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Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) Minister, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, has gazetted the extension of the National State of Disaster on COVID-19 until 15 November 2021.

The extension, the Ministry said in a statement, was in terms of section 27(5)(c) of the Disaster Management Act, 2002 (Act No. 57 of 2002).

The Ministry said the decision to extend the state of national disaster followed consultations with relevant stakeholders and Cabinet approval.

“The extension takes into account the need to continue observing all non-pharmaceutical interventions against COVID-19 and increasing vaccinations as part of contingency measures being undertaken to mitigate against its impact,” Dlamini Zuma said.

Dlamini Zuma said government remains committed to saving lives and ensuring that more people get vaccinated, as it is the only way to safely open the economy and go back to normal life.

Eskom suspended loadshedding on Thursday morning, following six days of rolling blackouts throughout the country.

The State-owned power utility said it has used the past six days to repair generating units and conduct its maintenance programme.

“While Eskom teams have returned some generation units to service… we have unfortunately suffered further breakdowns during the period. Although we have recovered some emergency generation reserve capacity to support the system, the recovery in generation capacity has not been sufficient to alleviate the system constraints,” the power utility said.

The generation units expected back in service are those at Kriel, Majuba, Hendrina, Lethabo and Tutuka power stations.

Eskom was also able to replenish emergency electricity generation reserves over the past six days but it warned that loadshedding could be back on the cards.

“There are still significant risks to some generating units, which would force Eskom to implement loadshedding at short notice, should we lose any further generation capacity. The teams are doing everything possible to manage the risks,” Eskom said.

Eskom urged the public to use electricity sparingly over this period in order to avoid more loadshedding.

A former police crime intelligence officer in the Eastern Cape has been has found guilty of corruption.

In a statement, provincial Hawks spokesperson, Captain Yolisa Mgolodela, said: “During May 2013, information was received by the East London-based Serious Corruption Investigation team that Khangelani Ngejane, then a member of the Crime Intelligence Division in Mount Frere, was extorting money from a State witness, claiming that the murder case she was acquitted on by virtue of being a State witness was reinstated.”

Mgolodela said Ngejane, 52, further claimed that he was assigned to investigate the case.

“He demanded R20 000 from the witness to make the said case docket disappear. The witness paid R5 000 and agreed to pay the balance in instalments.

“After paying the first instalment, the witness decided to lodge a criminal complaint with the East London Serious Corruption Investigation team.”

Mgolodela said in the second instance, a sting operation was conducted and the trap money was recovered from Ngejane.

“Ngejane was then arrested and released on bail. He was further subjected to an internal disciplinary hearing, which left him jobless.”

The ex-officer was convicted on Tuesday after numerous court appearances. The matter is remanded to 19 October 2021 for sentencing at Lusikisiki Regional Court.

The National Consumer Commission (NCC) has launched an investigation into the conduct of Elgin Fruit Juice (PTY) LTD, following a recent recall of 100% apple juice by Coca-Cola Beverages, Pioneer Foods and Woolworths.

Acting National Consumer Commissioner, Thezi Mabuza said that based on information provided to the NCC, the Commission has reasonable grounds to believe that Elgin Fruit Juice, the supplier of 100% Apple Juice Concentrate, supplied goods that are unsafe or pose a potential risk to the public.

In a statement on Wednesday, Mabuza said the investigation will help the NCC understand the nature, causes, extent and degree of the risk to the public.

“The Consumer Protection Act (CPA) emphasises that every consumer has a right to receive goods that are safe and of good quality. If the investigation reveals that Elgin Fruit Juice (PTY) LTD contravened the provisions of the CPA, the Commission will refer the matter to the National Consumer Tribunal where we will be praying for an administrative fine of 10% of their total annual turnover or R1 000 000, whichever is the greater.

“The purpose and policy of the CPA amongst others, is to promote fair business practices while protecting consumers and ensuring that consumers enjoy their right to safe and good quality goods.

“We will not allow a situation where the health of consumers is compromised,” Mabuza said.

The Department of Health has started issuing out the country’s COVID-19 Vaccination Certificate to fully vaccinated adults.

This is after the South African COVID-19 Vaccine Certificate System portal was officially launched by the Health Minister, Dr Joe Phaahla, on Friday, 9 October 2021.

The system will allow users to create a QR code showing their COVID-19 inoculation status and will be available to adults who are fully vaccinated.

President Cyril Ramaphosa announced in September the rollout of the vaccine certificate as proof that residents have been vaccinated against COVID-19.

The digital pass system can be used to show vaccination status to facilitate travel, access to establishments, gatherings and other forms of activity.

