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2017
Ancillary Health
Est 2009 Issue 1 - 2017 Tel : 011 024-8210 / 011 402 - 1977 Inner-City Gazette
12 - 19 January 2017 Fax: 086 609 8601
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5% rise in road carnage
Staff Reporter news@inner-city-gazette.co.za
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ransport Minister Dipuo Peters has released the festive season road death statistics for 2016. Peters says a total of 1,714 fatalities were recorded in this festive period, which is a 5% increase on the previous period. By mid-December Peters says her depart-
ment had already recorded more than 800 fatalities on the country’s roads since the beginning of the festive season. In this, the minister says the overwhelming majority of fatal crashes were as a result of a single motor vehicle overturning and head on-collisions. The early December 2016 figures were a staggering 17% increase in road crashes compared to the same period in 2015.
Peters says 432 roadblocks were conducted throughout the country during the festive period and 453, 263 fines were issued. She says the back-to-back extended long weekend over Christmas and New Year 2016/17 posed a challenge to road safety and the rain complicated factors. Pictured: Transport Minister Dipuo Peters
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Inner-city Gazette
12 - 19 January 2017
JMPD arrests 1 500 errant drivers over festive season Distribution – Free copies door to door delivery weekly to all households and businesses in the Joburg inner-city. Inner-City Gazette welcomes editorial contributions from readers. They may raise new issues or respond to articles published in the paper. Contributions may be sent to the editor’s address below. Published by Inner-City Gazette 149 Pritchard Street, Johannesburg 2000 Tel : 011 024 - 8210
ur business 011 023 - 7588 011 402 - 1977 Fax : 086 609 8601 Email : info@inner-city-gazette.co.za Website : www.inner-city-gazette.co.za All rights and reproduction of articles, images and other items published in this publication are reserved in terms of Section 12(7) of the Copyright Act 96 (1978) and its amendments thereof.
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Staff Reporter news@inner-city-gazette.co.za
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ore than 1 500 drivers were arrested in Johannesburg for drunken driving and speeding as the Johannesburg Metro Police Department (JMPD) clamped down on errant behaviour on the city’s roads during the festive season. JMPD had deployed more than 2 500 officers throughout the city during the holiday period to ensure that offenders who did not adhere to the rules of the road met the full might of the law. Several roadblocks were mounted on the freeways, major roads and other hot spots throughout the city. JMPD Spokesperson Chief Superintendent Wayne Minnaar said the number of motorists
who drove under the influence of alcohol was a cause for concern. “Every year during the holiday season we plead with motorists to do the right thing by keeping to the speed limit, not drinking while driving and pulling over when they want to text,” said Minnaar. He emphasised the importance of adhering to the rules of the road and being considerate to other road users. “When people respect the rules of the road, they will minimise the number of accidents and fatalities that we have on our roads. We, as JMPD, cannot do this alone, hence we ask motorists to join us to make our roads safer,” said Minnaar. He said there had been a 17% increase in the number of road deaths nationally over the
Shooting at house of ill repute Staff Reporter news@inner-city-gazette.co.za
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n urge to quench one’s sexual desires led to the shooting of a 30-year-old male several times in the lower body at one of the ladies of the night spots, corner Nugget and President Street on the 31st of December 2016. It is alleged that, having agreed on the terms with one of the ladies, the gunman went into a dark flat to taste one of the thigh vendors. On their way up the stairs, two males approached them and robbed him of his bag and cellphone.
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As the robbers ran away the man pulled out his licensed firearm and fired several shots, only the female was shot at. After gathering his senses the gunman fled the scene, however he did not realise that community members were following him unnoticed, as they saw a police vehicle they quickly alerted the cops who managed to apprehended the suspect and recovered the licensed firearm used in the commission of a crime. Meanwhile, in an unrelated incident a 32-year-old man suffered a near death assault when he was ambushed with pavement bricks
Minnaar urged motorists: • To drive within the speed limit; • Not to overtake when it is not safe to do so; • To refrain from drinking alcohol or taking drugs before undertaking their journeys; • To wear their seat belts at all times; and • To adjust the speed when driving in the rain. festive season. Johannesburg also experienced an increase in road fatalities, he said. “On New Year’s Day, a taxi collided with a Corsa along the R550, south of Johannesburg, causing both vehicles to burst into flames. Both occupants of the Corsa and six people travelling in the taxi were burnt beyond recognition,” said Minnaar. on the 31st of December 2016. It is alleged that the man was confronted by an unknown assailant as he walked through a bridge. The attacker started assaulting him with bricks until he was unconscious and robbed him of his cellphone. The criminal ran out of luck when he was apprehended by community members who quickly contacted the police. According to Captain Xoli Mbele, An Ambulance also arrived on the scene and took the victim to hospital. “Police would like to thank members of the community for being our eyes and ears in the fight against crime. The suspect was also not assaulted by the members of the community. Keep up the good work”, Mbele said.
