Category: Key Issues

City of Ekurhuleni Transport Planning, Roads and Stormwater MMC Andile Mngwevu has called on residents of the metro who use public transport to make alternative arrangements as talks between the city, the Gauteng Provincial Government and the taxi industry collapsed.

This as the industry halted services in protest on Thursday over a transport contract awarded to a bus company.

“As a city we have a direct interest on the matter. These taxi operators are our stakeholders, and we have a great working relationship. At the same time the destruction of the lives of our people cannot be acceptable.

“We have an obligation to ensure that our people are provided with reliable, safe and affordable transport at all times, and thus must take precedence in our talks. So, our commitment is to end this impasse and ensure that the situation normalises as soon as possible so that everyone continues with their lives,” Mngwevu said.

The city said talks between the parties began on Thursday following the protest which affected commuters – including school children – in Thembisa, Germiston, Vosloorus and other parts of the city.

“Gauteng MEC for Roads and Transport Kedibone Diale and her Ekurhuleni counterpart MMC Andile Mngwevu urgently convened a meeting with the taxi operators in an effort to address the matter.

“However, there was a deadlock just hours into the meeting when the taxi industry demanded the immediate release of four of their counterparts who were arrested for various offences and the release of the seven vehicles which are also impounded by the state,” the city said of the minibus taxi impasse.

The Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) has announced that all grades of fuel will increase by at least R1 from today.

The following are the increases have been announced:

• Petrol (93 ULP & LRP): R1.21 increase.
• Petrol (95 ULP & LRP): R1.21 increase.
• Diesel (0.05% sulphur): R1.05 increase.
• Diesel (0.005% sulphur): R1.18 increase.
• Illuminating paraffin (wholesale): 64 cents increase.
• Single Maximum National Retail Price for illuminating paraffin: 85 cents increase.
• Maximum LP Gas retail price: 41 cents increase

The increases mean that a litre of 95, which used to cost R23.24 in Gauteng, now costs R24.45 a litre.

The DMRE said a number of factors influenced the increases, including:

• The average Brent Crude oil price increased from 82.03 US Dollars (USD) to 82.50 USD during the period under review.
• The average international product prices of petrol, diesel and illuminating paraffin increased in line with the higher crude oil prices.
• The Rand depreciated slightly on average, against the US Dollar from 18.77 to 19.20 Rand per USD during the period under review. This led to higher contributions to the Basic Fuel Prices of petrol, diesel and illuminating paraffin.
• The DMRE Minister, Gwede Mantashe with the concurrence Minister of Finance, Enoch Godongwana approved an increase from 0.1 c/l to 1.0 c/l in the IP Tracer Dye Levy that is applicable to Diesel with effect from the 6 March 2024. This increase is temporary until the 5th of March 2025.

“South Africa’s fuel prices are adjusted monthly, informed by international and local factors. International factors include the fact that South Africa imports both crude oil and finished products at a price set at the international level, including importation costs,” the department explained.

A successful operation conducted by a border police team at Musina near the Beitbridge Port of Entry on Sunday has resulted in the seizure of counterfeit goods.

The team also recovered an inflatable boat believed to be used for illegal crossings of the Limpopo River between Zimbabwe and South Africa.

“During the operation, members of the SAPS OR Tambo International Airport Border Police intercepted a smuggling attempt and seized one inflatable boat, 25 litres of diesel, counterfeit cigarettes and liquor that were being smuggled between South Africa and Zimbabwe.

“Despite some suspects managing to evade arrest by fleeing on foot and crossing the Limpopo River, homemade wooden bridges used for illegal crossings were successfully dismantled during the operation,” said the police in a statement.

In a separate incident, nine male Zimbabwean nationals were apprehended by the Vhembe District Proactive Police for contravening the Immigration Act during a separate Vala Umgodi operation.

These individuals were arrested less than 10km from Beitbridge.

The Department of Home Affairs Immigration Office was engaged for immediate deportation of the illegal immigrants.

The Ministers of Water and Sanitation, Senzo Mchunu, and Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Barbara Creecy, have established a Technical Task Team to identify interventions with clear outcomes to manage the clearing of alien invasive plants at the Vaal River.

This follows public concerns relating to the use of the chemical, glyphosate, to clear alien invasive plants from the Vaal River by Rand Water.

