DA LEADER Helen Zille’s electioneering in Transkei took a nasty turn when DA members were accused by an ANC member of pointing a firearm at her. Fists flew and tempers flared shortly before Zille and her entourage arrived at the Apostolic Faith Mission (AFM) in Mncane village, Ngqeleni, on Saturday. Ward committee member Nontobeko Nxalase claimed she had opened a case of assault and attempted murder with police on the scene. She claimed she had been manhandled and allegedly had a firearm pointed at her by two DA members she did not identify. But Zille dismissed the claims as “nonsense”. “They must prove the allegations and explain why they did not report it to the police there,” she said. Mthatha police spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Mzukisi Fatyela said he could not confirm that the matter had been reported to the police. The ANC’s deputy chairperson of Nyandeni local municipality sub-region, Zamekile Nondlevu, said police officers at the scene told Nxalase to report her complaint to the police station. Nondlevu said they would report the incident to the ANC’s regional office today. Nondlevu said: “It is now a police matter but we will look at it from the ANC’s side and decide on...
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Police called to diffuse clash at DA rally in T’kei
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EC journo tells of Kenya bloodbath
A FORMER Eastern Cape journalist narrowly missed being caught up in the terror attack on a Kenyan shopping mall on Saturday. Nqobile Buthelezi, a former Rhodes University-based online journalist and manager for Highway Africa, was saved by what she described as a recurring bad dream. Writing of her account on Facebook, Buthelezi – now working as the digital innovation programme manager at Africa Media Initiative in Nairobi – said she was supposed to meet a friend at the Westgate mall but was running late. “People ran out of the mall. Others ran to the parking lots while others abandoned cars on the mall driveway,” she said. “I thank God for waking up late because I would have most definitely been in there.” Buthelezi, who moved from Grahamstown to Nairobi this year, said choppers were flying over the upmarket suburb of Westlands and military barricades were going up as she fled the scene. While the drama continued at the mall yesterday, the Kenyatta National Hospital’s labour wards caught fire, allegedly caused by an electrical fault. No injuries or deaths were reported and the fire was contained. But one unnamed South African is among at least 59 killed in the mall...
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Nairobi mall siege drags on as death toll mounts
AT LEAST 69 people are confirmed to have been killed and 63 more recorded missing in the ongoing Nairobi shopping mall siege, the Kenya Red Cross said yesterday. The 63 recorded missing are thought to include both hostages still being held by Islamist militants fighting Kenyan troops inside the complex, as well as those possibly killed in the three-day-long siege. Others may be hiding in the sprawling centre. As the stand-off entered its third day, sustained bursts of rapid gunfire erupted at dawn and lasted 15 minutes, and soldiers posted around the mall ducked for cover. Somali al Shabaab militants yesterday threatened to kill hostages they are holding as Kenyan troops moved to end their siege. Kenyan Interior Minister Joseph Ole Lenku said in a security update yestereday “a few” hostages remain in the mall, but could not give precise figures. The al Shabaab have not said how many people were being held by the dozen-or-so attackers, who marched into the four-storey building at midday on Saturday, spraying shoppers with machine gun fire and tossing grenades. “We authorise the mujahedeen inside the building to take actions against the prisoners as much as they are pressed,” al Shabaab spokesman Ali...
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Tasty treats and drinks on offer at food and wine fair
GOURMETS are in for a treat as the Taste the Good Life Food and Wine Fair kicked off at The Venue@Hemingways and Felix Bar yesterday. The two-day fair, the first of what is hoped will become an annual event, was organised in partnership with the Daily Dispatch, Checkers and Roundtable East London. The Venue@Hemingways was filled with various stalls showcasing different types of food, wine and whisky from around the country. Hemingways Casino marketing manager, Neville Austin said: “It’s really great to be able to start the event finally. It’s officially begun and there’s much more to come. “With the Taste the Good Life Food and Wine Fair we want to put East London on the map and are hoping it will become a big attraction, even for those from out of town.” Gracing the event was the charismatic Shaleen Surtie-Richards, known for her appearances in popular TV soapies like as M-Net’s Egoli and Kyknet’s Villa Rosa. “It’s amazing to be back in East London, I haven’t been here in over 20 years, but I must say that the people here are very friendly. “People should come and experience all of this. The joke of all of this is...
