Monday 13 September - DAILY NEWS SUMMARY
The Citizen (www.citizen.co.za) Page 1/3 – Jabs coming for teens
Page 6 – Police on trail of ‘cabbage bandit’
Page 7 – Doctor blocks ‘no jab’ patients Pretoria News (www.pretorianews.co.za)
Page 1 – VBS-accused Msiza to sit at ANC meetings
Page 4 – State jumped gun in R34bn works to uplift Mpumalanga area The Star (www.iol.co.za)
Over 10 000 cops charged with murder, rape and assault since 2012
Political parties must stick to the level 2 restriction of 500 people at public meetings – Sanco
KZN Transport MEC gears up for intensive road safety campaign after 9 killed, 14 injured in weekend crashes
Business Day (www.businesslive.co.za)
Brics to provide financial and political support to respond to future pandemics:
Ramaphosa
Ace Magashule loses bid to appeal against suspension from ANC Business thrown a lifeline as SA moves to level 2 lockdown
연합뉴스 (www.yonhapnews.co.kr)
남아공 코로나 봉쇄령 완화…백신 여권 검토 남아공, 화이자 백신 12세 이상 사용 허가
남아공 중국 시노백 백신 어린이 2천명 접종 임상시험
Jabs coming for teens
The South Africa Health Products Authority has approved the Pfizer Covid vaccine for children between the ages of 12 and 18 after reports that teenagers have been shown to be more susceptible to the delta virus.
• The Citizen (Gauteng)
• 13 Sep 2021
• Reitumetse Makwea Newsroom Afrika. – [email protected]
As of 2 September, more than five million children tested positive for Covid.
While the South Africa Health Products Authority (Sahpra) approved
Pfizer’s Covid vaccine for use by children aged 12 and older, the department of health said they were looking into opening up the vaccine rollout to teenagers.
According to acting director-general in the national health department Dr Nicholas Crisp, as seen with the delta variant in the third wave, children between the ages of 12 and 18 were vulnerable and affected more than with the previous waves.
“We clearly don’t know what will happen in the fourth wave, but we do know that it is coming and it will be important to protect children,” he said.
“However we do need to give a chance for all the population to have greater numbers vaccinated and when we introduce it for the children, we must make sure that we have enough vaccines in the country and that we are clear on the protocols.”
Meanwhile, many countries have started vaccinating teens.
Since June, there were 9 918 hospital admissions associated with Covid among individuals aged 19 years and younger, with more than 400 deaths.
According to data released by the National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD), among the deaths, 146 (36.4%) were adolescents aged 15 to 19 years and 125 (31.2%) were aged under one year.
More than 272 000 children between the ages of 12 and 20 in SA tested positive for Covid as of yesterday, according to the NICD.
As of 2 September, more than five million children tested positive for Covid since the onset of the pandemic and at least 252 000 cases were added in the past week, the largest number of child cases in a week since the pandemic began.
“After declining in early summer, child cases have increased, with over 750 000 cases added between 5 August and 2 September,” said the American Academy of Paediatrics’ Children and Covid: State-Level Data report.
“The age distribution of reported Covid cases was provided on the health department websites of 49 states, New York City, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and Guam.
“Since the pandemic began, children represented 15.1% of total cumulated cases.
For the week ending 2 September, children were 26.8% of reported weekly Covid cases.”
Epidemiologist Dr Jo Barnes said all people ran the risk of contracting Covid, including teenage children, and while children tended to get less serious symptoms or no symptoms at all, vaccinations will protect them from serious disease, particularly the vulnerable among them. “Children are regarded as a somewhat lower risk category and that is why they are scheduled to receive the vaccine only after 70% of adults have been
vaccinated,” she said. “There are just under 15 million doses administered (about 18% of the population) in SA so we are very far away from that goal.”
“I doubt that we can reach 70% of vaccinated adults before
November/December, let alone also fit in a significant proportion of the child population.
“So it is highly unlikely that we will be able to protect our children by vaccination before that date,” she added.
“That is why it is of crucial importance that we don’t relax measures such as mask wearing, handwashing and keeping a safe distance.”
Crisp said the older people get, the more vulnerable they are to getting seriously ill, and the highest risk population is the one they really need to get to now.
“We still need to get to another 30% in some provinces and 40% in others which are people over 60. That’s the primary target to get all the people who are most vulnerable vaccinated, there’s no question about that,” Crisp told Children are regarded as a somewhat lower risk category
Police on trail of ‘cabbage bandit’
TSHWANE: PLANTING ON PAVEMENT NOT ALLOWED Member of mayoral committee says ‘road reserve’ belongs to municipality.
