Fear lessl y the tr uth 27 January 2017
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Rural ares:FREE • Platteland: GRATIS
kykNET wie kuier hier Die gewilde kykNET kook en gesêls reeks “Kampkos” maak reg vir ‘n derde seisoen op die kassie. Skrywer en vervaardigers van dié Afrikaanse reeks is die naweek hier op ATKV Eiland se kampterrein gewaar, besig om nog ‘n episode te verfilm. “Ons
fokus is op lekker braai-resepte vir die kampliefhebbers,” verduidelik John-Henry Opperman. “Ons poog om plaaslike bekendes soos akteurs en musikante op ons program as gaste aan te bied en hulle eie spesiale kampkosresepte met ons kykers te deel.” Kampkos is deur die egpaar, John-Henry en Beáte Opperman geskryf en aangebied. Die reeks het in 2016 afgeskop met hul eerste gas-kok, Tannie Poppie Coetzer van Kokkedoor-faam wat haar Brandrissie-sjokolade beesfillet medaljeresep aan kykers bekendgestel het. Verskeie ander kunstenaars het intussen op die program verskyn insluitend Simon Bruinders, Kurt Darren, Zita Pretorius en Chris Chameleon. Ons het die span gisteroggend oppad terug Johannesburg toe raak geloop. Van links is Zanda Traut, Dawie de Jager en aanbieders John-Henry Opperman en Beáte Opperman. — Joe Dreyer
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WOF: here are the facts
The Letaba Fire Protection Agency (LFPA) this week lashed out against misconstrued allegations made by the GTM‘s spokesperson regarding the clearing of vegetation from powerlines by the Working on Fire (WOF) team. Last week, we reported on the minutes of a meeting between members of the farming community and the GTM top management to address the issues prohibiting a solution to the current debilitating power crisis in the area. The absence of a contractor to clear the vegetation under powerlines was one of these concerns. Neville Ndlala, spokesperson for the GTM, responded by blaming WOF for abandoning a project they had apparently been employed to complete. “We worked with them and they dis-
appeared after a week. There is also a need to pay them for the work,” he said. “We have told the farmers that we will appoint companies to do vegetation control on an emergency basis.” The Chairperson of the LFPA, Trevor Phillips, explained that WOF is a government-funded, job-creation programme focused on implementing Integrated Fire Management in South Africa and that the LFPA is currently in a seven-year partnership agreement with the organization for their Tzaneen team. Under this agreement, the Tzaneen team is made available to LFPA member landowners to conduct manual fuel load reduction activities and other services, free of charge. The landowner is, however, required to pay the team’s transport at a per-kilometre rate if WOF transport is used. At the time, the GTM
was a fully paid up LFPA member. “The reference was quoted out of context,” Phillips said. “During February 2015, LFPA employees met with the management of the GTM and offered the WOF team to the municipality to clear under lines and around sub-stations. There was no offer to fell trees or remove above ground risks as this was outside the capability of the WOF team.” He said after numerous attempts and discussions, WOF was finally utilised in the Campsies Glen area in August of 2015. “After the third day, the team was stopped by both the GTM and LFPA as no agreement could be reached on the payment requirements as per legislation. This was subsequently resolved. The GTM has not requested the team again. It was also the beginning of the
fire season where the team was required to be on standby at base for runaway veldfires. The GTM settled the transport account.” Is the information handed to the GTM’s communications department, clearly researched before being released to the media, or could the regular misunderstandings be attributed to ulterior motives? Meanwhile, heavy rains struck Tzaneen hard this week which added to the frustration of the farming community. They were left without power and answers again as uprooted trees damaged powerlines. As yet, there is still no contractor appointed for vegetation control and no indication of a time frame by the GTM for this appointment either. — Joe Dreyer joe@bulletin.us.com