First Take SA

The University of Stellenbosch has strongly condemned all forms of discrimination and racism at the University. This follows the release of a documentary called 'Luister' by the Open Stellenbosch Movement which features students accounts of alleged racism at the university.

The Broadcast Electronic Media and Allied Workers' Union (Bemawu) at the SABC is alleging that staff members at the Durban office were thrown out of their work stations and threatened with dismissal during a visit by the National Intelligence Agency. It is not clear as to what the purpose of the NIA operators was as staff members were asked to vacate their offices for as long as two hours. Bemawu'...

The SEAexpo is a one-of-a-kind meeting ground for people in the Showbiz, Entertainment and Arts industries. Leading businesses in these industries will have set up stalls around the expo venue where attendees will be able to find them and discuss opportunities for future business. Simultaneously a conference is held each day where industry leaders impart wisdom to attendees with themed conversatio...

An sms sent by a pupil who died after the North West Secondary School for the Deaf in Leeudoringstad caught fire yesterday, will assist police in establishing the cause of the tragedy. Three learners died on the blaze, while over 50 others were injured. Chairperson for the portfolio committee on education in the provincial legislature, Kelebogile Moiloa believes the sms can prove the cause of the...

One in five learners surveyed in Gauteng and Limpopo say they feel pressured by teachers to have sex with them. These are some of the findings of a survey done by NGO Action Aid South Africa. They also found that 55-percent of respondents are sexually active with their partners, 15 percent with older men and 3 percent with their teachers.

SARS Customs officials have confiscated one of the biggest consignments of drugs worth R37.6 million at O.R. International Airport. This happened during an operation last night after a baggage handler's trolley with unclaimed bags was scanned and a detector dog's reaction indicated that there couls be narcotics in the bag. A serach of the bags revealed that there was the drug known as meth in liqu...

All the eight former policemen accused of the murder of Mozambican taxi driver, Mido Macia in 2013 have been found GUILTY in the High court in Pretoria. Macia died after he was dragged behind a police van two years ago. A footage showing the incident went viral, sparking international outrage. The eight former policemen have maintained their innocence throughout trial. They have been sent to custo...

Public Protector Thuli Madonsela has found evidence of widespread maladministration and impropriety in the awarding of tenders worth almost three billion rand at the Passenger Rail Agency. Releasing her report in Pretoria, Madonsela found that 19 of 32 complaints against Prasa were substantiated. She says transactions revealed a culture of systematic failure to comply with Prasa's supply chain man...

Public Protector Thuli Madonsela has found evidence of widespread maladministration and impropriety in the awarding of tenders worth almost three billion rand at the Passenger Rail Agency. Releasing her report in Pretoria, Madonsela found that 19 of 32 complaints against Prasa were substantiated. She says transactions revealed a culture of systematic failure to comply with Prasa's supply chain man...

Public Protector Thuli Madonsela has found evidence of widespread maladministration and impropriety in the awarding of tenders worth almost three billion rand at the Passenger Rail Agency. Releasing her report in Pretoria, Madonsela found that 19 of 32 complaints against Prasa were substantiated. She says transactions revealed a culture of systematic failure to comply with Prasa's supply chain man...

Public Protector Thuli Madonsela has urged Transport minister Dipuo Peters to take cognisance of damning findings against the Passenger Rail Agency. Madonsela has found evidence of widespread maladministration and impropriety in the awarding of tenders worth almost three billion rand at Prasa. Releasing her report in Pretoria, Madonsela said transactions revealed a culture of systematic failure to...

The Passenger Rail Agency of SA, PRASA, has suspendend seven staff members who organised, what it considered , an unauthorised gathering in support of the reinstatement of former CEO Lucky Montana. PRASA's Acting CEO, Nathi Khena says the affected staff members have been peddling a number of untruths which have become matters of public discourse. Khena says they intend to provide the actual facts...

