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A husband and wife are to appear in the Tlhabane Magistrate’s Court in the North West on Wednesday after they were found in possession of three hijacked vehicles.

The vehicles were found at the couple’s home at Teme section in Marikane on Monday.

“Three vehicles, two Audis and a Jeep that were confirmed as hijacked earlier this year in Douglasdale and Wierdabrug policing precincts respectively were recovered. The owner of the house and his wife were immediately arrested for possession of stolen property and conspiracy to commit crime,” said the Hawks in a statement on Tuesday.

The discovery of the vehicles is a result of the Rustenburg Hawks’ Serious Organised Crime Investigation team assisted by the Special Task Force, Crime Intelligence, Johannesburg Metro Police and Gauteng Flying Squad followed up on information of a possible cash-in-transit robbery that was still in the planning stage.

Investigations revealed that the recovered vehicles were allegedly brought to the house which was assigned to be used as a safe house, once the robbery has taken place.

“Further details of other implicated suspects are being followed up and they should be arrested soon,” said the Hawks.

Plans are afoot by the South African Revenue Services (SARS) to address tax avoidance in the country’s minibus taxi industry, Finance Minister Tito Mboweni has revealed.

Tax avoidance, the Minister said in a Parliamentary response, was, however, across the tax ecosystem in general.

In an effort to address this, the revenue collector was adopting a number of targeted interventions.

The Minister said the interventions are aimed at achieving the SARS strategic intent of building a tax and customs system that is premised on voluntary compliance.

Democratic Alliance Member of Parliament, Geordin Hill-Lewis had in his question to the Minister, asked how much in corporate tax, had the revenue collector received from the minibus taxi industry.

Mboweni said R5 million had been collected in Corporate Income Tax (CIT) from taxi operators.

However, he said, this amount includes tax collected from their employment income.

“This is because the industry does not correctly disclose income from taxi business on their CIT returns but included under a generic income source code. We were not able to determine income solely from taxi operations. Our analysis indicates that the majority of the taxi industry is declaring a nil return or are having a refund due to them,” he responded.

He added that the strategic intent of collection was achieved through the creation of clarity and certainty of tax obligations, making it simple, easy and seamless to meet tax obligations and ultimately by creating a credible threat of detection whilst making it hard and costly to remain non-compliant.

“To this end, SARS has a unit dedicated to improving compliance of SMMEs, taxi industry included; we had various engagements with the industry bodies in the year 2020/21 to create alignment as well as to educate,” he said.

Furthermore, SARS has worked in collaboration with the Department of Transport to share data on work on their taxi industry transformation agenda.

In response to the perceived non-compliance by the taxi industry, the revenue service has commenced a process of developing a compliance plan for the Taxi industry to encourage voluntary compliance and potentially propose the appropriate tax regime specifically for the industry.

“This work will be concluded in the 2021/22 financial year. The working with and through stakeholders as one of the stated strategic objectives is crucial and informs the stakeholder engagements as detailed above,” he said.

The Western Cape Water Supply System (WCWSS), which comprises the six largest dams in the Western Cape, has increased slightly by almost 1% as compared to last week.

This is according to the Department of Water and Sanitation’s weekly hydrological report of Monday.

In a statement released on Tuesday, Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) spokesperson Sputnik Ratau said the Theewaterskloof Dam, the largest dam in the Western Cape is at 73.47%, which is notable given that the province winter rainfall season has just started.

The Breede River Catchment, which covers the greater Breede Valley, Witzenberg, and Langeberg, is stable at 53.10%.

“DWS is rehabilitating the Kwagaskloof Dam and upgrading the Brandvlei pump station in this region. Both projects will bring the much needed local jobs,” Ratau said.

The Bulshoek, Eikenhof, De Bos, Klipberg, Duiwehoks, Korente Vet, Prins River, and Miertjies kraal Dams have seen an over 5% increase week on week.

Last week, the early winter storms made landfall-hitting towns in the Overberg and the Cape Winelands.

The department said it is unfortunate that there were reports of lives being lost due to drowning near Bonniavale town.

“Although our motto is “Water is Life” we should be mindful of the dangers that come with heavy rains,” Ratau said.

