Cape Town —
Update as at 16h30 SAST
Banyana Banyana Receives Rapturous Welcome at OR Tambo Airport, With Added Bonus!
Banyana Banyana, the newly crowned Women's Africa Cup of Nation's Champs, has returned home to an arrivals hall packed with jubilant fans at the OR Tambo airport today. The team beat hosts Morocco 2-1 in the final played in Rabat on July 23, 2022. Players and fans alike are thrilled that the team will receive a cash bonus of R5.8 million from the sports ministry News24 reports, together with a R9.2 million payment from SAFA for winning the WAFCON. Calls are growing louder, though, for equal pay for the main national teams. "It will be a law in this country, "Bafana Bafana and Banyana Banyana will be paid equally", Sports Minister Nathi Mthetwa said. Head Coach Desiree Ellis said: "This team is incredible. This team is amazing" - and South Africans could not agree more.
No Arrests In SASSA Cyber Theft Totalling R89.5 Million From Post Bank
Nearly R89.5 million was stolen from SASSA accounts at Postbank, allegedly by the bank's employees or contractors between October 16 and 18, 2021, The Citizen reports. In answer to the Democratic Alliance's Lezel Van Der Merwe, Social Development Minister Lindiwe Zulu said no arrests have been made yet. The money was fraudulently transferred to 279 accounts and withdrawn at ATMs using cloned cards.
No Policy On Homeless But One On the Way Promises Minister Zulu
Social Development Minister Lindiwe Zulu has said her department was among the key departments that were relevant in dealing with homelessness. This came after a letter was sent to the minister by DA MP Alexandra Abrahams, highlighting that no national government policy existed on homelessness, a move that left affected individuals vulnerable. The minister was asked among others, when the envisaged date for the government policy would be. In her reply, Zulu said homelessness was a cross-cutting issue which required a collaborative effort in addressing it.
Western Cape Judge President John Hlophe Waiting for Axe to Fall
Controversial Western Cape Judge President John Hlophe has moved a step closer to suspension, EWN reports. Yesterday, the Judicial Services Commission announced that it would be recommending his suspension to President Cyril Ramaphosa. Hlophe is accused of attempting to "influence, improperly," then Constitutional Court Justices Chris Jafta and Bess Nkabinde during a make-or-break appeal involving former president Jacob Zuma's prosecution over the arms deal - formally known as the Strategic Defence Package - in 2008. The JSC found that this amounted to gross misconduct and Hlophe is now facing a parliamentary vote to impeach him.
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UAE Extradition of Fugitive Gupta Brothers a Step Closer?
Justice Minister Ronald Lamola has confirmed that the national director of public prosecutions has issued a request for the extradition of Rajesh and Atul Gupta, which had been duly received by UAE authorities. The minister said the matter was now out of South Africa's hands. According to the minister, the UAE courts will determine whether the Gupta brothers are extraditable to South Africa. The UAE justice minister will then make the final decision on whether they will return to South Africa to answer charges of fraud, corruption and money laundering. The brothers were arrested in the UAE in June 2022.
To Scrap, or Not to Scrap Chicken Trade Tariffs
The consumption of chicken, a good source of protein, exceeds 2 million tons per year in South Africa. Since April 2022, there has been calls to scrap trade tariffs on chicken to protect its affordability for the South African consumer. The South African Association of Meat Importers and Exporters (AMIE) has called on the government to "purge all trade tariffs on chicken products and place a three-year moratorium on all new tariffs". They are also calling for VAT to be removed from chicken. Meanwhile, IOL reports that the SA Poultry Association is saying that the non-renewal of tariffs is a threat to jobs in the industry, as well as to consumers.
