to book. Child abuse and rape have no place in our society.

“We call on all men, women and children to stand up and make their voices heard. We cannot keep silent while our children suffer at the hands of people who are supposed to protect them. We need to work together to end these cruel and barbaric acts against children,” Khoza said.

She emphasised that it is every individual’s responsibility to protect children in society.

“As parents, we should always be on the front line in protecting our children and listen to them when engaging us. We should be friends with our children so that they can find it easy to tell us when encountering abuse,” she said.

The MEC commended the police for arresting the man, and a parent who noticed strange behaviour of her son, which led to more abused children being found.

Khoza has dispatched social workers to Luvisi village to provide psycho-social support and other interventions to the victims and families.

She has also instructed social workers to ensure that they help children to be able to give detailed statements on what happened.

The perpetrator was arrested and appeared at Nquthu Magistrate Court on Friday, where he abandoned his bail application. He will reappear in court on 14 October 2022. – SAnews.gov.za

Former Minister of Mineral Resources, Mosebenzi Zwane, has appeared in the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court on charges of alleged fraud and corruption related to the failed R280 million Estina Dairy Farm Project.

Zwane, who is currently a Member of Parliament, appeared in the court alongside former Sahara employee Ugeshni Govender and former director of Islandsite Ronica Ragavan.

The former minister was the MEC for Agriculture and Rural Development in the Free State at the time the project was signed off in 2012.

National Prosecuting Authority Investigating Directorate (NPA ID) head Advocate Andrea Johnson said the arrests and the appearance in court is another step in the unit’s crackdown of those accused of facilitating and participating in State capture.

“The enrolment of this case demonstrates the commitment of the ID to deal with perpetrators of State capture. This case should serve to remind the people of the Free State that this matter was not forgotten.  It does however take long to investigate and put together appropriate charges for prosecuting such complex cases.

“The Vrede Dairy Project destroyed the lives of the people and communities it was supposed to empower and uplift. The enrolment of the matter is a step closer to delivering justice to the people who were alleged to have been prejudiced by the criminal conduct of the accused,” Johnson said.

NPA ID spokesperson Sindisiwe Seboka explained that the project was aimed at benefitting emerging farmers in the Free State but investigations revealed that the entire project “was designed to extract funds from the State”.

“On 05 July 2012, Estina…entered into an agreement with the Free State Department of Agriculture to establish and implement a dairy farm project in Vrede to benefit previously disadvantaged farmers and to uplift the people of the Vrede area.  In terms of the agreement, Estina was to provide a capital injection of R228 million. Paras Dairy – a company incorporated in India – was presented as Estina’s partner in the Vrede Dairy Project.

“In the charge sheet, the Investigating Directorate  alleges that [in] terms of the agreement between the Department of Agriculture and Estina, the beneficiaries were to own 51% of the AGRIBEE entity and the remaining shares were to belong to Estina.

“The agreement further stipulated that the department was to contribute R342 million…[and] Estina received R280 million from July 2012 to April 2014.  Investigations also revealed that no proper tender procedures were followed with regards the decision to fund the proposed Vrede Dairy Project. Estina did not adhere to its obligations in terms of the agreement as only the department paid its contribution into bank accounts held by Estina,” Seboka said.

All three accused received R10 000 bail in the matter, where state prosecutors were not opposing the application. – SAnews.gov.za

Addressing the members of the media and his supporters outside the Bloemfontein High Court on friday 23 September 2022, Ace maintained that he has no case to answer to. He said the whole matter is directed at the ANC since the enemies want to see the ANC out of power in 2024. He said it will up to the branches to nominate him, but once his nominated no one will stop him.

The NPA maintains that it has a strong case on Ace and the co accused and would like to see the trial commencing.

MetroNewsFS

The Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) has gazetted the Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) Policy for public comment in the Government Gazette No: 46917.

The DPWI developed the EPWP Policy and it was approved by Cabinet on 31 August 2022 for public consultation.

“We are calling on all stakeholders and communities to engage the department on this policy during the countrywide EPWP policy public consultation sessions that the department will be embarking on over the next few weeks,” the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure said in a statement.

According to the department, these public consultation sessions will take place in all provinces starting from today. 

During these consultation sessions, the public, through their representative structures, will be afforded an opportunity to discuss and contribute to the EPWP policy. 

All interested parties may provide and submit written comments on the EPWP policy within 30 days, from the date of gazette. Thereafter the department will, after revising the policy based on the public input, consult NEDLAC on the EPWP policy.