• The Citizen (Gauteng)
• 13 Sep 2021
• Marizka Coetzer [email protected]
Member of mayoral committee says ‘road reserve’ belongs to municipality.
ATshwane resident has until tomorrow to remove his cabbages from the pavement in front of his house, or face being arrested. Djo Bankuna took to Facebook after he was allegedly almost arrested on 9 September by two armed Tshwane Metro Police Department (TMPD) officials for “illegally”
growing cabbages on the pavement in front of his house.
This comes after the TMPD members allegedly said onions, cabbage and spinach were not permitted.
Bankuna was allegedly told Tshwane by-laws only permit grass and flowers outside, not cabbage, onion and spinach – and if he did not remove his cabbages by tomorrow, he will be arrested.
Last Thursday Bankuna went to the Tshwane council offices in Wonderpark to inquire about a permit to grow the vegetables on the pavement.
But officials laughed him off. He said in his Facebook post if Tshwane by- laws outlaw the planting of cabbage and onions outside, he would obey it.
On Bankuna’s page, he regularly posts about his so-called “street garden”
which he started three years ago.
In March, the street garden reaped 35 pumpkins and 145kg of sweet potato which was donated.
TMPD’s Senior Superintendent Isaac Mahamba was yet to comment.
Tshwane MMC for community safety Karen Meyer had little mercy for Bankuna.
“A complaint was received. TMPD had to attend to it,” she said.
Meyer said they must follow what was indicated in the by-laws.
She referred to section 8 (1) of the municipal by-laws that state that “road reserve belongs to the municipality”.
Meyer said permission must be sought from a landowner before you do anything on someone else’s property.
“It is correct to get permission from council first. The only way to change it is to change the bylaw,” she said.
Meyer didn’t want to comment on the garden serving the community and reiterated a complaint was received.
Prof Anthony Turton, an affiliated Professor in the Centre for
Environmental Management at the University of the Free State, said these questions are becoming relevant as SA slides towards anarchy and disorder.
He said a veggie garden on a sidewalk is of value to a distressed community of mostly unemployed people who resort to self-help to survive. “The manifestation of this as an issue is an indicator of that slide into
ungovernability,” Turton said.
Doctor blocks ‘no jab’ patients
UNDER FIRE: PEERS SAY IT’S TOO EARLY WITH FEWER THAN 20%
OF PEOPLE VACCINATED
• The Citizen (Gauteng)
• 13 Sep 2021
• – [email protected] Sipho Mabena
Also raises medical ethics issue of putting own interest above that of patients.
Adoctor’s decision to stop seeing patients who have not been vaccinated against Covid might have earned him some praise for taking a stand, but some of his peers see his actions as unethical and premature.
When patients arrived at Dr Tafara Machiri’s consulting rooms in
Mbombela, Mpumalanga, they were greeted with a note indicating he would not see patients who were not vaccinated against Covid. The physician
complained of “compassion fatigue” saying he was tired of losing people to Covid, and that 43 of 51 patients who had previously refused to get
vaccinated had since got their jabs after he put up the notice.
Machiri’s stance does not sit well with all his peers though, with the SA Medical Association (Sama) saying he risked getting into trouble with the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA).
“As much as Sama understands the frustration of doctors dealing with unvaccinated patients and severe cases of Covid, a doctor cannot put your own interests above that of patients.
“It is unethical and you might run the risk of getting a complaint against you from the HPCSA,” said Sama chair Dr Angelique Coetzee.
Christopher Tsatsawane, HPCSA’s head of corporate affairs, is yet to respond to questions about the ethics of Dr Machiri’s topical move.
Independent public health practitioner Dr Shakira Choonara said Machiri’s stance involved various rights, including a patient’s right to freedom of choice, as well as a health practitioner’s right to a safe work environment, and those of their other patients and staff.
“It is interesting and makes me think of practitioners who do not want to perform abortions also, then there is the Hippocratic Oath which holds personnel to fulfil duties and obligations around patients. So there are rights on all sides, which are clashing in these cases,” she said.
Choonara said she was against vaccination being compulsory, as she believed in patients deciding for themselves.
“We need to push the right information, build trust, tackle misinformation and invest in health promotion, awareness and education.
“Anything compulsory or forced for me, personally, does not sit well,” she added.
According to public health and human rights lawyer Safura Abdool Karim, a doctor can legally choose whether to see a patient or not, provided they are not discriminating on the basis of race and gender.
“So it is totally within the doctor’s rights to choose whether or not to see a patient who is unvaccinated. His position is further boosted by the fact that, because he is a frontline health worker, he is at risk of contracting Covid, and he works in a high risk environment,” she said.
