The government is not putting enough money into universities and a review of “vanity projects” could help to address this issue, Equal Education told the fees commission.

Cape Town - Advocay group Equal Education says the government is not putting enough money into the country’s universities and a review of “vanity projects” could help to address this issue.

The group made an oral submission at the public hearings of the Commission of Inquiry into Higher Education and Training, known as the fees commission, which was held at the Centre for the Book.

The Commission was established in January to inquire into, report on and make recommendations on the feasibility of fee-free higher education and training.

It is expected to submit a preliminary report to President Jacob Zuma in November and a full report next year.

Equal Education’s parliamentary officer, Andile Cele, said a zero percent fee increase was not enough. She said South Africa’s cabinet was big, while several state-owned enterprises had repeatedly required bail-outs from the government, all indications that additional money for higher education could be found.

Cele said it was the group’s position that if you could afford to pay fees, you should.

The University of the Western Cape, in its submission, presented by Professor Vivienne Lawack, a deputy vice-chancellor at the institution, stated that it had heeded a call by the Minister of Education in 1995 to suspend fee increases and to allow indigent students to register without paying.

“This resulted in rising student debt with no assistance forthcoming from the state. At this time, UWC’s student numbers also dropped by almost a third to less than 10 000 students which aggravated the financial problems,” the submission stated.

Lawack said the university supported free education for the poor.

“State funding through subsidy has declined by 11 percent since 2000. If financial support for poor students is provided for by the State in accordance with current rate of subsidy funding increases this will results in financial loss in real terms.”

In their submission, the National Research Foundation said any funding decisions for students must include appropriate resourcing for postgraduate studies.

Towards the end of Monday’s hearings there was a disruption by a few protesters. The Fees Commission later tweeted that hearings had been “adjourned as interpreters are being brought in to meet the students’ demand of presenting in their own languages”.

The commission is expected to hear submission from UCT, Stellenbosch University, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, among others, on Tuesday.

ilse.fredericks@inl.co.za

Cape Argus

Durban's Sastri College has agreed to amend its hair policy, following a demonstration at the school on Monday.

Durban - Sastri College has agreed to amend its hair policy, following a demonstration at the school on Monday.

Deputy principal Santhosh Rajcoomar told The Mercury that between 150 and 200 pupils gathered outside the school on Monday morning to express their unhappiness with the school's rules pertaining to hair.

The group was largely made up of girls, but there were some boys, he said. It was completely unexpected, said Rajcoomar, who explained that the pupils felt the school's hair policy was "inconsiderate".

"We had a policy, up until 2014, that allowed girls to wear extensions, but then they began abusing this policy," he said.

Rajcoomar went on to explain that they would colour their hair and wear it in over-the-top styles (very curly, elaborate).

"So the school governing body revoked the policy in 2014," he said.

During Monday's demonstration, the pupils said they wanted the old policy reinstated.

"The school principal met with members of student leadership and there were a lot of questions and explanations thrown back and forth," Rajcoomar said.

"Ultimately, the old policy was put back in place and there was a commitment from the pupils that they would not abuse it."

The "Hair Code for African Learners Only (Girls)" for the school was signed on Monday and reads as follows:

* Extensions - maximum length is shoulder length.

* Straight hair - one ponytail at the base of the neck.

* Braids - only braid from front to back, 5mm in thickness, no beads at the end of braids.

* No Rasta extensions.

* No hair dyes.

* Own hair - not buffed up, only black narrow alice band allowed.

* Only black hair bands to be used for ponytails and clips.

* Hair must not fall on face (only fringe).

Rajcoomar likened Monday's demonstration to what happened in Pretoria last week.

Black pupils from Pretoria Girls' High marched during a spring fair against what they said was institutionalised racism and discrimination at the school.

This was after a black girl was taken to the principal's office and allegedly threatened with suspension after presenting an assignment about inequality in South Africa.

Pupils were protesting against the hair policy and against being questioned when they were in groups of two or more. They also said they were barred from using their home language.

The school's code of conduct has since been suspended.

bernadette.wolhuter@inl.co.za

The Mercury

The South African Revenue Service has revealed that it paid out almost R20 million in settlements to 13 former top officials.

Parliament - The South African Revenue Service has revealed that it paid out almost R20 million in settlements to its former top officials, including Ivan Pillay and Johann van Loggerenberg, who face possible charges over the rogue Sars unit.

In a written reply to Parliament on Monday, Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan said 13 officials had left Sars over the past few years.

However, he could not give the names of the officials due to confidentiality concerns, it is known that Pillay left Sars in May last year and Van Loggerenberg quit in February 2015.

The other senior officials who left Sars are former head of strategy Peter Richer and former head of tax and customs-enforcement investigations Gene Ravele.

Both Richer and Ravele left Sars in May last year.

In the 2015/16 financial year, Sars paid out R9m in settlement agreements with its top officials. The amount involved is for three senior officials.

“Due to confidentiality provisions of these agreements, as well as protection of personal information governed by the Protection of Personal Information Act, Sars is prohibited from disclosing employee- specific information regarding the agreements with regard to the names of the individuals concerned, the positions held, the date of separation, reasons for the settlement and the individual amounts involved,” said Sars.

In the 2014/15 financial year, Sars paid out R1.6m to two top officials at the agency.

In 2010/11, Sars settled for an amount of R3m with three officials, and it paid out one senior official R3.1m in 2007/2008.

The agency also told Parliament it settled for R1.6m with two officials during the 2008/9 financial year.

Sars has over the past few years been rocked by allegations regarding the spy unit.

Gordhan was the head of Sars for 10 years before he left in 2009 to join the cabinet. He has refused to hand himself over to the Hawks, saying he has not done anything wrong.

Pillay and Van Loggerenberg last month presented themselves to the Hawks for a warning statement over the rogue unit at Sars.

The two men received backing from civil society three weeks ago, including well-known advocate George Bizos, over their prosecution.

The Hawks have sent their docket on Gordhan, Pillay and Van Loggerenberg to the National Prosecuting Authority for a decision on whether to proceed with the prosecution of the three men.

The NPA has said its prosecutors were still studying the docket before taking any decision on whether to prosecute.

But civil society and business have backed the officials and Gordhan, saying this was a war against the minister of finance in order to capture the National Treasury.

Political Bureau

The Constitutional Court is expected to deliver judgment in the case brought by suspended Ipid executive director Robert McBride.

Johannesburg - The Constitutional Court is expected to deliver judgment on Tuesday in the case brought by suspended Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) executive director Robert McBride challenging the lawfulness of Police Minister Nathi Nhleko’s move to “unilaterally” suspend him.

