Corruption paralysing South Africa
By Juran van den Heever

Trade union Solidarity this week handed a letter and a corruption report identifying nine government institutions that are more corrupt than Nkandla to the Public Protector and demanded that corruption now be noised abroad and be tackled once and for all.

This comes after a survey by anti-corruption watchdog, Transparency International, revealed that four out of five South Africans believe that corruption in South Africa was on the rise.  According to the survey, South Africa topped the list of corrupt states in Africa, followed by Ghana and Nigeria. A total of 79% of the South Africans who participated in the survey believe that government is doing nothing to fight corruption.

According to Dr Eugene Brink, senior researcher at the Solidarity Research Institute, the South African government would have to fight corruption in a more successful manner than what is currently the case if the country is to prosper economically and socially. “The more corrupt a country is, the poorer, sicker, more underdeveloped and unsuccessful its people are. This is indeed one of South Africa’s major problems and it is most definitely worse than what it used to be a few years ago.

“The good news in the Transparency report is that a significant 56% of South African respondents believe that ordinary people can make a difference when it comes to corruption. That is why incessant pressure from the public and civil organisations is so vital,” Brink said.

 

BEE middlemen run amuck at SAA and Prasa
By Francois Redelinghuys

Trade union Solidarity said this week that the irresponsible pursuit of black economic empowerment targets and the idea to develop black industrialists at all costs have plunged the South African Airways (SAA) and the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) further into difficulties.

According to Dr Eugene Brink, senior researcher at the Solidarity Research Institute, SAA Chairperson Dudu Myeni announced earlier that SAA wanted to review its current agreement with the European company Airbus. In addition, she wants to make use of an unknown middleman who would buy these aeroplanes on behalf of the airline, and who would then supply the aeroplanes to SAA.

Apart from the fact that the original agreement with Airbus will not be complied with, this review would also cost tax payers R1,5 billion and add unnecessary costs. “This announcement followed after Myeni’s statement earlier this year that by 2018, SAA wants to spend 50% of its procurement budget of R20 billion on black industrialists and black economic empowerment. This is spending for the sake of spending and not aimed at converting a struggling airline into a profitable and prosperous enterprise,” Brink explained.

The Prasa scandal is starting to peak after it has emerged that this institution wants to have its tender with Swifambo Holdings declared invalid after this black economic empowerment consortium earlier had been granted the tender in a controversial manner. The tender process followed apparently did not meet the required criteria.

“Meanwhile, Prasa has granted a tender to a black economic empowerment consortium, whose only clients are Transnet and Prasa, to supply the by now controversial Vossloh Espana locomotives to this parastatal at a price, merely acting as middleman in the transaction,” Brink said.

“This ill-considered practice smacks of parastatals that are prepared to compromise the sustainability of their institutions and to squander tax money for the sake of developing and enriching black industrialists merely acting as middlemen,” Brink explained.

 

Kumba’s Thabazimbi iron ore mine officially closed after 80 years 

Sowetan reports that Anglo American’s Kumba Iron Ore last week officially closed down its 80-year-old Thabazimbi mine in Limpopo. Mining activities had ceased on 13 September and the procedures that have been under way since then, such as exit medicals and what individuals were going to do post the mine closure, have now been completed.
Kumba CE, Norman Mbazima, said “this is the last day for people who are in the mining engineering department supporting the mining. We still have some employees who are in the processing area … and they will be leaving early next year.” He indicated that the company would not completely cut ties with the community as the Thabazimbi Development Trust owned 3% of Kumba shares and would benefit from them while the company was still operational.

Thabazimbi mayor Patricia Mosito said the mine’s closure was a blow to the town’s economy, but one has to understand that mining “is a business that starts, and even on the day it starts you know it is going to finish.” She said two new mines have been opened and she was hoping they would absorb some of the retrenched employees. Mosito also said that companies intending to do mine rehabilitation at Kumba would be requested to first consider hiring local people with skills.

 

Drought, low prices hit Illovo Sugar H1 profits

According to Engineering News, South Africa's Illovo Sugar said a scorching drought in crucial sugar-producing regions and low prices cut its half-year profit by nearly 60%.

Headline earnings per share – the main gauge of profit in South Africa that strips out certain one-off items – for the six months to end-September fell to 71,7 cents from 171,1 cents a year earlier, Illovo said in a statement.

Global sugar prices hit seven-year lows in August, mainly due to oversupply, but analysts predict a deficit next year that will support prices. Illovo said it hoped to partly offset the profit fall by boosting demand in southern Africa and cutting costs, and forecast full-year headline earnings per share down 25% to 45% on the previous year.

“Initiatives to improve the sales mix and to develop regional markets will benefit the full year earnings, whilst structural cost reduction programmes will continue to build on the good results achieved to date,” MD Gavin Dalgleish said.

 

Child abductions: Forewarned is forearmed
By Tinus Vollgraaff

December is looming and families will be relaxing and frequenting shopping malls all around the country. Nevertheless, evil never sleeps or rests and villains will be prowling these public spaces for the perfect opportunity to cause unspeakable heartache.
The festive season is therefore no time to let your guard down as child abduction attempts are on the rise. Take the time and read these tips on how to keep your children safe. Share it with your friends and family and make them part of your kids’ lives and education. Most of all, heed it at all times. Don’t be sorry!