It is expected that the revised EPWP policy will serve before Cabinet for approval later this year and it is expected that the final EPWP policy will be gazette early in 2023 for implementation.

The Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) is one of the government’s strategies to alleviate poverty through the creation of work opportunities using labour-intensive methods.

The EPWP is implemented in four sectors namely: infrastructure, social, environment and culture, and non-state.

All spheres of government and state-owned entities are expected to implement the programme.

The EPWP participants (beneficiaries) work on different projects such as Community Work Programme (CWP), Early Childhood Development Programmes, Home Community Based Care Programmes, Extra School Support Programmes, Working on Fire, Working for Water, Roads Maintenance Projects, etc.

The development and gazetting of the EPWP policy follow years of extensive engagements by DPWI and various stakeholders who are participating in the implementation of the EPWP.

The purpose of the EPWP Policy is to refocus the Public Employment Programme (PEP) agenda of government, with policy positions and programmes of action that are clearly defined, implementable and enforceable.

Since its inception on 01 April 2004 to 31 March 2022, more than 13 million work opportunities have been created in the EPWP across all spheres of government. – SAnews.gov.za

President Cyril Ramaphosa says resolving the energy crisis is critical to ensure that the economic and investment potential of the country is realised.

This as South Africa was plunged into Stage 6 load shedding for the second time this year, prompting the President’s urgent return to the country during an international trip.

Households have had to deal with bouts of up to four hours of load shedding at least twice a day since Sunday morning, with load shedding slightly eased to Stage 5 by Tuesday morning.

“Solving the electricity crisis is necessary if we are to realise the potential of our economy. In 2018, we launched an ambitious investment drive to raise R1.2 trillion in new investments over five years. To date, and with still a year to go, we have raised more than 90% of that amount in commitments from both domestic and foreign investors.

“Of these commitments, around R330 billion has already flowed into the economy, opening new factories, expanding production lines and creating new jobs,” the President said in his weekly newsletter.

The President said the current power crisis is a reminder of “how unstable our ageing power stations are” and the need for greater urgency to implement the measures he announced in July to bring stability to the grid.

“On Sunday, I held an urgent virtual meeting with Ministers and officials on the reasons for the current load shedding, and the steps being taken to reduce the severity and frequency of load shedding in the coming days and weeks. Eskom has already announced some of the measures it is taking and we will remain seized with this issue until the situation is resolved,” he said.

Following his visit to Washington last week, where discussions were held with US President Joe Biden, President Ramaphosa said these international visits and discussions may not have the desired impact on attracting trade and investment to the country if load shedding persists.

“The visits we undertake to various countries, be they working visits, State visits or trade missions, are crucial for promoting investment and trade. They bring in investment and they create jobs. They also improve our relations with the countries we visit, thus creating great opportunities for our country.

“Building strong partnerships with other countries is important, but it is not enough. That is why we are working to make our economy more competitive, more efficient and more attractive to both international and local companies. First and foremost, we have to overcome the electricity crisis,” he said.

The President emphasised that despite the country’s current challenges, foreign direct investment from companies all over the world is proof that there is “a great future for companies that do business in South Africa”.

“The recent launches of new investments and expansion projects by Ford, Anglo American, Metair Investments, Corobrik, Consol Glass, Isuzu, Sappi, Google, Netflix, Sandvik and others show that both domestic and foreign investors see South Africa as a favourable place to invest and to do business.

“These companies recognise the progress we are making in several areas of reform, such as telecommunications, energy, water provision, freight rail and ports. The Presidency is working with several departments and other partners on cutting red tape in critical regulatory processes,” he said. – SAnews.gov.za

Residents of Mangaung Metro, particularly in southern Bloemfontein are hereby informed of a pipe burst that happened today (05 September 2022) between Leeuwkop Chamber and Brandkop reservoir in Pellessier.

The Bloem Water Operations and Maintenance team is attending to the pipe burst. It is estimated that the duration of the repair will be 36 hours. As a result of this, areas in the southern parts of Bloemfontein may be affected by water supply challenges. Water tankers will be deployed to affected areas.

All consumers are requested to use water sparingly.

Mangaung Metro would like to apologise in advance for any inconvenience caused.-MMM

Residents of Mangaung Metro are hereby informed that Bloem Water has started pumping water, after completion of repair work on a pipe burst along the Weldam – Bloemfontein main line.

The network will be filled at a slow and steady rate, since we are managing pressure. In the past, we had a problem of a recurring pipe burst as a result of high pressure. Low lying areas will start receiving water this evening due to favourable topography, whilst it may take longer in higher-lying areas.

