Mbulelo Arthur Ntlauzana told police he killed Nhlanhla Gasa after the he allegedly tried to kiss and fondle him

Mbulelo Arthur Ntlauzana, the 25-year-old man held for the alleged murder of his elderly lover - Nhlanhla Gasa, 63 - told police and some members of his family he killed him after the businessman came on to him during a visit to his uMhlanga home.

Our sister paper, The Sunday Tribune has, through several sources, established that:

- Gasa met Ntlauzana two years ago and took him under his wing to “mentor him in business”.

- It was during one these sessions that Gasa allegedly tried to kiss and fondle him.

- Ntlauzana is a father of three. He has two children with his steady girlfriend and one with a former lover.

On Tuesday, Ntlauzana is expected to confess to the crime.

Last week, when Ntlauzana made his first court appearance, a large contingent of media were anticipating a confession. However, his legal aid attorney, Hycenth Mlotshwa, asked the court for more time to consult with the accused.

Ntlauzana, who has no previous convictions, is facing charges of premeditated murder, malicious damage to property, and robbery with aggravating circumstances.

Gasa’s body, with multiple stab wounds, was found floating under the John Ross Bridge in the Tugela River last month.

The businessman was brutally attacked in his luxury uMhlanga home. Police found a bloody trail from the house to the garage, leading them to believe Gasa was murdered in the house before his body was bundled into his Jaguar.

The car was found burnt out in KwaDukuza.

Ntlauzana was apparently on the run. He went into hiding in the Eastern Cape, but information given to the members of the provincial task team, headed by Warrant Officer Jomo Govender, led to his arrest at a house in Thembeni last Saturday.

Although it was reported that Gasa and Ntlauzana were in a romantic relationship, one of our sources insisted Gasa attempted to fondle and kiss Ntlauzana, and that this is what sparked the vicious attack.

The deceased was stabbed 12 times in the chest.

“The two knew each other for about two years. They first met at a popular fast food outlet in uMhlanga. Gasa would often fetch Ntlauzana from his home in Thembeni, Groutville, before taking him to his uMhlanga mansion.”

“The accused saw his relationship with the wealthy businessman as an opportunity for financial gain,” said one source.

But Gasa’s family spokesman, Louis Seeco, rubbished reports that Gasa and Ntlauzana were in a romantic relationship.

“The family does not know the accused or of a romantic relationship between Ntlauzana and Mr Gasa. The rumours have been abounding for many years, and I don’t see why his sexuality is being questioned now,” said Seeco.

He condemned the media and the public for questioning the respected businessman’s sexuality.

Seeco said that, according to Zulu custom, children do not question their parents.

“You can hardly question your friends about their sexuality. How could the family ask Mr Gasa if he was gay? According to our beliefs, children do not question adults or their decisions.

If anyone wanted to ask Mr Gasa if he was gay, they lost that opportunity because only he knew the answer to his sexuality.”

Gasa held several directorships.

He fathered four children, among them former beauty queen Mbali Ngqula and television personality Noni Gasa. - Sunday Independent

Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng says SA needs to prevent the “pool out of which transformation can happen” from drying up.

While the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) debate continues to rage, Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng said the country needs to prevent the “pool out of which transformation can happen” from drying up because good briefs do not get given to black lawyers.

Female and black students should be encouraged to study law and, once they qualified, “we need to find a way to give them work to do” because many dropped out of the profession because quality work was not forthcoming, he told delegates at the 18th Commonwealth Law Conference in Cape Town last week.

Justice Mogoeng said it was human nature to support those you knew and, “naturally, because our white compatriots are really in the commanding heights of the economy, they brief or give instructions to white attorneys who, in turn, brief white advocates”.

“The limited work that some, or rather most, of the black practitioners have to share, is simply not good enough to allow them, one, to survive and, two, even if they survive, to develop their skills to the point where most of them are, no doubt, suitably qualified for any assignment however high it may be,” he said.

Justice Mogoeng suggested that the consciences of those who had the resources to help must be pricked into supporting black and female lawyers so that a “pool out of which transformation can happen can be developed properly”.

Law Society of South Africa chief executive Nic Swart agreed, saying that the mindset of large corporate companies needed to change so they were more willing to brief the small law firms, which accounted for most of the legal profession in the country.

Swart said big corporate companies and banks often briefed larger law firms because “that is where the expertise is”.

He said in order to give smaller firms more exposure, the law society had been encouraging so-called “twinning”, where large firms linked with smaller ones to “capacitate them”.

About 10 of South Africa’s bigger firms had committed to this. The law society had also been in meetings with large corporate firms to encourage them to brief small firms, black lawyers and women.

However, Swart said the root of the problem needed to be tackled so that law graduates of a higher quality entered the profession and ultimately excelled.