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Rioting in DV streets after ANC meeting
A RIOT erupted in Duncan Village on Sunday night, allegedly after tensions boiled over at an ANC meeting in Ward 2. Angry residents barricaded a road into the township and stoned passing cars, verbally abused drivers and stole vehicles that were abandoned in the chaos. Duncan Village police spokesman Captain Stephen Marais said the road outside Gompo Hall was barricaded with burning tyres and trash. He said more than 50 people were involved in the riot but it was hard to give an exact number as many had positioned themselves behind houses to throw stones. The smoke from burning tyres also reduced visibility. Marais expects public violence to increase in the lead-up to the 2014 elections. “As it gets closer to the elections we’ll be on our guard in Duncan Village,” Marais said. An ANC branch meeting had been called to elect delegates for the upcoming list conference in preparation for next year’s election. According to community members, tensions exploded between those in favour of Ward 2 ANC councillor Mlandeli Mateke and those who opposed him. When the Dispatch contacted Mateke for comment he claimed to be unaware of the riot in his ward and the call ended. ANC...
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Villagers share drinking water with animals
SINCE pre-democracy times when the taps stopped running, villagers of Lower Xhongora near Mthatha have had to share their only source of drinkable water – a small algae-infested stream seeping out of a huge donga – with animals. Located less than 30km from Mthatha in the King Sabata Dalindyebo (KSD) Municipality, the village has turned into a place of despair due to years of official neglect. Residents who spoke to the Daily Dispatch on the weekend said taps installed by the then-Transkei government were vandalised and dried up before 1994. Requests to get them fixed have allegedly fallen on deaf ears. Villagers claim government has turned a blind eye to their plight. But KSD spokesman Sonwabo Mampoza defended the municipality saying several projects to bring water to villages, including Lower Xhongora, were being undertaken in partnership with the O R Tambo District Municipality. This municipality is the government-accredited water service authority and water service provider responsible for water provision to five local municipalities: KSD, Mhlontlo, Port St Johns, Ingquza Hill and Nyandeni. But Lower Xhongora resident Hlathikhulu Xuza said no service delivery had taken place in his village in the last five years. “We think they [municipal authorities] have forgotten...
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Braais dominate BCM Heritage Day festivities
TONS of seared meat were chomped on Heritage Day around Buffalo City Metro yesterday. In 39 snap interviews around the city to find out how residents were spending the day, the words most used were: “relax”, “family”, “friends”, “chops” and “wors”. At midday, Ntombizandile Mvuniswa – who braais meat at Ebuhlanti for visitors to make a living – was hefting slabs of dripping pork and coils of seared wors off the grid. The area was only about half full, however crowds were expected to descend on the popular braai spot later in the day. Electrical engineer Oyama Mdondolo, with four women friends by his side, a dozen beers in the boot, and a sub-woofer blasting out R Kelly, chirped that he felt like the character “Scott” from Generations. “I can’t wait for the party to begin!” he said. Couples Jonji and Nozibele Lumkwana, Zola Ntozini and Vido Mfunwa of Mdantsane first went to movies, and were planning a “romantic picnic” at Ebuhlanti. In Beacon Bay, Ngxingxolo village teacher Kwayiyo Bonani, of the Thangana clan was busy setting up a hikers tent at Bonza Bay. Bonani said he would only be eating isophu (a mealies and beans dish) as he...