McBride wants his suspension by the police minister declared invalid.

On May 17, Advocate Steven Budlender, for McBride, told the Constitutional Court that he felt Parliament should have been given 30 days to make a decision and state what grounds the decision was made on.

McBride was accused of tampering with an Ipid report into whether the former head of the Hawks, Lieutenant General Anwa Dramat, was involved in the illegal rendition of Zimbabweans accused of murder in their country.

However, McBride is of the opinion that he cannot do his job independently if Nhleko is allowed to suspend him without consulting other members of the Cabinet.

In December, the High Court in Pretoria ruled that the laws that had allowed Nhleko to suspend McBride unilaterally were unconstitutional. As a result the court suspended its order pending the Constitutional Court’s ruling on the matter.

McBride was suspended in March 2015, as part of the fallout in the investigation into the illegal deportation of five Zimbabweans wanted for the murder of a policeman in Bulawayo in that country.

In March this year McBride, Matthew Sesoko and Innocent Khuba appeared in the High Court in Pretoria facing charges of fraud and defeating the ends of justice following their investigation of Dramat in the rendition matter. The trio are all out on bail of R1 500 each.

During the hearing lawyer Tembeka Nguckaitobi, from Nhleko’s defence team, said the court had to make a call on whether the police minister made a good decision based on the evidence that was presented to him.

Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng said Nhleko could not object to a 30-day period or say he didn’t know how long he would need.

Nguckaitobi said if McBride was allowed to return to his position after the 30-day period there was a risk he would interfere witnesses, who work at Ipid.

Justice Chris Jafta said that the Nhleko had the option to inform the court that the process was in Parliament and he needed to be granted an extension due to the fear of interference

Nhleko’s team later revealed that they had received a call informing them that the police minister was requesting a 90-day extension because Parliament was on a recess and was only dealing with “urgent matters”.

African News Agency

Cape Town - A Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) student from the Wellington campus is undergoing a disciplinary hearing after she accidentally sent out voice notes on WhatsApp to her class group which had been meant for a private group chat.

Cape Town - A Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) student from the Wellington campus is undergoing a disciplinary hearing after she accidentally sent out voice notes on WhatsApp to her class group which had been meant for a private group chat.

In the voice note, sent on August 22, she refers to one of her classmates as a "k***** meit" (a highly derogatory term for a woman).

She was later alerted by a classmate that she had sent the voice note to the wrong group.

The racial slur offended a number of classmates, one of whom contacted the SA Students Congress (Sasco) to lodge a complaint.

Sasco contacted the Students Representative Council, which organised a march and mobilised students in the hopes of combating racism.

"We did not want to single the girl out so we planned a peaceful march with the whole campus to unite students and raise awareness against racism. We informed CPUT staff and judiciary of what had happened and why we were marching," said SRC member Athi Ndita.

SRC secretary Elsabe Westraat said they were aware of the incident and the matter had been handed over to formal structures.

"The SRC condemns any form of racism and we have movements where we try to combat racism."

CPUT spokeswoman Lauren Kansley said the matter was being dealt with.

leletu.gxuluwe@inl.co.za

Cape Argus

Joburg property developers and owners are losing millions of rand each year because of the shambles in the City of Joburg’s development planning department.

Johannesburg - Joburg property developers and owners are losing millions of rand each year because of the shambles in the City of Joburg’s development planning department.

It can take years to get plans, site development plans and rezoning approved.

They claim the city’s growth is being stunted by the delays.

And, these delays are illegal because a city ordinance states plans have to be approved or rejected within 30 days of submission.

The most common complaints are staff shortages; the bad attitude of staff who hold people to ransom by delaying plans if they complain; staff not allocated to specific areas any more, meaning they are not all familiar with every town-planning scheme in the city. There are 70 different town-planning schemes and areas such as Randburg, Roodepoort and Sandton all have different regulations.

Draughtsman Willie van Wyk, who has been working with the town planning department for many years, says rezoning and township applications, which bring in huge income for the city, can take up to four years.

“To add insult to injury, when plans are looked at and amendments have to be done, clients are given 21 days in which to rectify things,” he said.

Even minor building line relaxation approvals can take up to eight months.

“Developers are losing millions of rand as they are unable to start building, losing money daily as they have costs to cover,” he said.

Van Wyk explains the situation and how it affects normal people.

For example, he says, if a couple want to build a house, they go to their bank which, say, gives them R1 million to build. They get an architect to draw up the plans which are then submitted to the town planning department.

The plans are then registered but it takes between two weeks and six months before they get to the actual town planners and another five to seven months to get approval.

If something is wrong, it has to be corrected, and resubmitted, by which time over a year has lapsed.

The builder then says costs have increased and he can no longer build for R1m.

The owner changes his plans to make the house smaller, but the bank then decreases the value of the bond, saying the house is now smaller.

So the owners have spent thousands of rand on fees only to have their dreams shattered.

The local economy suffers because the owners would have been paying for rates and services.

“People are being forced into building illegally to save money,” he said.

The city is encouraging the development of vacant land, yet it is placing huge obstacles in the way.

For example, he says, second dwellings are a problem. They are not allowed to have a sink - only a basin and a toilet. Also, to register these second dwellings costs R100 000.

“So if you have a granny and you want her to live with you instead of becoming a burden on the state, unless you can afford it, it is not going to happen. This is also depriving property owners of getting additional income by renting out second dwellings,” he said.

A frustrated Cassim Mansoor said he had been waiting for four years for two township applications to be approved.

“We have now requested an attorney to demand that the council issues the approvals.

“I have also approached the Joburg ombudsman to assist, but I was told they have a backlog and no staff to handle the complaints,” he said.

The letter was served last month.

He said he was so frustrated that he even approached the President’s Office and the city’s legal department.

The City of Joburg has admitted there are problems, but says it is addressing them.

Spokesman Virgil James said the city acknowledged that it was not operating at maximum capacity, but the challenges were receiving attention and it was “endeavouring to meet the targets even within this fiscally constrained environment”.

James said: “There is no tolerance for poor client relations and holding of clients at ransom.

“An applicant or member of the public who is subjected to this is requested to escalate this to the management of the department and the city in general.”

As regards time of approval of plans, part of the service, said James, the department tracked the turnaround times for various types of applications.

Site development plans and building line relaxations, without objections, take an average of 28 days to finalise.

About 75 percent of rezoning applications were finalised within three months, he said.