Karim said other doctors could adopt Machiri’s approach and not see
unvaccinated patients, provided that vaccines were freely available to their patients.
She said though vaccination has been rolled out to anyone 18 years old and above, people from rural areas may be struggling to get appointments.
Karim said Machiri and other doctors considering this approach could first check if their patients were truly unvaccinated because they did not believe in vaccinations, or they were simply unable to access vaccines.
“To be honest, it is a bit premature at this stage to be thinking about those issues, because we have less than 20% of our population vaccinated,” she said.
It is a bit premature at this stage to be thinking about those issues
VBS-accused Msiza to sit at ANC meetings
Despite Limpopo treasurer stepping aside because of charges against him, party will allow him to attend gatherings
• Pretoria News
• 13 Sep 2021
• MASHUDU SADIKE
ANC treasurer in Limpopo Danny Msiza has stepped aside.
THE Limpopo ANC top five has resolved to allow VBS accused Danny Msiza to attend official meetings despite his having stepped aside due to criminal charges against him, sources said.
It is believed that party provincial chairperson and premier Stan
Mathabatha informed the party’s provincial working committee (PWC) about the decision last week, which endorsed and referred it to the
provincial executive committee (PEC) for final approval, ANC insiders said.
If endorsed by the Limpopo PEC, the decision would put the province on a collision course with the ANC’s national executive committee (NEC) which resolved that all party leaders accused of criminal charges must step aside from all leadership positions in the party and government until their cases are finalised.
The decision, dubbed the “step-aside rule”, has already affected ANC leaders such as secretary-general Ace Magashule, KwaZulu-Natal deputy chairperson Mike Mabuyakhulu and MP Bongani Bongo. Msiza is accused along with 13 others of the brazen looting of about R2.3 billion from the collapsed VBS bank, that left scores of investors out of pocket in 2018.
Following the accusations, Msiza last month tendered his step-aside letter from ANC activities.
This matter could cause rifts between the ANC in the province and party headquarters, Luthuli house, after it enforced the step-aside rule to all ANC members who are criminally charged.
One source said: “The officials resolved to allow Danny to attend their meetings and only step aside from all structures like the PEC and PWC.
Mathabatha informed the PWC about the officials’ resolution. He said they
decided to allow him to attend the officials’ meetings, but the step-aside rule will apply to structures like the PWC and PEC. It’s strange what they are saying because the officials make recommendations to the PEC and PWC after their meetings. The PWC endorsed the proposal. It has been referenced to the PEC for final enforcement.”
Other ANC insiders added: “The proposal was tabled at a PWC meeting. They say they want him to attend the officials’ meeting. My worry is that we may be accused of defying the NEC on the step-aside rule. That can lead to us being disbanded. It seems Danny wants to drag the entire PEC down with him. That’s selfish.
“He (Msiza) has access to the officials, the PEC and the government. Those are his people. Why is it necessary for him to attend the meetings.”
Mathabatha’s spokesperson Willy Mosoma referred all questions to the ANC.
Speaking to the Pretoria News at the weekend, the party’s provincial
secretary, Soviet Lekganyane, confirmed that the issue was indeed tabled at its Provincial Working Committee meeting last week but was never adopted.
“I can confirm that the matter was raised and a decision was taken but I can also confirm that that decision was wrong of the PWC to make.
“The National Executive Committee made a decision on September 4 in a NWC meeting that all those who are criminally charged must step aside from all organisational activities. We can’t defy that. The NEC after its meetings writes a couple of letters to us, and in those letters it’s clear that the step-aside rule must be implemented.
“The NEC has given us an instruction and we must implement its decisions consistently without deviation. It’s very clear that there is no half ‘step- aside’ and there is no way that the province can be creative. Since we have received the letter from the NEC the matter is dead and buried. There is no way that the comrade (Msiza) can be part of meetings. Those meetings would be unconstitutional.”
Attempts to get hold of Msiza and ANC national spokesperson Pule Mabe were fruitless.
State jumped gun in R34bn works to uplift Mpumalanga area
• Pretoria News
• 13 Sep 2021
• JAMES MAHLOKWANE [email protected]
| THOBILE MATHONSI African News
Agency(ANA)MPUMALANGA residents who camped at the Union Buildings for 12 months
demanding the long promised Moloto Rail Corridor burst into celebration when the minister in presidency, Mondli Gungubele and minister of transport Fikile Mbalula finally accepted their memorandum.