In a joint statement, the departments said the task team, led by the Directors-General of the two departments and Chief Executive Officer of Rand Water, have identified immediate short- and long-term interventions with clear outcomes to manage the situation.

The immediate short-term interventions identified by the task team include the revision of the integrated control approach, which will assess the use of an herbicide that is registered with the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development.

In the medium-term, compliance and enforcement interventions will be intensified against the sources of pollution that are driving this situation, while the long-term interventions include the review of the Vaal River Catchment Strategy relating to invasive alien aquatic species, in order to implement a strategy that will holistically address the situation.

“Lastly, the refurbishment of the Rietspruit, Sebokeng and Leeukuil Wastewater Treatment Works will be fast-tracked to reduce pollution that is also contributing to the high eutrophication of the Vaal River System.

“Multiple control strategies deployed simultaneously (biological, chemical and manual removal of alien invasives) are currently under investigation by the task team since a sustainable solution is required to manage the situation,” the departments said.

The spraying of glyphosate over water hyacinth choking up the Vaal River has been stopped due to safety concerns.

An investigation has been launched into a bus crash which claimed the lives of nine people who were returning home to Mpumalanga after the African National Congress (ANC) election manifesto launch in Durban.

According to media reports, the bus accident happened at around 5am in Paulpietersburg under the eDumbe Local Municipality in Zululand on Sunday.

“The law enforcement team on the scene has so far confirmed nine fatalities. However, they have not concluded the full recovery of the bus at the accident scene.

“Scores of other occupants sustained injuries, with four being more critical [and] they have all been taken to a local hospital. The cause of the accident is being investigated, and experts will be deployed to assist with the forensic investigation,” KwaZulu-Natal Transport MEC, Sipho Hlomuka said.

The MEC said a team was deployed on the scene to work with all law enforcement agencies.

“The investigation has already started, and we are in touch with the bus owner. Our investigation is looking at the condition of the road, condition of the bus, weather during the times of the accident, and the condition of the driver,” Hlomuka said.

He expressed his deepest condolences to the ANC and all affected families and wished those who sustained injuries a speedy recovery.

The MEC encouraged road users, especially public transport movers, to be extra cautious on the road.

The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) will on Wednesday repatriate and officially hand over the mortal remains of Captain Simon Mkhulu Bobe and Lance Corporal Irven Thabang Semono to their families.

Bobe and Semono were killed and three of their colleagues injured in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on Wednesday last week after a mortar bomb landed inside one of the South African contingency military bases.

The soldiers were part of the Southern African Development Community Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (SAMIDRC) deployed to support and assist government of the second-largest country in Africa to restore peace, security and stability.

According to the SANDF, the remains will be officially handed over during a military procession ceremony at Waterkloof Air Force Base today.

The Minister of Defence and Military Veterans, Thandi Modise, is expected to form part of the officials attending the handing over ceremony.

Modise, along with the Deputy Minister of Defence and Military Veterans, Thabang Makwetla, the Acting Secretary for Defence, Dr Thobekile Gamede, and the Chief of the SANDF, General Rudzani Maphwanya, have since expressed their heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased soldiers.

The Gauteng e-toll scheme is expected to be delinked from the end of March this year.

This was announced by Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi during the State of the Province Address (SOPA) on Monday evening.

“E-tolls are a system that was introduced in the province by national government on the basis that we wanted to improve our road network. We have now reached a stage where we all accept that the people of Gauteng have rejected e-tolls.

“We had a meeting with all affected parties. We held a meeting with the Minister of Finance [Enoch Godongwana]; we also held a meeting with the Minister of Transport [Sindisiwe Chikunga]. All of us now have reached an agreement that by the 31st of March this year, the formal process to switch off and de-link e-tolls will begin and e-tolls will be history in our province,” he said.

Lesufi added that the Finance Minister will provide more detail.

The scrapping of e-tolls has long been in the pipeline and Minister Godongwana, during the mini budget speech in October 2022, called for moving on from “debates of previous years and find solutions to this challenge”.

During that speech, the Minister explained that the Gauteng provincial government had agreed to “contribute 30 percent to settling SANRAL’s debt and interest obligations” related to the tolls.

“Gauteng will also cover the costs of maintaining the 201 kilometres and associated interchanges of the roads and any additional investment in road will be funded through either the existing electronic toll infrastructure or new toll plazas, or any other revenue source within their area of responsibility.

