First Take SA

A victory for democracy. This is how the two largest opposition parties, the DA and EFF have lauded today's Constitutional Court ruling. The Court has struck down as unconstitutional section 11 of the Powers and Privileges and Immunities of Parliament and Provincial Legislatures Act (Act). The ruling means the Speaker of Parliament will no longer be able to direct the arrest or use of the police t...

The Public Protector has been approached to investigate the alleged influence of the Gupta family in the state. The Dominican Order, a group of Catholic priests and brothers in Southern Africa have requested the Public Protector to investigate allegations that the Deputy Minister of Finance, Mcebisi Jonas, and a former Member of Parliament, Vytjie Mentor, were offered cabinet positions by members...

The issue of the Guptas' alleged influence on government, especially cabinet appointments, is set to dominate the ANC's National Executive Committee meeting starting in Irene outside Pretoria today. The business family's influence is reported to be causing divisions within the ruling party. There've been allegations that the Guptasy offered senior ANC members cabinet posts and pressured ministers...

Deputy finance minister, Mcebisi Jonas has confirmed to the SABC that he was offered finance minister post by the Gupta family. The family had previously denied that they made the offer to Jonas on condition that he clears the way for the much mooted nuclear deal. It was first reported that the job was offered to Jonas just weeks before finance minister Nhlanhla Nene was fired. Jonas says he rejec...

Deputy finance minsiter Mcebisi Jonas has confirmed to the SABC that he was offered finance minister post. And he rejected it out hand.

Government says it may take the Supreme Court of Appeals ruling on Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir to the Constitutional court. It was reacting to the SCA's dismissal of government's appeal against the Pretoria High Court ruling that al-Bashir should have been arrested when he attended the African Union (AU) Summit in Johannesburg in June last year. The SCA ruled that government as a signatory t...

he executive director of the International Bar Association Mark Ellis supports the decision by South Africa's supreme court helps to uphold the principal of universal jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court. The supreme court said the South African government should have handed over ICC indicted Sudanese president Omar Al-Bashir when he attended an African Union summit in Johannesburg las...

The South African filmic scene will add another classic to its repertoire of great cinematic productions with the nationwide release of Safe Bet on 11 March. The film which stars Wandile Molebatsi, Luthuli Dlamini, Godfrey Thobejane and features surprise guest appearances from the likes of David Kau and Metro FM's top DJ, T-Bo Touch.

Criminologist Zain Halle says it's highly improbable that Sindisiwe Manqele had planned to murder her rapper boyfriend, Nkululeko Flabba Habedi. He's submitting an assessment report in mitigation of sentence in the High Court sitting in Palm Ridge in Ekurhuleni. Manqele was found guilty of intentionally killing Habedi in March last year in his Alexandra home.

Top officials in the ANC were forced to leave the eMakhempini sportsfield in Mandeni on the KwaZulu Natal North Coast after being met by protesting residents. The community demanded that those arrested during violent protests on Monday be released. Residents took to the streets earlier this week after a former mayor was apparently re-nominated. At least six factories were torched as well as vehicl...

ANC Chief Whip Stone Sizani has confirmed his resignation as member of parliament with immediate effect. Sizani says he will replace Makhenkesi Stofile as South Africa's ambassador to Germany. He says his redeployment is not a sign of lack of confidence in him. The ANC held a special caucus meeting today where the news was broken to party MPs.

The Independent Electoral Commission says it has undertaken a range of initiatives to ensure that all new voting registrations include the addresses of voters. This follows an Electoral Court judgement, in November last year, that ruled in favour of independent candidates in the by-elections at the Tlokwe Municipality, in North West, that the voters' roll should bear the addresses of voters. Chair...

The events of 2015 and this year have raised some fundamental questions about transformation at South Africa's universities. Rhodes University vice chancellor, Professor Sizwe Mabizela, has said this while addressing student bodies and academics attending the official opening of the 5thUnisa Research and Innovation Week in Pretoria. Mabizela calls for a speedy transformation process in all areas o...