THE GOVERNMENT should have not announced the Moloto Rail Corridor project, projected to cost R34 billion and said to create jobs and add 15 train stations between Mpumalanga and Tshwane until there was a concrete agreement between National Treasury and the Department of Transport.
Minister of Transport Fikile Mbalula said this when he joined his
counterpart in the Presidency Mondli Gungubele at the Union Buildings after being forced by Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane to finally accept a memorandum from representatives of three Mpumalanga municipalities who have been camping outside the Union Buildings since September last year.
They had been there to demand implementation of the promised improvements meant to save lives and bring much-needed economic upliftment and developments.
Representatives from the KwaNdebele kingdom endorsed the group, known as the Moloto Corridor Concerned Residents, who represented the people from the Thembisile Hani, Dr JS Moroka and Elias Motsoaledi
municipalities. The organisation said it was tired of living along the deadly R573 Moloto Road, the unreliable Putco bus service, road infrastructure and the mode of transport that did not attract investment into the province.
Speaking about the project, which is described on the website of the
Passenger Railway Agency of SA (Prasa), Mbalula said the project collapsed at a point where the feasibility study proved to be something National
Treasury could agree with, but he said there were already plans in motion to revive the idea of the Moloto Rail Corridor.
“We are working with the National Treasury and all other parties to revive the Moloto Rail Corridor idea. We will go to KwaMhlanga and give a proper report. The public protector already has our report.
“We have intervened and finalised the Moloto Corridor project in terms of road construction under the SA National Roads Agency (Sanral). The
Gauteng government surrendered that part of R573 to us, and we are now in the process of road expansion and construction. The part that belongs to Limpopo on the Mpumalanga side is almost finalised.”
He said the department would go to Mpumalanga to address the matters the people were talking about, and to also give them the road map of how they hope to revive the Moloto Rail Corridor vision.
He said the project was delayed because rail corridors cost a lot of money, so there had to be serious discussions about the funding model, which
examined where the money would come from.
“The point is, the government dealt with the matter, but unfortunately there was no agreement at the level of Cabinet between the Department of Transport and National Treasury. Treasury are the only people in this country who can make a determination whether or not certain projects can actually be funded. In this instance we are working with them to revive the idea.”
Gungubele said the Presidency would also be represented when it was time to go and address the issue in Mpumalanga.
He said unfortunately, the economy was bad and so many things that could have been, had not, not just in South Africa but the world as a whole.
Sam Masango, who leads and convenes the people, said Mpumalanga was proud that the public protector had assisted to force the government to come to accept a memorandum from the poor.
“This tells us that in the string of government, people must use the Chapter 9 institution to force deployees of government to come and accept a
memorandum from the people. From their side they would have not come.
They are just doing a courtesy.
“We no longer trust that they will implement this project. They will only implement a project if it involves white people and can see that their investors will be affected.”
Masango said without this project, the people of Mpumalanga would continue to languish in poverty because investors could not invest in a
province that did not have a good transportation infrastructure and mode of transportation, especially because the Moloto Road continued to kill people.
The group said it would abandon camp for now and return home to report the acceptance of the memorandum and prepare for the visit by government officials.
Over 10 000 cops charged with murder, rape and assault since 2012
By Tarryn-Leigh Solomons 1h ago
Police Minister Bheki Cele has revealed that more than 10 000 officers have faced disciplinary action after being charged with murder, rape and assault since 2012.
Cele revealed this when he was responding to parliamentary questions on the number of SAPS members in each province who were accused of violent misconduct.
The violent misconduct acts include death as a result of police action, rape by a police officer and torture or assault.
DA MP Andrew Whitfield asked the minister to provide details on the number of cases and suspensions pending an investigation by the Independent Police Investigative Directorate from the 2012/13 financial year until 2020/21.
In his response, Cele said 10 086 offices who have been charged, but only 50 faced suspension since 2012/13.
The statistics showed that the Eastern Cape leads with the highest number of cases with a combined figure 2 175 from over the nine-year period.
The Western Cape is second with 2057 cases, followed by the Free State at 1 287 and the North West at 1 142.
Limpopo has the lowest number of disciplinary cases at 388.
The figures supplied by Cele do not show the breakdown according to provinces the police officers that were suspended during the period.
However, in 2012/13 the number of officers charged with violent misconduct was 549, the following year the figure stood at 606.
Cases more than doubled to 1 392 in the 2014/15 year.
Cele’s statistics show a significant jump in cases in 2014/15 to 2 010 in 2015/16.
This figure, however, dropped to 1 375 in the following year.
There was an even bigger decline in the 2017/18 year when numbers dropped to 864, but this was short-lived as cases spiked again in 2018/19 at 1 146.