12 - 19 January 2017
Inner-city Gazette
All set for Joburg’s ward committee elections Staff Reporter news@inner-city-gazette.co.za
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ohannesburg residents are going back to the polls in less than three weeks. This time the voters will elect ward committee members in all the City of Johannesburg’s 135 wards. The ward committee elections, to be conducted by the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC), will take place across the city over three consecutive Saturdays –January 28, February 4 and February 11. The elections, established in terms of the Local Government Act of 1998, follow a citywide educational campaign held towards the end of 2016. Venues for the elections will be announced shortly. Ward committees play an important role in municipal affairs in that they assist democratically elected public representatives to carry out their mandate. Patrick Nhlapo, the City’s Deputy Director of Community Participation, said preparations for the elections had already started. “Our process of educating citizens about the ward committee elections through workshops went quite well. We concluded the workshops on November 13 last year,” Nhlapo said. “During the campaign, Johannesburg citizens showed interest in the elections. Even our local councillors requested us to extend the workshops to certain areas in order to reach more communities. “After the workshops, we were inundated with calls from people requesting nomination forms. We had only printed 10 000 forms in the beginning. We had to go back to print 10 000 more. This emanated from the adverts we ran with a number of media organisations,” Nhlapo said. He said in many areas – such as Orange Farm, Ivory Park and Soweto – communities came in large numbers to attend the workshops.
“In other parts of the city, particularly the former white areas, the numbers showed a slight decline. We strategised and started distributing leaflets in those areas. It was simply because certain communities prefer other methods of public participation to attending workshops,” he said. More than 3 800 candidates have been registered. Ballot papers will be printed as soon as the candidates’ details have been verified and the papers signed off. The ward committee elections were announced in October last year by Council Speaker Cllr Vasco da Gama, who called on all residents who had time to serve their community to avail themselves to be elected by their sectors to any portfolio of their interest. The sectors are housing, transport, public safety, finance and economic development, environment and infrastructure services (City Power, Johannesburg Water, and Pikitup), community development 1 (sports, culture and youth), community development 2 (women, faith-based groups, community-based organisations and non-governmental organisations), health, development planning and urban management. Elected ward committee members will be entitled to a R1 000 monthly stipend and a cellphone allowance. Although ward committees have no legal persona, they serve as advisory committees in support of ward councillors. Under the leadership of ward councillors, they facilitate meaningful participation in council affairs and in the resolution of residents’ problems, over and above other stakeholder engagements. “Ward committees are there to encourage residents to participate actively in the affairs of local government and ensure that their issues are brought to the attention of the local municipality,” Nhlapo said.
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Inner-city Gazette
Hawks to swoop on corrupt City officials
12 - 19 January 2017
2017 will be a big year for Joburgers - Mashaba
Some of the colourful participants at the joburg Carnival who went through the streets of Hillbrow, Braamfontein and Newtown before culminating in the New Year’s Eve Concert at the square. A summary of the different CoJ Licensing Centres, the total amount of transactions and the total rand value allegedly lost from each centre. Staff Reporter news@inner-city-gazette.co.za
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total of 106 City of Johannesburg licensing centre officials will be arrested in the coming days and face charges of corruption and fraud. The Executive Mayor announced today that the Hawks will arrest three officials from the Sandton Licensing Department and four from the Martindale Bulk Licensing Department on charges of fraud. Between January 2008 and February 2016, 972 alleged fraudulent transactions with a total value of R14,717,444.00 were identified within the City of Johannesburg. Through the investigation conducted by head of Internal Investigations Major-General Shadrack
Sibiya, it was noted that the problem is not limited to the City of Johannesburg. Mayor Mashaba said between January 2008 and February 2016, these fraudulent transactions were valued at R 155 074 672.08 nationally. “Corruption is deplorable and steals from the poor. When I took office, I declared corruption public enemy number one. I promised to root out corruption in the City of Johannesburg and to bring those responsible for its existence to book. I am proud to say this administration is living up to that promise,” said Mayor Mashaba. Each of the suspects will be immediately suspended pending swift disciplinary processes by the City.
@HermanMashaba is honoured, excited & humbled to meet a woman who has given her life to the city.