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SA probes Kenya terror attack link
SOUTH Africa said yesterday it was probing whether a British woman travelled to Kenya on a forged South African passport to take part in the deadly Nairobi mall siege. Kenyan foreign minister Amina Mohamed has said that two or three American men and a British woman were among the suspected al-Qaeda-linked Al Shabaab militants behind the attacks at the Westgate shopping centre. Pretoria is conducting a “thorough investigation” into reports the woman may have travelled to Kenya on a forged South African passport, Home Affairs spokesman Ronnie Mamoepa told AFP. “Reports are saying a white terrorist was killed in that shootout,” he said, referring to reports that a British woman suspect dubbed the “White Widow” had been killed. He said South Africa would work with the Kenyan authorities to obtain a copy of the passport “to enable us to determine the facts”. Media reports have said the woman could be Samantha Lewthwaite, the widow of one of the suicide bombers in the 2005 attacks on the London transport network. Lewthwaite is wanted by Kenya over terror plot allegations after she entered the country with a South African passport – believed to be forged – under the name Natalie Faye...
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Give us Zuma, howls crowd
NATIONAL Heritage Day celebrations in Mdantsane yesterday turned chaotic when Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe and other guest speakers were booed. The crowds wanted to be addressed by President Jacob Zuma, who is in New York to address the United Nations. The national Heritage Day event coincided with the Mdantsane’s 50th anniversary. The drama started when Motlanthe’s convoy made its way to Mdantsane’s Sisa Dukashe Stadium and the crowd, mostly clad in ANC colours, started chanting liberation songs and saying they wanted nobody else but Zuma. As Motlanthe arrived the large crowd started singing Asphelelanga, uZuma akekho, loosely translated as “not all of us are here if Zuma is not here”. When the programme director, Arts and Culture Minister Paul Mashatile, introduced Motlanthe he cautioned the crowd of more than 5000 to be respectful. However, as the Deputy President took to the podium to deliver the presidential Heritage Day message the crowd burst into pro-Zuma songs. Motlanthe continued to be interrupted throughout his speech by the loud singing from a certain portion of the crowd. Motlanthe urged South Africans to be more patriotic and promote their national symbols at every chance they get. “As we celebrate this Heritage Day, we...
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Transport gets a whole lot easier
Church raises funds for vehicle wheelchair hoist AGROUP of people, including a pastor, have rallied together to raise funds to buy a vehicle to assist a wheelchair-user to become less dependant on others. In 1994 the Daily Dispatch reported that Shane Smith was one of seven people, including a 13-year-old, to be injured when three gunmen opened fire on their taxi as they were heading to work in Mdantsane’s NU1. A lecturer at Vulindlela Training College, Smith and three other lecturers were also injured in the attack. Smith was left paralysed from the neck down and his wife, Colleen, has been helping him with his physical needs since the attack. Brian Bennets, a pastor at Abbotsford Christian Centre, said the Smiths have been congregants for over 20 years and he has witnessed their struggle. “Colleen lifts him in and out of the car and she has been doing this for years. But recently she was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and this has now become difficult for her,” said Bennets. He said he was approached by three different people who shared the idea of doing something for the couple. “However, these people approached me independently of one another so we all...
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Hawkers seal off Lusikisiki CBD
CHAOS erupted in the Lusikisiki CBD yesterday as about 1800 hawkers blockaded the R61, forcing businesses and local municipality to close. Stores were shut and cars unable to pass through the town. People driving between Port Shepstone, Margate and Bizana through Lusikisiki to Port St Johns and Mthatha were forced to turn back as the violent mob carrying sticks and pangas booed them. Protestors blockaded the road with trees, tyres, rocks and pieces of burning wood. When the Daily Dispatch arrived on the scene, hawkers were singing that mayor Pat Mdingi should step down. Some removed ANC election posters and burnt them, saying the party had let them down. The trouble between the municipality and hawkers started brewing as far back as 2010, when the municipality introduced a bylaw that sought to reduce the number of hawkers in the town’s CBD. This infuriated the hawkers, who said it was their only way of making a living. The chairwoman of the Lusikisiki hawkers’ association, Nothobile Biata, said they had reached the “point of no return”. “We are not looking at negotiating with the mayor now. We want him to leave. We are going to close this road down until the ANC...