The Municipality together with its service provider (Bloem Water) will still continue with the interim plan of providing water tankers. Due to shortage of trucks, there is a delay in attending to some of the affected areas.

As the City, we understand the inconvenience of water interruptions. We are doing our level best to ensure that there is total restoration of water throughout the City.-MMM

Ends.

Speaker, Cllr. Lockman-Naidoo said it’s important to come up with interventions that address social challenges that lead to GBV incidents. “We cannot address issues in isolation…We want to strengthen relations between government and stakeholders who are dealing directly with these issues in their communities.”

SAPS Victim Support, Childline SA, CPF, Neighborhood Watch, Victory Outreach and religious leaders are some of the stakeholders partaking today, highlighting some of the services they offer to survivors of abuse and their families. -MMM

The Free State has recorded the highest number of learners who passed their 2021 National Senior Certificate (NSC) exams, while Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal produced more candidates who are eligible to apply for a Bachelor’s degree programme at universities.

Basic Education Minister, Angie Motshekga, revealed this during the much-awaited 2021 matric results announcement on Thursday evening.  

The 2021 NSC examination results show that only one province achieved lower than the 70% pass rate, while five performed above 70%, and three attained above 80%.

While COVID-19 may have impacted the academic programme, the Class of 2021 managed to bag an overall pass rate of 76.4% – an increase of 0.2 percentage points compared to the 2020 matric pass rate of 76.2%.

The Free State clinched the number one spot for three years in a row after 85.7% of learners passed in the province – an improvement of 0.6% from 2020.

The province is followed by Gauteng with 82.8%, Western Cape 81.2%, North West 78.2%, KwaZulu-Natal 76.8%, Mpumalanga 73.6%, Eastern Cape 73% and Northern Cape 71.4%.

Limpopo is the only province that obtained less than 70%, with the pass rate sitting at 66.7%.   

This information is based on the 897 163 candidates – an increase of 23.6% from 2020 – who sat for their exams last year. This is the largest cohort in history.

Motshekga announced that Gauteng’s Tshwane South is the leading district in terms of the number of passes, obtaining 89.3%.

The second spot went to Motheo in the Free State, with an 87.9% pass rate, followed by Fezile Dabi in the Free State with 87.5%, Johannesburg West in Gauteng with 86.5%, while Ekurhuleni South in Gauteng and Metro-North in the Western Cape with 86.2% are tied in fifth place.

“It is important to observe that among the 75 education districts in our country, 10 districts are in three provinces, four each in the Free State and Gauteng, and two from the Western Cape,” Motshekga said, adding that the top 10 districts performed above 84%.

Meanwhile, the Minister praised the most rural provinces, namely the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and Limpopo, for producing a combined 121 312 or 47.4% Bachelor passes – an improvement of 26.6% from 2020.

These three provinces also managed to accomplish 103 812 or 49% distinctions – up by 43.3% from 2020 and 88 072 or 49.6% Diploma passes from 23.1% in 2020.

“This kind of consistent and improved performance by our three most rural provinces clearly illustrates our resolve to provide what Professors Joseph Farrell and Ernesto Schiefelbein term in their longitudinal study of young people in Chile ‘equality and equity of access, as well as the equality and equity of outcomes for all learners, irrespective of their socio-economic backgrounds (sic),” she said. 

Meanwhile, the no-fee schools, which had a combined 354 476 Grade 12s, achieved 149 648 Bachelor passes – a rise of 29.5% from 2020.

“The significance of this is that the gap between the Bachelor passes produced by no-fee schools versus those produced by fee-paying schools have significantly and progressively increased from 2% in 2015 to 16% in 2020 and 24% in 2021,” she said.

“This is remarkable; hence, His Excellency President Ramaphosa, calls it a ‘silent revolution’.”

The top district level performances in all nine provinces:

● Eastern Cape – Buffalo City with 79% and ranked 32nd nationally. 

● Free State – Motheo with 87.9% and ranked second nationally. 

● Gauteng – Tshwane South with 89.3% and ranked first nationally.

● KwaZulu-Natal – Ugu with 80.4% and ranked 23rd nationally.

 ● Limpopo – Capricorn South with 73.8% and ranked 51st nationally. 

● Mpumalanga – Ehlanzeni with 75.6% and ranked 43rd nationally.

● North West – Bojanala Platinum with 81.6% and ranked 18th nationally. 

● Northern Cape – Namaqua with 81.2% and ranked 20th nationally.

● Western Cape – Metro-North with 86.2% and ranked fifth nationally.  

– SAnews.gov.za