Tips for parents

• Know your child’s whereabouts at all times. Human traffickers are professionals who are extremely skilled at kidnapping kids and you want to make it as hard as possible for them to do so.
• From a very early age, teach your children their names, address and contact numbers and your first and last name.
• Know the names, addresses and contact numbers of your children’s friends. Be aware of every friend he or she makes and make a deliberate effort to get to know each one.
• Establish strict procedures for picking up children at school, after movies, at friends’ homes, etc.
• Keep your children (especially toddlers and other small children) close to your home and away from the street. Moreover, teach them to never walk alone but always with a friend or trusted adult. Don’t ever send them to the shop alone.
• Never leave your children alone in a car, not even for a few seconds. And remind them to never accept rides from someone you don’t know, even if they know them.
• Listen attentively when your child tells you about meeting or speaking to someone when you weren’t around.
• Teach your children to make some noise when approached by a stranger. Teach them to scream or draw attention when they are in trouble.
• Constantly instil in them the thought that strangers are not to be trusted. They are not allowed to accept anything from strangers or accompany them anywhere. Create a family code word that only your family is privy to.
• There is no waiting period for reporting missing children. Have the following information ready when reporting a missing child: full name, age, eye colour, hair colour/style, height, weight, distinctive marks, where the person was last seen, and the clothes they were wearing. Also contact Missing Children SA, who intervenes wherever they can.
• Always keep a recent photograph of your child in your wallet, purse or on your cellphone. In case of an emergency, the photo is readily available.

Tips for kids

• Don’t ever go anywhere alone. Ensure that you are in a group or with a trusted adult.
• Don’t ever go anywhere without telling your parents or guardians where you are. Make sure that your parents have the names and contact details of the people you are with and notify them if your plans change.
• Avoid lonely places and shortcuts through alleys or deserted areas. Always walk with friends.
• Go straight home after school unless you have made other arrangements and never enter anyone’s house or car without approval from your parents.
• Never give information over the telephone, including your name and address, or indicate that you are alone.
• Don’t go with people you don’t know and don’t visit public restrooms alone.
• Write your name on the inside of your clothes or school bag, never on the outside where strangers might notice it.
• If somebody is following you, scream as loud as you can and run away as fast as you can.

 

Sectional title in high demand
By Eugene Brink

Sectional title properties such as townhouses are in high demand across South Africa, especially in the big metropolitan areas such as Cape Town and Gauteng.

“Driving demand for residential accommodation, both to buy and rent in economic nodes and key hubs around the country, densification and urbanisation is seeing cities becoming more crowded. In line with this, the demand for land for residential accommodation increases exponentially and wherever possible, new suburbs open up and urban sprawl increases,” says Dr Andrew Golding, chief executive of the Pam Golding Property (PGP) group.

“The requirement for security is another consideration which is an important driver of home-buying decisions, and so, as a general trend, sectional title as a property type is increasingly in the sights of home-seekers – including first-time buyers – with its advantages of security and in many instances, convenient apartment living.”

According to Absa, in the last 20 years flats and townhouses have made up 26.6% of newly completed buildings, while over the past three years, 63% of all residential development units which they financed were sectional title units – a trend they anticipate will continue.

In the Western Cape, the increasing popularity of sectional title living is clearly evident not only in Cape Town’s highly successful regeneration of the central city, but also in areas such as the sought after Atlantic Seaboard and prime pockets in the Southern Suburbs and burgeoning areas of the Western Seaboard, says Laurie Wener, MD of PGP in the Cape Town Metro region. “Across the board, the sale of sectional title property in the Cape Town Metropole is steadily increasing, with this region experiencing an increase in total units sold of 77% from 2008 to 2014 and an increase in total sales value of 141.6% over the same period, according to Lightstone statistics.

“During 2014 a total of 4 216 sectional title properties were sold in these areas, with an average sales value of R1.46 million.  This is considerably up from 2 383 sectional title properties sold in 2008, with an average sales value of R1.1 million, 3 222 units sold in 2012 with an average price of R1.16 million and 3 892 in 2013 priced at R1.27 million on average.”

This compares with 2 685 freehold properties sold in the region in 2008 and 3 841 freehold in 2014.

“Investors also find sectional title extremely attractive, given the high demand for apartments to rent and the growth in value of such accommodation. According to the Pam Golding Residential Property Index, since 2011 growth in sectional title prices in South Africa has accelerated slightly more rapidly when compared to freehold house prices, and then began to completely outperform freehold in March this year (2015) with growth of 6.1% year on year in July, compared to 5.4% in freehold.

“In the Cape Town Metro we see all the price bands of sectional title property in demand from various types of buyers, including young professionals, singles, young couples starting out as well as older buyers, but as with all property the highest demand is in the lower price-bands.”