As part of safety measures around water resources, DWS has resolved to assist communities to avoid loss of life by issuing the following advisory:

• During heavy rains, communities are urged to exercise due care when crossing low-lying bridges and water systems.
• Citizens are urged not to go engage in recreational activities near water facilities during inclement weather as these conditions make it very difficult for others to see if anyone is in trouble.

The City of Ekurhuleni has warned the public about scammers who are soliciting money from residents claiming to put them ahead of the city’s waiting list for serviced stands.

The city’s MMC for Human Settlements, Lesiba Mpya said the scammers claim that they have authority to allocate houses and serviced stands, and in some incidents impersonate him.

Mpya said the city is investigating cases where people have been defrauded.

“There are scammers impersonating me and charging residents R5 000 for serviced stands. I assure residents that serviced stands and RDP (government subsidy) houses are not for sale and my office is not charging anyone for land allocation or housing units.”

The MMC said the RDP housing and serviced stands allocation is conducted through community consultative process wherein city officials and ward councillors visit rightful beneficiaries in their communities to inform them of stages of allocations.

Serviced Stands Programme

Mpya explained that the Serviced Stands Programme is aimed at reducing the massive RDP house backlog and to upgrade the lives of those who are low-income earners.

“Unlike the Project Linked Subsidy where a contractor builds houses for beneficiaries; the serviced stands allows beneficiaries to build their own homes.”

The provision of services stands comes with one or more of the following services infrastructure:

• Title deed registration
• Bathroom / toilet structure
• Water and sewer network systems
• Roads and storm water network systems
• A full range of municipal services

The public is urged to continue reporting all housing fraud to the City’s Anti-Fraud and Corruption hotline on 0800 102 201.

Small Business Development Minister Khumbudzo Ntshavheni says the department is in talks with the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition to designate more products under the 100% local content category to support SMMEs in the local manufacturing sector.

The Minister said this when Ministers in the economics sector replied to oral questions in the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) on Tuesday.

Ntshavheni said South Africa runs an open economy, which means it competes internationally and products are allowed to be in the country.

However, the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition designates certain products for 100% local content, which means that products that are produced in other countries in certain categories cannot be allowed into South Africa because the products that must be in the country are those products that are produced locally.

“For instance, we are working with the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition to designate more products for 100% or 80% local content to minimize the entrance of other products in the country.

“In addition, we are working with SA Revenue Service and customs to make sure that those products that are designated for 100% local content are not allowed in our shores to protect local companies.”

She said the department’s primary responsibility as a department is to ensure that SMMEs in this country who are operating in the manufacturing space can produce products that are of good quality which are also competitive in terms of pricing to ensure that products that are made outside of the country do not find traction with our consumers.

Support for youth, women-owned SMMEs in manufacturing

The Minister said, meanwhile, that the Department of Small Business Development has been supporting SMMEs in manufacturing through the SMME-Focused Localisation Framework.

This includes the Small Enterprise Manufacturing Support Programme, which is aimed at providing financial and business development support to small enterprises in the manufacturing industries sub sectors.

She said through the Small Enterprise Development Agency (SEDA), the department supports a total of 23 manufacturing-based incubators in the chemicals, steel and stainless steel-based metals, aluminum which has metal fabrication, biofuels, clothing, footwear and leather, food, bakery and confectionary, tech hardware and furniture manufacturing.

“These manufacturing incubators, for the period under review, have supported 737 manufacturing SMMEs that generated 267 886 172 in total revenue and sustained 527 manufacturing-based jobs and created 1 364 new jobs.

“To ensure that SMME manufacturers continuously produce high quality products, the SEDA Conformity Assessment Programme supported a total of 207 manufacturers for product testing, certification, design and quality management and different national SANS [national standards] and international standards organization compliance.”

Ntshavheni said the SEDA Technical Assistance Progrogramme supported a total of 684 manufacturers with product and process technology to the value of R15 million.

From the 2019/20 financial year to date, the Small Enterprise Finance Agency (SEFA) has disbursed R68 million to youth-owned enterprises and disbursed R167 million to women-owned enterprises in the manufacturing sector alone.