In 2019/20 there was a slight increase to 1 182, but this dropped again to 962 for the 2020/21 year.
Political parties must stick to the level 2 restriction of 500 people at public meetings - Sanco
By Baldwin Ndaba 2h ago
Johannesburg - The South African National Civic Organisation (Sanco) has appealed to political parties and independent candidates contesting the upcoming local
government elections to adhere to the regulations to allow only 500 people to their public meetings.
Sanco national spokesperson Simon Skhosana made the call after President Cyril Ramaphosa moved the country from adjusted level 3 to level 2 on Sunday.
Ramaphosa also announced the relaxation of attendance numbers at church gatherings and public meetings.
The president said all gatherings will be limited to a maximum of 250 people indoors, and 500 people outdoors.
Where the venue is too small to accommodate these numbers with appropriate social distancing, then no more than 50% of the capacity of the venue may be used. This includes religious services, political events and social gatherings, as well as restaurants, bars, taverns and similar places.
“These recommendations have been discussed at the National Coronavirus Command Council and with premiers, mayors and traditional leaders in the President’s
Coordinating Council. They have also been discussed with the leaders of political parties represented in Parliament and with faith-based organisations,” Ramaphosa said.
On Monday, Skhosana said Sanco welcomed the lowering of Covid-19 restrictions to adjusted lockdown level two.
He, however, cautioned against irresponsible behaviour particularly in the run-up to the November 1, 2021, local government elections.
“Vaccine hesitancy remains a major obstacle towards herd immunity which will
guarantee economic recovery and a return to some form of normalcy. Public education and mobilization to ramp up vaccination rollout must therefore be intensified to counter myths and conspiracy theories particularly among men,” he said.
Skhosana said non-surgical interventions such as wearing masks, observing social distancing and regular washing of hands or sanitising must be religiously followed to curb infections.
”We implore various political parties not to run ahead of themselves in their quest to speedily mobilise voters through mass gatherings while compromising the lives of the targeted voters. Those who do so would not be deserving of anyone's vote,” he said.
He urged unregistered and first-time voters to make use of the September 18-19 final weekend voter registration period to register for participation in the crucial elections.
“None should miss the opportunity to exercise their hard-won democratic right to vote for candidates of their own choice who will advance their wishes and aspirations. All of us must go out there and ensure that our addresses are correctly captured on the voters roll,” said Skhosana.
He also urged communities not to be intimidated by those who were desperate enough to resort to political killings and public violence if they are not nominated as councillors.
“Barbaric acts of violence such as the drive-by shooting that claimed the lives of three women in (Inanda at the weekend) KwaZulu-Natal have no place in democratic
processes. We call on our communities to reject such heinous and ghastly acts with the contempt that they deserve as well as assist law enforcement agencies to unmask the heartless perpetrators responsibly,” he added.
KZN Transport MEC gears up for intensive road safety campaign after 9 killed, 14 injured in
weekend crashes
By Se-Anne Rall 15m ago
DURBAN: As plans get under way to commemorate Transport Month next month, KwaZulu-Natal MEC for Transport, Community Safety and Liaison Neliswa Peggy Nkonyeni has urged motorists to obey the rules of the road.
Commenting after nine people were killed and more than 12 injured in crashes in the province at the weekend, Nkonyeni expressed concern at the number of crashes that continue to claim innocent lives. Just a week ago, 13 people were killed in a horror crash on the R612 between Highflats and Ixopo.
"It is a sad reality that, in less than a week, the province has lost more than 20 people.
We cannot over emphasise the importance of obeying the rules of the road and being 100% compliant. Such gruesome accident can be avoided.
“We cannot afford to lose lives due to recklessness and that simply means our law enforcement will be beefed up to hit hard on those who are law breakers," she said.
A team of forensic experts will be deployed to investigate the accident.
The MEC expressed her condolences to the families of those who died in the crash.
On Sunday, nine people were killed in a crash on the N2 just passed the Nseleni off- ramp.
Kwazulu Private Ambulance spokesperson, Craig Botha, said a taxi and an SUV collided.
"Sadly, eight patients sustained fatal injuries and succumbed to their injuries before emergency services arrived," he said.
Another person died in hospital, while eight more are recovering.
In a second collision, in Yellowwood Park, Emer-G-Med spokesperson Kyle van Reenen said an elderly man and a woman sustained serious injuries following a head-on collision on Codemore Road. Both were stabilised at the scene before they were taken to
hospital for further care.