“From the point of view of costs, with a sectional title unit these are more or less fixed on a monthly basis, with building insurance, general maintenance and water all included in the levies, while there is less potential for major costly maintenance as experienced with a private garden with associated high water costs or exterior house-painting, for example. However, one needs to be sure of buying into a well-maintained block with a healthy bank balance and a good body corporate or one runs the risk of high special levies when any major repairs are required.”

Samuel Seeff, chairman of the Seeff group, confirms this trend. “Although sectional title property only comprises just under 23% (51 993 units) of the total number of title deeds registered for the Cape Metro as a whole, it comprises 40% of all sales annually. Such is the demand.

“The average price of sectional title property of R1.65 million for the metro as a whole is not only 18% more than the R1.4 million of 2013, but now closely rivals the freehold price of R1.67 million.”

Seeff says that the demand is driven by two factors, namely security and lifestyle. “Busy lives and traffic congestion means that buyers are looking to save on maintenance and commuting.”

Property economist and Home Bid adviser, Neville Berkowitz, says the sectional title marketplace is driven by affordability and, to a lesser degree, the perception of better security, “though the focus for first- and second-time homebuyers is more on affordability.”

He says this has translated to a boom in the “Gash” market (Good Address, Small Home) of properties, which is dominated by sectional titles in the R500,000 to R1 million price range. “Sectional titles in the major areas are now made up of between 25.1% (Cape Town) and 38.7% (Durban) of all homes transferred in 2015. Jo’burg and Pretoria sit around 37.1%.”

Golding says over the years “we have seen the sectional title market within both Johannesburg and the Tshwane region rapidly grow in importance”. “According to residential property research company Lightstone, while Midrand has doubled its number of residential properties since 2000, the area has seen a substantial 550% increase in the number of its sectional title properties.”

“People are looking to live in integrated communities where there is a strong emphasis on security, shared costs and, increasingly, sustainability. This trend is, in other words, being driven by concerns regarding security, rising municipal costs and insecure electricity supplies.”

 

AfriForum intensifies campaign for international awareness of farm murders
By Esmarie Prinsloo

AfriForum today presented 15 embassies with a memorandum in which the civil rights organisation requests that these countries must exert pressure on the South African government to protect the rights of minorities as well as to address the farm murder crisis.

The memorandum specifically emphasises the conduct of representatives of the South African government at two separate forums held last week by the United Nations (UN). During the Forum on Minority Issues, the South African representative accused those organisations that focus on the prioritisation of farm murders, that they are “apartheid sympathisers”.

At another forum during which votes were cast with regards to the role of advocates for human rights, the South African government voted against the resolution.

“This behaviour by Government sends a clear message. It is evident that human rights and in particular the rights of minority groups within South Africa are of no importance to the ANC government,” said Henk Maree, AfriForum’s National Spokesperson.

AfriForum presented the memorandum to countries such as Germany, the USA, France, Switzerland, Canada, Namibia and Sweden. In the memorandum, reference is also made to the gruesome murder of the Potgieter family exactly five years ago. Attie Potgieter was stabbed 151 times with a garden fork and his two-year-old daughter was shot in the head before her body was thrown in a carton. Her mother, Wilma, was forced on her knees and shot in the head from behind.

“After the gruesome murder took place, representatives of Government argued that Government will intervene to prevent similar murders. However, it is five years later today and Government hasn’t lifted a finger,” added Maree.
A group of AfriForum representatives visited each of the 15 embassies by foot and had social media abuzz in between the visits.

“Thousands of people, locally and internationally, were today reached by the action and we are strongly convinced that our plea will not fall on deaf ears,” concluded Maree.

 

Imagine you are able to hear for the first time in years …

For the first time in years, 40 elderly person were able to hear the voices of their loved ones, thanks to Helping Hand’s Project for the Aged. These senior citizens are all hard of hearing and had to get hearing aids. The first group of 15 received their hearing aids and their reactions were priceless.

The senior citizens who had been tested by the Impact Hearing team earlier in that month arrived at Helping Hand’s head office in Centurion on 27 October to receive their apparatus and to have the hearing aids adjusted.

Mrs Sophie Nel from Christiana in North West was one of the 15 candidates fortunate enough to experience a real improvement in her hearing. Sophie turns 75 in November and she lives in an old age home in Christiana. She has been struggling with her hearing for some time but her medical aid did not want to pay for a hearing aid.

“Why are you so good to me?” she asked in tears when she received her hearing aid. “I did not expect that. It is so wonderful to be able to hear and not to have to ask people to repeat what they said.”

It was the fervent desire of her daughter, Annemarie Marais, to obtain a hearing aid for her mother. However, she was not in a financial position to be able to pay for it. Then her friend told her about Helping Hand’s project, but she also mentioned that the deadline had passed. Nevertheless, they contacted the organisation and were able to make an appointment.

It is an ongoing project and Helping Hand hopes to improve the lives of many people with the miracle of hearing. SMS “omgee” to 38969 and donate R10 to enrich the lives of elderly people.

For more information on the project, please contact Vena Strauss on 012 344 4390 or send an e-mail to diens@helpendehand.co.za