First Take SA

Although Alliance partners - the ANC and the SACP - have welcomed Finance Minister Tito Mboweni's latest statement that South Africa would not consider any international funding that would be accompanied by a structural adjustment programme, COSATU remains sceptical. Last month, Mboweni announced that the country will approach the IMF for relief as a result of the financial crisis brought on by th...

The ANC and the DA have distanced themselves from the branding of surgical masks in their respective party colours. This follows criticism of politicising the fight against COVID-19 after pictures of these masks emerged on social media.

Gauteng Premier David Makhura says politicians including councillors will not be responsible for distributing food parcels to needy households, but will only assist in identifying those who are deserving. This follows accusations in Tshwane that food was being distributed along political party lines. He was speaking at the launch of a Covid-19 Food Bank in Ekurhuleni on Gauteng's East Rand. It is...

Community members in Alexandra in the north of Johannesburg say they are in desperate need of food parcels to be delivered in the community. Yesterday* hundreds of residents in the township flocked the nearby school in the hopes of receiving food relief after a hoax message circulated in the area. Chaos erupted in the area, forcing Johannesburg Mayor, Geoff Makhubo to visit vulnerable families in...

The South African National Defence Force says it does not condone any illegal actions by its members as they enforce the lockdown regulations. This after a number of videos and images surfaced on social media where soldiers appeared to be brutilising individuals during the national lockdown. Meanwhile the military says it will co-operate with a police investigation into the death of a man who was...

Africa - China relations have been rocked by allegations of racism as the Covid-19 pandemic persists globally. Africans are reportedly being blamed for a second wave of the novel Coronavirus outbreak in China. A protest letter by a group of African ambassadors in Beijing has detailed concerns over the reports. The allegations include forced evictions of Africans from hostels, selective covid-19 te...

Infectious disease epidemiologist and chairperson of the Ministerial Advisory Committee on COVID-19 - Professor Salim Abdool Karim - says South Africa must expect increased vulnerability to COVID-19 once the lockdown is lifted. As the country enters week three of the nationwide lockdown, Karim, Health Minister - Doctor Zweli Mkhize- and some of the country's leading scientists shared some of the s...

President Cyril Ramaphosa has until TODAY (Tuesday) to respond to requests by the Gauteng Liquor Forum to relax the total ban on alcohol sales or face court action. The forum, which claims to represent about 20,000 township shebeens and taverns, wants government to allow for the sale of alcohol with limited operating hours, allow online sales and taverns to operate as takeaway outlets.

The government of Botswana may extend its state of emergency to 6 months. President Mokgweetsi Masisi says this will enable the state to channel all its resources and energies to fighting the coronavirus. He met with opposition party leaders on Monday in the capital Gaborone. However, the main opposition party, the Umbrella For Democratic Change, did not attend the meeting.

President Cyril Ramaphosa says it is still early to decide if the nationwide lockdown should be extended. He was speaking during his visit at Rand Water's headquarters in Glenvista - south of Johannesburg. This is the Water and Sanitation National Command Centre which ensures the distribution of water across the country during the country's battle with the Coronavirus

There has been uproar since the picture of Communications Minister Stella Ndabeni Abrahams emerged on social media where she appeared to be enjoying lunch with former Deputy Higher Education Minister, Mduduzi Manana, during the lockdown period. The Democratic Alliance has called on President Cyril Ramaphosa to lay a criminal complaint against Ndabeni-Abrahams and fire her

The National Education Health and Allied Workers Union - NEHAWU - will be approaching the Labour Court today in an attempt to force the health department to provide Personal Protective Equipment for all its front-line workers amid the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic. The union says there are not enough masks, gloves and sanitisers to go around during the ongoing lock-down period, but healthcar...

Tributes are continuing to pour in for veteran entertainer, Vinolia Mashego. 'V-Mash' as she was popularly known shot to stardom in the 90s with the hit show, Jam Alley on SABC 1. Mashego died in her sleep at her home in Mamelodi in Pretoria on Sunday night. She was 56.

Agriculture Minister Thoko Didiza has outlined how the 1.2 billion Rand COVID-19 disaster fund intervention in the agricultural sector will be allocated. This follows the announcement of funding intended to alleviate various sectors that will be hard hit during the 21-day lock-down

Communities continue to disobey Covid-19 regulations. From taxi drivers trying to stop essential services workers from going to work, to motorists being on the road despite not having the necessary documents proving they are performing an essential service. Some communities have bizarrely taken the initiative of enforcing lock-down regulations themselves.

As the country grapples with the spread of the Coronavirus, poverty-stricken communities - particularly in the rural areas - have started to feel the effects of the 21-day lock-down. Some, who relied on odd jobs, are finding it hard to make ends meet.

An international team of researchers have unearthed the earliest known skull of Homo erectus - the first of our ancestors to be nearly human-like - in the Cradle of Humankind, North West of Johannesburg. The discovery pushes the possible origin of Homo erectus back between 150,000 and 200,000 years.

An estimated 500 foreign nationals have been removed from the Central Methodist Church in Cape Town despite attempts to resist the police operation. The group is being taken to the new site in Bellville, where they will be staying in a marquee that can accommodate up to 600 people. Foreign nationals have been living in the church since October last year.

Over one hundred and twenty South Africans remain stranded in Vietnam and wish to be repatriated back home. This as South African Airways has announced that it will operate Charter Flights for various governments across the world to repatriate their nationals from South Africa. Rueben Gerber has been teaching English in the Vietnamese capital, Hanoi, and is now stranded in the Asian country with n...

South Africa has recorded 82 new COVID 19 cases. The number of COVID 19 positive cases has risen to one thousand - 462 in 24 hours with the death toll still standing at five . This, while the government continues to investigate whether another two fatalities are also linked to COVID 19. The latest stats were announced by health minister Zweli Mkhize at National Academic Hospital in Bloemfontein. T...

Government officials are being cautioned to always exercise social distancing in their pursuit to spread information about the covid-19 pandemic. YESTERDAY, Transport Minister, Fikile Mbalula visited Noord Taxi rank in Johannesburg CBD to inform taxi operators and commuters about amendments to transport regulations. Mbalula was flanked by the City of Johannesburg mayor, Geoff Makhubo and other off...

Taxi body SANTACO is not happy with Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula's announcement that taxis may now load passengers to full capacity provided all commuters are wearing masks and have been sanitized. Mbalula was addressing minibus taxi drivers and commuters at Noord Street taxi-rank in Johannesburg. SANTACO says this is now what they agreed on at the meeting and it will compromise the safety of...

South Africa will be able to conduct about 30 thousand tests for COVID19 each day. Thanks to the 60 new mobile sampling and testing units procured by the National Health Laboratory Services, unveiled by Health Minister Zweli Mkhize last night. Currently about five thousand tests are conducted in 24 hours and Mkhize says this figure is far too low for our population. Mkhize announced that currently...

The Minister in the Presidency responsible for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities Maite Nkoana-Mashabane has expressed concern about the increasing incidents of violence against women and children amid the Covid-19 lock-down period. She has called for harsher action against perpetrators.

Senior Pastor Mohau Rammile of the Global Reconciliation Church says there needs to be more faces to the corona virus statistics constantly being updated by government. Mohau, aged 48 tested positive for the covid-19 virus last week on Wednesday and has been in self-isolation since. He was part of the 480 congregants at the Divine Restoration Ministries in Bloemfontein where five international wor...