Cape Town —
Gordhan Orders Eskom to Get Country Out of Stage 6 Blackouts
Public Enterprise Minister Pravin Gordhan has ordered Eskom to get the country out of "unacceptable" Stage 6 load shedding after meeting with the power utility's management and board. "Power-cuts are having a devastating effect on households and livelihoods, investment and economic climate. This is totally unacceptable. The frequency of breakdowns is certainly attributable to some element of malfunctioning within the Eskom systems and possibly sabotage as well", the minister said.
Unions March to Parliament Over Public Servants' Wage Demands
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu), the South Africa Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu) and the Federation of Unions of South Africa (Fedusa) led a march to parliament today, to highlight the plight of public service workers, Eye Witness News reports. The workers' demand for a 10% wage increase was met by government's 3% offer. This is the third leg of protests by the sector in less than two months.
Another Door Closes on Jacob Zuma's Attempt to Avoid Arms Deal Prosecution
The Constitutional Court closed the door on another bid from former president Jacob Zuma to get State advocate Billy Downer kicked off his arms deal corruption case, Eye Witness News reports. In October 2021, judge Piet Koen in the Pietermaritzburg High Court ruled that Downer would continue prosecuting Zuma. This decision had the former president approach the Supreme Court of Appeal, twice. In March 2022, two SCA judges dismissed Jacob Zuma's application for leave to appeal, finding he had no reasonable prospect of success. Zuma subsequently approached SCA president Mandisa Maya directly to reconsider her court's decision - that too was turned down in September 2022. A Constitutional Court ruling said Zuma could still try and lodge an appeal directly against Koen's ruling with the Apex court, which he did. This has now been turned down.
Motorists Urged to Be Vigilant on Roads as Festive Season Approaches
The Automobile Association has warned that as the festive season approaches, traffic volumes are increasing across the country as schools and business close and people make their way to vacation destinations across the country. The AA said this period is particularly dangerous as the increased traffic leads to increased crashes and fatalities.
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South Africa Qualifies for U25 Women's Wheelchair Basketball Champs
South Africa has won the Africa U25 Women's Wheelchair Basketball World Championship qualifiers - beating the Democratic Republic of Congo 57 -32 on December 8, 2022, Eye Witness News reports. Wheelchair Basketball SA said the team has now qualified for the IWBF U25 Womens's World Championship. The team battled it out against Ethiopia and DR Congo for the one slot allocated for Africa at next year's IWBF U25 Women's Wheelchair Basketball Championships in Rotterdam in the Netherlands. The qualifiers took place at the Vodacom Mandeville Indoor Sports Centre in Johannesburg from December 5-8, 2022.
