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The Department of Employment and Labour has urged the public in the Free State to be on the lookout for people posing as electricians.

The department said it has opened a criminal case against an individual who was in possession of a fraudulent certificate of registration as an electrical contractor.

The matter was brought to the attention of department Occupational Health and Safety Inspectors when a home owner complained of sub-standard electrical installation done by the accused at his new house.

“The alleged imposter also issued a Certificate of Compliance for electrical installation to confirm that the installation is safe and compliant with standards, although it was not.

“Subsequent to this complaint, the department undertook an investigation into the allegations, and discovered that the accused had a fraudulent electrical contractor’s registration certificate and a wireman’s licence.”

The department said it is only mandated to issue a letter of registration to competent electrical contractors, in terms of Regulation 6 of Electrical Installation Regulations, 2009.

Regulation 6 provides that “no person may do electrical installation work as an electrical contractor, unless that person has been registered as an electrical contractor in terms of these Regulations”.

The accused was never issued with a letter of registration by the department.

Home, building and business owners are therefore urged to ensure that they only appoint competent and legally registered electrical contractors to work on their electrical installations, as this will ensure the safety of occupants.

To verify the authenticity of any electrical contractor’s letter of registration, or to lodge an electrical complaint, members of the public in the Free State can contact the Department of Employment and Labour on 051 505 6371/6200.

A South African National Defence Force (SANDF) member is on Monday expected to appear before the Oudshoorn Magistrate’s Court after he was arrested at the weekend in connection with a cash-in-transit heist at a petrol station in the town last week.

The arrest was made by the Hawks National Priority Violent Crimes team (NPVC), together with the Attaqua K9 Unit from Oudtshoorn.

In a statement, the Hawks said the 36-year-old SANDF captain, attached to the Infantry School in Oudtshoorn, was arrested on Friday and would be the fourth suspect to be charged after three suspects were arrested shortly after the incident.

“This comes after security guards from Fidelity Cash Solutions were robbed while collecting cash from a petrol station. One of the security guards was accosted by two armed suspects while on his way back to his armoured vehicle. He was disarmed of his service pistol and robbed of a bag containing cash,” said Hawks spokesperson, Zinzi Hani.

She said minutes after the robbery, the Hawks’ team stopped a Nissan Sentra and arrested three occupants.

“A search of the vehicle resulted in the seizure of the stolen security guard firearm and sealed money bag containing the stolen cash, along with a second firearm, which had its serial number filed off.

“The Hawks team also found a full SANDF uniform in the Nissan Sentra. None of the three occupants were soldiers. A loyal service medal was pinned to the jacket with the name and rank of the SANDF member.

“Further probing found that the vehicle that was used in the robbery, a white Toyota Tazz fitted with false number plates, had been driven by the SANDF member. The white Toyota Tazz drove away from the crime scene and stopped next to a silver/blue Nissan Sentra and the stolen goods were transferred from the Toyota Tazz to the Nissan Sentra.”

On Wednesday, the Hawks team followed up on information received from Oudtshoorn detectives on the whereabouts of the Toyota Tazz used in the robbery.

The Tazz was found parked inside a garage of a residence in Oudtshoorn, not far from the Infantry School. The set of false number plates used in the robbery was found inside the vehicle.

“Consequently, the SANDF member was arrested. The suspect is due to appear on 26 July 2021 in the Oudtshoorn Magistrates Court on charges of robbery with aggravating circumstances,” Hani said.

President Cyril Ramaphosa says the violence and destruction that engulfed parts of KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng two weeks ago caused much damage to property and livelihoods, but also had a huge impact on the cohesion of communities.

This was most evident in the tragic events that took place in and around Phoenix in eThekwini.

“During some of the worst unrest in our democracy, and in a climate already thick with suspicion and paranoia, people that had lived side-by-side in relative peace turned on each other,” said the President in his weekly newsletter on Monday.

He said much still needs to be unearthed about the events that took place over the course of the last two weeks. The proliferation of fake news, doctored images and incorrect information has made it difficult to separate fact from fiction.

“But we do know from official reports and personal accounts that people were racially profiled at illegal roadblocks, some people were pulled out of cars and beaten, and some were humiliated and degraded. Several people were killed,” President Ramaphosa said.

The President also spoke out against vigilantism, saying that it will not be tolerated.

Meanwhile, calm has been restored to the affected areas and law enforcement agencies are investigating all acts of criminality.

