First Take SA

A showdown is looming between the Basic Education Department on the one hand and teacher organisations and students on the other, over the department's decision for matric learners to rewrite two exam papers after they were found to have been leaked. Teachers union - SADTU and student body COSAS are expected to head to court TODAY (Monday) to seek an urgent interdict challenging the department's d...

The National Director of Public Prosecutions, Shamila Batohi says there's a huge progress in recovery money that was stolen meant for dealing with covid-19 pandemic. She says a number of initiatives have been put in place to capacitate the Asset Forfeiture Unit to recovery money that was lost in corruption activities. Batohi says NPA is also trying to be transparent when doing its work. She says i...

Government has declared the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro in the Eastern Cape a Coronavirus hotspot. President Cyril Ramaphosa made the announcement last night after a special sitting of Cabinet and the National Coronavirus Command Council. The president also extended the national State of Disaster to the 15th of January.

The State Capture Commission has heard how the Gupta wedding in Sun City was used to launder money from the Estina Vrede dairy project in the Free State. A researcher from London based World Investigations, Paul Holden, was testifying about offshore money flow related to the Dairy Farm project at the inquiry in Johannesburg. More than 200 million rand was spent by the Free State government on the...

The first Khoikhoi (Khoekhoegowab) language gathering in Steinkopf, Northern Cape will take place from the 12 - 15 December. It is an immersive opportunity, like no other for artists, creatives, poets and anyone interested in learning one of Southern Africa's First nation languages Khoekhoegowab. The week-long daily activities will see participants engage with the language through song, poetry, re...

President Cyril Ramaphosa declared Nelson Mandela Bay Metro a COVID-19 hotspot, with stricter measures coming into effect at midnight. These include a ban on public drinking, an extended curfew as well as restrictions on gatherings. The President was addressing the nation following a meeting of Cabinet and based on recommendations by the National Coronavirus Command Council. He says these addition...

Some political analysts say Gauteng Premier David Makhura is losing his political power as ANC provincial chairperson. This follows Makhura's announcement of a cabinet reshuffle. Makhura faces resistance from within the party. ANC Youth League's provincial spokesperson, Nkosazana Mtolo says their members won't resign to make way for former Johannesburg mayor, Parks Tau, who has been drafted into t...

The Gauteng government has predicted a surge in COVID-19 infections this festive season. Gauteng Premier David Makhura addressed the media YESTERDAY to outline measures to strengthen the provinces health-care system. Makhura also announced the appointment of Nomathemba Mokghethi as the new MEC of Health. Mokghethi takes over the reins from Bandile Masuku, who was axed in October this year, followi...

Stricter Covid-19 regulations are seemingly on the cards to curb the rapid spread of coronavirus infections in the Nelson Mandela Bay metro. The acting mayor of the metro --Thsonono Buyeye -- says they're reviewing decisions around the sale of of alcohol including trading times

Transport Minister, Fikile Mbalula, says those found guilty of attacking truck drivers on the country's roads will be charged with economic sabotage. He briefed the National Assembly on his department's plans for enforcing road safety this festive season. Dozens of freight vehicles were recently torched and vandalised - as some protestors raised concerns about foreign nationals getting trucking jo...

Home Affairs Minister, Aaron Motsoaledi says plans are in place to build a new "One Stop" Beitbridge border post between South Africa and Zimbabwe outside Musina in Limpopo. He says the border post will have dedicated lanes for trucks, busses, cars and pedestrians. Motsoaledi says the Zimbabwean government has started building on the other side, and South Africa is expected to start soon.

Political parties in parliament have called on for alternative ways to be found to fund the SABC. Taking part in a debate on the growing crisis at the public broadcaster, parties say the SABC is an important institution, which plays a crucial role in keeping South Africans informed.