He said most law graduates were black and female and the law society’s intake into its post-graduate training programmes was similar.

“So, the point I am trying to make is that the availability and the numbers at the entry point are what we would ideally want, not that it can’t improve or that it shouldn’t improve. But it is what we believe is a good figure. But the problems emerge after that,” he said.

According to Swart, retaining female and black graduates was difficult. “We are quite concerned about the fact that we do not retain women, and that obviously affects the entry of women to the judiciary because the pool is simply not big enough. The same applies to black students.”

He said this was due to, among others, the quality of graduates.

In February and March the law society tested the reading ability of graduates in Cape Town and found there was no benchmark for reading ability for LLB students.

“In other words, they go in and they come out and nobody is concerned about how well they can read. That is a primary skill (for a lawyer),” he said.

The tests would be conducted in other parts of the country later this year. The universities had told Swart the problem stemmed from the schooling students received.

Swart said he was confident the profession could change, but that it would take time.

Speaking at the conference, Professor David McQuoid-Mason, the president of the Commonwealth Legal Education Association, said school systems were not delivering students who were ready for university study. McQuoid-Mason suggested that teaching methods and curricula needed to be updated.

“The law is changing all the time so we need to look at those changes,” he said.

He said lectures were the most popular teaching method used.

However, citing research by the University of Maryland, McQuoid-Mason pointed out that students only remembered 5 percent of what they are taught through lectures.

He said teachers needed to move away from traditional lectures and look at other, more creative methods. “Bring it alive. Don’t have this theoretical dichotomy about everything,” he said. - Sunday Independent

South Africans need to know that the ANC did not always provide the only opposition to apartheid, says Helen Zille.

Western Cape -

South Africans need to know that the ANC did not always provide the only opposition to apartheid, DA leader Helen Zille said on Sunday.

“It is at times like these that I realise the extent to which we (the Democratic Alliance) have allowed our opponents to define us and impose their version of our history on South Africa’s political narrative,” Zille said in her weekly newsletter.

“We must take responsibility for changing this.”

This was the reason for the party's “Know Your DA” campaign, she said.

Earlier in the week, a DA pamphlet showing Nelson Mandela hugging former liberal politician Helen Suzman, with the words “We played our part in opposing apartheid”, angered ANC Western Cape chairman Marius Fransman.

He described it as a “cynical and opportunistic exercise in propaganda”.

The African National Congress said neither Mandela nor Suzman were ever members of the DA.

Suzman was a member of the Progressive Party which became the Progressive Federal Party and later merged with other parties to become the DA.

Zille said the ANC wanted to “own” the history of the struggle against apartheid, so it was quick to downplay and deny the contributions made by others outside the party's fold.

“They (ANC) are still trying to divorce Suzman’s legacy from the DA, despite the fact that she co-founded our predecessor party, the Progressive Party, and was its sole representative in Parliament for 13 years, between 1961 and 1974, and later became a member of the DA,” she said.

“Today, we continue to promote and defend the values Helen Suzman stood for half a century ago. These are the same ideas that underpin our non-racial democracy and its founding compact, our Constitution.” - Sapa

A Burmese sailor has been rescued from a ship off Cape Town and taken to hospital in a critical condition with malaria, the National Sea Rescue Institute said.

Cape Town -

A Burmese sailor has been rescued from a ship off Cape Town and taken to hospital in a critical condition with malaria, the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) said on Sunday.

Rescue workers initially thought he had yellow fever, NSRI spokesman Craig Lambinon said in a statement.

They went out to a bulk carrier ship off Cape Town on Saturday after receiving a report that the 43-year-old man from Myanmar was unconscious and had a fever.

They found him in a critical condition, placed him on a rescue craft and took him to a hospital in Port Elizabeth, said Lambinon.

He said the ship was sailing from Cameroon to Singapore, and its last port of call was Cape Town. - Sapa

African women make less than one percent of the senior counsel in the legal profession in SA, according to a report.

Johannesburg -

African women make less than one percent of the senior counsel in the legal profession in South Africa, the Sunday Times reported.

Of the 473 senior counsel from whose ranks candidate judges are selected, only nine were black women, the newspaper reported. Of the nine women, only four were African.

Twenty white women were practising as senior counsel in South Africa, the newspaper reported.

A paper prepared by the University of Cape Town's democratic governance and rights unit lashed at the Judicial Service Commission for the slow pace of gender transformation in the judiciary, it was reported.

The paper said only 28 percent of judicial officers nationally, were women by October 2012.

JSC spokesman Dumisa Ntsebeza told the Sunday Times that government was failing black and female advocates by not giving them enough work to allow them to get experience and be considered for appointment as senior counsel.

“It's a scandal that we should have only four black female silks in this day and age,” Ntsebeza was quoted.