The President explained that government’s approach was informed by the World Health Organisation guidelines and that it was in line with international best practice and said he believes that it could go a long way towards getting a number of international travel restrictions both from and into our country eased.

Phaahla told journalists last week that the certificate could be used for travel and tourism, sport and recreation events, music festivals, shops that are providing discounts and prizes for people who are vaccinated.

In addition, the Minister said there is still going to be more improvements in the next two months with regards to the safety and security of the certificate.

The department has since answered some of the citizens’ frequently asked questions.

1. Why does my COVID-19 Vaccination Certificate have an expiry date?

The COVID-19 Vaccination Certificate available from 8 October 2021 does not include an expiry date. Only those that were issued during the testing phase have an expiry date.

2. Why are there new versions of the COVID-19 Vaccination Certificate?

Additional features such as a scannable QR code and digital (cryptographic) signatures will be gradually phased in. The Department of Health will advise on the availability of newer versions of the COVID-19 Vaccination Certificate as they become available.

3. When will the new versions of the COVID-19 Vaccination Certificate become available?

The next version of the digital COVID-19 Vaccination Certificate will be ready towards the end of October 2021. The COVID-19 Vaccine Passport linked to a mobile application will be ready towards the end of November 2021.

4. The COVID-19 Vaccination Certificate website asks for an ID or passport number. Are foreign passports, asylum-seeking and refugee numbers accepted?

Yes, if it is the same number from the ID document you used when you registered on the Electronic Vaccination Data System (EVDS) portal and at the vaccination site.

5. What should I do if I lost the EVDS vaccination code that was sent via SMS?

You can phone the COVID-19 Public Hotline at 0800 029 999. The agent will be able to provide you with the vaccination code or resend you the SMS with the required code.

6. I did not receive my COVID-19 vaccination code via SMS. Why did this happen?

There are three possible reasons:

• The SMS did not reach you due to mobile network issues at the time.
• Your mobile number is not correct on EVDS.
• Your vaccination record was not captured on the EVDS at the time of vaccination. However, you can verify this by calling the COVID-19 Public Hotline at 0800 029 999. If the agent cannot confirm your vaccination record on the EVDS, you should contact the site where you were vaccinated to capture your record on the system.

7. Can I use the COVID-19 Vaccination Certificate for international travel?

Most countries should accept digital certificates. However, it depends on the policy of the country you are visiting and verification requirements. You should present this certificate along with your passport. Your RSA ID number is printed in your South African passport to allow for verification of the ID number.

8. My personal details are not correct on the COVID-19 Vaccination Certificate

It is your responsibility or the person registering you on your behalf to ensure that your information is captured correctly when registering for vaccination. This information should be verified and can further be corrected at the vaccination site before the vaccine is administered.

You can call the COVID-19 public hotline at 0800 029 999 where an agent will be able to correct your details or send an email with the details to be changed to evdsqueries@health.gov.za. One of the agents will contact you.

9. The QR code on the COVID-19 Vaccination Certificate does not work

The content of the QR code on the current version of the COVID-19 Vaccination Certificate is not human readable. Travel authorities and third parties to verify the validity and authenticity of the COVID-19 Vaccination Certificate can scan the QR code on the next version of the certificate.

10. What is Jansen and Comirnaty?

The name of the vaccine and not the manufacturer is published on the COVID-19 Vaccination Certificate. Johnson and Johnson is the manufacturer of the Janssen vaccine, while Pfizer is the manufacturer of the Comirnaty vaccine.

The South African Post Office (SAPO) has announced that more transport connections have become available under Adjusted Alert Level 1, which will see the national postal service expand its international mail service to 46 destinations.

This comes as President Cyril Ramaphosa moved the country to Adjusted Level 1 lockdown in September.

SAPO has reminded customers to include their cell phone number with their address details so that the delivering Post Office is able to send them a SMS when the item is ready for collection.

“Customers who are expecting an international item are requested to collect the item from their local Post Office when they receive a SMS asking them to do so,” the State-owned postal service said.

SAPO said international items will be delivered within an average of 10 work days.

However, for a quicker service, the Post Office offers EMS, an international postal Express Mail Service, which delivers items within 24 hours of arrival in the destination country.

“The new SA Post Office is obsessed with the customer. Effective and efficient ways to serve customer needs are continuously being introduced,” SAPO said.

In addition, customers can easily access the electronic customs declaration form on the Post Office website for quick clearance of parcels.

Meanwhile, South Africans are entitled to two tax-free gifts from abroad per year, provided the value of each gift is below R1 400.

SAPO advises customers who send parcels abroad to pack the items very securely and to use padding, as the mail is transported as bulk freight.

International parcels can be tracked all the way to delivery.