Joburg Inner-City
Staff Reporter news@inner-city-gazette.co.za
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ohannesburg Executive Mayor Cllr Herman Mashaba was among more than 20 000 revellers who packed the Mary Fitzgerald Square in Newtown late on Saturday night to witness the countdown to the New Year during the 12th edition of the Johannesburg Carnival. The iconic square was the venue of a star-studded concert featuring artists such as DJ AJ (Blindfold), Kid X, DJ Clock, Four, Encore, DJ Speedsta, Afrikan Roots, Arthur Mafokate, Ishmael, DJ Sbu, Khuli Chana, Donald, Durban Nyts, Chomee, Brickz, Cici and Kelly Khumalo. King Monada, the S’ka Bora Moreki hitmaker, was one of the artists who left the crowd screaming for more. The 2016 carnival, aimed at promoting unity and addressing crime in Hillbrow and the rest of the inner city, winged its way through the streets of Hillbrow, Braamfontein
and Newtown before culminating in the New Year’s Eve Concert at the square. Addressing concertgoers, Mayor Mashaba said better opportunities awaited the city’s people in the New Year. “2017 will be a big year for the City of Johannesburg. The City will be more responsible in driving the economy of the country as a whole,” he said. The Mayor said people took part in the carnival because they were excited to be part of the city. “As we celebrate the New Year, we still bear in mind that a big number of people are unemployed and many in the city have no access to electricity and water,” said Cllr Mashaba. He said the City had to strive to create a better and a “world-class African city” in the New Year and ensure that all the standards of a “working city” were met. This would be achieved through better service delivery among disadvantaged communities. “We would like to reassure our
people that we are committed to looking after their interests and turning Johannesburg into a city that we will all be proud of. “We also cannot let our people live in an environment where there is no safety. We have a constitutional responsibility as government to ensure that we provide that safety on a daily basis. And we are committed to eradicating all the crime and grime plaguing this city,” Mashaba said. “We are hoping that things will get better in the New Year. And as we celebrate the beginning of 2017, we will be making sure that there are more prospects for our people. We will bring the private sector in in order to provide employment opportunities for our people, particularly the youth.”
“we are committed to looking after our people’s interests and turning Johannesburg into a city that we will all be proud of.”
City’s clampdown on illegal miners over water use Staff Reporter news@inner-city-gazette.co.za
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Ingrid Gretchen Grove is Joburg’s longest serving civil servant. She has served the City of Johannesburg for 47 years, having joined the city at 16 years.
wo City of Johannesburg entities - the Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA) and Johannesburg Water (JW) - as well as the South African Police Service (SAPS) recently embarked on a campaign in Matholeville, near Roodepoort, on the West Rand to raise awareness among illegal miners on the impact of illegal water usage on the City’s overall water supply. The illegal miners, known as zama zamas, use the water to process illegally procured gold. There are more than 2 000 illegal miners in Matholeville. Many come from Lesotho, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. Gold is extracted illegally from mine shafts that are no longer in operation. According to the SAPS, there are six open mine shafts in the area. Once the rocks have been brought
to the surface, water connected illegally is used on slabs called James Tables to wash it. When that process is concluded, the gold is burnt over coals and is ready for sellers. Conel Mackay, JRA’s Infrastructure Protection Manager, said the operation was aimed at informing residents that illegal miners were abusing water and committing a crime. “It is really about highlighting water wastage. We have brought all stakeholders on board. Water is being diverted illegally for this purpose and residents are now experiencing reduced supplies. If we can bring illegal use of water down, then we’ll be able to bring this scourge under control,” said Mackay. Isaac Sithole from Zimbabwe has been mining in the area illegally for two months. “We don’t usually sell the gold ourselves. There are people who come and collect the gold. They then take it to dealers in the
Johannesburg CBD. Our job is to dig and process it,” said Sithole. Twenty-nine-year-old mother of two Tsitsi Maposa, 29, also from Zimbabwe, started working as an illegal miner in September 2014. “My day starts at 6.30am and ends at 4pm. I usually charge R100 for my services as a grinder,” said Maposa.
12 - 19 January 2017
Inner-city Gazette
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Inner-city Gazette
12 - 19 January 2017
Inner-city Gazette
12 - 19 January 2017
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Police Numbers To report crime in your area contact your nearest police station.
Jeppe Police Yeoville Police Braamfontein Police Hillbrow Police 011 624 6066 011 487 5900 011 274 7300 011 488 6511
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Joburg Carnival in pictures
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MMC Cllr Nonhlanhla Sifumba
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One of the colourful participants
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The 2017 Carnival exhibited colourful and beautiful costumes to the delight of many.
Enjoying the atmosphere: Joburg Mayor Cllr Herman Mashaba, Joburg Speaker Vasco Da Gama and MMC Nonhlanhla Sifumba.