Student unrest at universities has reached untenable levels. The tensions have led to violence as well as a number of assaults. We are at a crisis point and we have to act now before lives are lost. As a result, a group of likeminded active citizens have joined forces to provide independent mediation, conflict resolution and facilitation services to the universities and the student movements who r...

Protesting students on the main campus of the University of the Free State have slightly damaged the statue of former state president C.R. Swart after attempting to set it alight. However, university security personnel managed to put out the blaze. The protesting students are members of the EEF and students organisation SASCO. They are supporting workers who are demanding an end to outsourcing. Me...

A bomb threat has led to the adjournment of sentencing proceedings against Czech fugitive Radovan Krejcir in the high court in Johannesburg. Krejcir and five co-accused were quickly ushered to holding cells while the gallery was evacuated. Tactical response officers are combing the building. The court earlier rejected a request by Krejcir to postpone proceedings. The Hawks believe Krejcir is tryin...

Police were called in to keep groups of students apart on the main campus of the University of Pretoria, today. Several people were injured. Tension mounted when a group opposing the use of Afrikaans arrived at the campus to hold a meeting to discuss a way forward. This followed the postponement of a court case against 27 of them. Security personnel had to form human shields between the two sides...

At the beginning of January 2015, Naledi Molope-Serudu received a letter of demand from a company known as Mtimandze Consulting and Projects which said it was collecting debt on behalf of the City of Tshwane. Molope-Serudu, who had moved to Cape town and was renting out her home, immediately made arrangements to pay but the money did not go to the coffers of the City of Tshwane and now it appears...

University of Fort Hare Alumni and IFP leader, Mangosuthu Buthelezi has urged current political leaders to exercise 'cerebral rather than emotional leadership in dealing with the challenges faced by institutions of higher learning. He was delivering the ZK Memorial at the centenary celebration of the University of Fort Hare in Alice in the Eastern Cape. Mathews was the first black graduate from th...

Ousted PRASA CEO Lucky Montana has dismissed allegations that he obtained a house worth millions of rand through a corrupt deal during the 2010 Fifa World Cup. Montana says PRASA made the claim because it had failed to pay a company he's accused of illegally awarding tenders to. PRASA chairperson Popo Molefe has filed court papers claiming that Montana illegally awarded two contracts to Siyangena...

The EFF has warned that it is going after President Jacob Zuma with the ultimate goal to see him out of office. The party has rejected the settlement offer the president filed in the Constitutional Court on non-security features at his home in Nkandla. EFF leader Julius Malema says they have their own conditions for a settlement. The constitutional court has given Parties until Friday(05/02) to re...

When Seipati Nale’s husband died in 2008, she was devastated, but her pain was somewhat bearable because he had left money for their children in a trust fund which would enable them to further their studies. The fund was administered by Bophelo Benefit Services. The first payment for the eldest child was made without any delays in 2011. However, for the youngest, there are problems which provide a...

Labour Federation COSATU says, government does not have the right to dictate to workers how they should manage thier pension funds. In December last year president Jacob Zuma signed a new tax administration law that allows retirees access to just a third of their money,and the rest to be paid out in instalments. COSATU is calling for the scrapping of the new tax laws, and plans marches around the...

Suspended Police Commissioner, Riah Phiyega, says that she finds yesterday's announcement by IPID concerning and incomplete. Phiyega was responding to the IPIDs recommendation that she be charged for her role in the Marikana shootings. The NPA must decide whether to charge Phiyega after it received a file from the police watchdog.

President Jacob Zuma says if the constitutional court accepts his proposal- it will not be necessary to hear arguments on the powers of the public protector. Zuma submitted a letter to the constitutional court proposing that the auditor general and finance minister start a new process to determine his liability for the non security features on his Nkandla home. This would be the second investigati...