“A team of detectives has been assigned to deal with the murders and are working closely with local communities. There have been arrests and those responsible will face the full might of the law.”

He had stern words for those who tried to exploit people’s vulnerability and cause mayhem as well as those who want to present criminal acts in racial terms to serve their own purposes.

“They will not succeed. South Africa has a proud history of principled non-racialism and working class solidarity. African and Indian communities were united in the struggle against apartheid and, together with other communities, remain committed to a united and democratic society.”

The legacy of apartheid planning and persistent inequality has frustrated government’s efforts to build integrated communities.  “Our cities, towns and rural areas are still all divided by both race and class. This discourages cooperation and understanding, and hampers the work we have undertaken to build a non-racial society,” he said.

The correcting of spatial distortions must be part of government’s work of building an inclusive economy and improving the living conditions of all South Africans.

“It is why we are working to build flourishing township and rural economies, and focusing on the growth of small businesses. It is why we are investing in infrastructure in these areas and working to improve the provision of services.

“We need to have honest conversations not only about our attitudes to one another, but also about the material conditions that divide us. For as long as the division of wealth and opportunity in South Africa is largely still determined by race and gender, we will not be able to build a truly united nation,” the President said.

South Africa has passed the peak of the Coronavirus third wave, which has infected over two million people, Acting Health Minister, Mmamoloko Kubayi said on Friday.

Addressing the media on the progress of government’s efforts in the fight against COVID-19, the Minister said the number of new infections has started to decline.

However, she cautioned that the country was not out of the woods just yet.

“We’re cautioning and extremely worried because the many gatherings that we saw during the unrest in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal may lead to another surge in numbers,” said Kubayi.

The Department of Health will continue to monitor the situation closely by ensuring that it screens communities that were at the heart of the looting and violent protests.

She also appealed to those who took part in those gatherings to ensure that they visit the nearest healthcare facility if they present any symptoms of COVID-19.

“We’re worried that some may stay away because in the contact tracing, people are expected to give indications where they have been and because of fear of arrest they are likely to stay away.”

Meanwhile “quite a number” of people who were arrested during the looting tested positive for the Coronavirus.

“This is an indication that we should be concerned about those who have been in the protests.”

The cost of the unrest

The riots she said, not only disrupted lives and the economy, but the healthcare delivery system, especially in KwaZulu-Natal.  This led to the dwindling number of vaccinations due to the closure of sites.

In addition, she said about 120 private pharmacies were destroyed which led to the loss of about 47 500 vaccine doses.

Gauteng cases decrease

According to the Minister, each day the pandemic continues to spread and infects more people, it robs the country of its greatest resources, its productive people.

In the last 24 hours, there were 14 858 new COVID-19 cases, a decrease from the 16 240 that was detected on Wednesday.

“The number of new cases have been on the downward trend.”

In addition, there has also been a significant decrease in infections in Gauteng, which has been the epicentre of the third wave.

“Although the 14 858 new cases are still quite high, it is a significant drop from the provincial peak which went as high as over 16 000 cases per day.”

However, she stressed that the decline in infections should not mean people should lower their guard in the fight against the pandemic.

“Just because the numbers are going down, it doesn’t mean the virus has stopped spreading and that the Delta variant, which is just as lethal has stopped spreading.”

The Minister has since called on citizens to intensify their efforts and continue to observe the non-pharmaceutical interventions by wearing masks, social distance, sanitise and washing hands with soap.

National Assembly (NA) Speaker Thandi Modise has proposed an extraordinary extended debate on the recent civil unrest, looting and destruction of property.

Modise made the proposal in a memorandum to political parties represented in the National Assembly.

In her memorandum, Modise suggested that the debate be scheduled as soon as possible when the NA reconvenes in early August, preferably during the first week of House sittings.

Modise also recommended that reports of committees already involved in oversight activities on the unrest inform the proposed extraordinary extended NA debate, meaning these committees should prioritise their engagements, confer if necessary, and report to the National Assembly as soon as possible before the House reconvenes.

“Deliberation on these reports during the proposed extraordinary debate may lead to further enquiries. So, one or two weeks should be added to the NA’s forthcoming quarter. This would provide more opportunities for questions to Cabinet Ministers and for committee deliberations. Questions to Cabinet Ministers concerned with the unrest should be prioritised.