The major causes of delays are technical reports such as traffic impact assessments which are required, as well as the post-approval administration - for instance, promulgation and the payment of bulk services.

James admitted the city was obliged to process plans within 30 days of submission and said they currently processed about 73 percent of those submitted within this 30-day period.

“We also track applications that are delayed with an age analysis and in many instances, applications are held up because of additional information required from the applicant or the process of hearing objectors and appeals is still under way.

“Admittedly, there is room to improve on these efficiencies as well as streamlining the application process, especially in instances where a building plan is submitted which triggers a building line relaxation.

“We are currently reconfiguring our plans submission and examination processes with a view to streamlining processes and improving processing times.

“We are also looking to improve our communication and interface with applicants during the processing stage to keep them informed of progress and advise of additional information requirements timeously,” he said.

Applicants could also take the municipality on appeal or review to the relevant structures stipulated in the legislation in terms of which the application was submitted, for undue delays, he said.

“The city is aware of the impact of any undue delays on the property sector and the economy as a whole.

“We are working closely with our clients to refine our operations while paying attention to the quality of the decisions we make.

“Having said that, a big driver of efficiency is the quality of applications received. A significant proportion of land-use applications are not prepared by professionals and as such, are of poor quality which impacts on ease of finalisation.

“The city recently reviewed its building plan submission check list with a view to improving the quality of the plans it takes in and this should greatly improve efficiency,” said James.

Regarding second dwellings, the city says it is only in servants’ quarters that sinks are not allowed. It is aware of these discrepancies and will address them in the new town planning scheme, he said.

Other problems builders are facing

Even minor building line relaxation approvals can take up to eight months.

The city says building line relaxations take 28 days to finalise provided there are no objections.

If there are, the applications are referred to the Municipal Planning Tribunal, which could delay the process as all objectors need to be heard and even after finalisation, await possible appeals against the tribunal's decision.

It is virtually impossible to have a one-on-one consultation about the plans.

The city says the building development management provides a one-on-one consultation facility at Metro Link Centre for pre-submission assessment with an immediate response before the application process.

During the plan assessment process, clients also have a platform to follow up on their applications on the 6th Floor at Metro Centre. However, appointments need to be scheduled with the plans examiners.

The town planning department has fixed times when people can get approvals and stamps which often conflict, so people have to return twice to get one document stamped.

If the computers are down, applicants have to return three to four times a week.

The city admits there have been problems but says it has invested in stabilising its IT. In instances where there are problems, the city will endeavour to advise clients timeously and, where necessary, work overtime. It is also able to process some applications manually.

Many fully developed townships in Joburg dating from 2007 are still zoned as agriculture and where building plans have been approved without site-development plans.

The city says it has streamlined its processes to ensure that doesn't happen. Where there are buildings that don't comply with land use rights those responsible would be prosecuted and penalised. Plans often disappear from the city’s archives. The city says records of plans were captured on a building applications systems and microfilm, and archived.

Approved plans were kept for the council’s record, however it remained the owner's responsibility to have copies. In the event that the owner does not have a copy, by law the onus is on them to have “as built” plans drawn up.

anna.cox@inl.co.za

@annacox

The Star

Six vehicles were torched at the University of KwaZulu-Natal’s Westville campus overnight, where students were protesting.

Durban - Six vehicles were torched at the University of KwaZulu-Natal’s Westville campus overnight, where students were protesting.

Police spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Thulani Zwane on Tuesday confirmed the incident, but could not immediately provide further details.

The students were protesting against possible fees hikes and inadequate accommodation at campuses.

According to sources at the university, which has five campuses in KwaZulu-Natal, three of the burnt cars belong to the institution while the others are during owned by two security companies.

The vehicles were torched right outside the university’s Risk Management Centre, which is responsible for the institution’s security.

The vehicles were torched late Monday night during protests at the university’s Westville campus. There were also protests during the day at the university’s Pietermaritzburg and Howard College campuses earlier on Monday during the day.

Zwane said that police had arrested 13 people during the Howard College campus protests.

University spokesman Lesiba Seshoka said in a statement released earlier on Monday, that student protests had been dispersed by university security, police and the police’s Public Order Policing Units.

“Students are urged to follow established protocols and raise any issue of concern with their respective SRC representatives. The University is committed to engaging with students to address their grievances,” Seshoka said.

He said that the university had obtained a High Court Interdict, which prohibits unlawful protests, disruptive gatherings, demonstrations, mass action, intimidation or any violent act to persons or property at the entrance and premises of University campuses.

Seshoka said that security at the university had been beefed up in a bid to prevent any further disruptions to the academic programme.

Social media platforms Twitter and Facebook were awash with reports of shots being fired at the Pietermaritzburg campus and roads being blocked off. However, this could not be independent verified.

African News Agency

The Vha Venda kingdom and the government will both respect a court’s interdict which suspended the planned coronation for Vha Venda King Toni Mphephu Ramabulana.

Polokwane - The Vha Venda kingdom and the government have both said it will respect a court’s interdict which suspended the planned coronation for Vha Venda King Toni Mphephu Ramabulana.

The Limpopo High Court sitting in Thohoyandou granted Masindi Mphephu an interdict to stop the coronation pending the outcome of a legal challenge.

Masindi, the princess of the Mphephu royal family, dragged President Jacob Zuma and Ramabulana, her cousin, to court claiming that she is the rightful heir to the Vha Venda throne.

The high court accepted representations by Masindi’s legal team that the coronation must halted until a a pending legal review on the Mphephu dynasty status.

The court heard that Masindi believes that she was overlooked for the throne because of cultural practice that endorses only males for kingship.

“Government noted the decision of the High Court in Venda, Thohoyandou, on 02 September 2016. The court granted an interdict to the planned coronation of his majesty King Tony Mphephu Ramabulana that was scheduled to take place on Friday,” said the Department of Cooperative Governance in a statement.

“As government we respect the decision of the court as an arbiter on all the legal questions in our country and we will also abide by its decision.”

Government, in consultation with the Vha Venda royal family, then announced the postponement of the planned coronation until all the legal issues had been addressed and concluded.

Government, however, said a new date of the processes for the coronation of the Vhavenda King would be announced at a later stage.

The Mphephu royal family also said it respected the ruling by the court and would abide by it.

Family advisor and spokesman, Jackson Mafunzwaini, said the family welcomed the decision and insisted that Toni is the rightful leader of the Vha Venda.

Last month the government had announced the Mphephu coronation as part of the process aimed at restoring the kingdom which had collapsed under the apartheid government.