Brics to provide financial and political support to respond to future pandemics: Ramaphosa
President says Brics countries have agreed to mobilise the political and financial resources needed to respond to future pandemic preparedness
1 3 S E P T E M B E R 2 0 2 1 - 1 5 : 1 7 N O N K U LU L E K O N J I L O
Brics countries have agreed to mobilise resources to respond to future pandemics, says President Cyril Ramaphosa. File photo.
Image: GCIS
President Cyril Ramaphosa says Brics countries have agreed to mobilise the political and financial resources needed to respond to future pandemic preparedness.
This follows SA's participation in the 13th Brics summit last week.
Ramaphosa, writing in his weekly newsletter, hailed the partnership, which he said has reaped the benefits of economic co-operation and continues to do so, 11 years on.
“Bilateral trade has grown, particularly with China and India, with commodity exports and manufactured goods imports featuring strongly,” he said on Monday.
“The Brics countries continue to be important sources of foreign direct investment in key areas such as mining, automotive, transportation, clean energy, financial services and IT.”
Ramaphosa made reference to Deloitte’s 2018 review of SA’s membership in the partnership which found that Brics partners “invested three times more capital in the country compared to the seven years prior to 2011”.
He said these investments and projects have led to significant job creation, despite unemployment reaching a record high of 7.8-million in the second quarter of 2021.
The countries are said to have agreed on the need for mutual recognition of national documents of vaccination and systems of Covid-19 testing —
something vital to cross-border travel in the future, Ramaphosa said.
As part of future pandemic preparedness, he said the partners had agreed to establish a virtual Brics vaccine research and development centre and an integrated early-warning system to forecast future outbreaks of infectious diseases.
Brics partners agreed to strengthen collaboration in sectors such as energy, IT, science, technology and innovation, agriculture and the green economy.
“These are all important sectors identified in our economic reconstruction and recovery plan announced last year,” Ramaphosa said.
The partnership was also expected to accelerate the country’s move towards low-carbon development in the fight against climate change.
“This is particularly important within the context of climate action. Like most countries, SA seeks to move towards a low-carbon development path that is inclusive, sustainable and takes into account our status as a developing country,” he said. “The Brics energy research co-operation platform will be valuable as we move to diversify our energy sources.”
The partnership was of immense strategic importance, he added. “In the 11 years since we joined Brics, our membership has substantially advanced our national interest.
“Being a member has enhanced our position as an important emerging economy,” Ramaphosa said.
Brics membership has given SA access to policy and technical expertise of larger and established economies, as well the support of the development bank. “It has strengthened our activism on the global stage, particularly around reform of multilateral institutions.”
Ace Magashule loses bid to
appeal against suspension from ANC
The high court has ruled that there are no compelling reasons for leave to appeal to be granted
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Suspended ANC Secretary-General Ace Magashule talks to journalists at Luthuli House in Johannesburg on February 26 2019. Picture: ALAISTER RUSSEL
Senior ANC official Ace Magashule lost an application for leave to appeal against a judgment that affirmed his suspension from the governing party.
“We concluded that there is no prospect that another court would come to a different conclusion, nor are there any compelling reasons leave to appeal should be granted,” according to a high court judgment handed down on Monday.
The ANC suspended Magashule, the party’s secretary-general, in May after he defied an ultimatum to vacate the post while he stood trial on graft and other charges.
Magashule has repeatedly challenged President Cyril Ramaphosa’s authority and been linked to an ANC faction aligned to former president Jacob Zuma, who the party forced to step down in 2018 after he became embroiled in a succession of scandals.
Magashule’s corruption case is scheduled to resume on October 19.
Business thrown a lifeline as SA moves to level 2 lockdown
President Ramaphosa urges people to get vaccinated as soon as possible
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President Cyril Ramaphosa updates SA on developments in the country’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic. Picture:
GCIS
As SA emerges from its deadly third wave of coronavirus infections, President Cyril Ramaphosa has eased key restrictions on alcohol sales and the size of gatherings, offering a lifeline to businesses and making it easier to register voters ahead of local government elections in November.
Restrictions have been moved from level 3 to level 2.
Urging people to get vaccinated as soon as possible to safeguard their own health and enable further opening of the economy, Ramaphosa said the government would provide an update on its plans for vaccine passports in two weeks’ time.
"Vaccines are safe, effective and free. [They] are the most potent weapon we have to fight this pandemic. The sooner we are all vaccinated, the sooner we can open up sports venues to spectators … welcome tourists to our beautiful country … [and] return our economy to full operation and create the jobs our country needs," he said.
The limit for indoor gatherings has been increased from 50 people to 250 and the outdoor limit from 100 to 500 people.