“The NA Programme Committee (NAPC) will be convened soon to finalise these arrangements. If there are deadlines for Question Sessions, dates may have to be secured and communicated before the NAPC meeting,” Modise said in her memorandum.

In a continued effort to enhance the delivery of water, the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) has reinforced its commitment to monitor work being carried out by its entities in communities affected by water shortages.

Speaking during a recent Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation Portfolio Committee meeting, the department’s acting Director-General, Deborah Mochotlhi, said water entities contribute to government’s objective of reducing inequality through access to water supply and job creation, leveraging additional investments for infrastructure development, as well as enabling rural communities to use water for rural livelihoods.

“Water entities are key in assisting the government, particularly the Department of Water and Sanitation, in supplying the most important need which is water,” Mochotlhi said.

Mochotlhi said the audit outcomes of most water entities have significantly improved over the last three years, but expressed concern over some entities which still need to improve.

“Mhlathuze and Magalies Water Boards have received unqualified audit outcomes with no findings while Overberg, Bloem, Lepelle, Umgeni and Rand Water received unqualified audit outcomes with findings for the 2019/20 financial year.

“While there are a number of areas for concern and specific institutional challenges that are being addressed, the overall performance of water boards during the 2019/20 reporting period has been generally satisfactory,” Mochotlhi said.

Water and Sanitation Minister Lindiwe Sisulu congratulated those water boards with clean audit outcomes and called for progress on all the others which still have to work towards improving their annual reporting.

“Overall, our water boards have delivered on their mandate and provided appropriate levels of assurance of supply and quality of water and services delivered to municipalities and other key customers.

“In doing so, these important and strategic entities contributed positively to the government’s broad socio-economic development agenda,” Sisulu said.

South Africa has recorded 14 858 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number of laboratory-confirmed cases to 2 342 330.

In a statement on Thursday, the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) said the increase represents a 26.5% positivity rate.

“As per the National Department of Health, a further 433 COVID-19 related deaths have been reported, bringing total fatalities to 68 625 to date,” the NICD said.

The majority of new cases are from Gauteng (34%), followed by the Western Cape (22%). KwaZulu-Natal accounted for 11%; Limpopo and North West each accounted for 8%; Mpumalanga accounted for 6%; Eastern Cape accounted for 5%; Free State accounted for 4%; and the Northern Cape accounted for 3% of the new cases.

“The total number of cases today is lower than yesterday but higher than the average number of new cases per day over the 7 preceding days.  The 7-day moving average daily number of cases has decreased,” the NICD said.

A total of 14 425 215 tests have been conducted in both public and private sectors.

There has been an increase of 720 hospital admissions in the past 24 hours.

Meanwhile, on Thursday 238 020 vaccines were administered.

Higher Education, Science and Innovation Minister, Dr Blade Nzimande, has congratulated Biovac for being appointed as manufacturer of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine for distribution within the African Union.

The announcement, which was made on Wednesday, makes Biovac the first company in Africa to produce an mRNA-based vaccine.

Biovac was set to immediately commence technical transfer activities, which included on-site development and equipment installation activities.

“As you may be aware, the DSI holds, on behalf of government, 47.5% shareholding in Biovac. Our primary goal has always been through Biovac, to ensure that South Africa and Africa become active participants in the global vaccine manufacturing value chain,” the Minister said in a statement on Friday.

The Minister said that the Department of Science and Innovation chose a vaccine manufacturing strategy that would first build capacity to fill and finish and then move towards actually manufacturing the active pharmaceutical ingredients and therefore to develop from scratch, the country’s very own vaccines.

He said: “I am pleased that in this journey, it is not the first time that Pfizer has shown confidence in our vision and commitment. We have just concluded another Tech Transfer for Prevnar 13 vaccine with Pfizer.”

“Also, our Pre-clinical Drugs Development Platform at the University of North-West (UNW) has also benefited from [a] donation of knockout mice a few years back. It is therefore safe to say that the relationship with Pfizer goes a long way.”

The Minister is pleased that this will add the much-needed boost to the country’s recently announced hosting of the mRNA tech transfer hub.

“Having experienced the devastating effects of diseases outbreak to the economy and livelihoods, this partnership does indeed help put our feet firmly in the right direction in terms of supporting our current and future endeavours to respond to pandemics,” he said.

The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has decided against changing the repo rate, opting to keep it at the current 3.5% per annum.