“Cooperatives operating within the manufacturing sector produced clothing and textiles, bricks and blocks, ice, toilet papers, bakery and confectionary products, cosmetics, steel, arts and crafts.

“Through the Cooperatives Incentive Scheme, a total of 118 cooperatives with 77 majority-women beneficiaries and 18 majority-youth beneficiaries were supported to the value of R34.5 million.”

A 31-year-old mother, of twins joined at the head, is over the moon after her babies were separated at Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital (RCWMCH) in Cape Town.

“I am overjoyed! I wasn’t expecting to leave here holding my children one in each arm,” said the elated mom, Ntombikayise Tyhalisi.

According to the Western Cape Health Department, Siphosethu and Amahle were born in the Eastern Cape and later transferred to the RCWMCH when they were four days old.

The conjoined twins successfully underwent separation surgery in February this year and are recovering well.

“A multi-disciplinary team, involving a full set for each twin was put together for this unique surgery. Each team comprised an anaesthetist, neurosurgeon, plastic surgeon and nurses,” said the provincial department.

RCWMCH’s Paediatric Neurosurgery Head, Professor Tony Figaji, said twins born joined at the head is a rare condition called craniopagus.

“Craniopagus twins occur approximately once in every 2.5 million live births worldwide. We were fortunate in this case that the connection did not involve any shared brain tissue and didn’t involve major [blood] vessels going from one twin to the other,” Figaji added.

Meanwhile, Plastic Surgery Head, Professor Saleigh Adams, told the department that the teams were prepared for a marathon surgery.

“We were prepared for a six-hour, at least, surgery. On this occasion, the surgery lasted all of one and a half hours. This is a huge plus for the recovery of the twins.”

The hospital’s acting CEO, Dr Anita Parbhoo, said: “We are proud of the entire multidisciplinary team involved in helping these twin patients – from the birthing team in the Eastern Cape and the referring clinicians, to our staff in the wards and theatre and then to those involved with the post-surgery care. A huge thank you to everyone”.

The hospital’s focus now turns to ensure the healthy healing of the surgical areas.

“Both patients and mom are doing well following the surgery and continue to receive follow-up care.”

Over 145 candidates from 29 political parties are set to contest the by-elections in 40 wards on 19 May 2021, the Electoral Commission announced on Tuesday.

“The 145 candidates, including eight independent candidates, were certified as contestants for the by-elections on 3 May 2021. Of the candidates, 86 (59.31%) are male and 59 (40.69%) are female,” the Electoral Commission said in a statement.

The by-elections will be held across seven provinces, and these include seven wards in the Eastern Cape, two wards in the Free State, 16 wards in Gauteng, seven wards in KwaZulu-Natal, and four wards in both Limpopo and Mpumalanga.

A total of 362 965 voters are registered to participate in the by-elections.

“The by-elections will be held under strict new COVID-19 protocols aimed at ensuring the safety of voters, election staff, party agents, observers and other stakeholders. These include implementing strict social distancing practices outside and inside voting stations along with the use of hand sanitisers as voters enter and exit the voting station.

“Voters, election staff and all those entering the voting station will be required to wear a mask at all times. Voters are also encouraged to bring their own pens to mark their ballot papers, although pens will be provided and sanitised after each use,” the Commission said.

For more information on upcoming by-elections, voters can contact their local (municipal) IEC office weekdays during office hours.

Contact details for all IEC offices are available on the IEC website at www.elections.org.za.

A witness in the trial of seven Chinese nationals facing human trafficking and child labour charges has detailed horrific working conditions and human right violations endured by workers in a Johannesburg factory.

In a statement on Monday, Malawi national Fraser Aufi, in the Johannesburg High Court testified that, at the factory, he and his fellow nationals were subjected to long working hours, debt bondage, hazardous working conditions, insults, assaults and violation of basic human rights by the accused.

Aufi, said the department, testified that his dream of becoming an entrepreneur was shattered the day he set his foot at Beautiful City Pty Ltd, the company that employed them.

“His dream when he came into South Africa back in 2017 was to get work and go back home to open and run his own business. However, after being subjected to slavery-like working conditions that dream has now disappeared,” said the department.