“There is no political will on the part of our government. You can't ask private industry to start briefing us, but you can insist 1/8that 3/8 the state law adviser briefs black advocates,” he said.

Jacob Skosana head of policy in the department of justice said the Legal Practice Bill which proposed radical change in the legal profession would address the problem.

“Access to the profession is controlled by those who are within the club and whether you pass exams or not, there are people who decide who gets admitted (as senior counsel),” said Skosana. - Sapa

The SA National Aids Council says it aims to have three million people receiving antiretroviral treatment by 2015.

Johannesburg - The SA National Aids Council (Sanac) said on Sunday it aims to have three million people receiving antiretroviral (ARV) treatment by 2015.

“Currently, there are 1.9 million people on treatment,” Sanac spokeswomanKhopotso Bodibe said in a statement.

Another target for 2015 was the elimination of mother-to-child transmission of HIV, and a reduction in the number of Aids-related maternal deaths, she said.

Bodibe said the rate of mother-to-child HIV transmission dropped from eight percent to 2.7 percent between 2008 and 2012, and that 99 percent of mothers and infants at risk of HIV transmission were currently receiving ARV therapy.

“TB (tuberculosis) infection still remains a challenge,” she said, adding that most people living with HIV, were also infected with TB.

“Sanac aims to reduce TB incidence and mortality caused by TB in people living with HIV by 50 percent in 2015.”

A new national strategic plan for HIV, TB and sexually transmitted diseases was adopted at a Sanac meeting, chaired by Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe, in Secunda, Mpumulanga, this week.

A simplified ARV medication was also recently launched in Ga-Rankuwa, north west of Pretoria.

On Sunday, Bodibe said not everyone would have immediate access to the new, single-dose treatment.

“Those who are already on treatment still need to continue with their combination treatment, as they have always taken it, until after July 2013,” she said. - Sapa

The Gauteng government will offer 300 unemployed graduates work experience in its offices, Premier Nomvula Mokonyane said.

Johannesburg -

The Gauteng government will offer 300 unemployed graduates work experience in its offices, Premier Nomvula Mokonyane said on Sunday.

“The 300 graduates... (will be) placed within various departments for experiential learning in areas of tourism, engineering, information and communication technology, design, food and beverages, amongst others,” Mokonyane SAID in a statement.

She said the unemployed graduates, who hold further education and training qualifications, would be placed during this financial year.

In the last financial year, 7986 internships and learnerships were provided by the provincial government, she said.

“Youth unemployment, if not addressed with a sense of urgency, could have a negative impact on the economy, more especially in the Gauteng province as it is the economic hub of South Africa.”

The premier also asked other employers to expand the number of interns and graduates taken on by their organisations. - Sapa

A Durban father was shot and killed by robbers in his home. And if that wasn’t enough, the robbers returned on the day of his funeral.

Christoffel “Bob” Heunis was robbed twice - in life and in death.

The 67-year-old Durban father was shot and killed by robbers who broke into his Seaview home on April 8.

And if that wasn’t enough, the robbers returned on the day of his funeral and stole his wife’s car and other household goods.

Heunis’s son, also named Christoffel, said he could not believe the audacity of the criminals.

“It was around 8pm. My mom and dad were in the main house. The dogs were inside the house, when they started barking wildly. He took his gun and followed the dogs outside only to be confronted by gunmen who were in our property.”

Christoffel junior had just showered when he heard gunshots.

“I heard around five or six shots fired. The next thing I heard was my mother screaming, ‘Your dad is dead.’ I rushed outside and found him lying on the ground. They stole his firearm and ran away.”

During his father’s memorial service on April 12 at a local church 8km away the robbers returned and ransacked the house.

“We had left very early because my mother had to do the flower arrangements,” he said.

Immediately after the service the family received a call from a neighbour telling them their car had been stolen.

“Our neighbour told us he saw my mom’s car, which was parked in the driveway, being driven down the road.

“I initially thought they took the car only. But when I got to the house I found the back door opened. The cupboards were open. The house was a mess.

“They took computers, laptops, jewellery and anything of value they could find.”

The next day they tried to break in again.

“We were at my sister’s house when they tried to rob us again. Fortunately my brother-in-law had hired a security guard who screamed for help.

“You would think these guys wouldn’t come back,” said Heunis.

The family was still coming to terms with the tragedy.

“It’s a very tough and emotional time.

“We’ve received tremendous support from our family. A home security system was installed free of charge by a security company.”

He praised his father’s courage.

“He had no fear. My view is that he saved us from being killed,” he said.

The family will be moving house.

“We won’t stay here. We’re not sure where we are going to go but we are considering our options,” he said.