The ANC Women's League wants the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services, Michael Masutha, not to apply the general parole regulations to Oscar Pistorius, citing the sensitivity of the case. About 300 members of the ANC Women's League, from across the country, marched to the offices of the minister in Pretoria and handed over a memorandum to a representative of the minister. Aphiwe Honono sp...

Gauteng Hawks boss Shadrack Sibiya is to be dismissed. Three weeks ago a departmental hearing found him guilty of misconduct for his role in the arrest and rendition of a group of Zimbabwean murder suspects in 2010. However, he had denied the allegations saying he was targeted for leading the investigation and arrest of former crime intelligence head, Richard Mdluli. The Hawks national head, Anwar...

The Go George bus service is expected to resume operations this afternoon on selected routes around George in the Southern Cape. Services were temporarily suspended on Wednesday, following widespread violence, which saw several Go George buses set alight. One person has been arrested after taxi owners tried to prevent a police roadblock at the entrance of Thembalethu earlier today.

The South African Council of Churches has just hosted a media briefing to air their views on the recent spates of church related incidents, in which church members were made to eat grass, drink petrol and eat human hair, snakes and mice. Meanwhile, a nationwide investigation has been launched into the commercialisation of religion, as well as the mushrooming of charismatic churches. The investigat...

The Albinism Society of South Africa, ASSA, has expressed outrage over the brutal killing of a 20-year old albino woman in Kwazulu-Natal. Thandazile Mpunzi's body was found in a shallow grave on Sunday after she was reported missing by her family early this month. A preacher and a traditional healer are amongst the four men charged for Mpunzi's murder. The community refuses to allow her body to be...

The NGOs Sonke Gender Justice, the TAC and Section 27 say they are confident that the South Gauteng High Court will accept their application to be friends of the court in the class action against the entire mining industry. The lawsuit pertains to the mine workers who are suffering from silicosis and tubercolosis as a result of working in the mines.

As a wise man once said, “Existing customers are a goldmine to your business.” This is the reason why Manneko Nkabinde from Gauteng felt disappointed when, after four years of loyalty to Altech Autopage, they wouldn’t resolve a query she had.

The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa has defended its action of issuing some of its senior managers notices of suspension. The managers held a press conference yesterday calling for among others the reinstatement of former CEO Lucky Montana. The employees also protested outside Prasa's offices in Pretoria - claiming the company is in chaos since Montana's dismissal.

It seems there is no legal justification for the Justice and Correctional Services minister, Michael Masutha, to postpone the release of Oscar Pistorius on correctional supervision. Masutha indicated he will get legal opinion after the Progressive Women's Movement of South Africa handed a petition to him asking him to postpone Pistorius' release until the end of August, which is women's month. Pis...

At least 14 people have been killed in an accident involving a minibus taxi and a train at Shakaskraal near KwaDukuza on the Kwazulu-Natal north coast. It's believed that the taxi lost control and veered off the R102 onto the adjacent railway line, where it was hit by a moving train. EMRS spokesperson Robert Mackenzie says police are investigating

Two of South Sudan's warring factions have signed a peace agreement in the Ethiopian Capital Addis Ababa, hours before the expiry of a deadline for them to do so. Lead mediator Seyoum Mesfin says only the rebels and the SPLM, part of South Sudan's opposition signed the agreement. The government declined to sign, citing reservations to some of the clauses, but said it would sign in the next 15 days...

At least 27 people, including foreigners, are reported to have died after a bomb exploded close to the Erawan shrine in the centre of Thailand's capital, Bangkok. Reports say a second bomb has been found in the area and made safe. The Thai government says the attack was aimed at foreigners due to the Hindu shrine being a popular tourist destination. One of the witnesses, Richard Srikurecha, was ne...

The World Bank's report on South Africa's economy says the country should address its current power crisis and labour relations as a matter of urgency. The report has also warned that South Africa will need to do a lot more to achieve the five percent annual growth envisioned in the National Development Plan. The report recommends that the country train the majority of its unemployed working age p...