“Government proposes to make an initial allocation of R23.7 billion from the national fiscus, which will be disbursed on strict conditions,” the Minister said then.

The Western Cape Department of Agriculture has urged pig farmers to heighten biosecurity measures following laboratory results confirming African Swine Fever (ASF) in pigs of small farmers on the outskirts of Groeneweide Park, George.

ASF is a virus that affects pigs and there is no vaccination or treatment currently available for the prevention of the disease.

The department said the new outbreak confirmed recently is the fourth outbreak of disease in the Garden Route area since 2022.

“Previously, there had been outbreaks in KwaNonqaba and Mossel Bay in 2022 and 2023, which were both resolved; and an outbreak in Thembalethu in 2022, which remains a concern. It is estimated that about 45 pigs have died thus far, with about 250 pigs remaining in the area,” department spokesperson Daniel Johnson said.

Johnson said the area has been placed under quarantine, and community members have been urged to not remove any pigs or pig products from the area to prevent the further spread of the disease.

Johnson has also emphasised that ASF virus is specific to pigs and does not affect humans or other species of animals.

“The public needs to know that pigs slaughtered at abattoirs have undergone meat inspection. Pork products found in supermarkets are safe for human consumption,” Johnson said.

Critical measures to minimise the spread of ASF 

•    All carcasses should be disposed of safely.
•    Pigs should be confined to prevent roaming and potentially picking up and spreading the disease.
•    Hands, shoes, clothing and equipment should be sanitised before and after being in contact with a pig.
•    Any meat products should be thoroughly cooked before being fed to pigs.
•    Farmers should confirm that any purchased pigs are bought from known ASF-free herds.

Usually, the first signs of an ASF outbreak are the sudden death of pigs, and in some cases, other symptoms can include breathing difficulties, redness of the skin, especially underneath the pig and on the ears, hind leg weakness and loss of appetite.

“Occasionally, the pig may also have blood in their faeces and their vomit. Should these signs be seen, please contact your closest State Veterinary Office at https://www.elsenburg.com/veterinary-services/animal-health-and-disease,” Johnson said.

Human Settlements Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi has dispatched the department’s emergency housing team to establish the extent of damage caused by a storm that hit several houses in Nongoma, KwaZulu-Natal, on Saturday.

According to the department’s preliminary assessments, to date, several households in Ekubuseni, Gomodo and Holinyoka villages were largely affected, leaving four households homeless.

Kubayi said after the completion of the assessments, the Emergency Housing Unit will then intervene based on the four categories of emergency housing interventions provided by the department.

The four categories of emergency housing interventions include restoration, relocation, rebuilding and repairs.

Restoration provides building materials to all households whose structures were destroyed by the storm, while relocation provides Temporary Emergency Accommodation (TEAs) for all homeless families.

Rebuilding involves reconstructing Temporary Residential Units (TRUs) for all destroyed mud houses, while repairs include fixing all damaged formal houses after the National Home Builders Registration Council (NHBRC) has completed the structural assessments.

“I have directed officials to ensure that affected households are assisted as a matter of urgency. We have roped in one of our agencies, the NHBRC, to help the team assess the integrity of all structures that have been affected,” Kubayi said.

Established in 2023, the Emergency Housing Unit is tasked with the responsibility of responding to emergencies, including fires and floods.

This is done through collaboration with other spheres of government.

“Our main objective in emergency housing response is to ensure that we respond swiftly and provide solutions that will enable the affected communities to rebuild their homes,” the Minister said.

The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) confirmed on Wednesday that three soldiers were killed and two injured in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

This, according to a statement released yesterday, was after a mortar bomb landed inside one of the South African contingency military bases.

The soldiers are part of the Southern African Development Community Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (SAMIDRC) deployed to support and assist government of the second-largest country in Africa to restore peace, security and stability.

“As a result of this indirect fire, the SANDF suffered two casualties and three members sustained injuries,” the statement read.

The injured members were rushed to the nearest hospital in Goma.

According to the SANDF, details of the incident are still sketchy at the moment, while further investigations will be conducted to determine the basis of the incident.

The Minister of Defence and Military Veterans, Thandi Modise, along with the Deputy Minister of Defence and Military Veterans, Thabang Makwetla, the Acting Secretary for Defence, Dr Thobekile Gamede, and the Chief of the SANDF General, Rudzani Maphwanya, have since expressed their heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased soldiers.

They also wished the injured members a speedy recovery.