Police spokesman Captain Thulani Zwane confirmed the case of murder, house breaking and theft of motor vehicle. He said no arrests have been made. - Sunday Tribune

A R10 million project aimed at young people and women in Bredasdorp where Anene Booysen was killed has been launched in her memory.

Born out of the horrific rape and murder of 17-year-old Anene Booysen that shocked the world, a R10 million project aimed at young people and women in the quiet town of Bredasdorp where the teenager was killed was launched in her memory on Saturday.

In addition, a skills development centre is to be created in the very house where she was left to die.

Anene’s foster mother, Corlia Oliver, a seasonal farm worker who was forced to leave school in Grade 5, will be given a job at the centre.

Yesterday Higher Education and Training Minister Blade Nzimande launched the project in Anene’s memory, saying it would benefit hundreds of local young people through programmes such as training in electrical construction, health and safety, solar installations, carpentry, plumbing, community house building, road construction, as well as recognition of prior learning programmes in construction-related training.

The schemes were initiated by Nzimande in partnership with the construction sector education and training authority and the Cape Agulhas Municipality.

Nzimande said: “While the initiative is sadly an offshoot of one of the most tragic criminal acts our country has seen in recent history, it will also mark the dawn of a new era of hope and opportunity for the people of Bredasdorp and surrounding areas.

“From the ashes of a very sad, tragic incident comes a new beginning in the life of this community. Because a life taken away cannot be brought back and the pain that was caused by the perpetrators of this incident cannot be qualified or fully understood, as government, we thought the least that we could do to ease the pain for the family and the community, would be bringing this project here.”

He said Anene’s family was consulted

about the project during its planning stages.

“The Construction Skills Development and Job Creation Project is an attempt to ease the material conditions of this community, so that some of the offshoots of poverty and unemployment do not lead to a repeat of what happened to Anene.”

Nzimande appealed to the youth to take advantage of the apprenticeships.

The training will run for a minimum of nine months and a maximum of 12 months, depending on the field of training.

“In addition to about 700 learners receiving different training, each trainee will also receive a monthly stipend of about R1 500, which will help in alleviating the socio-economic conditions of the community in the short term, while they they will receive “will skills” that will lead to longer-term, more sustainable benefits,” Nzimande added.

He is expected to announce 10 full bursaries for local youth: five for public college study and five for university study.

Turning to the proposed skills development centre - which will be named in Booysen’s honour –

Nzimande said the intended beneficiary of the RDP house where Booysen’s body had been found no longer wanted to move in after the killing and chose, instead, to wait for an alternative home to be allocated to her.

Since the house was vacant, it was chosen as an appropriate base for the Anene Booysen Skills Development Centre.

“We want to employ Anene’s mother, who is a seasonal farm worker who had to leave school in (Grade 5). This will provide the opportunity for her to work at a centre in memory of her own daughter,” he said.

Anene’s family welcomed the initiative, saying it would keep her memory alive.

Oliver, who will be celebrating her 41st birthday today, said that to have her daughter honoured was the best present any mother could receive.

“I’m very happy about this opportunity. It means a lot for the community and youth like Anene’s friends, who are unemployed and still at home.

“While it would have been better to still have Anene here with us, she would have been proud and happy to see how everyone came together to honour her.

“She may not be here any more and it is possible that, if projects like these existed in our town when she was alive, she may still have been here with us today,” Oliver added.

Oliver said that, hopefully, other youths would be able to make something of their lives through the initiative.

Local community leaders also welcomed the scheme, saying it would keep the youth off the streets and out of trouble while creating hope for a better future.

“The youth in the Overberg is in dire need of training. There are many bright students who cannot further their education because of poverty in the community.

“This will go a long way to helping our youngsters,” Dirk Jantjies said.

Themba Tebele said it would be “great” if the training project could be rolled out to other areas.

- Jonathan Davids, 22, and Johannes Kana, 21, who are accused of raping and murdering Booysen, will appear in the Bredasdorp Magistrate’s Court tomorrow. - Sunday Argus

warda.meyer@inl.co.za

The lives of three Ntuzuma families have been rocked by the results of a dramatic shootout at a pension payout point.

Pensioner Khethi Chiya thought she’d seen it all at the ripe old age of 80, until she went to collect her pension and found herself dodging bullets amid a deadly gun battle.

Chiya was at Ntuzuma A Hall, where heavily armed men killed two security guards and a 60-year-old woman in a botched cash heist last week.

During the gun battle, which lasted about 15 minutes, Fidelity security guard Bongani Ngcongo was shot in the head at close range. His colleague, Siphiwe Ngcamu, was shot in the chest.

Chiya’s partially sighted cousin, Phumaphi Zondi, 60, was also shot dead before seven of the men fled without taking any money.