Restaurants and bars need to close at 10pm, an hour later than the previous restriction of 9pm.
Small venues that cannot safely accommodate 250 people may not operate at more than 50% of capacity and funerals remain restricted to 50 people.
Ramaphosa said: "In exactly 50 days’ time, South Africans will go to the polls in the local government elections. It is vital that as we undertake this great democratic exercise, we do everything within our means to prevent a resurgence of Covid-19 infections."
The restrictions have been straining businesses, such as restaurants, airlines and entertainment venues, threatening their survival and jobs as SA battles with the world’s highest unemployment rate.
Comair, which owns Kulula airline and is in business rescue, last week
announced it was forced to sell its slow airport lounge as a result of liquidity challenges. This came as flights were stopped for almost two months in response to lockdown restrictions.
Cinema chain Ster-Kinekor, which is also in business rescue, said to creditors the 50-person per show restriction had slowed its return to profitability.
President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that the country will be moved from adjusted level 3 to adjusted level 2 on September 13 2021.
The 10pm closure for restaurants and the prohibition of alcohol sales from retail outlets on weekends may still be too severe for some businesses to survive.
The alcohol industry last week said that restrictions allowing the sale of liquor between Monday and Thursday only were placing a severe strain on independent bottle stores, which were losing at least 50% of revenue.
The Consumer Goods Council of SA said in response to the continued
weekend sales ban that "there is no valid reason not to allow trading to take place for seven days under licence conditions".
The restaurant industry had been calling for an end to all restrictions, saying early curfews and closures keep many guests from coming out for dinner.
Wendy Alberts, CEO of the Restaurant Association of SA (Rasa), last week said a lack of government relief meant staff were unemployed: "Our restaurants are dying. We simply cannot continue to survive without our full dinner service offering."
Ramaphosa urged the nation to get vaccinated as soon as possible. "The day will soon come when we can gather again without restrictions, fill stadiums and music venues, travel and move about freely without the fear of becoming ill or losing our loved ones. How soon that day arrives depends on one thing:
how many of us get vaccinated and how quickly," he said.
SA’s vaccination drive got off to a slow start in February, hobbled by
bureaucratic delays, unexpected production problems and limited supplies.
But the government now has ample stock, and instead of confronting long queues at vaccination sites is battling to generate demand.
SA leads the African continent in vaccinations and had by Sunday evening administered more than 14.6-million doses to people aged 18 or older.
Only 7.19-million people, or 18% of the adult population, are fully immunised with either Pfizer’s double-shot jab or Johnson & Johnson’s single-shot vaccine, far from its goal of reaching 70% of the adult population.
Ramaphosa announced that after opening applications for the R350 special social relief of distress grant in August, it received nearly 13-million
applications, with 8.3-million approved and 3.7-million declined as it appeared applicants had other sources of income.
남아공 코로나 봉쇄령 완화…백신 여권 검토
송고시간 2021-09-13 18:08 김성진 기자기자 페이지
지난달 27일 기차 칸의 임시 접종소에서 한 남아공 남성이 백신을 맞고 있다.
[로이터=연합뉴스 자료사진]
(요하네스버그=연합뉴스) 김성진 특파원 = 남아프리카공화국이
13 일(현지시간)부터 신종 코로나바이러스 감염증(코로나 19)으로 인한 봉쇄령을 제 3 단계에서 제 2 단계로 완화했다.
시릴 라마포사 남아공 대통령은 전날 저녁 TV 로 생중계된 대국민 담화에서 "델타 변이가 주도한 3 차 감염 파동이 정점을 지났다"라면서 이같이 밝혔다. 지난 한주 코로나 19 감염률은 그 전주보다 29%, 전전주보다 48% 각각 감소했다.
이에 따라 야간통금 시작 시각은 오후 10 시에서 11 시로 한 시간 더 늦춰진다.
레스토랑, 바 등의 영업시간은 오후 10 시까지다.
주류 판매 허용 시간이 월요일∼금요일(오전 10 시∼오후 6 시)로 하루 더 늘어난다.
남아공은 6 월에 주류 판매를 재금지했다가 7 월부터 월요일∼목요일로 허용한 바 있다.
실내 모임은 50 명에서 250 명으로, 실외는 100 명에서 500 명으로 허용 인원이 각각 확대된다. 단 장례식은 50 명 이하로 유지된다.
이에 따라 50 일 후 열리는 지방선거를 대비한 선거 캠페인이 더 용이해지게 됐다.
또 라마포사 대통령은 다양한 목적으로 쓰일 수 있는 백신 접종 증명서인 '백신 여권' 도입을 검토하고 있다고 밝혔다.
