Let’s wrap up some of the top stories happening in South Africa this week.
A WITNESS IN THE SENZO MEYIWA MURDER TRIAL SAYS HE WAS TORTURED TO ADMIT THAT HE KILLED THE SOCCER STAR
The Senzo Meyiwa murder trial is back in court after six months.
This week, Meyiwa’s friend, Mthokozisi Thwala, took to the stand to give his side of the story at the High Court in Pretoria.
Thwala is one of seven people who were present when robbers allegedly entered the home of singer Kelly Khumalo, where Meyiwa was shot and killed in October 2014.
He revealed to the court that four years after Meyiwa was murdered, he was fetched by police in Durban, who told him he was going to an identity parade in Johannesburg.
Thwala told the court that he ended up in the office of Lieutenant-Colonel Joyce Buthelezi and was beaten and suffocated by two unknown men just to get him to admit to murdering Meyiwa.
DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONAL SERVICES GIVES G4S A 90-DAY TERMINATION NOTICE
Following the Thabo Bester prison escape saga, the Department of Correctional Services has revealed that it is terminating its contract with security company G4S.
G4S is the security company that was in charge of the Mangaung Correctional Centre, where convicted rapist and murderer Bester escaped.
Bester faked his own death after a fire broke out in his prison cell.
Now, G4S has come under fire for this; however, the DCS says the Bester issue is just the tip of the iceberg.
Members of Parliament have warned the department that they may face legal pushback from G4S.
DR NANDIPHA MAGUDUMANA AND 7 CO ACCUSED’S CASE POSTPONED TO 11 AND 12 MAY
Disgraced celebrity doctor Nandipha Magudumana did not get bail when she appeared in court this week with seven co-accused.
They appeared before the Bloemfontein Magistrates Court facing charges of aiding Thabo Bester’s prison escape in May last year.
The state requested the postponement, adding that this will give them time to tackle more arrests regarding the Bester case.
They will remain in custody until their next court appearance set for 11 and 12 May 2023.
PUTCO BUSES TO RESUME SERVICES ON FRIDAY AFTER SERVICES WERE SUSPENDED DUE TO DIESEL SHORTAGE
Bus company Putco says it has reached an agreement with the Gauteng government and its suppliers and will therefore resume services.
This came after the bus company suspended its services owing to the shortage of diesel on Thursday.
Commuters from Gauteng, Limpopo, and Mpumalanga were affected by this suspension of services
According to Putco, the disruption was caused by the unpaid March subsidy claims by the Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport.
The suspension of the bus service left nearly 230,000 commuters in Johannesburg stranded on Thursday.
LESUFI LAUNCHES A TRAINING PROGRAM FOR THOUSANDS OF SOLAR TECHNICIANS
Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi has announced a cooperation with the Manufacturing, Engineering, and Related Services Sector Education and Training Authority (merSETA) to train 6 000 solar panel installers.
Lesufi launched the training program during a media briefing in Midrand on Thursday afternoon, saying it is in keeping with the commitment he made during his initial State of the Province Address in February.
The newly announced training program will last 12 months, with graduates receiving a NQF level 5 qualification upon completion.
Candidates will receive a training allowance ranging from R4 000 to R7 000, based on qualifications.
UJ RETURNS R300M IN UNALLOCATED FUNDS TO NSFAS
The University of Johannesburg has repaid R311 million to the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS). These funds were initially intended for students who qualified for financial support but either transferred to another institution or withdrew from their studies.
The university held onto the unallocated funds between 2016 and 2021, despite the agreement that the institution could only possess them for a year. According to Kaizer Kganyago, a spokesperson for the Special Investigating Unit (SIU), these unallocated funds were meant to be reconciled and collected by NSFAS at the end of each year. Any evidence of criminal activity uncovered by the SIU will be forwarded to the National Prosecuting Authority for further action.
SA’s ONLY DRIVING LICENCE CARD-PRINTING MACHINE BREAKS DOWN AGAIN
According to Collen Msibi, the spokesperson for South Africa’s National Department of Transport, the printing machine responsible for producing driving licenses has experienced another breakdown and will be out of service for approximately three weeks.
This is not the first time such an incident has occurred. In fact, last year, the country’s only card printing machine was out of commission for four weeks, resulting in a significant backlog. The Department of Transport reports that routine maintenance for the card-printing machine began at the start of last month.
THE CITY OF JOBURG WILL VOTE FOR A NEW MAYOR ON FRIDAY
Despite the special council meeting of the City of Johannesburg starting at 10 am on Tuesday, the process of electing a new mayor was delayed. As a result, the city will now vote for a new mayor on Friday. Following the resignation of Thapelo Amad, an Al Jama-ah councillor, the metropolitan municipality has been without a mayor for a week.
SIGN LANGUAGE OFFICIALLY RECOGNIZED AS 12TH LANGUAGE IN SOUTH AFRICA
During a hybrid plenary sitting on Tuesday, the National Assembly (NA) passed the Report of the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Constitutional Development on the Constitution Eighteenth Amendment Bill [B1 – 2023].
The amendment, which includes South African Sign Language (SASL) as an official language, was proposed to promote the rights of individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing. Prior to this amendment, the South African Constitution only recognized 11 official languages, including Afrikaans, English, isiNdebele, isiXhosa, isiZulu, Sepedi, Sesotho, Setswana, siSwati, Tshivenda, and Xitsonga.
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