The dispute arose after the kingdom was endorsed by Zuma after the Nhlapo Commission that was tasked to investigate chieftaincy, queenship and kingship disputes, revealed that Mphephu is the correct family to ascend the throne.

African News Agency

Three suspected serial rapists allocated to the same courtroom laughed and joked with one another about the proceedings.

Johannesburg - Despite allegations that they had ruined the lives of 18 women between them, three suspected serial rapists looked blasé about the charges against them after their separate cases were allocated to the same courtroom on Monday.

As the three men awaited their court proceedings, they were spotted calmly chatting with one another and later with some of their relatives and friends.

One of the complainants who attended proceedings went unnoticed by the seemingly unperturbed trio, who occasionally laughed and joked with one another about the proceedings.

For years, the three men allegedly shared a similar modus operandi, kidnapping women, taking them to secluded spots and raping them.

Of particular note was Alfred Motsamai, who, even after his first rape conviction, evaded police for six years. He was convicted in 2008 for the rape of his ex-girlfriend outside her Roodepoort home the year before, having been released on bail during his trial.

In 2009, he was sentenced to an effective 10 years’ imprisonment, but was granted leave to appeal against his sentence and conviction.

The magistrate granted Motsamai bail pending his appeal, but when the appeal was set down in the high court in Joburg in 2010, it was dismissed and a warrant was issued for his arrest.

When the police went to his home, he had vanished.

For the next six years, police hunted for Motsamai as he allegedly began a raping spree.

According to the indictment served against him in March, shortly after his arrest, investigators believe that between 2011 and 2013, he raped five other women across Ekurhuleni.

According to an investigator working on the case, police believe there are other victims.

Motsamai’s case was brought to the high court sitting in Palm Ridge on Monday, and postponed for his trial to begin on April 17 next year.

Seated next to him was self-confessed serial rapist Penuel Ncongwane, who raped seven women between 2009 and 2013. Five of the incidents took place in Zonk’iZizwe, Ekurhuleni.

While having originally pleaded guilty, before he was sentenced, he claimed mental illness, requiring the court to send him for mental observation at Sterkfontein Psychiatric Hospital.

On Monday, it was revealed he was only number 63 on the waiting list for a bed at the facility, meaning his case was postponed to November 21.

Katlego Mabote has been charged with 17 counts, including eight of rape, after travelling in and around Moroka, Soweto, between 2008 and 2014 and allegedly kidnapping and sexually assaulting five women.

Because he allegedly beaten four of the women severely, he has been charged with three counts of assault with intent to grievous bodily harm and another of attempted murder.

On Monday, Mabote’s lawyer David Marais asked to withdraw from the matter, which the court allowed, and a postponement was granted to April 17 to allow a new legal aid lawyer to familiarise him or herself with the case.

shain.germaner@inl.co.za

The Star

Brand new cellphones stolen from shops in the Standard Bank Centre in Joburg CBD were recovered after police arrested two men.

Johannesburg – Two men have been arrested in Johannesburg and a bag packed with stolen brand new cellphones has been recovered, police said on Tuesday.

The pair were allegedly part of a gang of armed men caught on CCTV while robbing Vodacom and MTN shops inside the Standard Bank Centre in the CBD.

Johannesburg Central Police said the two suspects between the age of 30 and 38 years were arrested at corner Simmonds and Thorpe Street on Monday. They face charges of business robbery, possession of an unlicensed firearm and ammunition.

“Suspects were captured by CCTV cameras inside the Vodacom shop while pointing the employees with firearms and pushing them in the back storeroom. They took cellphones and undisclosed amount of money. After that they entered MTN cellphone shop where they also took cellphones,” said Captain Xoli Mbele.

When they tried to load two bags in which they had packed the stolen cellphones into a Blue BMW they were tackled by security guards, said Mbele.

“They put one bag containing cellphones (into the car) and failed to load the second one,” said Mbele. “Three suspects managed to flee the scene in a vehicle; two were apprehended by the police.”

Mbele said a bag “full of cellphones”, a firearm with no serial number and live ammunition were recovered.

Police said three suspects remain at large and their investigation were continuing.

The arrested pair will appear soon in the Johannesburg Magistrate’s Court.

African News Agency

The ConCourt has ruled that legislation giving the Police Minister power to suspend or remove Ipid's executive director is unconstitutional.

Johannesburg - The Constitutional Court has ruled that the legislation giving power to the Minister of Police to suspend or remove from office the executive director of the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) is unconstitutional.

In May this year, Ipid’s director Robert Mcbride launched an application at the apex court to confirm an order of the High Court that declared certain provisions of the Ipid Act, Public Service Act and the Regulations for the Operation of the Police Investigative Directorate invalid.

McBride was suspended in March 2015 by Police Minister Nathi Nhleko after a controversial investigation by the directorate into top Hawks officers and the alleged illegal rendition of four Zimbabweans during an SAPS operation during 2010 and 2011.

While an initial report suggested that then Hawks bosses Lieutenant General Anwa Dramat and Major General Shadrack Sibiya be criminally charged with kidnapping, McBride later signed another report recommending no charges be instituted due to a lack of evidence. Nhleko then initiated disciplinary proceedings against McBride, prompting the Ipid head to launch a High Court application to declare the provisions empowering the minister to suspend him unconstitutional.

The High Court insisted that the independence of Ipid expressed in the Constitution was not protected by the provisions of the Ipid Act allowing the police minister to interfere with its executive management. It therefore ruled that the legislation was invalid because of their inconsistency with the Constitution.

The court also set aside the disciplinary action against McBride.

On Tuesday morning, the Constitutional Court was asked by McBride – and friends of the court, the Helen Suzman Foundation – to confirm the High Court’s decision.

In his application, McBride expressed the importance of Ipid’s independence. He believed that Ipid deserved the same amount of legal protection as the Hawks, another independent entity involved in fighting corruption.

In his response, Nhleko conceded that the legislation being declared invalid will strengthen the independence of Ipid, and did not oppose this aspect of the application. However, he contended that the decision to set aside the disciplinary proceedings against McBride was inconsistent with the doctrine of the separation of powers, and that it fails to clarify how Parliamentary intervention has its own place in potentially investigating the conduct of Ipid’s upper echelons.

On Tuesday morning, in a unanimous judgment read by Justice Christopher Nyaole Jafta, the court reinforced Ipid's autonomy by upholding the High Court's ruling.

The court held that the disputed provisions did undermine Ipid's independence, and were deemed unconstitutional. Justice Jafta said the minister's decision to discipline McBride would not be upheld.