봉쇄령 규제는 앞으로 2 주마다 조정을 위한 검토가 이뤄진다.
라마포사 대통령은 성인 남성의 접종이 상대적으로 낮다면서 경제의 온전한 재개 등을 위해 적극적 접종을 당부했다.
남아공은 700 만 명 이상이 완전 접종을 한 상태다. 성인 4 명 중 한 명 이상이 한차례 이상 접종했다.
라마포사 대통령은 12 월로 예상되는 제 4 차 감염 파동에 대비해서라도 백신을 맞아야 한다고 강조했다. 남아공은 인구의 3 분의 2 에 해당하는 4 천만 명을 내년 3 월까지 접종하는 것을 목표로 하고 있다.
남아공, 화이자 백신 12세 이상 사용 허가
송고시간 2021-09-11 21:29 김성진 기자기자 페이지
화이자 백신 12세 이상 사용을 허가한다는 남아공 보건제품 규제청
[SAHPRA 캡처, 재판매 및 DB 금지]
(요하네스버그=연합뉴스) 김성진 특파원 = 남아프리카공화국 보건제품
규제청(SAHPRA)이 10 일(현지시간) 화이자 백신의 12 세 이상 사용을 허가했다.
SAHPRA 는 성명에서 "일정 조건에서 긴급 사용을 허가하는 규정에 따라 지난 3 월 제출된 안정성과 효능에 관한 업데이트된 정보를 검토한 결과"라면서 이같이 밝혔다.
이로써 남아공 정부가 10 대들에게 신종 코로나바이러스 감염증(코로나 19) 예방백신을 접종할 수 있는 길이 열렸다. 로이터 통신에 따르면 남아공은 15 세 이하 인구가 28%나 될 정도로 젊은 층 인구가 많다.
남아공은 당초 접종 캠페인 시작부터 우여곡절을 겪었지만 지난 몇 달간 넉넉한 백신 확보하고 공급한 데 힘입어 6 천만 인구 가운데 12%를 갓 웃도는 접종률을 기록하고 있다. 이는 아프리카 대륙 내 다른 나라들보다 크게 앞서 있는 수치다.
남아공 중국 시노백 백신 어린이 2천명 접종 임상시험
송고시간 2021-09-11 19:01 김성진 기자기자 페이지
10일(현지시간) 남아공 수도 프리토리아서 한 미성년자가 시노백 백신을 맞고 있다.
[AP=연합뉴스]
(요하네스버그=연합뉴스) 김성진 특파원 = 남아프리카공화국이 신종
코로나바이러스 감염증(코로나 19) 예방과 관련, 중국산 시노백 백신을 어린이 2 천명에게 임상시험으로 접종하기 시작했다.
10 일(현지시간) AP, AFP 통신 등에 따르면 남아공은 이날 글로벌 임상 3 단계로 시노백의 코로나 19 백신을 생후 6 개월∼17 세 연령대를 대상으로 우선 수도 프리토리아에서부터 접종에 들어갔다. 이는 글로벌 임상시험의 일환으로 케냐, 필리핀, 칠레, 말레이시아 등에서 진행된다.
남아공은 앞서 18∼59 세에 대한 시노백 접종을 조건부로 승인한 바 있다.
시노백 백신은 이미 중국에서 3∼17 세 연령대를 상대로 긴급 사용 승인을 받았다.
남아공 현지 과학자들은 시노백 백신이 다른 백신 후보군에 비해 효능은 상대적으로 떨어질 수 있지만, 특히 어린이에게 매우 안전하다고 평가했다.
남아공은 인구의 3 분의 1 이상이 19 세 이하이다.
시노백은 남아공에 생산시설을 설치해 아프리카에 백신을 공급하는 방안을 함께 논의하고 있다고 남아공 제휴사 뉴모룩스가 밝혔다.
10일 프리토리아 시노백 임상접종에서 연설하는 천샤오둥 주남아공 중국대사
[AFP=연합뉴스]
시노백은 전 세계적으로 50 개국 이상에서 성인을 대상으로 사용 승인을 받았다.
남아공은 전체 인구 6 천만 명 가운데 4 천만 명을 연말까지 접종하기 위해 하루 30 만 명 이상을 접종하는 캠페인을 펼치고 있다. 현재 얀센 백신과 화이자 백신을 이용한 완전 접종자는 700 만 명에 달한다.
정부는 이날 디지털 접종 증명서를 발급하는 방안을 추진하기로 했다. 일부 사업장에서는 백신 접종자에 한해 입장을 허용하는 방침을 세웠다.