Aufi was continuing on his testimony detailing the alleged trail of abuse he suffered in the hands of his employer.

Seven Chinese nationals were arrested in November 2019 for alleged human trafficking and violation of the country’s labour laws. They are: Kevin Tsao Shu-Uei, Chen Hui, Qin Li, Jiaqing Zhou, Ma Biao, Dai Junying, and Zhang Zhilian.

“The accused are facing schedule six offences. They are charged with 160 counts of crime ranging from contravention of labour laws, human trafficking, kidnapping, contravention of Immigration Act, pointing a firearm, debt bondage, benefitting from the services of a victim of trafficking, conduct that facilitates trafficking, illegally assisting person(s) to remain in South Africa, knowingly employing illegal foreigners, and failure to comply with duties of an employer,” reads the statement.

The accused are out on a bail, with the exception of Zhang Zhilian who is now in custody after she violated her bail conditions by trying to flee the country in February. She was arrested at the OR Tambo International Airport.

The seven accused were arrested for allegedly running an illegal enterprise called Beautiful City Pty Ltd located at Village Deep in Johannesburg after a joint operation by the Department’s Inspection and Enforcement Services (IES), together with the South African Police Services (SAPS), Department of Home Affairs and the Hawks Unit.

Aufi told the Court that initially the Chinese refused to open the gates until the police climbed over the gates to free them and how the accused tried to “bribe” the police with food.

The witness had testified earlier that during his stay at the factory he was once injured on a rib while working on a machine and has witnessed a number of injuries suffered by fellow workers including suffering fractures, and chopped fingers by machines. He told the Court that he was never compensated for his injuries.

The accused have pleaded not guilty to all the charges.

Aufi testified that except for a few Malawians that have since left most of the Malawians freed from the Chinese factory were now under police care and have been told that their status would be resolved after the Chinese trial.

The trial continues today.

Public Service and Administration Minister Senzo Mchunu, is expected to confer certificates of completion to about 200 presiding officers who have completed their training on the management of disciplinary cases in the public service.

Mchunu will be joined by Public Service Sector Education and Training Authority (PSETA) Board Chairperson Thulani Tshefuta at Friday’s ceremony.

The Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA), in partnership with PSETA undertook a capacity-building program for over 200 presiding officers, comprising chairpersons and initiators of disciplinary hearings in the public service.

The purpose of the ceremony is to recognise officers who have completed their credited modules and are ready to be deployed to preside over disciplinary cases in various national and provincial departments across the country.  This will help reduce prolonged and stagnant suspension cases in the public service.

In terms of the law, discipline management is a decentralised function and a prerogative of each national and provincial department, and the decentralised nature of the process may have presented challenges which are costly and take longer to resolve.

As a result, the DPSA, through the Public Administration Ethics, Integrity and Disciplinary Technical Assistance Unit (PA-EID-TAU), is monitoring and providing the necessary technical support to ensure that the finalisation of cases is accelerated and is within the prescribed period of 90 days.

With the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent economic downturn affecting the South African Post Office (SAPO) revenue, the entity has implemented long-term initiatives to diversify its income.

“These have started to show results, and the Post Office has also identified quick solutions that will improve its income in the short-term,” the Ministry of Communications and Digital Technologies said on Monday.

The Ministry, as the shareholder said it continues to work closely with the Post Office to strengthen the executive management of the entity.

Nomkhita Mona was recently appointed as the new Chief Executive Officer of the SAPO for a five-year term. The position had been vacant since 2019.

“The South African Post Office is a key stakeholder in delivering on government’s developmental objectives of improving access to basic services in previously underserviced communities. Its network is currently the largest point of presence nationally and is able to connect government, businesses and citizens anywhere in South Africa,” Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams said.

The Minister has welcomed the reopening of most of the SAPO branches across all provinces that were temporarily closed following extensive negotiations with landlords.

Twenty-seven branches have been reopened in all nine provinces.

“Negotiations continue with landlords of the remaining few Post Offices that are closed; they will re-open as soon as agreement is reached with property owners.  This is expected to be within the next few weeks,” the Ministry said.