The court ordered that the disciplinary process must be restarted with the necessary parliamentary oversight within the next 30 days, and the minister's decision to suspend McBride would remain only during that period.

The court said the National Assembly and Minister of Police will have to approach Parliament within the next 30 days if they wish to reinstitute an investigation into McBride's conduct.

The State was ordered to pay costs for the proceedings.

shain.germaner@inl.co.za

The Star

A growth rate of 5%, extended hours for clinics and the elimination of corruption. These are some of Herman Mashaba’s main aims.

Johannesburg - An economic growth rate of 5% for the City of Joburg, keeping clinics open for extended hours, the elimination of corruption, the revival of the inner city and a complete list of built but not allocated houses are some of the main aims of the city’s new mayor.

These were some of the 10 resolutions taken by the members of the mayoral committee, the city manager Trevor Fowler, executives responsible for departments and municipal-owned entities at a four-day session held at the Joburg Theatre last week.

The sessions were held to help the new political leadership understand what is required to speed up service delivery to residents, said mayor Herman Mashaba.

A ten-point plan was agreed to.

This includes:

* A recognition by the political and administrative leadership of the political arrangement/coalition imposed by the electorate in Joburg. This was necessary to help the city move forward with speed and to be responsible to the electorate’s wishes;

* Joburg must run a responsive and pro-poor government. This city can be business-friendly and pro-poor at the same time, said Mashaba.

* Plans and policies must be aligned for the city to work towards achieving a 5% economic growth rate. While this is an ambitious target, given that the country’s own economic growth rate is projected at 0.6% by the Reserve Bank, the city appreciates the fact that if it does not achieve this, unemployment will remain high, the youth will still be out of school and out of jobs at the end of this term, said Mashaba. Joburg should become the engine of the country’s economic growth and this can’t happen at the current growth rate, he said. Achieving this 5 % jump requires both government and the business sector to join hands, understanding that it is absolutely critical for the city to achieve 5% GDP growth because failing to kickstart the Joburg economy will have dire implications beyond Joburg’s own borders.

* Create a professional public service that serves Joburg residents with pride. Our residents deserve a city which serves them with the highest standards delivered by a civil service that is dedicated and proud;

* Ensure that corruption is public enemy number one in Joburg. Corruption steals from the poor and should be nipped in the bud, Mashaba said. Investigations must be conducted into alleged fraud or corruption and the administration will work closely with law enforcement authorities to see to it that nobody is above the law, he added.

* Revive the inner city to bring people and business back into the inner city. The official housing waiting list should get signed-off by the mayor within 90 days. Unlike before, it will be publicly available at government offices, and to communities, to ensure that it is transparent, he said.

* Produce, within 60 days, a report on the number of completed houses built by the city and the province - but not yet allocated or handed over to beneficiaries. It is unacceptable that there are houses that have been built, but remain unoccupied when many of our residents live without acceptable accommodation, said Mashaba.

* Fast track the handover of title deeds - to ordinary residents, churches and businesses.

* Use one of the clinics as a pilot project to investigate possibilities of availing our health facilities to residents for extended hours. Universal access to health is an ideal the city must work towards. Budgets permitting, and by cutting unnecessary expenditure, we must strive to extend the hours at our clinics to ensure a healthy citizenry, Mashaba said.

* A city that is business-friendly attracts investors and entrepreneurs and this leads to the creation of much-needed jobs. Forty percent of issues plaguing South Africa are self-inflicted, said Mashaba. “This great city of the African continent needs to apply itself to what holds us back, cut red tape and ensure we not only improve efficiencies, but also serve with pride. When we achieve this - and we encourage business to join us on this journey to make Joburg great again – we will all see that our aspiration to achieve the 5% GDP growth is not overly ambitious. It is, with the right attitudes within the city, with business coming on board, very achievable,” he said.

The mayor said he had to over-emphasise the importance of the creation of a professional public service.

“It is, indeed, a precondition for success. For us to ensure that services get to the intended people, we also need to declare corruption as public enemy number one in Joburg. Everyone, from politicians to officials, must ensure that corruption is not tolerated. Our plans must be bold and ambitious. Our implementation must match that boldness. Joburg residents have waited for far too long for decent provision of services. We can’t make them wait any longer,” he concluded.

anna.cox@inl.co.za

@annacox

The Star

John Hume, the owner of 1 400 rhino, says he would put the poachers out of business if he were allowed to sell horn on the open market.

Klerksdorp - John Hume owns more rhinos than anyone else in the world. All told there are 1 405 living on his closely guarded wildlife ranch near Klerksdorp, about 200km south-west of Johannesburg.

To put that figure into perspective, Hume personally owns more rhinos than the whole of Kenya.

Collectively, with 330 other private South African rhino owners, Hume and his colleagues own more than 30% of all the rhinos in this country - more than the total combined population of rhinos throughout Africa (excluding South Africa).

The former holiday resorts developer retired 24 years ago to set up a new game ranch close to the Kruger National Park and began to build up what would become the world’s largest privately owned rhino herd.

In 2008, worried about the rapidly increasing rhino poaching rate, he shifted more than 200 rhinos from his old Mauricedale ranch in Mpumalanga to a more secure property in North West.

“Mauricedale was a beautiful piece of Africa, but there was so much tree canopy cover and other hiding places that poachers could have hidden there for a week and you would never see them.”

So he moved his operation to a new “flat, ugly and very dry” property in North West, which now has more than 1 400 rhinos - 953 of which were born and bred on Hume’s properties.

When Independent Media visited the property last week close to 100 rhinos could be seen munching from feeding troughs in an area the size of a large soccer pitch.

Hume insists that this is abnormal. Normally, the rhinos mostly graze naturally in 14 large “camps” spread out over the 8 000ha property.

However, because of the drought and shortage of natural grazing and browse, Hume has been compelled to provide supplementary feeding spots to ensure his animals don’t starve.

There is also a special nursery facility where rhino calves are hand-reared if their mothers die or run out of milk.

One of his managers, who guided a party of journalists around the ranch, estimated that Hume was currently providing 16 tons a day of supplementary feed (lucerne, teff, barley and other food) to the herds.

He also showed us a large temperature-controlled “hothouse” where seedlings are grown under artificial light to rapidly produce fresh green shoots that are mixed up with other feed and then carted off to the rhino camps by tractor.

We also visited his security command post, “Afghanistan”, which houses the anti-poaching reaction staff, a patrol helicopter, aerial surveillance drones and tracker dogs.