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MEC given R6 000 gift ox from Zuma’s cousin
EASTERN Cape rural development MEC Zoleka Capa received a R6000 gift from a non-governmental organisation funded by her department. This is listed in Capa’s declaration in the state legal advisor’s public register for members of the executive council. This register, seen by the Daily Dispatch, shows that Capa received an ox worth R6000 from President Jacob Zuma’s cousin, Deebo Mzobe, who manages the Masibambisane Rural Development Initiative. About R900-million has been given or pledged to the initiative by various state departments. In July, the provincial department explained how close to R250-million has flowed yearly since 2009 to projects registered with the initiative. The funds have come from the provincial agrarian reform and rural development department “to assist the province to deal with massive food projects”. Capa confirmed then to the Dispatch that this year alone, R47-million was set aside for projects under Masibambisane. It has transpired that Capa failed to declare her interests to the provincial legislature last year as stipulated in the Executive Ethics Act of 1998 and the House’s Code of Ethics. Capa’s spokesman, Ayabulela Ngoqo, confirmed that Capa again failed to declare to the legislature. Instead she sent her list of interests only to the state...
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JZ: thank you for Madiba support
FORMER president Nelson Mandela was responding to treatment while convalescing at his Houghton home. “Our revered former president continues to respond to treatment at his home,” President Jacob Zuma said in a speech prepared for delivery at the opening of the United Nations General Assembly in New York. “His family and our people have warmly welcomed the support he continues to receive from the global community. We are humbled and very grateful for this support,” said Zuma. Yesterday marked the 25th day Mandela has spent at home in Johannesburg after being discharged from a Pretoria hospital, where he spent nearly three months being treated for a recurring lung infection. — Sapa
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Official arrested after brutal assault
A SENIOR Eastern Cape education official was arrested after a violent fight left one person dead and another seriously injured in a village near King William’s Town. Ntsikelelo Vazi, the director of the department’s institutional management development and governance, and eight accomplices are alleged to have assaulted six men accompanying two young women home in the early hours of Saturday morning. The assault left one of the six men dead and another badly injured. Vazi and the eight others were later arrested by Dimbaza police detectives but the education director, who is well-known in the area, was too “sick” to be locked up in the police holding cell. The incident, confirmed by police, left relatives of the victims shocked as Vazi is a respected community member. King William’s spokeswoman, Siphokazi Mawisa, said nine people including Vazi had been arrested in connection with the incident. “Two suspects were arrested for assault and seven for murder and they appeared in the Dimbaza Magistrate’s Court on Mond said Mawisa. The police spokeswoman was yesterday unable to say if Vazi was one of those facing a charge of murder or just for assault. It is alleged the incident took place on Saturday when six...
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MANDELA IS ’SITTING UP’
Former president Nelson Mandela was “sitting up and looking around”, The New Age reported on Thursday. His grandson, Mbuso Mandela, said Mandela spent time with his children and grandchildren on Heritage Day. “I just saw him again yesterday [Wednesday] at lunch. He is doing very well,” the grandson told the daily. “He is sitting up and looking around. We are keeping him company.” Thursday would be the 26th day Mandela spends at home in Johannesburg after being discharged from a Pretoria hospital, where he spent nearly three months being treated for a recurring lung infection.
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PAY UP, GOMBA JR!
A FORENSIC investigation has found the son of an ANC councillor liable for thousands of rands damage caused to a hired luxury car. A confidential report seen by the Daily Dispatch recommends that Buffalo City Metro (BCM) councillor Sindiswa Gomba’s son Siyabonga be held liable for more than R150000 damage to a Mercedes-Benz C180 sedan. The metro had hired the vehicle for Gomba at the time. The investigation into the matter was initiated by the BCM council’s municipal public accounts committee (MPAC). While the report clears Gomba of any wrongdoing, it further recommends council speaker Luleka Simon-Ndzele be held liable for “fruitless and wasteful expenditure” incurred for an extra two days the vehicle was hired outside of the approved period. The metro hired the car on August 20 2012 to enable Gomba to attend examinations at the University of Fort Hare’s Bhisho campus. She was supposed to return it by midday on August 25. However, the vehicle was not returned to the rental company by the stipulated date and was later damaged by Siyabonga using a brick while it was parked outside Gomba’s Summerpride home. Pictures taken hours after the incident and leaked to the Dispatch showed extensive damage...
