First Take SA

Thousands of COSATU members take to the streets countrywide, except the Western Cape, in an effort to oppose massive job losses in the country. The intended shutdown also comes a week before the 2019 Budget Speech by Finance Minister Tito Mboweni. Cosatu says it hopes to hear from the finance minister about concrete plans to create jobs and halt retrenchment of thousands of workers. The Federation...

Learners at Gatang secondary and Solomon Mahlangu high schools in Mamelodi, east of Pretoria have been left stranded. This as the COSATU-affiliated teacher union SADTU joins its mother body in a national strike against retrenchments and unemployment. However, in Mamelodi teachers reported for work, started planning to join their striking counterparts. Sonto Makhafola, a member of the Learners Repr...

Power utility Eskom says there is a probability of loadshedding again TODAY ( Monday). Yesterday the power giant implemented Stage 2 rotational loadshedding until 10PM across the national grid, citing a shortage of generating capacity as one of the reasons for the blackouts. There are fears that loadshedding could last for months.

Rhodes University says the institution runs the risk of shutting its doors if the water challenges in Makhanda - formerly known as Grahamstown - are not effectively addressed. The university town, also known for its annual National Arts Festival, has seen most areas going without water for as long as six days. Scorching temperatures, a lack of rain, poor planning and maintenance of the city's infr...

Humanitarian organisation, Gift and the Givers, is now collecting water bottles from major urban centres around the country for delivery to the desperate residents of Makhanda

South Africa will hold it's sixth national and provincial elections on the 8th of May 2019. President Cyril Ramaphosa made the announcement LAST NIGHT while was addressing a joint sitting of the National Assembly in Cape Town, his second State of the Nation Address. He says he has consulted with the IEC and all premiers of provinces about the selected date of the elections. President Ramaphosa how...

The historic Khoi-San 6 Leadership Conference held in Pretoria last week to support the list of demands that the Khoi-San handed to President Cyril Ramaphosa in 2017 was hailed a success. The National Conference unanimously reiterated support for the KS6 that are still peacefully protesting at the Union Buildings as an expression of the Khoi-San people. The focus off the conference was to strategi...

It's almost a year since Cyril Ramaphosa replaced Jacob Zuma as the country's president. TONIGHT Ramaphosa will deliver his second State Of the Nation Address. He is expected to outline his achievements in the past year as well as his plans for the coming year. Some have argued that the president is facing a difficult path forward with the economy in turbulence.

Former Cape Town mayor Patricia de Lille has launched the manifesto of her new party -- GOOD -- in Cape Town. She described Good as a plan to fix South Africa. De Lille told a media briefing that her party will tackle the issue of racism to realise the dream of a united country. She also says the party will have a zero tolerance approach to racism, gender discrimination, corruption and poverty

Labour federation COSATU has demanded that the State of the Nation Address to be delivered by President Cyril Ramaphosa in parliament tomorrow (Thursday) includes interventions needed to restructure the economy. Cosatu was briefing the media yesterday (Tuesday) on the outcomes of its Central Executive Committee meeting. It has also come out against a proposal by a task team appointed by Ramaphosa...

TODAY (tuesday) marks three years since three mine workers were trapped at Lily Gold Mine in Barberton, Mpumalanga. Yvonne Mnisi, Pretty Nkambule and Solomon Nyirenda were on duty in a container used as a lamp room on the morning of February 5th 2016 when the ground below them suddenly collapsed, trapping 75 other mine workers. All were rescued except for the three. Attempts to rescue them were no...

Preparations for the official opening of parliament are at an advanced stage as both the SANDF and the South African Police Service will undertake their rehearsals TODAY* and tomorrow. The National Assembly maintains that the only agenda item on Thursday will be the State of the Nation Address by President Cyril Ramaphosa. Several roads in the Cape Town CDB will continue to be temporarily closed l...

The Congress of the People is expected to lay charges of hate speech against the Black First Land First. The party has also indicated that it will lay a formal complaint with the Human Rights Commission. This after the BLF spokesperson, Lindsay Maasdorp tweeted that the deaths of four school children who were killed when a walkway collapsed at the Hoërskool Driehoek in Vanderbijlpark should be cel...

International Relations Minister Lindiwe Sisulu has instructed the department to approach diplomatic representatives of five countries following their direct correspondence with the Presidency. The US, UK, the Netherlands, Germany and Switzerland, through their embassies, wrote to the Presidency warning South Africa to act against corruption.

Former Bosasa COO - Angelo Agrizzi - has admitted to being a racist during his testimony before the State Capture Inquiry. This emerged after a recording was played at the Zondo Commission in which he can be heard making racist remarks and using the 'k-word'. Agrizzi also conceded that he lied when he said he was never granted an opportunity to respond by the Sunday Times before it published an ar...

President Cyril Ramaphosa YESTERDAY met with Public Protector, Advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane. The presidency indicated that the two discussed a complaint laid by the Democratic Alliance regarding a payment of 500-thousand-rand that was made towards Ramaphosa's election campaign by Bosasa. After initially telling Parliament that the R500,000 donation was paid in a business transaction to his son by B...

Johannesburg Metrobus drivers belonging to labour union DEMAWUSA will continue their strike action TODAY (Tuesday). Commuters were left stranded yesterday when the union brought the bus service to a halt, demanding an 18 percent wage hike among other things

There continues to be widespread reaction and debate over Hellen Zille's proposed tax revolt. The Western Cape Cape premier tweeted over the weekend that she would advocate that people withhold paying their taxes if corrupt individuals are voted into power in the upcoming elections. The DA has however distanced itself from Zille's views and says her tweets are not party policy but merely an expres...

The competition commission has referred three media houses to the competition tribunal for cartel conduct. The SABC, Primedia and Stekinekor have admitted to price fixing and agreed to pay millions of Rands in fines for engaging in noncompetitive behaviour

The Democratic Alliance head of policy Gwen Ngwenya has resigned from her position. Ngwenya has cited unhappiness over unfulfilled promises by the party leadership as one of her many reasons for resigning. In her resignation letter addressed to leader Mmusi Maimane‚ she has accused the leadership of failing to support her unit, saying sufficient resources were not allocated.

High School learners are being encouraged to register to vote ahead of the last registration weekend. The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) in the Northern Cpe has extended its voter education to High Schools. Kimberley Boys High pupils were encouraged to participate in democratic processes

Former chairperson of parliament's portfolio committee on Correctional Services and now COPE spokesperson Dennis Bloem says he wants to testify before the Zondo Commission of Inquiry into State Capture. Bloem says he wants to support Angelo Agrizzi's claims on corruption within the Department of Correctional Services. Agrizzi who is the former chief operations officer Bosasa, has told the commissi...

Residents of Makhanda in the Eastern Cape say the water crisis in the university town, formerly known as Grahamstown, is getting worse by the day. Water levels at the West side of town where Rhodes University gets its water has dropped to a mere 12 percent. The opposite East side, which includes the vast majority of the population in the area are reporting having dry taps for as long as a week. Lo...

Residents of Makhanda in the Eastern Cape say the water crisis in the university town, formerly known as Grahamstown, is getting worse by the day. Water levels at the West side of town where Rhodes University gets its water has dropped to a mere 12 percent. The opposite East side, which includes the vast majority of the population in the area are reporting having dry taps for as long as a week. Lo...

Trade union, AMCU members have threatened a prolonged strike in the platinum sector if Sibanye Stillwater fails to heed the demands of their counterparts in the gold sector. They embarked on a secondary strike today, in support of their counterparts in the gold sector. Thousands of AMCU members were taken in buses yesterday to join their gold counterparts for a march at the Minerals Council South...