The helicopter hangar is right next to the security manager’s compound, so that reaction units can get airborne night and day if horn poachers decide to strike.

Hume estimates that he spends well over R2 million a month on security costs alone, excluding the cost of veterinary expenses, vehicles, food mixes and salary costs.

We also saw two white rhinos being dehorned swiftly by a veterinarian and capture team.

Each horn is weighed carefully after removal, and stored away along with tiny pieces of remnant horn shavings.

The animals were dehorned on a regular basis, said Hume, partly for security reasons and also to add to the rapidly expanding stockpile of horns that he had not been allowed to sell since early 2009 when the government declared a moratorium on the domestic sale of rhino horns.

Though the sale of rhino horns across international borders was banned for 39 years under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites), local rhino owners were allowed to sell horns on the domestic market until the moratorium was declared seven years ago.

While Hume describes himself as a man who “breeds and protects” rhinos, he also stands to make vast sums of money if he can persuade the government to lift the domestic moratorium on horn sales, and also persuade Cites to lift the international ban on horn sales.

Hume personally owns a stockpile of more than five tons of rhino horns and reckons he can produce another ton of horns every year from “harvesting” horns from his personal herd.

Last year he won a court case against the national Minister of Environmental Affairs, Edna Molewa, with the high court ordering that the moratorium was illegal because Hume and other rhino owners were not consulted properly.

He also won the case when it went on appeal in the Supreme Court of Appeal, but the moratorium remains in place pending a further appeal by the minister in the Constitutional Court.

Hume says he is optimistic that the ConCourt will rule in his favour within the next few weeks, opening the door for him to start selling horns domestically.

Opposing the lifting of the moratorium, Molewa said in court papers that the main demand for rhino horn was international and that horns sold in this country were sold clandestinely and exported illegally to China, Vietnam and other Eastern nations.

Molewa also argued that Hume’s application to lift the moratorium was based primarily on “a parochial desire to legalise the sale of rhino horn” so he could “maximise profits”.

She also voiced fears that lifting the moratorium immediately could lead to a backlash from Cites and also jeopardise future South African options to press Cites to lift the international ban.

Lifting the moratorium at this stage was also likely to create a “real risk that illegally obtained rhino horn (poached or stolen) will be laundered into legal stockpiles and passed off as legitimate”.

Hume, for his part, would like to see both the domestic and Cites bans lifted immediately.

Asked whether he was concerned that lifting the domestic ban would result in horns flowing illegally to the East, he said:

“No, I’m not worried if some of the horns end up in Vietnam. If we dumped five tons a year the poaching would go down.

“So many people who profess to love rhinos want to do exactly what will make rhinos extinct ... If I don’t get permission to sell within two years it will be the death knell of this breeding project. We have given the poachers a monopoly. So forgive me if I get a bit emotional at times with the animal rightists.

“I breed and protect rhinos and this project could be copied by almost anyone. This is the way to save them from extinction. I trim their horn in such a way that it can regrow again.”

He also bristles at suggestions that his rhino ranch is little more than a semi-industrial cattle farm, or that commercial rhino farming could devalue the status of wild rhino as a Big Five tourism attraction.

“People have been riding elephants for centuries, so what is the big story?” he responds.

“I guarantee that the poachers would have a hard time competing with us (if a legal rhino trade was allowed),” he says, arguing that government and privately held stocks in South Africa would take the wind out of the sails of criminal rhino horn syndicates.

“As demand increases the price goes up - so if demand goes through the roof that is an upside. How can that be a downside? If demand disappears completely no one will want to poach. If we had given away 6 000 rhinos to local communities a few years ago (to farm for their horns) there would be no poaching today.”

The Mercury

A “slanderous” e-mail accusing a manager of gender bias has come under the legal spotlight in one of the first cases unpacking the provisions of SA’s anti-harassment laws.

Durban - A single “slanderous” e-mail accusing a manager of gender bias has come under the legal spotlight in one of the first cases unpacking the provisions of South Africa’s relatively new anti-harassment laws.

And while the KwaZulu-Natal judge tasked with considering the matter agreed that the content of the e-mail was not true, she said the law required that there be some “repetitive element” to the conduct or, if it was a single act, that it must be “overwhelmingly oppressive” and have the same impact on its victim as if being “physically stalked”.

The case before Judge Mohini Moodley (with Judge Johan Ploos van Amstel concurring) was an appeal by a Mondi employee against a finding by a magistrate that her actions, in sending out the e-mail about her supervisor, constituted “harassment in the workplace”.

The magistrate granted a final protection order against her, interdicting her from defaming the manager and his colleagues, making false accusations of gender-based attacks and sending malicious defamatory e-mails.

The e-mail in question was sent out following a meeting about training. In it, she alleged that the meeting had become abusive.

“I was verbally and emotionally abused... I was still shaken two hours after the ordeal. I am still shocked at the way I was attacked... four men attacking a female with an EE (employment equity) representative promoting it as well,” she wrote.

The supervisor, one of those she named, made application for a protection order in terms of the Protection from Harassment Act. He said the e-mail was slanderous, dishonest and malicious.

He said he believed the employee might try to spread “more lies” about him and he was concerned that with a retrenchment process under way, he might be targeted as an “abuser of women who regularly denies people their rights and dignity”.

When the matter came to trial, his version was backed up by a witness who also attended the meeting although the employee persisted with her allegations that the meeting was “very abusive”.

In her ruling, the magistrate found that the act “had a very wide interpretation” and although only one e-mail had been sent “it was sufficient to constitute harassment”.

Analysing the evidence Judge Moodley agreed there was no convincing evidence of the abuse complained of. However, she said, as the act only came into effect three years ago, there was little jurisprudence on it and on the definition of “harassment”.

Based on an examination of international legislation, the South African Law Reform Commission had recommended the definition include a recurring element of the conduct.

While this, ultimately, had not been included in the wording, “in my view the conduct engaged in must necessarily either have a repetitive element which makes it oppressive and unreasonable, thereby tormenting or inculcating serious fear or distress in the victim”.

“Alternatively, the conduct must be of such an overwhelmingly oppressive nature that a single act has the same consequences,” she said.

She said the employee had allowed her emotions to cloud her perception, but her conduct was not so “objectively oppressive” or had the gravity to constitute harassment.

The judge upheld the appeal and set aside the magistrate’s ruling.

The Mercury

Vicki Momberg, whose racist rant at black police officers was caught on video and went viral, faces three more charges, according to her charge sheet.