This was announced by South African Reserve Bank Governor Lesetja Kganyago on Thursday following Wednesday’s MPC meeting.

Speaking during a virtual media briefing, Kganyago said the decision had been unanimous.

Despite steady improvements in vaccination rates, stronger confidence and better global economic growth, the COVID-19 virus continues to weigh on global prospects.

“Vaccination rates are lagging in many emerging markets and developing countries. Until populations develop sufficient immunity to curb virus transmission, waves of infection are likely to continue.

“As indicated by South Africa’s public health authorities, a third wave of virus infection is currently peaking. Additionally, by raising uncertainty and reducing investor confidence, the recent unrest in parts of the country is likely to slow our ongoing recovery.”

The Governor said while domestic economy grew by 4.6% in the first quarter of 2021, the MPC estimated the unrest to have fully negated the better growth results from the first quarter, resulting in an unchanged estimate of 4.2% for growth in 2021.

Commodity prices have remained high, sustaining income gains despite higher oil prices. However, the recent unrest and economic damage could have lasting effects on investor confidence and job creation.

Kganyago said better anchored expectations of future inflation could keep interest rates lower for longer.

He said this could be realised by achieving a stable public debt level, increasing the supply of energy, moderating administered price inflation and keeping wage inflation low into the recovery.

“Such steps will enhance the effectiveness of monetary policy and its transmission to the broader economy,” he said.

Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula has appointed a panel to assist government to address the challenge of unity and leadership in the taxi industry.

This comes after various incidents of taxi-related violence in Cape Town in recent months, which has claimed the lives of several taxi operators, drivers and commuters.

“In taking forward the commitment of the industry to find a sustainable solution to matters of unity and leadership in the industry, I have appointed a Panel of Eminent Persons to assist government in addressing the pervasive challenge of unity and leadership in the taxi industry,” the Minister said on Thursday.

The root cause of the conflict in Cape Town is a disagreement between the Cape Amalgamated Taxi Association (CATA) and the Cape Organisation for the Democratic Taxi Associations (CODETA).

“These two associations have a history of violence and conflict that goes back many years, precipitated by disputes over lucrative routes and ranking facilities,” Mbalula said.

He was addressing a media briefing with Western Cape MEC for Transport Daylin Mitchell on the developments regarding the taxi industry in Cape Town.

In tackling the current conflict and protecting the lives of innocent people, MEC Mitchell gazetted a general notice on 9 July 2021.

This notice outlined proposed actions, which the provincial government will have to resort to in the event where CATA and CODETA fail to find one another and arrive at an amicable solution.

“In the event a decision is arrived at for the Provincial Minister to implement some or all of the extraordinary measures outlined in the notice, these will be enforced without fear or favour.

“The province has our full support in this regard. The full might of the law will be unleashed on all those who undermine the law and seek to perpetuate violence,” the Minister said.

Following days of engagements with CATA and CODETA, who have yet to find a solution to the conflict, the Minister outlined a process that has been agreed on to address the matter.

He said government is affording the two associations a further opportunity to find each other and agree on how to resolve the conflict.

“We welcome the fact that no party has walked away from the negotiating table and that there is willingness among the parties to continue negotiations.

“Having taken note that the talks between these parties have failed to make any significant progress thus far, government is undertaking its own assessment, guided by its obligation to protect the lives of innocent people, on the implementation of the provisions of the law that should be invoked.

“In the event such provisions are invoked, this affords an opportunity to affected parties to make representations on the proposed measures including closure of routes and ranks,” the Minister said.

Mbalula said in the event the extraordinary measures are invoked, consideration must be given to the deployment of alternative transport for the communities and security thereof.

“In deploying alternative transport in the affected routes, the Provincial Minister is empowered by law to allow other operators to provide services on a temporary basis.

“Communication with affected communities is a key imperative, particularly on the availability of alternative transport arrangements, including the impact of this as well as the safety of commuters resultant from such operations. The mediation process must take its course in order to find a lasting solution to the conflict,” the Minister said.

He urged the two associations to make a concerted effort to find a lasting solution to the challenges that have persisted over the years with renewed purpose that has no room for violence.

“The safety of commuters remains the paramount and overarching priority of whichever outcome of the current processes and is a non-negotiable. The long-term solution should assist us in providing a safe, reliable, affordable and law abiding service for the commuters in the Cape,” the Minister said.