A 37-year-old man believed to be a serial robber was arrested after being apprehended by citizens.

As the dust settled last week, residents of Ntuzuma and Lindelani were still reeling from the incident, which has shattered the lives of three families and left a number of pensioners wounded.

Recounting the shooting, Chiya said she had been queuing with her cousin and her mentally disabled son, Siyabonga.

“I will never forget what I saw. My cousin and I had been standing in the queue. We went to buy sweets and the next thing we heard was the sound of bullets. People were running in different directions.

“My cousin ran to a house next door. I tried to follow, but I tripped and fell.

“The bullets were flying everywhere, going past my feet and on to the pavement. I looked for her and couldn’t find her. And when I did, I saw that she had been shot. I sat down and cried,” said the grand-mother, fighting back tears.

Speaking from the family home, Zondi’s brother-in-law, Siphiwe Zondi, said the affair was baffling.

“I heard the money had not even arrived when the shooting started. I’m not a criminal, but I’d think that if you were stealing something you’d wait until you could be sure it was there.

“It’s sad to think that if they hadn’t gone to buy sweets, they wouldn’t have been shot.”

Ngcamu’s sister, Mamsie, described him as a hard-working man who had struggled to find a job until three years ago. The father of three was also studying through Unisa to become a social worker.

“He was a great help in the household, contributing financially. He was a real father figure. Now that he’s gone, we don’t know what we’re going to do,” she said.

Mamsie said she had heard from Fidelity Guard employees that the incident had been a hit on Ngcamu, who was known to be a crackshot.

Ngcamu allegedly shot and killed a feared armed robbery gang leader during a robbery in Chatsworth, though Fidelity has denied that claim.

Duduzile Mkhize, a community activist in Lindelani and Ntuzuma, said of the attackers, “I wonder if these children we have spawned will receive a blessing. We are raped, tortured. We thought this country was liberated; we didn’t think we were going to get murdered.

“I wish doomsday would come and take away these children. We voted for this government not knowing we’re going back to Egypt. The young people are jumping on us, doing as they please.

“We want to tell the mayor of eThekwini that, as elderly people, we don’t feel safe at the pension payout.”

Police said no money was taken from the scene, but the security guards were robbed of three shotguns and three LM4 rifles.

Police recovered a Toyota Corolla that had been stolen in Umbilo.

South African Social Security Agency spokesman Vusi Mahaye said the incident had prompted them to look at other ways to enhance security.

The chief executive of Fidelity Security Group, Wahl Bartmann, sent his condolences to families of the deceased, saying they would receive the necessary support.

Responding to allegations that the shooting had been a hit, Bartmann said, “These men were performing guard duties. If it was a hit, it could have happened anywhere. I’d regard that as just a rumour.”

Bartmann said: “It’s a dangerous job, you know. And we do what we can to protect out employees. We give them semi-automatic rifles, bullet-proof vests and armoured vehicles.

“Our training is among the best in South Africa.

“We also have an investigative arm, which is able to pick up on incidents before they happen and works in conjunction with the SAPS.

“This was a tragic incident. We are following up all leads and hope to make arrests soon.” - Sunday Tribune

The Limpopo housing department has been stopped from buying a farm from a lawyer heading the province’s rental housing tribunal for R38 million.

The Limpopo housing department has been stopped from buying a farm from a lawyer heading the province’s rental housing tribunal for R38 million more than he bought the same property in 2012.

Polokwane attorney Maboku Mangena bought the 490-hectare farm Mooiplaats in the Greater Letaba municipality for R14.5m in April last year, through his company Merifon.

Nine months later, he was negotiating with the Co-operative Governance, Human Settlements and Traditional Affairs Department (Housing) to sell the land for R52m.

In October 2011 former MEC Soviet Lekganyane announced Mangena’s chairmanship of the Limpopo Rental Housing Tribunal, which adjudicates on rental disputes.

Merifon was registered in November 2011 and the farm was bought in April 2012 and was about to be sold in February this year.

But the pricey property deal was stopped at the eleventh hour by the province’s Treasury department, which picked up the potential conflict of interest and blocked the transfer.

However, the provincial housing department’s spokeswoman, Dieketseng Diale, “rejected any insinuation of impropriety”, saying that there was no conflict of interest, as Mangena was an attorney in private practice and not a public office bearer.

“(He is) the chairperson of a statutory body constituted by the department in 2011,” said Diale.

Limpopo chief administrator Monde Tom confirmed that the provincial Treasury stopped the sale after picking up the conflict of interest between the tribunal Mangena heads and the ownership of the farm.

Treasury had received the application to approve funds for the purchase, said Tom, explaining that they did their own investigation and, based on that, they were able to refuse the money.

Tom was unable to specify what the land was to be used for.