Johannesburg - When estate agent Vicki Momberg called 10111 after falling victim to a smash and grab incident, she called the black police officer on the line a “f****ng k****r” without any provocation.

She then called the second police officer she spoke to a “f****ng bitch”.

The third officer at 10111 was not spared the profanities either as Momberg told him that he was useless and stupid and also told him that he was a k****r.

This is according to the charge sheet that was presented in court for Momberg's crimen injuria case.

When she was first arrested, Momberg faced only one charge of crimen injuria over what she was heard saying on the video that had gone viral.

However, on Monday at the Randburg Magistrates's Court, prosecutor Yusuf Baba handed in a charge sheet with three more charges. According to the charge sheet, these relate to Momberg's conduct at the time that she called the police helpline after the smash and grab on February 3 in Johannesburg.

Momberg's lawyer Nardus Grove told the court that his client intends to negotiate a plea and sentence with the State but that they were waiting for an expert report from a psychologist.

Baba then said the matter should be provisionally postponed to a later date when all the aspects of the plea and sentence would have been sorted out. However, a squabble ensured when Grove asked for a longer postponement, saying he has a matter at the high court soon and has to travel abroad on Friday.

He suggested that the matter be postponed until November, but Baba would have none of that.

“I object, that's too long,” he said. Baba also said the matter was initially placed on the roll in July and that it’s now September.

“It's unfair to request such a long postponement so that the defence can get a report.”

Grove made it clear to the defence that he had made in depth research on this case to be able to continue on the given date.

“I know where I'm going with this case; we know where we are going with the matter. I'm ready; there will be no further delay from my side to make a decision on this matter,” he said.

The magistrate then ordered the defence to submit the expert report and plea agreement to the State on October 10 for the senior public prosecutor's decision. Sshe then postponed the matter to October 18.

Baba also told the court that if the defence and the State fail to reach an agreement on the plea and sentence, the matter will go to trial.

botho.molosankwe@inl.co.za

The Star

It seems the option to block homophobic American pastor Steven L Anderson from entering South Africa is still on the table.

Johannesburg - It seems the option to block homophobic American pastor Steven L Anderson from entering South Africa is still on the table.

Home Affairs Minister Malusi Gigaba met lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning, and intersex (LGBTQI) leaders and the South African Human Rights Commission on Monday.

Gay SA Radio station manager Hendrik Baird presented the 60 000 signatures garnered by the online petitions against Anderson during a meeting to discuss LGBTQI Home Affairs issues.

Baird said that by the end of the week, a dossier would be submitted to the department consisting of the legal arguments why Anderson should be barred from entering the country on September 17.

Baird said the main argument would be that Anderson’s church be considered a “hate group” and that the visit could incite public violence against gay people.

Gigaba explained the department’s position.

“We have weighed the options available regarding the visit of the United States pastor. We’ve also considered the letter from the SA Human Rights Commission and the position of the LGBTI community.

“This is a highly sensitive matter that had to be tackled with extreme caution. If it is his intention to visit South Africa again, it would be in his best interest to behave in accordance with our laws,” Gigaba said.

“There will be serious conditions attached to this visit; we will not hesitate to deport or charge him for wrongdoing.”

The Arizona preacher and Holocaust denier achieved online notoriety in 2014 after calling for gay people to be executed. This year, a day after 49 LGBTQI people were gunned down in the Pulse nightclub massacre in Orlando, Florida, he said: “The good news is that there’s 50 less paedophiles in this world, because, you know, these homosexuals are a bunch of disgusting perverts and paedophiles.”

When it was revealed he was planning a mission in South Africa in mid-September, the gay community signed petitions to bar him from entering the country.

Meanwhile, the department has begun training officials to be more sensitive to members of the LGBTQI community.

“A practice note was distributed to all staff and front offices for use as a guideline on matters relating to the alteration of sex description and other related civil matters. This should help in clarifying requirements and ensuring uniform application at all offices,” said Gigaba.

“A list of offices with marriage officers willing to conduct same-sex marriages was finalised, to ensure dignified solemnisation of all marriages. In this way, people will know which offices to visit for specific services, particularly since we are dealing with people’s identities,” the minister added.

The Mercury

Calm has been restored to Kagiso after disgruntled residents set several RDP houses alight and damaged many more.

Johannesburg - Calm has been restored to Kagiso near Krugersdorp on Tuesday morning after disgruntled residents set several RDP houses alight and damaged many more after they attempted to occupy a vacant piece of land on Monday.

The group, which was removed by the Red Ants from the open veld they tried to erect shacks on, then took out their frustrations on nearby RDP houses.

Gauteng police spokesman Captain Kay Makhubele said they damaged about 100 of the houses.

This included setting 10 of them alight and breaking the windows of scores more.

But by Tuesday morning, the residents’ protest was contained and they had vacated the land.

“The situation is calm now and police are on the scene to monitor the area,” said Makhubele.

He added that although no arrests had been made yet, cases of malicious damage to property had been opened.

Makhubela also said that no injuries had been reported but urged those who had been injured in the protest to notify police.

Meanwhile, the Mogale City said that although it understood that residents were in need of housing, it condemned the land grabs and said this would not be tolerated.

“The spate of land grabs currently taking place does not fall within this framework and will not be tolerated by the municipality,” recently-elected executive mayor Lynn Pannall said in a statement.

She said land invasions had negative implications for the municipality and also derailed intended housing delivery programmes.

Pannall urged residents to stay away from “impermissible acts of illegal land occupation”. She also urged the community to report anyone who does so.

“We also warn those who are bent on contravention of the law that the municipality cannot waive its rights and will exercise its rights to protect public property,” she said.

Pannall noted that housing was one of the municipality’s priorities, but stressed it was done in a systematic manner.

“We know that there are law-abiding citizens in the city who are waiting patiently for government-subsidised houses and who prefer that things should follow due processes,” she said.

“We reiterate our position that we are aware of the housing and land needs of the residents of the city and we will work in partnership with the Gauteng provincial government and the West Rand District Municipality to deliver houses and significantly reduce our housing backlog,” she concluded.

karishma.dipa@inl.co.za

The Star

Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu will today undergo a small surgical procedure to address the root cause of an infection.

Johannesburg - Anglican Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu is responding well to treatment in a Cape Town hospital for a recurring infection, his family said on Tuesday.

“The archbishop will undergo a small surgical procedure on Wednesday to address the root cause of the infections,” the Tutu family said in a statement.

The family expressed their gratitude to all who were praying for Tutu.