The Public Servants Association has vowed to continue with its legal process to have hearings on the long-running wage dispute with government heard at the Labour Court TODAY. This follows government's proposal to all unions representing public servants to have the hearings postponed to February next year while the unions consider an out of court settlement. The dispute centres around the final ye...

Government wants to get more HIV-positive people on treatment now to improve the outcomes of the country's HIV/AIDS response. It has therefore launched the "Welcome Back Campaign" encourage more people living with HIV to start taking antiretrovirals and improve their healthcare. This comes as South Africa joins the world in commemorating World AIDS Day today (Tuesday 1 Dec). South Africa currently...

Former South African Revenue Service (Sars) commissioner Tom Moyane has accused Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan of arrogance, petty jealousy, and racism. The legal team representing former Sars Commissioner Tom Moyane told the state capture commission. Gordhan has denied Moyane's assertions and accused Moyane of advancing state capture.

Three children aged between six and eight have been electrocuted while swimming in a river at Jika Joe informal settlement in Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal. People from the settlement have made illegal connections from poles that supply homes in the government sponsored Lindela transit camp with electricity. Locals claim that 5 people have been electrocuted so far this year due to the electric c...

Gauteng Education MEC Panyaza Lesufi says 82 per cent of grades one and eight learners have been placed in schools. Lesufi was speaking during a media briefing YESTERDAY (Sunday) in Johannesburg about the Online Application Placement process for the 2021 academic year. The process started at the beginning of last month, and will end today.

Tourism bodies in Cape Town fear that rising Covid-19 infections in the city may have a devastating impact on the industry this festive season. Although no decision has been made on the possibility of restricting the movement of people, concern abound. There are now over eight-thousand active Covid-19 cases in the province and over 1000 people have been hospitalised. Provincial authorities have st...

The South African Liquor Association has joined efforts to curb the increasing number of new infections in the Eastern Cape. This as liquor outlets, including tarvens have been identified by health officials as key enablers for the rapid spread in infections, especially in areas such as Nelson Mandela Bay. The province now faces possible stricter lockdown regulations as government officials try to...

Government will continue engaging with stakeholders in the trucking industry this week, following a meeting over the weekend. This comes at the back of the recent spate of attacks and burning of trucks. Thirteen such incidents have reportedly taken place in the last month, and between April and November 2020, more than eighty attacks have been recorded.

Testifying before the commission of inquiry into State Capture, former Treasurer at Airports Company South Africa (ACSA), Phetolo Ramosebudi claimed that he did not know if Gupta-linked Regiments Capital was entitled to 40-million-rands in fees which were paid to the firm for its involvement in financial instrument transactions between ACSA and Nedbank as well as Standard Bank. Ramosebudi worked f...

Higher Education Minister, Dr Blade Nzimande says the National Student Aid Financial Scheme (NSFAS) has received more than 650-thousand applications for the 2021 academic year. Nzimande says they expect the figure to increase by the end of the month, which is the closing date. Nzimande also says all universities are fully committed to completing the 2020 academic year by mid-March 2021. This follo...

Hundreds of SABC employees are expected to converge at the Johannesburg Labour Court TODAY as worker's union, BEMAWU seeks an urgent court interdict to stop the retrenchment processes at the public broadcaster. The union wants the SABC board to not only withdraw all notices of redundancy that were issued to employees but also to restart consultations with all relevant stakeholders before Sections...

The Health Minister, Dr Zweli Mkhize, is expected to lead an inter-ministerial task team in the Nelson Mandela bay metro TODAY as part of an all out campaign to curb the rapid spread of the corona virus in the city. The Metro has in recent weeks become a Covid-19 hotspot and nearly half the new cases reported nationally, coming from here. The focus will be on testing, tracing and awareness as non-...

Government has announced that it will soon be reviving its old policy on housing that will allow people to receive vacant pieces of land to build their own houses as an alternative to the current system of building houses for them. It says this is, in part, because of the housing backlog and the recent land invasions during the lockdown in areas such as the Western Cape. Human Settlements Minister...