But Diale explained that the land was marked for housing in the Greater Letaba municipality, where there was a shortage.

She said the municipality had requested the purchase, and the money was to come from the Human Settlements Development Grant.

The Housing Development Agency - an entity of the national Human Settlements Department - led the negotiations in this process, said Diale.

The agency, she said, had a mandate to identify, acquire and manage the release of land and development of land for housing.

The agency’s chief executive officer, Taffy Adler, would not comment on the purchase and referred all queries back to the department.

Diale said the purchase price of the land was guided by reports from valuers.

“The department commissioned three independent valuers to assist in the determination of property’s market value.

“The three market-related values were R83m, R78m and R72.9m.”

But an insider, who could not be named for fear of reprisal, said these exorbitant property values were the first alarm bells that rang.

“There is no way that you can buy land for R14m and that it can appreciate to that extent in less than a year,” said the insider.

A former provincial government official said some politicians in Limpopo and the municipality were “strangely” pushing for the deal to be clinched before the end of March.

“Is it a coincidence that the (ANC) provincial executive committee was disbanded during the same time?” asked the official, who could not be named because he did not want to be associated “with provincial politics”.

But what also made the deal suspicious, said the insider, was that when the provincial housing department approached Treasury for the approval, it said it had the budget for the land.

Housing officials had told Treasury that the land had been evaluated and was a “good buy”, said the insider.

“They claimed that the land was worth R70m and that they negotiated it down to R52m.”

Several attempts to contact Mangena were unsuccessful. He did not return messages left on his cellphone.

The Sunday Independent contacted his office yesterday and a man who identified himself as Maponya said he would contact and inform Mangena about our inquiry.

This is not the first time Mangena has had dealings with the provincial housing department.

In April last year, the housing department gave Mangena a R4m contract.

Diale, however, pointed out that Mangena’s tender bids had no impact on the department deciding to buy the land from him.

“These (bids) were contested bids like all (other tenders),” explained Diale.

According to the Limpopo Provincial Tender Bulletin, in 2011 Mangena’s law firm, Maboku Mangena Attorneys, was awarded the tender to transfer houses formerly owned by the state, worth R736 000.

Then, in April last year, he was awarded two tenders by the department simultaneously. The first, for the transfer of properties, was for R460 000. The second, for the registration of township registers, was worth R3.5m.

Mangena’s law firm was one of four firms appointed. - Sunday Independent

“I don’t require affirmation and reminding,” says Tony Leon of the fact that he has apparently been written out of the DA’s history.

“I don’t require affirmation and reminding,” says Tony Leon of the fact that he has apparently been written out of the DA’s history in favour of those with Struggle credentials.

The new campaign, titled “the DA’s untold story”, was launched last week in Alexandra, where party leader Helen Zille detailed the party’s roots from Helen Suzman’s Progressive Party, and the contributions to the Struggle of members such as Patricia de Lille, Nosimo Balindlela and Joe Seremane.

Leon, interviewed about his book The Accidental Ambassador: From Parliament to Patagonia, a memoir of his three years as ambassador to Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay, said he was “perfectly relaxed” about it.

But he warned of the party’s new direction. “You’ve got to stay in the future business; if you get into a contest about the past, the ANC is going to beat you every time.

“We can have an argument about what the ANC did, and I am aware that their Struggle wasn’t as heroic as they pretend, but they have all the moral authority, because they represented the disempowered.

“There is always a danger if you start reliving the past that a lot of inconvenient truths come out.

“Some of them are good, some of them are bad, some are heroic and some not so heroic,” he said.

For instance, the Progressive Party, which has been hailed as the predecessor to the DA, operated under the apartheid government, and most Africans would not have been able to vote under its policies at the time.

Leon also wondered why the party’s alliance with the New National Party, which had helped win the Western Cape for the party, and the “die-hard NNP voters” that came from the Cape Flats, were left out of the party’s story.

“The reason we formed the DA, let’s not be too precious about it, was to expand the opposition with what was available, and what was available was the NNP.

“And the reason the DA governs the Western Cape today is because the NNP voters, via the NNP machine, came into the DA.

“People are questioning why the white men are being left out of the story – what about the coloured men and women?”

But, as Leon points out, he’s no longer in politics, and he doesn’t see himself taking up an ambassadorship any time soon, and he’s also unlikely to secure such a position, having spilled many of the secrets of his three years there.

For example: how he hung up his own pictures of Suzman and the Dalai Lama in the official ambassadorial residence to offset the compulsory pictures of President Jacob Zuma and Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane.

And how his first thoughts upon meeting Argentinian president Christina Fernandez de Kirchner for the first time centred rather largely on how her lips resembled those of Angelina Jolie.

He’s convinced she’s had large amounts of plastic surgery, and flips to pictures in his book to prove his point.