“Mrs Leah Tutu said further updates on the archbishop’s condition would be released through the media as appropriate.”

“The Arch”, as Tutu is affectionately known, was admitted to hospital late in August. The 84-year-old Nobel Peace Prize laureate has been battling with prostate cancer for the past 15 years.

On Tuesday, the South African National Civic Organisation wished Tutu a successful operation.

“Our communities will be praying for him as the voice of reason, the fearless prophetic voice of the church and conscience of the nation. We wish to convey our support for Mama Leah and the Tutu family in the hope that the surgery goes well and that the Arch will recovery very soon,” national spokesperson Jabu Mahlangu said in a statement.

“He is a courageous servant leader, a great patriot, human rights activist and a father figure who has consistently fought against injustice and human rights violations,greed and corruption.”

AFRICAN NEWS AGENCY

Solly Msimanga says he is putting an immediate stop to all purchasing or leasing of luxury cars for politicians, including himself.

Pretoria - Mayor of Tshwane Solly Msimanga will continue using the BMW 5 Series he inherited from his predecessor, Kgosientso Ramokgopa, but will replace it with a cheaper car when it “retires”.

Upon reaching its prescribed lifespan of 100 000km in accordance with the regulations, the vehicle will retire to the government garage. “Most of the cars have passed the cap or are very close,” Msimanga said on Tuesday. In its place will be a low cost model to ferry the city’s first citizen around.

The BMW would not be changed now as procurement of a new cheaper one would constitute wasteful expenditure.

“I will not allow public money to be spent on luxury cars, while our people struggle for services, houses and jobs.

“No more luxury cars will be bought or leased under my government. A Hyundai i20 or Toyota Corolla can do the same job for a politician as an expensive sedan.”

Msimanga first banned blue lights for politicians and officials in the city in his first days on the job, including on his own vehicle.

Municipal leaders, including himself, he said, would from now on travel alongside ordinary citizens and wait in heavy traffic, as well as stop at red lights.

Next up was the discontinuation of all inaugural parties and catered inaugural events for the city’s new executive, including celebratory dinners and lunches which he said only benefited politicians and not the public.

Msimanga also put a temporary stop to all international travel for politicians and officials of the metro, saying those looking to go on trips should submit applications to the mayoral committee for cost-benefit analysis, with each request treated on its merits.

And on Tuesday, the mayor said he was putting an immediate stop to all purchases or leasing of luxury cars for politicians and senior officials.

Msimanga was announcing further cost-cutting measures to spare the city expenses that only benefit politicians, generally known to prefer new and fancy wheels whenever they served in public office.

“No new luxury cars will be bought or leased for politicians, and if vehicles currently owned by the metro require replacement, sensible and low-cost vehicles will be procured,” he said.

The mayor, meanwhile, said he had uncovered the procurement of new luxury BMW vehicles for politicians - deals concluded and paid out of public money by the Ramokgopa administration.

Msimanga has therefore decided to redirect the 10 new vehicles with high-capacity engine power to the Tshwane Metro Police Department. They will serve in a newly-formed anti-hijack unit.

“Rather than using luxury vehicles for politicians, we will use them for a new unit in the metro police to prevent and respond to hijackings and high-speed chases because they have powerful engines and can be used for fast response. This puts the needs of people first, and not the needs of politicians first.”

Msimanga has in the past week conducted an oversight visit at the Pretoria City Hall, which has been under reconstruction for a while at a cost of R90 million. He, however, said there was very little to show for that expenditure and described the project as a shame.

He also disclosed he had forensic reports that had been suppressed for the longest of time by the previous city government.

Msimanga said when relevant authorities had been informed and due processes taken place, the reports would see “some changing their suits into the orange uniform very soon”.

The cancelled smart meters contract with Peu Capital Partners is expected to feature among the forensic reports.

kennedy.mudzuli@inl.co.za

Pretoria News

The MKMVA has dismissed allegations that the vets who guarded ANC HQ during the #OccupyLuthuliHouse campaign were a rented crowd.

Johannesburg - They looked a bit young and out of place in their ill-fitting camouflage uniform to be considered military veterans.

They had descended on the ANC’s Luthuli House headquarters to “defend the revolutionary house from the hooligans” who were calling for President Jacob Zuma’s head and the entire national executive committee to resign.

The Umkhonto weSizwe Military Veterans Association (MKMVA) dismissed allegations that the vets who formed a human chain around Luthuli House during the #OccupyLuthuliHouse campaign in Joburg on Monday were a rented crowd.

The MK vets, who were vocal in their support for Zuma and the ANC leadership, jeered, taunted and threatened the dissenting group with violence. The police had to intervene to avert what could have been a bloodbath.

It didn’t take long before people took to Twitter to share their opinions about the “military veterans”.

Among them was @CaiphusK_11: “The drunkards misappropriated a proud liberation army, claiming to be veterans. They used the name of MK to grope female journalists. Sies!”

@RealLesBongani said: “You have to admit though, dem young MK Veteranswere kinda hilarious”, while @Odwa_Obose said: “Most of these MK veterans seem to be drinking from the fountain of youth.”

@SbuTshabs said: “Someone should write about the real MK veterans. Not Kebby and his ilk, but those who are living in squalor watching this madness unfold.”

@AdvDali_Mpofu said: “If * were born after June 1976 * cannot be an MK veteran. Because * were 14 years old or less when we disbanded MK in 1990!”

When contacted for comment on Tuesday, MKMVA national chairman Kebby Maphatsoe said the MK vets on show on Monday were the real deal.

He said the membership, about 20 000 nationally, was made up of recruits from the various structures, among them the Luthuli, June 16, Moncada, Madinoga, Young Lions and Barney Molokoane detachments.

Maphatsoe said those who were in the Luthuli detachment were in their 80s, June 16 in their 50s and above, Madinoga and Moncada in their 60s, and those who were part of the Young Lions and Barney Molokoane detachments were aged between 29 and early 40s.

He said of the latter group: “You see, during that time we recruited lots of young people into the MK ranks because we were preparing for the integration of MK into the new SANDF soon after achieving freedom.”

Maphatsoe, whose role in the Struggle has been ridiculed for having largely served as a cook and for deserting an ANC military camp in Uganda, has argued that his intentions for leaving the camp were good as conditions were unbearable and he had planned to report them to senior party leaders.

He said most of the vets at Luthuli House on Monday had come from the Young Lions and Barney Molokoane detachments.

luyolo.mkentane@inl.co.za

@luyolomkentane

The Star