“It is illegal to send or receive live animals or plants, flammable or explosive goods or illegal substances such as drugs in the mail. Any form of medication may only be imported into South Africa if the sender has a permit to export medication to South Africa.”

Meanwhile, some countries do not allow the importing of any plant or animal products, even in sealed packaging.

For more information, please visit the website of the postal administration in the receiving country

According to the SAPO, the mail service is now available to the following countries:

Road transport:

• Botswana
• Lesotho
• Malawi
• Mozambique
• Namibia
• Tanzania
• Zambia
• Zimbabwe

Airmail: 

• Albania
• Argentina
• Austria
• Belgium
• Brazil
• Canada
• China
• Czech Republic
• Denmark
• England
• France
• Germany
• Greece
• Hong Kong
• Hungary
• India
• Ireland
• Israel
• Italy
• Japan
• Maldives
• Mauritius
• Netherlands
• Oman
• Poland
• Portugal
• Romania
• Russia
• Serbia
• Singapore
• Spain
• Sri Lanka
• Sweden
• Switzerland
• Thailand
• Ukraine
• United Arab Emirates
• USA

President Cyril Ramaphosa has declared November 1 as a public holiday to give all those going to cast their ballots an opportunity to do so.

The date is the day of Local Government Elections, where eligible voters will cast their vote for councillors who will represent them at local level.

“The President calls on all registered voters to use the opportunity of the public holiday to exercise their democratic right and civic duty by voting in this election that empowers citizens to elect new leadership and influence service delivery where they live,” the Presidency said.

The Presidency reminded all voters heading to polling stations to adhere to COVID-19 regulations and encouraged employers to make provisions for their workers to “to exercise their constitutional right to vote”.

“Voters are reminded as well that they will only be able to cast their votes at the polling stations in wards where they are registered. In the event that voters may consider travel, they will not be able to transfer their votes to voting stations away from their designated wards.”

Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) Minister, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, has gazetted the amendment of Disaster Management Act regulations, to allow  spectators at sports venue.

Amended on Sunday, the Minister in the gazette said the move comes after government eased lockdown restrictions following a drastic decline in COVID-19 infections in the country.

“The decrease in the number of infections, as well as consultations with relevant stakeholders, has prepared the path for recognised sporting bodies to host sporting events, including both professional and non-professional competitions, subject to strict adherence to the guidelines,” said Dlamini Zuma.

Under the new regulations, as part of phase one towards fully reopening sporting activities, spectators at the venue of the sports events are permitted but limited to 750 persons or less for indoor venues and 2 000 persons or less for outdoor venues.

“If the venue is too small to hold the prescribed number of persons observing a distance of at least one and a half metres from each other, then not more than 505 of the capacity of the venue may be used, subject to strict adherence to all health protocols and social distancing measures.

“As we go out to sporting events to support our teams, let us do so recognising that COVID-19 is still with us. Let us unite in observing COVID-19 protocols by wearing masks, washing hands, and adhering to social distancing measures,” she said.

The South African Police Service (SAPS) have confirmed the arrest of a Member of the Executive Council (MEC) in Mpumalanga.

In a statement, police spokesperson Brigadier Vishnu Naidoo said the suspect, accompanied by his attorney, on Monday handed himself over to police in Nelspruit in connection with at least two counts of murder and one count of attempted murder.

He said the 45-year-old MEC was alleged to have been involved in a shooting, where two people were fatally shot and a third person wounded on 22 August 2021 in Nelspruit.

“His arrest brings to three the total number of people arrested in connection with this case. On 17 September 2021, police arrested Joseph Charlie Ngwenya (35) and Tshepo Matsane (30). They both appeared in court at least twice before being granted bail of R20 000 each on Friday, 8 October 2021,” said Naidoo.

He said the MEC was expected to appear in the Nelspruit Magistrate’s Court soon on the murder and attempted murder charges.

Stage two loadshedding is expected to continue until Thursday as Eskom attempts to replenish its electricity reserves.

On Friday, the power utility announced the extension of loadshedding after losing several of its units to breakdowns at Tutuka power station. Eskom is experiencing a depletion of emergency generation reserves due to breakdowns at Komati and Hendrina power stations.

“Whilst still recovering four units at Tutuka, which had experienced conveyor belt failures, the fleet suffered a cluster of boiler tube leaks within a short period of time. The return of a generating unit at Majuba power station…provided some relief. However, this was insufficient to curb the extensive use of emergency reserves,” the power utility said.

Eskom said the loadshedding will also “address other additional risks in the generation fleet”.

“During this time, Eskom will be working hard to return a number of generating units to service and we urge the public to continue using electricity sparingly. Total breakdowns amount to 14 760MW, while planned maintenance is 5 277MW of capacity.”