“She is older than me,” he says pointing to a picture of her, her skin perfectly unlined.

If Leon was looking to be employed by the government again, calling Zuma’s cabinet “morally flexible, perhaps ethically challenged”, in the book, probably won’t help his cause.

Leon says: “There are very bad cabinet ministers and there are very good ones.”

He hosted about a dozen ministers and deputy ministers during his time in Argentina.

Some, such as Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan, he invited. Others, he says, invited themselves, to “check up on what Tony Leon is doing”.

And while he has glowing things to say about Gordhan (“he’s a pharmacist by training, so he knows how to create various winning prescriptions”), his time as an ambassador taught him that there were many people in the public service who were not doing their jobs.

He said Trevor Manuel’s speech about the public service two weeks ago had echoed “exactly what I experienced”.

“I cannot tell you the number of times I picked up the phone to Pretoria and never got a response and the opportunities that were lost or had to be salvaged because the people at the other end weren’t doing what they should be doing.”

Leon says he’s happy with his performance as an ambassador, having increased the country’s exposure in a “closed society”, “empowered” his team and given them increased levels of responsibility, and pointing out the huge opportunities that exist in South America. - Sunday Independent

A total of 3 898 handguns have been destroyed in Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape police said.

Port Elizabeth -

A total of 3 898 handguns have been destroyed in Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape police said on Sunday.

“Of those, 2000 were forfeited to the state and then the balance was voluntarily handed over to the police,” said Lt-Col Sibongile Soci.

The firearms were destroyed on Saturday. - Sapa

A polio and measles immunisation campaign is being launched by the city of Johannesburg and the social development department.

Johannesburg - A polio and measles immunisation campaign is being launched by the city of Johannesburg and the social development department.

The city said in a statement on Monday the campaign would run between April 29 and May 17 and from June 17 to 28.

It would target all children below the age of five.

“The city of Johannesburg has set a target of reaching at least 95 percent of the 332,585 children living in the city,” it said.

The city said it was important to bring children in for two rounds of immunisation.

“To protect children against the polio virus, polio drops need to be given twice,” it said.

“Children who miss the second round will not be fully protected against the polio virus.”

Mayoral committee member for health and social development Nonceba Molwele urged parents to bring their children to be immunised.

“Parents and care-givers are urged to participate in the campaign because polio and measles are highly infectious diseases that are life-threatening and often result in long-term damage and disability,” Molwele said. - Sapa

A truck driver was killed and his passenger seriously injured when their truck crashed into another truck in Germiston.

Johannesburg - A truck driver was killed and his passenger seriously injured when their truck crashed into another truck in Germiston on Monday, Ekurhuleni metro police said.

The men's white truck crashed into the back of the other one, which had stopped because of mechanical problems, around 10am on the N12 west under the Kraft Road bridge, Inspector Kobeli Mokheseng said.

The 50-year-old driver was declared dead on the scene while the passenger, a man in his 40s, was airlifted to Milpark hospital.

The 51-year-old driver of the other truck and his two passengers, men aged 32 and 61, were unhurt.

“The N12 freeway direction west from Kraft off-ramp was closed to traffic for more than four hours, due to salvage and formalities performed by the emergency personnel.”

The cause of the accident was being investigated. A case of culpable homicide had been opened. - Sapa

KwaZulu-Natal police arrested a man in Durban for alleged fraud involving driving licences.

Durban - KwaZulu-Natal police arrested a man in Durban on Monday for alleged fraud involving driving licences, police said.

The 47-year-old, a former presenter for the Hindivani community radio station, was arrested on Monday morning, Colonel Vincent Mdunge said.

The man allegedly promised people licences for R2500 each, but never delivered.

“Police investigations have revealed that he was operating between 2010 and June 2011,” Mdunge said.

Police believe the man operated mainly out of the Verulam, Rossburg, and Eshowe testing stations. He was expected to appear in the Verulam Magistrate's Court on Tuesday. - Sapa

Patients at the George Mukhari Academic Hospital in Ga-Rankuwa, near Pretoria, are on a restricted diet because of supply problems, the DA said.

Pretoria - Patients at the George Mukhari Academic Hospital in Ga-Rankuwa, near Pretoria, are on a restricted diet because of supply problems, the DA said on Monday.

“They rarely get meat, fruit, or vegetables, and there is no sugar. Bread is often short,” DA Gauteng health spokesman Jack Bloom said in a statement.

He said unpaid suppliers were refusing to deliver certain foods.

Hospital spokeswoman Nolo Bashe acknowledged there were problems with deliveries.

“The normal patient diet plan was not affected (even) though we had no bread delivery for three days and fruit for a week... deliveries have since resumed,” Bashe said in an e-mail.

