Chikane to head ANC Jo’burg campaign?
Amid factional tensions in the ANC, and governance failure in the Johannesburg administration it heads, the party is reported to be favouring veteran cleric, activist and former director general in the office of President Thabo Mbeki as its candidate for the city’s mayor. Unnamed sources within the party indicate that senior leaders believe he has the stature and reputational integrity to offer a credible challenge the DA and Helen Zille, who has been running an aggressive and well-received campaign.
Proposal for voluntary BEE tax
Kuben Naidoo, a member of President Ramaphosa’s economic advisory council, has proposed an alternative route for empowerment policy. The suggestions date from January, and were included in notes for the State of the Nation Address. It proposes that companies could voluntarily pay a 5% surcharge in exchange for a compliance certificate. It would simplify the empowerment requirements, and could raise around R5bn annually for the government’s proposed empowerment fund. He says that in its current form, BEE has raised the cost of business and needs to be revisited.
FBI removed from ICE investigations
Senior managers at the US Federal Bureau of Information have been informed of proposals that they will no longer investigate confrontations involving Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. This comes amid mounting controversy regarding violence and even deaths in such instances. FBI investigations are often meant to assess claims of violence towards federal agents, but these sometimes reveal evidence of wrongdoing and excessive force by the agents themselves.
McKenzie defends World Cup spending
Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture, Gayton McKenzie has defended his departments spending on matters connected with the 2026 FIFA World Cup. This amounted to some R31 million, and was criticised in some quarters as excessive and wasteful. McKenzie said that 151 people were taken to Mexico and the US, part of which was funded by private contributions. Some R7.86 million was for the official delegation, which included dignitaries and their staff, as well as South African artists. Other outlays included tickets and hospitality spaces, while R10 million was dedicated to exhibitions to showcase South Africa. In all this, there was “nothing to hide”.
It’s painful, but I have no regrets, say Hill-Lewis
DA leader Geordin Hill-Lewis has said that while his decision to remove John Steenhuisen from the ministry of agriculture was difficult for him personally, he believed the decision was correct. He retained “affection” for Steenhuisen, and said he “has a lot of talent and value to add” in his new role as deputy minister of trade and industry. He added that he thought the controversy around what Steenhuisen had supposedly exposed was “laughable”.
Emfuleni fleet manager arrested
A former manager of a vehicle fleet in Emfuleni was arrested on charges of fraud and corruption related to a tender worth some R16 million. The funds were paid for a number of vehicles, most of which were not delivered; some of those that had been delivered were unusable as a result of manuals written in Chinese, mechanical faults or missing service agreements. The arrest was carried out by the Gauteng Political Killings Task Team, which said that further arrests could follow. Emfuleni has had severe governance problems, and Gauteng premier Panyaza Lesufi has described it as dysfunctional.
[Sources: News24, Business Times, New York Times, IOL, Sunday Times]