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Another great treat for Mthatha music lovers
STILL recovering from the hangover of an earlier music extravaganza, Mthatha residents will be treated to another festival of sound this weekend. Some of South Africa’s biggest artists are set to descend on the city for the “Home of the Legends” jazz festival. The festival is the headline event in a bumper weekend featuring the country’s finest musicians and entertainers. With sunny skies expected, music lovers are expected to flock to Mthatha. The Home of Legends festival takes place at the Mthatha 2010 stadium tomorrow and doors open at 9am. Both young and old will be spoilt for choice when music greats such as East London born afro-pop musician Zahara takes to the stage alongside other famous acts including Ringo Madlingozi, Siphokazi, Caiphus Semenya, Stimela, Khaya Mthethwa, Zakes Bantwini and Naima Kay. Up-and-coming talent Poppy will lead the line-up of local artists. Popular Umhlobo Wenene FM and Ukhozi FM presenters Putco Mafani and Linda “Mr Magic” Sibiya will MC the event. The inaugural festival is expected to attract many families, friends and party-goers. DJ’s Tira, Slwane, PK, Stax, Khuli Chana, Clock and Dr Malinga will be spinning the decks on the dance stage for the “pre-party” at the Mthatha Health...
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Mayor raises ire of ratepayers
RATEPAYERS in Buffalo City Metro (BCM) say the mayor admitting to the water billing crisis was just a political move to keep or win over voters in the upcoming elections. They said the crisis was not new – the whole of BCM is in crisis and now that it is nearing election time, confessions and empty promises are the order of the day. The Daily Dispatch yesterday reported that BCM had admitted that residents could be paying far more or even less for their water and that they receive about 5000 water billing complaints each month. During a press conference after Wednesday’s council meeting, mayor Zukiswa Ncitha admitted their meter reading system was ineffective and consumers in some areas were now being billed on a flat rate. Ncitha said the reason was because readers sometimes struggled to access meters installed inside properties. By the time of going to print the Dispatch could not establish how much the “flat rate” was and which areas would be billed in this manner as no response to questions had been received from BCM at the time of going to print. Speaking to the Dispatch, Vincent Ratepayers’ Association chairman Xolani Tyobeka said the whole of...
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Dispatch reporters recognised at regional awards
TWO Daily Dispatch journalists last night picked up accolades at the Eastern Region Vodacom Journalist of the Year Awards in Port Elizabeth. Senior reporter Msindisi Fengu won the print feature award for his Hostels of Shame series highlighting the appalling conditions of public boarding schools in the province. Financial journalist Siya Miti took the financial/economic award for her reports on the taxi debt trap. They earned R5 000 each and a ticket to the national Vodacom Journalist of the Year awards in Johannesburg on November 1. Dispatch editor-in-chief Bongani Siqoko said he was very proud of what the Dispatch team achieved in the regional awards. “To get this type of recognition from our peers in the industry means so much for a small regional paper like us,” he said. “It is such a pleasure for me to work with such a dedicated team, from reporters to sub-editors. Well done to everyone who worked on the winning stories.” The Dispatch’s sister newspapers in the region, The Herald and Weekend Post, also won awards. Former Dispatch reporter Michael Kimberley, together with colleague Zandile Mbabela, won the print news award for their report, Rotten to the core . Sports editor Alvin Reeves won...
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State to pay protector’s legal costs
The security cluster of ministers will pay Public Protector Thuli Madonsela’s legal costs, the SABC reported on Friday. The public broadcaster said the State volunteered to pay the cost at the High Court in Pretoria. The cluster filed an urgent application in the High Court in Pretoria last week to prevent Madonsela from releasing her report on her probe into the R206 million upgrade at President Jacob Zuma’s private Nkandla homestead in KwaZulu-Natal. On Thursday, the ministers filed an affidavit in which they said they would abandon their action opposing the release of the report. The ministers said it would be academic to persist with the court action as they had already secured the extension of time they had wanted.
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