Bloom described the situation as unsatisfactory.

“Some patients who should get a special diet because of their medical condition are only getting whatever food is available.”

Nashe said sufficient substitutions were made in such cases.

“Special diets were not compromised. Diabetic patients received Diasip sip feed as a snack instead of the normal sandwich or fruit.” - Sapa

A man who admitted to setting a teenage girl alight in an apparent satanic ritual could account for his actions on the night, the court heard.

Johannesburg - A man who admitted to setting a teenage girl alight in an apparent satanic ritual could account for his actions on the night, the High Court sitting in the Palm Ridge Magistrate's Court heard on Monday.

Lindon Wagner had been assessed and found fit to stand trial, Sterkfontein hospital psychiatrist Eddie Pak told the court.

“Looking at how he was on the days prior to the incident, his behaviour, his recovery, his emotions... there was no psychiatric condition there.”

Wagner and three others are accused of killing Kirsty Theologo by dousing her with petrol and setting her on fire on a hill behind the Linmeyer swimming pool, south of Johannesburg, on October 21, 2011.

She died a week later at the Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital. Her friend, who was also burnt, survived.

The four pleaded not guilty to charges of murder, attempted murder, and assault to cause grievous bodily harm.

Wagner admitted to throttling the girl who survived the attack, as well setting both of them alight.

His lawyer Lydia Van Niekerk said her client could not control his actions at the time. Last week, she said he was not able to control his will during the attack.

Pak said although Wagner told him he had smoked dagga and drank alcohol on the night, it did not mean he was mentally ill.

“Intoxication is not seen as a mental illness.”

Pak said it was also unlikely for a mentally ill person to recover so quickly after such an event.

Van Niekerk told Pak the girl who survived the attack described her client as gentle and sweet.

“Would this sort of behaviour then be normal?” she asked.

Pak replied Wagner went to work that day and that he was sober. Wagner and others had been discussing Satanism and the ritual weeks before it happened, showing his actions were not sudden or out of character, he said.

Though there was a history of bi-polar disorder and schizophrenia in Wagner's family, he had not shown any symptoms of mental illness.

Pak said Wagner's background and upbringing was brought up in the assessments. Wagner had a difficult childhood, growing up without a father.

When he was 13, an arrangement was made so he could meet his father, but the appointment was cancelled, Pak testified. - Sapa

At least a third of Western Cape high school pupils use tobacco, alcohol, and dagga, a provincial social department survey revealed.

Cape Town - At least a third of Western Cape high school pupils are using tobacco, alcohol, and dagga, a provincial social department survey revealed on Monday.

The year-long study found that around 40 percent of pupils in Grades eight to 10 smoked cigarettes, 35 percent drank alcohol, and 35 percent smoked dagga.

The findings formed part of a survey of around 20,000 pupils at 240 schools by the Medical Research Council (MRC).

The provincial government and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime commissioned the research to get “reliable information on the prevalence of alcohol and other drug use, mental health problems, and risky behaviours”, to guide appropriate interventions.

The research revealed that 66 percent of pupils had consumed alcohol at least once in their lifetime.

Around 37 percent of pupils surveyed started using tobacco before the age of 13. Twenty-eight percent of pupils started drinking before this age and 13.7 percent started smoking dagga before they were 13-years-old.

Regarding risky behaviour among the sexually active, three out of five pupils admitted to having unprotected sex.

A quarter admitted to having sex after alcohol or drugs, and a fifth to having multiple partners.

Many had witnessed a criminal act within 12 months of being surveyed.

Around 60 percent of pupils reported having seen someone using drugs or someone being beaten.

Just under half had witnessed drugs being sold. Forty percent of pupils had witnessed someone being stabbed.

The survey found that the risk of mental health problems was high, particularly among female pupils.

The MRC suggested that more recreational services were needed, if the link between substance use, other problem behaviour, and leisure-time boredom was considered.

Government was also encouraged to promote the training of school teachers and counsellors on the early identification of drug use. - Sapa

Eastern Cape police are searching for two men who attacked and injured a farmer near Middelburg.

Middelburg - Eastern Cape police were searching on Monday for two men who attacked and injured a farmer near Middelburg.

“It is alleged that Marais van der Merwe, age 31, was attacked on his farm Dunblane on Friday evening around 8pm,” Captain Stefanie Smith said.

“He was returning from town when he was overpowered by two unknown males wearing balaclavas when he stopped his vehicle in an open garage on the farm.”

Marais sustained head injuries and lacerations to his arms and body. One of the attackers had a panga. They took his cellphone, wallet, and money in his office.

The men left him in the veld about 2km from the farm house.

“He managed to find his way back home, took his vehicle and drove to the neighbouring farm.”

Marais was taken to a hospital in Middelburg. - Sapa